The person who needs help finding the exit is not an obstacle to your own departure.

Somebody struggling to get out can feel like an obstacle when you are also trying to leave. You both want the same door, and a moment of irritation reframes them as an inconvenience rather than a person in difficulty. It is a small failure of attention, and most people notice it afterwards. Thirty seconds is usually the entire cost of being useful.

When you next see someone stuck at an exit, a step or a crowded aisle, stop and offer instead of edging past. Ask what would help rather than guessing at it.