I fly Southwest quite a bit (well, did before covid...) because their routes and timing work well for me. But I absolutely despise their boarding system. Or, at

I fly Southwest quite a bit (well, did before covid...) because their routes and timing work well for me. But I absolutely despise their boarding system. Or, at least, I despise the lack of seat assignments. I care a lot about what seat I get (I travel quite a bit, and know what makes me most comfortable), and I hate feeling like I have to 1) get an early boarding number, 2) make sure I hover around the gate early so I don't miss my turn, and 3) hope there aren't a ton of through passengers in order to get a seat I like. Assigned seats obviously do not guarantee me my ideal seat, but at least I have a fighting chance (sometimes I will pay for an upgrade depending on what's available and whether I have status on that airline), and I don't have to stress about where I'm going to end up. What matters more to me? Being comfortable for the 2-5 hours I'm in the air, or shaving 10 minutes off of the time it takes to get on and off of the plane? It's a no brainer. I ABSOLUTELY realize that in the grand scheme of things, this is an incredibly minor issue. There are much bigger problems in the world. But if I'm going to be flying a lot, as I have during certain career phases, every little thing that makes it a little more comfortable or less stressful does make a difference. And for me, the Southwest seating/boarding system adds stress.