I developed a friendship with the head of personnel for an airline in the Middle East. During a conversation about my training work, over a couple of beers, he mentioned an issue at the airline and asked how I would approach it. He eventually told me he was concerned that cabin crew members were leaving basic training with preconceived ideas about what awaited them on board, particularly an expectation that passengers from other countries would be very difficult to deal with ~ ideas then reinforced by negative comments from experienced crew.
He asked me, “How would you approach that?”
My answer was simple: “With NLP, sir.”
The training took place in a hotel conference suite set up as a classroom, so I had to make an impact in a different way.
I arrived wearing a brown suit, an orange shirt and a yellow floral tie, complete with a wig, a large moustache and a beard. I adopted an Indian accent to complete the character. The disguise was so convincing that even my girlfriend at the time did not recognise me.
The objective was to encourage the cabin crew, particularly the more experienced members, to speak openly about their attitudes towards the passengers they served, who came predominantly from the Indian subcontinent and other parts of Asia.
I entered the room dressed as the kind of economy-class passenger they might encounter on board, intending to bring back memories of similar passengers they had served.
I noticed folded arms, people leaning back, exchanging glances and shaking their heads, and with their body language they seemed to ask the same question: “What on earth are we doing here?!”
Still speaking in character, I began asking a few questions, encouraging the group to take part.
When nobody responded, I took a more direct approach. Still in character, I addressed crew members whose attitudes towards passengers I believed reflected racial prejudice. Speaking as the passenger I was portraying, I challenged them: “You’ve served me before. You were not very kind to me, and you spoke down to me. Why?”
One crew member broke the silence: “You’re not the only person on that flight. I’ve got two hundred other people to look after as well!!”
Others joined in: “Why do you think it’s just you? You’re always pressing the call bell, asking for more free alcohol.”
(On some flights I recall, demand for drinks was so high that supplies intended for both the outward and return journeys ran out on the outward leg. That gives some context to the crew’s comments about repeated calls for service.)
I encouraged them to keep talking. As they did, I turned my back, removed my tie and opened my shirt to reveal the T-shirt underneath. Then I took off the wig and beard.
