The Messy Side of Progress

Sitting on a plane recently, I noticed the airport was building a new runway. There were construction delays, diversions, and aircraft lined up from different terminals, all feeding into a single runway. It struck me — in that moment of frustration and waiting — that this was progress in action. Messy. Disruptive. Inconvenient. Yet absolutely necessary.

From the window, I could see that while one runway was handling all the take offs and landings, another was under construction. It wasn’t efficient, it wasn’t smooth, but it was forward-looking. The temporary discomfort was paving the way for something better, something stronger, something that would serve more people in the long run.

Planes waiting to take off

Isn’t that exactly what progress in our lives looks like? We often expect it to be seamless, a straight line without interruptions. But real progress usually means delays, disruptions, and rerouting. We can feel stuck waiting in the queue, watching others “take off” while we’re still inching forward. Yet every pause, every redirection, is part of building our new runway — the one that will carry us to the next level.

Progress doesn’t always feel glamorous. Sometimes it feels like you’re circling in a holding pattern or taxiing endlessly without movement. But beneath the surface, change is happening. Systems are being built. Foundations are being laid.

The key is to trust the process. To remember that delays aren’t failures — they’re signs of growth under construction. And when the new runway opens, you’ll have more space, more possibility, and more momentum than you ever imagined.

So next time you feel like you’re stuck, ask yourself: am I being delayed… or am I simply in the middle of progress?