The Allure of AutoPilot

Recently, Mrs Robinson and I watched a television show together for the first time in a long time.  We tend not to watch shows together because we tend not to like the same kind of shows. But this is not to say that we have not repeatedly tried to do so.   

 I tried to watch The Housewives of Atlanta , Potomac, and Beverly Hills. I really tried. I tried to watch Love and Marriage Huntsville and DC. I really tried. And I tried to watch the Lifetime Channel. I really, really, tried. But, I failed. Spectacularly. And to my wife’s credit, she tried to watch Game Of Thrones. She really tried. She tried to watch Breaking Bad. She really tried. And she tried to watch the National Geographic Channel. She really, really tried. But she failed. Spectacularly.

Undeterred by these failures, I eventually found a show that I knew would peak our mutual interest and keep our very different attention spans.   The show is called Hijack, and airs on Apple TV. I knew she would be intrigued not because of what the show is about but because of who is in it. After I “casually” mentioned that the star of the show is Idris Elba, she immediately rearranged her schedule to expedite a viewing. LOL.

 We watched all seven episodes in two days.  Mr. Elba plays corporate negotiator Sam Nelson, who employs his unique skill set to avert the hijacking of a commercial plane headed to London. He befriends the hijackers, and provides them with all sorts of critical information that while seeming to advance their agenda, also serves his own. In an early episode, Nelson informs the hijackers that after a plane takes off and until it lands, it is flown by autopilot. Apparently, the hi-jackers didn’t know that. And neither did I!

That discovery ignited my interest in how autopilot works. I learned that there are seven phases to every flight: push back; taxi; takeoff; cruising altitude, descent, approach and landing; and that in most cases, the pilot is only directly involved in the first three and the last phase of the flight. Every other phase is managed by autopilot. Sensors on various parts of the plane are programmed to keep the aircraft on the axis determined by the flightpath, and they work to stabilize its’ height, speed, and location.

As frequently as I travel, it was profoundly disconcerting to learn that most of the time that I am trapped in a metal tube 30,000 feet above the ground, my life is the hands of a piece of software. However, since travel by air remains the safest mode of transportation, it is utterly fascinating that most of it is done by a computer. Autopilot makes it easier and safer for the pilot. He or she can push a button, and let the software do the work.

The more deeply I researched the science, logic, and benefits of autopilot, it dawned on me that autopilot is not just a software program. It is also a philosophy. All of us are constantly searching for a “button” that we can push to make the journey of our lives a little easier. All of us are constantly searching for easier paths to our “cruising altitude,” where not much work is required, where not much energy has to be expended, and where not much attention is necessary. All of us are constantly searching to minimize the investment that is necessary for success.

On one level, this search is commendable. If you can find an easier way to do something, you should. It took me a long time to figure out that the hardest way is not always the best way. When Muhammad Ali started boxing professionally, he went to train with a legendary fighter named Archie Moore. Archie’s Moore’s approach to training was to have his disciples chop wood. Reportedly, Ali told Moore he didn’t want to learn how to cut down trees, but how to win titles. Much of what we do or think we have to to doesn’t always help us win the title we are after. As much as we can, we should eliminate time consuming, energy absorbing and unnecessary behaviors.

On another level, adopting the “autopilot” approach to life can be seductive and dangerous. Adopting the autopilot approach to life can breed false confidence and lull us into a false security. Far too many of us are living our lives on autopilot—following a predetermined path chosen by someone else without our effort, energy, attention, or intelligence. Or, we are following a predetermined path that we chose at an earlier season in our lives but that now no longer serves our best interests.

In Matthew 15:14, Jesus said “that if the blind lead the blind, both shall fall into the ditch.” I heard one preacher say that he always thought it was unfair that the second man wound up in the ditch until he realized that if you are blind, you should know what feels like to led by someone who is also blind. At some point, the second blind man should have stopped and asked the first blind man, “are you blind?” LOL.

But the second blind man was on autopilot. He was just following a predetermined path chosen by someone else. It required no effort, attention, energy or intelligence. And that always leads to poor outcomes.

Here’s my question for you today: what areas of your life are currently on autopilot?

And here’s my assignment for you today:

Pay attention to what you doing.

Pay attention to where you are going.

Pay attention to how you are feeling.

Don’t delegate or outsource your life to anything or anybody.

Otherwise, your destiny might be hijacked.