Ten ways to annoy your flight attendant? Wait! No! Scratch that! I'm a glass half full type of gal, a flight attendant and a mother! I can't possibly take that angle. We need to turn this around! Let's change this up, let's be helpful and positive! I've got it...
Top Ten Ways to Endear Yourself to Your Flight Attendant:
1. Be Polite: It truly is that simple. The old, "you get what you give" adage. Two words that flight attendants don't hear often, "please and thank you," can carry you through an entire flight. I recently saw a button that said, "manners are sexy!" I couldn't agree more.
2. Pack a Smile: And, share it! Bring it out during the flight. You don't even need to wait until the seatbelt sign is released. It's free for the giving and I'll bet it works on your fellow travelers too.
3. Be Strong: I'm not saying that flight attendants aren't there to assist you, but if you know that your bag is too heavy to lift yourself, don't expect someone else to lift it for you.
4. Think Ahead: Got to your gate early? Good for you! Use your time wisely and grab a water for your flight. It could be a couple hours between boarding, taxiing, take off and set up before you see a bar cart. It's also a great time to use a bathroom. There are other passengers that are rushing to catch the flight due to a tight connection, you taking care of your needs ahead of time frees up the flight attendants to help those that didn't have the time you had.
5. Be Healthy: Drink water and take a walk to the lav every couple of hours, it's important to stretch and get your blood flow going, especially on flights longer than four hours. You can however skip the aisle and galley yoga, your fellow passengers will be grateful if you skip it too. Save it for that extra time you may have...see number four.
6. Be a Super Hero: If you change seats so a family with small children can sit together, you are a super hero in a flight attendants eyes. Believe me. This is true. Flight attendants know that it is not easy to graciously give up your coveted aisle seat and we will go out of our way to make your flight more comfortable. Unbeknownst to you, you are the unsung hero of the flight.
7. Bring Treats: A quick and easy way to make a flight attendant love you! This is only for those that like attention! It can be the simplest of things. A bag of candy, Starbucks, pastries, jewelry...ok...ok....candy will do the trick. Really! You'll be treated like a rock star by the entire crew for the kind gesture. Just don't forget the pilots too.
8.Be Aware: This could probably be filed under "Be Polite", but I think it deserves its own category. If you'd like something to drink, be situationally aware. Turn the sound down or better yet, take the headphones off when the bar cart reaches you. I'm sure you can relate. Maybe you work in customer service, don't you appreciate when people put down their electronics while you are waiting on them? Maybe you have teenagers, how frustrating is it when they don't show you respect by listening to you because they've tuned you out? Two minutes of your time. That's all we ask. Cheers!
9. Know Thyself: And share this knowledge. This may seem so silly to you, but I've know flight attendants to lose their minds when passengers order coffee and fail to share whether or not they'd like cream and/or sugar. It might be one of those things that we love to hate, I'm not sure. It still baffles me at times, but I can promise you this, if you want to totally shock your flight attendant, tell them how you take your coffee. I can't promise they won't start jumping up and down or start doing cartwheels down the aisle. Share at your own risk!
10. Help: Or stay out of the way. Onboard medical emergencies are more common than you might think. Flight attendants are trained to help and we have the tools we need to help. That being said, we love the assistance of any trained, licensed medical professionals who happen to be onboard. We will usually request the help if needed over the PA and will truly be grateful to those that can and do assist. This is another time to be aware. If you do see flight attendants tending to a passenger with a possible medical issue...don't ring the flight attendant call button at that moment! Don't believe it happens? Oh you'd be surprised!
What are your ideas for a more pleasant flight? Share them in comments and join the conversation with me on Facebook & twitter!