Travel Delays Are Inevitable – A Travel Story

Travel teaches leadership lessons in unexpected ways.

One of the biggest lessons I’ve learned over the years is this: always plan to arrive 1–2 days before an important event or client meeting.

Unlike road or train travel, air travel gives you very limited alternatives. If a flight is delayed or cancelled, there’s often nothing you can do immediately.

And safety matters, rightly so. Airlines don’t compromise. Even a small technical issue can ground an aircraft until it’s fully resolved. That’s reassuring, but it also means delays are sometimes unavoidable.

Why I Always Travel Early

When I travel for events or client visits, I deliberately plan my arrival 1–2 days in advance.

It helps in three ways:

• I get time to rest and recover, instead of landing and jumping straight into meetings
• I’m mentally fresh for conversations that matter
• Even if a flight is delayed, I still have a buffer to catch my meetings or events

Over the years, I’ve experienced many delays. Initially, it was frustrating.

But at some point, I realized something important: there are things we cannot control and fighting them only drains our energy.

What does concern me, though, is how airlines handle long disruptions. Clear communication, food, accommodation, and visa support (especially for international travelers) should be handled better. Unfortunately, many airlines still fall short here.

A Real-Life Reminder

Recently, due to regulatory issues, Indigo Airlines operations were heavily disrupted. Many passengers struggled.

One of our friends, Rajesh Kr Parida , experienced this firsthand. He was traveling to Rajasthan to participate in the Hell Race — and ended up staying at the airport for almost three days, with minimal communication, no food / stay arrangements from the airline.

But here’s the key part.

Rajesh had planned smartly. He had scheduled his travel 3–4 days in advance to get comfortable with the location and practice.

That buffer saved him.

Despite a three-day delay, he finally reached the location the evening before race day — and still made it to the race and finished the 100 km run the next day.

The Reflection

Delays, disruptions, and uncertainty are part of travel, just like they are part of leadership.

We can’t eliminate the unexpected. But we can plan for it.

So the next time you’re traveling for something important:

• Build buffer time
• Prioritize rest
• Expect uncertainty
• Plan like it matters — because it does

Sometimes, good planning doesn’t prevent problems. It simply gives you the space to absorb them without panic.

That’s true for travel. And it’s true for leadership.