Finding a Seat on the Train

I had a meeting to attend in the city the other day, so I decided to take the train.  I like the train, it gives me a chance to relax, do some reading or just some extra time to think, not to mention it is way less stressful.

With my Ipad fully charged I was looking forward to the one hour commute into the heart of the city.   My enthusiasm quickly vanished when the doors opened and I noticed all the seats on the lower level were full and standing room only.  The thought of standing the entire hour was not what I had in mind.  At the next stop I noticed a young man enter the doors, look around and proceeded to the upper level.  I smirked, does he not realize there are no seats, surely if everyone is standing here there are no seats there.  I expected to see him return back to the lower level but after a while he did not return I started to think, did he find a seat?

I walked up the stairs and found the young man, not only did he have a seat but he was spread out with an entire cubicle to himself  " there were plenty of seats"!  I found my own cubicle and half expecting others to follow, I kept only two seats to myself.  After 10 stops and only a handful of people dared to venture to commuter heaven on the upper level, I rode the entire duration in my own space.

Upon arrival at my destination, as I came down the stairs the entire lower level was packed with people standing.  With the exception of a few, everyone else assumed because the lower level was full that the upper level was too.

How often are we deceived by the apparently obvious, and how often do we draw conclusions without seeking all the facts, without exploring other possibilities.  If we are not willing to ignore the obvious and look for solutions then how many opportunities do we miss each day.