A Tale of Stewards and Flight Attendants

Some travel annoyances are universal. The primary one is Flight Attendants who behave like [rhymes with witches]. There isn’t a personality type on the planet who enjoys having someone condescendingly tell them their bag is sticking out too far from under the seat or that they need to shut down their toddler’s video monitor even though the businesss guy across the aisle continues to talk unfettered on his cellphone. I’m left wondering that if I was a 6’4″ male instead of a 5’5″ female, I’d somehow be allowed to keep my video player on until I decided I was done.

As a Classic Freedom (SFJ), I deal with these types of mercurial flight attendants by referring to them as stewards or stewardesses within earshot. I know the preferred PC term is flight attendants so I get a certain inner satisfaction in using this dated terminology on the less friendly servers in the sky. “I’m sorry Teddy. The steward told us we had to turn off the video player until we are in the air.” If someone could just once explain the technological reason a video player could in anyway disrupt take-off, I’d be forever grateful. Let’s face it, I remember to turn off my cellphone maybe 60-70% of the time. If electronics were that dangerous, wouldn’t there be some sort of ban on cellphones even being IN the cabin?

I suppose how a Smart (NT) might handle the same witchy steward situation would be similar to Alec Baldwin’s recent scuffle on American Airlines. Although, I’d say most might stop short of getting themselves actually kicked off the plane, which brings me to the 2nd universal travel annoyance: unexpected delays. When Mr. Baldwin was removed from that plane, he probably ticked off basically everyone on that plane unless my friend Megan McNamara were on board. He can do no wrong in her eyes but she’s also an Organic Freedom so better at going with the flow and seeing the positive in a situation.

Delays are a universal annoyance mainly because even personality types that usually go with the flow are stretching their preferences when travelling on planes and trains, because they’ve had to deal with time schedules  — how else do they make their flights? That means Funs (SPs), Organic Freedoms (NFP) and Smart Freedoms (NFP) are going to be as equally annoyed with delays as the more structured types — Classics (SJ), Organic Structures (NFJ) and Smart Structures (NTJ). The main difference will be that Funs, Organic Freedoms and Smart Freedoms might be more apt to just accept it and relax whereas Classics, Organic Structures and Smart Structures want results and are more likely to immediately alter plans to find a solution. Relaxing is a much tougher goal in the face of a delay for these types.