The Big Bag Theory

I was scheduled to attend a large conference on the big island of Hawaii. Since my wife and son had never been to Hawaii, we decided to make it a working vacation. By that, I mean I would be working, and they would be on vacation.

In an effort to be strategic in our planning, I decided to figure out how to go to Hawaii for a week with as few bags as possible. I hate dealing with bags. It’s a colossal pain to manage a lot of luggage while navigating airports, shuttle buses, rental cars, and hotels. I want no part of being compared to the Griswold’s when we travel. For those of you unfamiliar, this is a reference to a wonderful film about the joys of vacationing with one’s family. I would encourage you to find it and watch it. It’s called National Lampoon’s Vacation.

I asked Lisa, my wife, if she thought we could go to Hawaii with only two checked bags and one carry-on bag each. She smiled and said, “I will do my best!”.

A week or so later I was driving up to our house and noticed the UPS driver struggling to get two large boxes from his truck to our front door. As soon as he drove off, I went to investigate. When I got to the boxes, I saw the name of a well-known luggage company stamped on the side. My heart sank and my knees buckled as I hauled the boxes inside. As I opened the boxes, I discovered two of the biggest suitcases I’d ever seen in my life. Lisa, hearing the commotion came into the room and said, “Oh good, our new luggage is here.” I looked up and said, “Honey…really?” She giggled and said, “Sweetheart, you asked me to get us there in two bags. You didn’t say anything about their size.”

She was right. This professional speaker had failed to clarify his message to an audience of one.

My wife is a good packer and believes in being prepared for anything. She will fill every available square inch of a suitcase. Have I mentioned these bags were big? Everything we owned was in these bags. We could have left the house unlocked the entire time we were gone – there was nothing for anyone to steal. We took it all with us.?

We arrived at the airport and as we entered through the sliding double doors the ticket agent locked eyes with mine. She immediately began to chuckle at the sight of me wrestling our bags through the doors that kept closing before I was through them.?As we got closer to her, she was laughing uncontrollably and pointing. Needless to say, these bags made an impression. Everyone noticed them.

When we made it to the counter our new friend had tears in her eyes. She had called over several co-workers to come see the freak show with the oversized bags. She composed herself, looked at us, and said “honey, those bags are going to cost you a small fortune to get to Hawaii.” Looking back, I’m surprised they didn’t charge us a full fare ticket for each bag. I was embarrassed and mad at myself. This was my plan, and it was backfiring.

The gate agent finished checking us in and we were on our way. We had a wonderful time in Hawaii and had all the comforts of home – because we brought them with us.

Two Lessons learned

When I reflect on that trip and get past the embarrassment of the moment, I am reminded of two powerful and profound lessons that I learned from that trip.

Lesson One: Life charges baggage fees. The airlines didn’t invent baggage fees. Life did. We pay a heavy price for the things we drag around. Negative thoughts, criticisms, failures, and other people’s opinions just to name a few. Everything that happens to us we throw into our big bag and drag it with us everywhere we go. The bigger the bag the greater the cost. The bigger the bag the harder it becomes to move from where we are to someplace new. The bigger the bag the more difficult the journey becomes.

Heroes know that in order to fly higher they need to let go of the things that weigh them down and keep them from soaring to their potential.

Lesson Two: The other lesson I learned that day is that heroes are called to lighten the load for others. Heroes solve problems and make life better for the people around them. They show up and help others unpack the unnecessary. Turning checked bags into carry-ons for fellow sojourners of life.

When you see customers, colleagues, family, friends, and even complete strangers – imagine that they are dragging a big bag behind them. And in that bag are all of their troubles. Their fears, their doubts, and the worries of the day are all in that bag. Your challenge, if you’re willing to accept it, is to reduce the baggage fees of life. To give them something good to hold onto instead of the garbage they have been taking with them everywhere they go.

?What do you need to let go of right now in order to fly higher?

?What can you do to lighten the load for someone else?

Enjoy reading Kevin’s newsletter? Forward it to your friends and colleagues with a recommendation they subscribe as well. Here is the subscription?link.?Kevin D. Brown?is a branding and culture expert.

He’s an award-winning motivational speaker, bestselling author, and the creator of The Hero Effect?.?Follow him on?LinkedIn,?Instagram,?Facebook, and?Twitter.