I hear there’s a flu epidemic. No, I didn’t get the shot. Perhaps i’m poorly informed, but i could never reconcile why its a good idea to inject yourself with the flu so you don’t get the flu. Do they take that same measure for syphilis? I’m not rolling that dice.
So back to the epidemic. I’m currently at 35,000 feet flying to sunny Cabo and the guy right behind me keeps coughing…incessantly, like water dripping from a pipe, every 15 seconds or so. And I can’t stop thinking that i’ve got flu all over the back of my head. Good times.
I’m a frequent traveler. I’ll log around 100k actual flight miles, all domestic this year. Mostly I’m flying to see partners and customers or speaking to groups. All of it is done on packed airplanes sharing air with the infected and afflicted. Is it me, or has it gotten worse? Planes are more crowded. Bugs are more common. I’m crammed into a petrie dish with the rest of them.
So I ask myself, could there be a better way? I love to see people, but do I need to touch people? Could I have the same meaningful conversations and interactions through video? If I could read their expressions and see their reactions and they could see mine, do I really need to shake their hand or pat them on the shoulder…and so many people are huggers now….I’m a hugger…what am i thinking?!
Germs aside, this video thing could really change a lot for me. If it means less flying, it could mean a lot of great stuff. More time with the family? Eating better? Exercising more? More meetings in a day? Getting more done? And perhaps less sick days?
I’m not quite ready to give up the beaches of sunny Cabo to avoid the cougher behind me, but if it means fewer trips to O’hare in February or Dulles in August…I say bring it on!
