Start Right Now

Being a great pilot starts right now. For if not now, then when? No one has a perfect flight, few pilots come even close. But that is just fine. While pretenders worry about not looking good and idly dream of amazing flights, the maestros are memorizing the manuals and doing the job of a prepared pilot. They are slowly making constant corrections. They are enjoying the details.

It is a common myth that the final level of performance in just about any activity is largely determined by a person's talent. "He's a natural" the well-meaning grade school teacher mummers. But it is not true. While being seven feet tall helps in basketball, there are lots of tall guys not playing in the NBA. For most things, most of the time, what determines the quality of our final performance is the quality and quantity of our prior efforts. An detailed study of elite mountain climbers that had all conquered Mount Everest found what the climbers themselves felt separated them from the climbers who never made it to the summit. It was not talent or strength or fitness or technical expertise or desire. It was having the proper mindset and focus (Burke & Orlick, 2003). You must have some minimum abilities, but what separates the average from the elite in almost any field is the application of inner skills. Think of the people that have, for example, climbed Everest while missing legs. In an academic book on human psychology, Cambridge University lecturer Nick Baylis wrote:

There is simply no evidence to support the commonly held belief that some innate lack of talent prevents us from achieving a high level of competence in math or languages, music or science, art or athletics. Yes, genes play a role in our abilities, but even with a lifetimes effort, we're unlikely to hit the upper limits of our inborn potential. No, we can't set out to produce works of genius, but we can, in principle, attain nationally competitive proficiency in most any field of endeavor . . . . It is the number of hours of practice that is the primary factor differentiating the levels of attainment.  (Baylis, 2004.)

The good news here is that it is not some special talent you may or may not have that will determine how good a pilot you will be. You can be a great pilot. The bad news is that it will take a while to get really good. A long while. This concept has been extensively studied and is known in psychology circles as simply 'the ten year rule.' In music you can be a good amateur performer in about 3,000 hours of training and practice, but to be good at the professional level almost always takes about 10,000 hours (Ericsson, Krampe & Tesch-Römer, 1993). So for most people practicing three hours a day this takes 10 years. The child prodigies you may have heard about just started very early and practiced many more hours a day. It takes everybody the 10,000 hours to be able to produce real quality music. Another study (again one of many looking into this subject) found that the amount of time needed to make a measured degree of musical progress was no different for extremely talented young musicians and their average peers (Sloboda et al., 1996). The more gifted players seemed to move ahead faster, but that was because they spent more time every day practicing. Mozart started very young, he had a great teacher in his Dad, and while he was composing at a very young age the works that are performed now are all from later in his life. His real work was done after he had put in the required amount of practice to become great.

The ten year rule is not just for music. Studies have shown it to be true for 'genius' painters and writers and scientists (Howe, 2004). Those of us who have been flight instructors have seen this in the cockpit. It takes time and meaningful effort to master anything worthwhile. A study in the American Journal of Epidemiology found a "significant protective effect against the risk of crash involvement" with total flight time (Li, et al., 2003). Professional pilots with between 5000 and 10,000 hours had a 57% lower risk of a crash than those with less than 5000. Possibly reflecting the general 10 year rule, the protective effects of flight time leveled off after 10,000 hours. Overall, experience matters more than talent. What is neat is that we can learn from others experience to become better ourselves now. Fighter pilot, test pilot and STS-109 Space Shuttle pilot Duane G. Carey said he, "wouldn't consider myself to be a natural pilot; I've had to work at it." So don't worry about talent or being a natural or having 'the touch.' None of that matters like working at being a good pilot.

In the Star Wars movie The Empire Strikes Back, wise old Yoda says, "Try not. Do or do not. There is no try."

Think about that thought. There is no try. You either do something, or you do not. What the mythical teacher of Jedi Knights calls The Force, real people have many names for—The Zone, State of Grace, Rapture, Ki, Prana, Shakti, Chi, Mana, Mojo, Spirit, Tao Mind, The Secret Power, The Inner Kingdom, Peak Performance State, The Groove, in A White Moment, in The Tunnel, Swimming Downstream, Flow, Deep Play, Fana or Zen. Dr. Debbie Crews, a research professor of sport psychology at Arizona State University says that it is "brain cells firing in synchronicity." Whatever the perceived form or name, know that this is a human condition. It is not something for a special talented few, rather it is within us all. The only way to see it is to start doing.

There is no shortage of books on how to fly, and there are plenty of flight instructors for hire. The problems of how to land a plane seems to have been solved. But flying requires us to put the knowledge into action, then to do it again and again. All the detailed information and pretty diagrams in the books do not actually do the flying. We do the flying. Sam would read some way-out-there exotic stuff, but I often caught him studying the Cessna 152 owners' manual or re-reading Stick and Rudder. No one knows it all, but the master pilot knows he must know his airplane, and all the rules of the game.

You can start the journey of Inner Airmanship by reading the basics right now. You do not need to make a promise or a commitment. You do not need a certificate or a course. You do not need a special power or a clever trick. You just need to do what a pilot needs to do, starting with reviewing all the basics. It's easy to pledge to do it right, but the only thing with meaning is to start actually doing it right now.

We looked at Yoda's "Try not. Do or do not. There is no try." There is another famous figure with a famous line to illuminate our path. Hamlet in Shakespeare's play of the same name said "To be or not to be, that is the question." If we wish to become a fully realized pilot, the only answer is To Be. So let's start being now. No trying, just doing and being.

