On a recent trip home from Connecticut to Nashville, that dreaded thing happened: a flight cancellation.
I hate when this happens. I deliberately fly out first thing in the morning before any delays stack up. On this particular Friday morning I was standing in the TSA security line at the Bradley Airport in Hartford when I heard on the overhead pager for any passengers on Flight 237 to contact the gate agent. I walked over to the Southwest Airlines agent at Gate 2 and she told me the flight was cancelled and that If I got on the earlier one to Baltimore, I could catch a 3:15 flight to Nashville. There was nothing earlier. It was a Friday during Spring Break so all the flights were full.
So I put on my “normal” face and boarded the plane. In Baltimore, I also put on my “normal” face and was able to get on an earlier Nashville flight and got home at 11:00 AM. It ended up well.
What is “normal” face? I got the concept after listening to retired Navy SEAL Jocko Willink’s podcast. It’s the face you use to hold back emotion. Stoic. Not wound up. He plays a game with his kids where he pops them on top of the head with a pool noodle. The kid that doesn’t change expression wins. Child abuse? You have my permission to scold Jocko. Go for it!
In my travels, I see lots of the opposite of “normal” face, we can refer to it as “emotion” face. The angry entitled customer yelling at the gate agent. The customer at the DMV who is pissed because they waited an hour in the wrong line. The person angrily trying to talk themselves out of a speeding ticket. Most of the time, “emotion” face loses.
As The Boss, I’m sure you have a daily battle keeping “normal” face but it’s worth fighting. When there’s a crisis, your team looks to you for stability. If you have “emotion” face, they’ll get it too. I think “normal” face has a calming effect. By working up your “normal” face, you’ll automatically calm down your Amygdala reducing the chance that you’ll blow up and say or do something you’ll regret.
This week, take some time to look in the mirror and construct your “normal” face. Work on it. Practice it. Use it. It works for me and I’m sure it will for you too!