How Fast Do You Move Through The TSA Pre-Line

I’m not a big fan of business travel.

I’ve done everything I can to minimize the time I spend at an airport. This includes getting a Global Entry pass to speed my way through immigration after international flights and having TSA Pre status to, in essence, walk through security in a matter of minutes.

It took time, money and an interview to secure this status and it’s been worth it.

Now the TSA Pre security line is much faster than the regular line because you don’t have to take off your shoes, belt or jacket. You don’t have to take out your laptop and other electronic devices. You just put your carry-on on the conveyor belt and walk through the metal detector. It’s fast, efficient, and I love it.

But last week at Newark airport things were taking longer. I could hear the airport staff tell people: “Sir, you can leave your coat on. Madam, please put your laptop back in your bag. Excuse me, your children should put their shoes back on.” And on it went.

It reminded me that I had been somewhat lost the first time I used the TSA Pre line. I’d been pre-programmed to do everything the way I’d been told to for the regular security line.

Even though I knew that the TSA Pre line was supposed to move much faster, I didn’t exactly know why.  Ultimately, I also had to rely on someone’s help to guide me through the process.

As I was standing in line laughing at how helpless I felt in this new process, I thought of the story of the baby elephant…as a baby the elephant is tied to a tree with a rope and no matter how hard it tries to get away it can’t pull the tree out of the ground or snap the rope. After failing many times it stops trying. Years later as a full-grown elephant, the owners are able to tie it to a small tree with a thin rope without any risk of it escaping.

Just as everyone walking through security, we’ve been conditioned and programmed to think and perform a certain way. And so it is in business as well.

I had spent the last 4 days in New York City meeting with clients and prospects explaining how important it is to combine my CFO work with coaching the business owner.

Why? Because I can analyze and tell you what your numbers are. I can provide you with the most important metrics to your business. I can show you the correct levers to pull to create the biggest immediate profit boost.

But only you, the business owner, can execute on your strategy. And to do this successfully, you have to choose to set aside the false boundaries and limitations created by your past. You are the cause of the effect you want to see in your world.

It was another extremely busy and rewarding week for me last week – 4 days in New York City…could it be anything less than a hectic, energy filled few days in the city that never sleeps?

I maximized my time meeting with and working alongside clients and expanding my network of bankers, lawyers, venture capitalists, and investment managers.

I also fitted in time with a mentor and thinking partner for my business. He’s been running a financial planning firm for the last 20 years and provided me with a goldmine of new ideas.