Take a Stand

If you try to be everything to everyone, you'll be nothing to anyone.

As I write this, the United States government is in the midst of a shutdown, meaning that only services deemed "essential" are open. To be clear, this isn't a political blog by any stretch of imagination, so if you're expecting me to take a side, prepare to be more disappointed than you usually are after reading my missives. I bring up this potentially lightning-rod issue because I find it fascinating that both before and during this shutdown, neither side is comfortable taking a stand, other than pushing blame to the other party.

This phenomenon isn't just for a seemingly dysfunctional government, as I see it time and again in the business sector: companies are more than happy to blend in and play it safe by being as milquetoast as possible. The latest example is Southwest Airlines.

From the time it was founded in 1967 by Herb Kelleher, Southwest took a stand to be different from all other airline models:

• All-economy and open seating

• Flexible ticket changes

• Most robust frequent flyer program in the business

• Bags fly free

When contrasted with the "legacy" airlines of the day, such as Eastern Airlines, Pan Am, TWA, and Braniff, this was a radical way to take a stand and, well, be different. While they were widely considered to be an "economy" airline, Southwest remained profitable for 47 consecutive years (1973–2019), a period during which those other airlines mentioned above were either absorbed by different carriers, filed for bankruptcy, or ceased to exist. In short, because they took a stand, Southwest Airlines won.

However, Southwest has recently announced and implemented changes that will, frankly, make it just like every other airline:

• All-economy and open seating will give way to a more "traditional" model with classes, assigned seats, and specific boarding groups.

• Only the highest cost tickets will allow for trip changes without additional cost.

• Their "Rapid Rewards" program has been watered down to the point where earning a companion pass is unrealistic.

• You'll have to pay to check your bags.

In other words, Southwest is no longer taking a stand to be unique in the marketplace. Candidly, I believe these moves will have disastrous results – especially in terms of loyalty – for Southwest. By copying exactly what the competition is doing (and completely changing your model to do it), it's really more of a corporate surrender than anything else – especially in an industry where loyalty is eroding faster than a 10-year-old's tooth enamel on Halloween.

Here's the danger: when you stop standing for something, you've already started the slide towards irrelevance.

As Southwest continues to implement these changes through January 2026, it no longer stands for doing things differently, and it doesn't feel like we are "free to move about the country." I genuinely don't know what they stand for and, candidly, neither do they.

I have some travel coming up in the next few months, so I've done some comparison shopping. Not surprisingly, for the same level of "service," the cost is within about $15.00, regardless of airline choice. That doesn't mean I won't fly Southwest in some sort of protest; I will, but mainly because they offer the most non-stop flights from Nashville to places that aren't major hubs for other airlines. In other words, since the customer experience is essentially the same, I have no loyalty and will fly the airline that offers non-stop service.

As Alexander Hamilton and Malcom X are credited with stating, "if you don't stand for anything, you'll fall for everything." In this case, the management at Southwest lacked the principles or convictions to resist being manipulated into essentially turning into "just another airline."

So, how does this all relate to you and your business? If you don't have a clear set of values to guide decision-making and maintain the integrity of your organization, you'll be susceptible to blending in with your competition, and that's never a recipe for success.

Remember, in a highly commoditized marketplace where all offerings appear to be the same, it's not what you sell; it's what you stand for. Being content with not taking a stand by trying to be everything to everyone, you'll end up being nothing to anyone.

It's time you and your organization take a stand.