Dowdell's 2023 Balkan trip Wow! What a trip! 10 New Countries (based on what the US state dept considers countries) Romania Bulgaria Moldova Serbia Bosnia and Herzegovina Kosovo North Macedonia Montenegro Albania Greece 3 Different Alphabets (many different languages, sometimes with multiple alphabets) 10 Currencies 14 Taxi or Uber Rides 3 Rental Cars 15 Border Crossings 9 Flight Segments 4 Bus Trips All that in 14 days. I am only now convinced that we could complete a trip with those stats, because it is over. It was a complex trip. We tried to take a version of this trip in 2020 but were thwarted by Covid. This time we pulled it off. The Balkan peninsula countries are fascinating because of the deep history, unique cultures, but also with current events and intercountry relationships. We learned a lot about the region and relationships with other countries. Since it was such a travel intensive trip we l
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Flying and management are similar in that there is trust and there is leverage. The more you can intelligently trust (others and yourself) the more you can leverage. Smart leverage is the key ingredient to success, both personally and organizationally.
The other thing that I have gained for my job from flying is understanding that the human brain shrinks when under stress. You get stupid when you have conflicting inputs and things look dire. Being able to think through the chaos and be able to force yourself to think freely and creatively when your body is being tossed around are highly applicable to skills needed in executive management.