Life comes a full circle, from not having a cabin to getting a new one. Not so long ago, I wrote about my attachment to the beautiful office cabin that I had in a piece titled “cabin pressure”. How easy it is to get attached to something. How soon I forget the lessons learnt.
I walked into office the other day and saw someone sitting in “my cabin” or at least the one that I had been sitting in for a few months now. A surge of irritation had to be arrested. Luckily, I caught it in time and searched for another place to sit. “My cabin” brings with it a sense of entitlement. It also brings a sense of belonging and a feeling of being connected to a space and a place. I remind myself that the belonging is good but the space is not mine and the entitlement needs to be quickly extinguished. I am owed nothing. Every day when I walk into office whatever space I occupy is my cabin and if it’s a nurturing space that I create around me, then my team and I will grow.
I can make a difference in any space, which is what I must do. If I’m entitled to anything it’s the right to create a psychologically safe workplace. How to do this in a pressure cooker work environment that the PR profession often creates, is the task at hand. Creating a pressurised cabin space so that all who are in it are protected from the external environment and can enjoy their work is what I must focus on. This requires me not to get entangled in “my cabin” space. This is not to say I don’t want a lovely workspace. The days I have the space, will be enjoyed and relished. On the days I don’t, I will focus my energy on other things.
Belonging without attachment or entitlement is the goal. That is the key to good cabin etiquette.
“When the ego weeps for what it has lost, the spirit rejoices for what it has found” – from a Sufi proverb. A quote that brings back the essence of my experience of losing a cabin. I had the pleasure of re-reading the original post which was really a note to myself in April of 2019, when I was grappling with this change
A pressurised cabin is what’s truly important and that can be created around you wherever you go. A safe space. Where your team and clients can flourish. On a plane that is headed to a destination that they all signed up for. Making the journey enjoyable and ensuring that we get there in good time and enjoyed travelling with each other. That is what travelling in a pressurised Cabin should provide.
A space to celebrate. A space to reflect in silence. To retreat from the world to reenergise to get ready to take on the next challenge. That and more is what a good pressurised cabin needs to offer. A place of calm. A place of creativity. A place to have honest conversations. A place to receive feedback. A place to avert a crisis. A place to co-create. A place to solve. A Sharing-Caring-Space is what a pressurised cabin should be. Create that space. Take it with you wherever you go.
“When I let go of who I am, I become who I might be” – Lao Tzu.
The journey of understanding and mastering my EGO and not letting it be the master of me is an everyday affair.
Let the EGO go. lEt GO.
The views and opinions published here belong to the author and do not necessarily reflect the views and opinions of the publisher.
A trusted coaching and communications professional, Nikhil Dey is a certified life and leadership coach (International Coach Federation - ICF). Nurturing talent and helping clients achieve their goals is what makes him happy. He loves learning from students of communication, teaching courses and guest lecturing at various educational institutions. When he is not working you will find him on the tennis court or out for long walks with his family and four legged friends.
Previously he has held senior leadership positions at Weber Shandwick and Genesis BCW.
He can be reached on twitter @deydreaming
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