As the two-hour flight got underway, Christy waited anxiously for the flight attendants to begin passing out refreshments. Deep, stabbing hunger pains radiated through her stomach. Her hand automatically went to her belly and she rubbed the little baby bump that was just beginning to be noticeable now that she was in her second trimester. Maybe they’d take pity on the rushed pregnant lady who hadn’t had a chance to eat in 14 hours and give her a few extra bags of pretzels.
But what happened next defied all expectations.
Upon apologetically telling the flight attendant her plight and asking for extra pretzels if at all possible, Christy was completely shocked at the woman’s response.
“I have a sausage and egg biscuit. Would you like that?” she asked. “Let me go get that for you.”
Before Christy could form a response, the flight attendant had disappeared down the aisle and returned a minute later holding a warm breakfast sandwich and some apple juice. With a sweet and genuine smile, the flight attendant offered her own breakfast to the overwhelmed and emotional pregnant woman.
Tears streaming down her face, Christy choked out a “Thank you,” and accepted the generous and completely unexpected gift. As she sat there and gratefully ate a stranger’s breakfast, she reflected on what had just happened:
“There’s no company policy that prepares someone for serving a ravenous pregnant woman on a plane. It’s an act of service that can’t be trained by a leader or taught in an employee handbook… regardless of what type of business you’re in or in what capacity you lead, your best asset will always be people around you who genuinely care about their work, their coworkers and their customers. Of course, you want to hire competent, skilled team members who are high-performing individuals. But above all else, you want to hire people who care.”
As I read the article this story came from (“The Quality That Can’t Be Taught,” by Christy Wright) I was deeply touched by the kindness, generosity, and initiative that flight attendant took. Without any hesitation, she graciously and sincerely offered a helping hand—far beyond her call of duty, and at her own expense. After finishing the article, I browsed through some of the comments below. One comment, written by commenter Kimunya Mugo, really stood out to me: “Wow! What an example of leadership without a title.”
Leadership without a title. That is something I believe in very strongly! No matter who you are, no matter what your position, no matter whether you have a “leader’s title” or not, you are a leader. And YOU can make a difference!
Who can you be a leader to today? Who can you make a difference for today? YOU are a leader, title or not. Be a leader! Make a difference!
To read the full article where this story came from, please click here.
