Cut Your Losses, Part Two

Flying back to Europe, my first of two flights was delayed due to thunderstorms. Not local storms, mind you, but storms at the layover destination. We deplaned, and I immediately got on the phone with United customer service. I didn’t have a very long layover to begin with, and this two hour ground delay would make catching my international flight almost impossible. 

For whatever reason, airline code-shares or ticket ownership or itinerary access, it took close to an hour to find an alternative route home. 

I was still on hold with customer service when the delayed flight began to board again. I was waiting for confirmation of the route change when a sinking feeling came over me. 

Did I just screw up my entire flight home? 

What if the delayed flight might somehow get me to my connecting flight on time? 

Was I over reacting, searching for an alternative before it was really necessary?

This is the flip side of cutting your losses. Sometimes you really should just stick to the original plan. 

As the gate emptied, the gate agent asked if I’d be boarding. I explained the situation, and she canceled me from the flight. 

Maybe that’s what customer service is waiting on, she reasoned. 

Within five minutes, the customer service agent came back on the phone with my confirmed alternate itinerary. In this instance, at least, cutting my losses was the smart move. 

Maybe wisdom is just being able to know when to stay the course and when to change the course altogether.