Man discovered his luggage was missing after a 21-hour journey from Bali — instead of getting frustrated, he found an unexpected upside
Most people would be fuming if they landed after a 21-hour journey only to find out their checked bag hadn't made it. But 38-year-old energy and mindset coach Shyam B, who goes by @shyambo, had a surprisingly different take after he had just returned from Bali via Singapore. He went to baggage claim and saw a sign saying all the bags had been delivered, but found out his luggage was missing. In an Instagram video posted on Saturday, October 24, 2026, he shared why he wasn't upset about the missing bag and how he managed to look at the situation differently.
After going through customs, he looked around at the roughly 25 bags sitting there and realized his wasn't among them. What surprised him was his own reaction. He said his heart rate didn't change, and he didn't get annoyed. Instead of getting worked up, he simply asked an airport staff member about his luggage. When the staff member told him his bag hadn't made it to Singapore and explained that it would be delivered to his home the next day, he saw an unexpected upside. He said, "Now I don't have a big blue check-in bag that doesn't even roll nicely, that I was actually stressing about thinking about how I was going to take it on the train."
What could have been an annoying end to a long journey suddenly felt like one less thing he had to worry about. Shyam also explained that he always keeps the essential things in his carry-on bag, including a change of clothes and things he needs for his prayers. So, even without his checked bag, he had everything important with him. Instead of getting hung up on what went wrong, he chose to focus on what was going right. He'd slept for seven hours on the flight, and now he didn't have to drag his big, awkward luggage onto the train.
Rather than focusing on the missing bag, he thought about how easily we let things we can't control ruin our day. "This is exactly what happened. And it was supposed to happen," he said, explaining that accepting the situation helped him move on instead of getting annoyed over something he couldn't change. He believes that constantly wishing things had gone differently only makes life harder, while changing how we look at a situation can make a real difference.
His message resonated with Instagram users, and many found his perspective to be a game-changer. @dinnymathew commented, "Wonderful perspective! Thanks for sharing!" Another viewer, @p3raval, wrote, “Beautiful! This wisdom and approach helps. Thank you." Meanwhile, @helping._.mama summed up her reaction, writing, "Miraculous thoughts!"
Travel plans don't always go the way we expect, but sometimes staying calm can make things work out better than we imagined. In another similar story, a woman realized she'd missed her flight after getting the departure time wrong. Rather than letting panic take over, she stayed calm and looked for another option. An unexpected delay helped her catch a different flight, and she ended up reaching her destination three hours earlier than planned. She mentioned that things always work out for her, and that's what keeps her from panicking. Like Shyam's experience, her story shows how things can turn out differently when we stop fixating on what went wrong and focus on what we can do next.
For more of his content, follow @shyambo on Instagram.