As of a few weeks ago, the Madison Street bridge I often cross on my 5-minute walk from Union Station to the Deloitte Chicago office is closed. So now I have to go south one street and cross at Monroe. I often took that route before the Madison Street bridge was closed. It is basically the same distance. So what is the big deal? (After all, I am blogging about it.)
The big deal is that many people -- if you have walked through the Chicago Loop during rush hour you have an idea how many -- normally take that Madison Street bridge over to Wacker or crossed Madison to head north. Now all those people have no choice but to re-route to one of basically three remaining alternatives (i.e., the afore-mentioned cutover to Monroe Street, going west to Canal Street or going into Union Station and out Adams Street). So everything is slowed down. And there is a lot more foot traffic squeezed into the same area.
So how does this apply to anything other than my now slightly more than 5-minute walk? A preferred and oft-taken option is off the table for a few months. It won't do me or anyone else any good to grumble about it, wish it were still there or whatever. The Madison Street bridge option isn't an option. All of us commuters have to choose from the still available options. There is a very real constraint that we can do nothing about. We have zero control over that. Remember this principle on your projects. Don't be the team member -- or worse yet the team leader -- wasting time and energy talking about an option that is no longer an option, "fighting" a pointless battle you cannot win. Move on. Or else you risk coloring much of the project team and the project itself with negativity.
But remember that many of these constraints are time-boxed. Eventually the Madison Street bridge will be open again. And I for one will move right back to that option as one of my preferred routes.
When a bridge is out, adapt. No whining! But pay attention to the signs for when that new and improved bridge will be ready for traffic again. I recommend flexibility mixed with reality -- both for your projects and for your commute.
