Being nice can get you all kinds of things…but being a jerk well, that just gets you grounded.

Let me share with you a story.

It’s probably one you can easily relate to.

If you travel like I do, you know airports can be a frustrating time and you can easily lose your patience. But, keeping a level head, a smile and some common sense can keep you out of trouble.

So here’s the story…

So we arrived at the Munich Airport and proceeded to the check-in desk.

There we received our flight tickets and was told we would be assigned our seats when we got to the gate. When we arrived at our gate, there was an older couple who were arguing with the attendant. They wanted better seats. They were being demanding.

They started to get mad at the attendant.

Then they said something that immediately got them nowhere.

They called the system stupid.

The attendant thought they were calling her stupid.

The attendant remained calm, but said, “sorry your seats can’t be changed, next.”

I thought darn, we are going to get crappy seats.

So before I spoke, I relaxed a bit, said hello, smiled and said what a very nice airport this was…the attendant smiled back then greeted us. We gave her our tickets, and asked what she could do.

She said enjoy your trip I bumped you up to premium class.

Okay it wasn’t first class, but it felt like first class. We had more leg room, got better service, and an all around better flight experience.

Moral of the story: Sure its easy to get frustrated in an airport, especially if you feel wronged in some way. And you might even think you should be catered to but honestly the airport attendants get verbally attacked all day long. So, if you are kind to them, they will move mountains for you. Unfortunately, if you are mean, you might end up in the cargo hold.

Can you guess the airline that upgraded us? Comment below with your answer.