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Small steps cause a significant impact

Small steps cause a significant impact

A jet plane with 257 passengers onboard departed from New Zealand airport to experience Antarctica and back. A ground handling staff from the air traffic control department altered the flight coordinates by 2 degrees, putting the aircraft 28 miles east from where they were supposed to be. Sadly that alteration put them directly on the top of Mount Erebus, an active volcano.

Despite turbulence and other conditions keeping aeroplanes off-course 90% of flight time, most flights arrive at the correct destination at the intended time. The snow on the volcano blended with the clouds above, deceiving the pilots into thinking they were flying above flat ground. When the instruments sounded a warning of the quickly rising ground, it was too late. The plane crashed into the volcano, and everyone onboard died.

The reason for the accident was the pilot’s dependency on air traffic control for constantly course correcting their movement. Course correction includes notification and pathway correction to help the pilot stay on course and reach the destination.

This flight analogy is so much contextually relevant to our lives. Even seemingly inconsequential aspects of our lives can create ripples and waves of consequence — for better or worse.

I have some homework for you — Citing this lesson, how do you notify and course correct if you are flying the aircraft called your life:

  • How are you piloting your life and checking whether you are on the right course?
  • What feedback are you receiving to correct your course?
  • Do you have a guidance system? How often do you check your guidance system?
  • Where is your destination?
  • When are you going to get there?
  • Are you on-course or off-course?
  • How would you know if you are on the right course?
  • How do you minimize the turbulence and other conditions distracting your path?

What do you think?