One of the most spectacular exhibits as the Evergreen Air Museum was the series dedicated to the history of flight.  They had everything from one of Da Vinci’s early designs to the Wright Flier to other early bi-plane flight trainers.  It was fascinating to see, and made me remember just how magical the process of flight is.

Think about it.  Through the application of simple physics principles (Newton’s laws) and theories of aerodynamics (Bernoulli’s Principle) we are able to take a heavier than air vehicle and make it fly.  I can tell you this, standing there looking at a replica of the Wright brother’s original airplane really made me appreciate all of these technical advances.  The hard work and brilliance behind powered flight is truly breathtaking.

It made me think seriously about several things I see in day-to-day business.  Think back to the last time you asked an intern to do something impossible.  Maybe it was to prep a presentation in an hour rather than the week it would normally take.  Maybe you watched a co-worker go above and beyond, calling in favors from their network to land an important sale.  Maybe a contractor delivered a new web design ahead of schedule and under budget with more features than originally promised.

How much do we take this for granted?

I know flight, as miraculous as it really is, seems to be taken for granted by most these days.  Rather than marveling at the fact that they’re flying thousands of miles above the ground in a multi-ton aircraft, people lament the cost of baggage or the lack of peanuts during their flight.  How shortsighted is that?

Then again, is it more or less shortsighted to watch people labor away in our office without recognizing the inhuman levels of effort they put in on projects?  Most people with strong work ethics will put in this time and energy without complaint, making it that much easier to take their skills, abilities, and responsibility for granted.

So think about it.  How much effort would it take for you to reproduce the seemingly effortless acts of your in-house miracle workers?