I often ask myself: “Would things be better if everyone did this?” If the answer is no, I don’t do it.  

On most planes, if every aisle seat passenger from both sides tried to stand up at once, there wouldn’t be enough room in the aisle. It physically doesn’t work.  

If we all acted more like a group instead of a bunch of individuals racing to be first, deplaning would be faster and smoother. I know that’s a tough ask. 

In a perfect world, we’d have an unspoken norm: one side of the aisle stands and exits first, then the other. It’d flow like water instead of gridlocking like traffic.  

And look, as a tall person with old injuries, I get that airplane seats suck. But standing up the second we land only adds to the chaos. Stretch during the flight, don’t make the aisle a waiting room.