“You’ve tried unplugging everything and plugging it back in, right?” the perplexed guy sitting across the table from me on the high-speed train asked into his earbuds. “I mean, it all worked when I left the studio half an hour ago.” Lots of pauses, and putting his hands to his frustrated face. “I know – we’ve got to get this working. I don’t know what to tell you, mate. This isn’t my area of expertise. I’m stumped. There’s really no one else around?”
An evening commuter train from London, our compartment was packed. Most passengers were working on a laptop, or using their phone; almost entirely, it seemed, as an extension (or integral part) of their work day. The woman next to me was a program manager for Cancer Research. The other guy across from me seemed to work in finance. Like the man struggling with the tech issue, everyone in the compartment seemed zoned in on their own world, as if they were horses wearing blinkers. No one made eye contact, and mostly everyone seemed to avoid looking in each other’s direction at all.
I didn’t get to find out more about the tech issue the perplexed man was dealing with – when he exited the train he was still on the phone – but sitting there I looked across the aisle at my two sons; both engineers, and one of whom in particular I’m sure could have fixed the issue for the guy on the phone; he would have been very happy to be able to help someone out and contribute to solving a problem.
Which got me wondering, as I looked around at many other wrinkled brows and sighing faces – how many other people (in our compartment alone!) were dealing with an issue that could use someone else’s expertise for that brief moment of time? And how many in other compartments? And other trains along the same route, and on other days, and on other routes around the world? It may be no small stretch to say millions of problems could be solved with collaboration on public transport every single day.
As much as I wanted that guy to stand up and announce to the compartment, “I have a tech issue I don’t understand – is there anyone here who could help me for five minutes?”, that was not going to happen. And while it would be nice to envision a world where commuters could feel comfortable chatting freely with each other across the whole compartment, that’s probably an unrealistic shift from how the world is now – although it’s worth noting that a family friend said that on her own train ride there was an announcement that “if you look out on your right, you’ll see polar bears!” (an enclosure of polar bears at a local wildlife park) that prompted the commuters to turn away from devices and start chatting with each other about all sorts of things. Maybe every commuter route just needs polar bears?
Perhaps one day I’ll create a Building Bridges app that allows commuters to make themselves available as a quick resource on commutes or anytime – what a great networking opportunity that would be! – but in the meantime, what could this experience offer us this week, whether we commute on public transport or not?
This Week’s Tips:
If you are a commuter who takes public transport: As you commute, take 5-10 minutes without headphones or devices, and look around; do some people-watch to appreciate the people around you. Are there people you see regularly on your commute? How many? Have you ever spoken to them? Consider some low-level conversations about your shared commute to see if the door is open for other conversations; if so, ask what they do for work, and share what you do – perhaps there is potential for future conversations and collaboration on your work challenges, or theirs, even if it’s five-minute micro-mentoring in both directions.
If you are not a commuter who takes public transport: Much of the above can still apply in non-commuting situations. Take time away from headphones and devices to notice the people who are present in your daily life on an ongoing basis – people you walk past, people you see at the gym, or the coffee shop, or a library. Take a step out of your comfort zone to introduce yourself through breezy low-level conversation about your shared experience, and see if you can get to know them over time to find out what they do for work and share what you do. Again, be on the lookout for future conversations and collaboration on your work challenges, or theirs. You might be surprised by what becomes possible.
Try these out this week, and let us know how it goes. We’d love to hear from you!
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