Why do we do this? It is because we are undisciplined. Mark it, these are wealthy people who can afford air travel. They know that standing in the aisle will not make the aircraft get to the gate faster. But they don’t seem to understand that by doing this, they have exchanged five minutes of comfortable sitting for five minutes of cramped standing, hunched under overhead bins.
Impatience Masquerades as Efficiency
So, are they inherently bad citizens? Again, no. Put them on an international flight to say London or Frankfurt and they will not stir one inch off their seat until the cabin crew permits. Why does the standard change?
The answer is relatively simple. Rules become negotiable when they are not implemented well. In India, you don’t get fined or arrested for standing up ahead of time. All that happens is a crew screaming. Also, when I see ten people standing, I feel foolish to be sitting there. Worse still, others expect me to get up. Like I am in the middle seat and the passenger occupying the window seat wants me to give way. Phew!
This is how indiscipline spreads. It first begins with someone breaking the rule. Others notice that the violator is not being punished. The next person then sees no reason to follow the rule. This is the same thing that happens at the boarding gate. The moment the gate manager says boarding will start in 10 minutes, people rush towards the gate. They stand there for 10-15 minutes feeling victorious, like the sprinters who have won a race that hasn’t even started. We complain about traffic and queues, but our own behaviour makes these systems worse. Each of us is the pothole we keep constantly complaining about.
Do we need to be policed to stay disciplined?
All that we need is the trust that everyone else will follow the rules. When that trust is broken, every rule becomes fair game for negotiation. The real test of discipline is not whether we follow a rule when someone is watching. It is when we still follow it, even when breaking it gives us a small advantage!
