5 Lessons We Learned From United Airlines l United Airlines Controversial Viral Video l Responding to Crisis

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The truth of the United Airline public relations nightmare remains to be a hot topic and nothing to laugh about. The incident involving passenger Dr. David Dao being pulled off a flight because it was overbooked became the center of discussion at the dinner table for days. As most of you know, the doctor refused to give up his seat to a crew member on a United Express flight and was dragged off the plane at Chicago's O'Hare International Airport by police. This incident was all captured on video and it went viral in minutes. He suffered a concussion, lost teeth and will be suing the company. United Airlines CEO Oscar Munoz initially released a statement condemning Dr. Dao and accused him of being bellicose, but later retracted his statement. Munoz offered a more sincere apology that the company was wrong and said: "No one should ever be mistreated this way." Well, it was too late and the company's public image took a further thrashing. We know airlines treat their passengers as cargo and a ticket number. They overbook, they overcharge and then they kick you out of your seat apparently and it is all in their rights (read the back of your ticket sometime). Here are 5 lessons that we learned from the United Airlines disaster.

Everyone is Watching You

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We gather that the airline forgot that everyone has a camera and has access to record video? Did they forget that there is a thing called "Facebook Live" or YouTube? When the police officers and the crew were antagonizing the passenger and wrestling him out of his seat, it was all for the world to see. Everything today is vulnerable to get posted and becoming a target of news. This is why doing the right thing all the time is more important than ever. Information travels way too fast on the internet and bad news spreads like fire. Do this not because people are watching, but do it out of self-respect no matter where you are. If this doesn't stop you, maybe a loss of money would. The airline could lose millions in court over a seat that was under 2,000 dollars.

Avoid Canned Answers

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When United Airlines first spoke about the incident, it made matters worse. How? By not owning that the incident was their fault, the canned answers Munoz offered just poured gasoline onto the social media fire. When he apologized for having to "re-accommodate" customers after a two-hour delay, the situation escalated. Darius Fisher is the CEO of Status Labs, a crisis public relations agency and explained to phillynews.com: "Don't think of the crisis in a narrow way, think about how it will unfold on social and digital platforms. They are not embracing the digital aspects of crisis communications, crisis strategy and crisis management." When you are working to come back from a crisis, the worst thing that you could do is to not be sensitive or become armed. This is true in customer service or in any business where you are working with the public.

Don't Get Defensive

When something is your fault, don't become defensive. Thoughtful leaders are naturally empathetic. "They have a love of humankind and are fascinated by offensive or bizarre behavior rather than affronted by it," Inc. reported. You want to be sympathetic to the person that suffered under you. It is not a time to become defensive. Be accountable and not deplorable as this will lead you into a worse scenario. This can be in your business, home or your social life. It does not matter because extending an olive branch early on will save you pain later. United Airlines should have listened and refrained from dictating through a press release. The faster that you apologize, the better! Sometimes when things are not directly our fault, we need to show humility.

Be Genuine

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Okay, now you decide to bypass statements and go to the news outlets. Not a good move, as United Airlines found and their CEO experienced. Munoz shared his talking points on ABC's "Good Morning America," and said he felt "ashamed watching video of the man being forced off the jet and promised to review the airline's passenger-removal policy." When he did this, he ignored the victim and he didn't portray a sense of remorse. Sometimes you need to bite the bullet and own your mistakes in an uncomfortable setting. This can be among family, neighbors or even at work. Be humble, be conversational and look like you are remorseful for your slips. Another thing we need to mention is that you also have to forgive yourself and learn to be better next time. "My initial words fell short of truly expressing the shame," Munoz said.

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