If there was a pill you could take in the morning to make you a masterful pilot that afternoon you'd have heard about it by now. But there can be no pill, and no catchphrase will ever make you into a true king of the wild blue yonder. No quick weekend seminar at a local Holiday Inn will make all the difference. You are going to have to study and practice with all your head and heart. You will make mistakes, you will have slumps. But this is normal. This is part of the journey.

This journey is all we really have and all we really need. The professional pilot can not waste a lot of time dreaming, instead she does the work everyday. For we are not idle dreamers of flight, we are pilots.

In the fifth century BC, Telamon of Arcadia said that it is one thing to study war and another to live the warrior's life. It is easy to see that being The Times restaurant critic does not make you cook breakfast any better. And as pilots, our first duty is not to study the history of the dream of flight — but to go out and fly. The fantasy of leather-jacketed supreme airborne perfection will fade as we concentrate on the everyday tasks of being a real pilot.

Sam told me that, "enlightenment is an accident, but some activities make you accident-prone." Michael Jordan at his best would still throw thousands of balls a week into a basket. Bruce Lee worked out every day. And so must we as pilots. Read about weather, and about electrical systems, and accident reports, and human nature. Can you tell me right now what you would do when an engine quits? At 300 feet during climbout? In bad weather? Could you know more? Do you want to know more? When it happens, it will be too late to read, research, reason, and review. There will only be action. You can start preparing now.

When you are flying, pay attention to what you are doing. Really pay attention. With every fiber pay attention. Arrive early to review the flight plan and the weather. Take the time to do a detailed preflight. Hold altitude exactly, while being as smooth as a gentle breeze. Feel the airplane. Know where you are and what the alternates are, if an engine quits, if the weather changes, whatever. And when the flight is over, take the time to mentally replay the flight and your actions.

Experience is not what happens to you, it's what you do with what happens to you. The military can produce a ready-to-fight-to-the-death fighter pilot in something like 300 hours. You can be sure that the real warrior pilot has thought about every one of those hours. Paid attention to every minute. Really experienced every flight.

While flying is new, the techniques of the master sportsman are timeless. The ancient Greeks loved to express the elements of excellence in human form through sports. We are all familiar with the classic values of strength, speed, agility; and thousands of years later we still see these ideals in Olympic athletes. For the Greeks, athletic contests were offerings to the Gods. Sports were surrounded by ceremony and celebrated in poetry. Within this sacred context, sport was a container in which aggressive passions were channeled and transformed and an arena in which virtues were cultivated and displayed.

Sam reminded me that the Greek ideal not only valued strength, speed, agility, but that there were other important elements of classic excellence—proportion, balance, rhythm, and harmonious movement. The Greeks had a word for this state of human ideal, this state of mastery: arête. Sam showed me it can be achieved in the cockpit. You just have to start down the road towards mastery.

The artist uses brush and paint, knowledge of light and texture, combined with love and practice to create a painting. The master pilot uses systems knowledge and flight theory, computers and checklists, wind and the subtle feel of the stick to create a safe flight. The Zen student sits meditation and ponders koans from the master. The Zen master cuts through all the crap and brings right mind, right action to every aspect of life. The master pilot sits in the cockpit, and ponders the flight plan. You must reduce the clutter of information overload to do the right thing when it is required. This is the start of your inner art of airmanship.

When you see what is possible on the flight deck it is amazing. Truly humbling. I hope you get to fly with someone who seems to just sit in the seat calmly letting the airplane fly straight and level, smooth and precise, while he or she is in actual control at all times.

Airwork and headwork shine blindingly bright. The skygod in the left seat is not superhuman. What looks absolutely spot-on perfect is really just better than you are ever used to seeing. The master pilot sees the errors you do not, feels some subtle shift, sees the altitude off by two feet and gently corrects with control pressures. These pilots are the product of perfect practice.

If it seems that you your efforts are puny, if it seems that years of attention to detail are not producing magic results, remember that this is not magic. This is work. This is art. Your expectations and reasonable completion standards are being raised every flight. One day a power in proportion to all your efforts will flood the cockpit. You will join the wind and the sun in the sky. Your outer and inner senses are joined, the self is opened, your life discloses an intrinsic richness and joy in being. Or maybe no such thing will ever happen. Either way, you are becoming a professional pilot.

Basketball coach John Wooden has one of the most amazing championship records in sports. He led the UCLA team to the NCAA championship in 1964,1965,1967,1968, 1969, 1970, 1971, 1972, 1974 and 1975. In eight seasons they were undefeated, once generating an 88-game winning streak. This record was not due to funding or facilities. The only common linking factor is John Wooden, a coach who demanded full preparation and full effort from his players. He writes that, "You have to apply yourself each day to becoming a little better. By applying yourself to the task of becoming a little better each and every day over a period of time, you will become a lot better." It's not special. It's not impossible. It just takes work.

You might not be able to see the possibilities now, but they are there nevertheless. Outcomes in the cockpit and in your mind and soul that seem like dreams are waiting for you to do the work. Don't think that you're not good enough. Don't believe what others say are your limits. Don't believe what the negative voice in your head repeats. Be ready to be surprised. Be ready for fun and excellence. Be ready for a long inner journey. Bruce Ousland, the first person to conquer both the North and South Poles, solo and without support teams, once said, "only by pushing beyond our limits can we really learn something new about ourselves."

And if you don't want to do the work, if you don't want to touch aeronautical excellence, why are you wasting your life away in a noisy cramped cockpit? As Captain Roy 'Butch' Voris—founder and original team leader of the USN Blue Angels, an aviator with eight combat victories and three Distinguished Flying Crosses—said in an interview: "Be the best, or don't get in the damn airplane to start with."

You can do this. You can start now.

You have to expect things of yourself before you can do them.

— Michael Jordan

The beginning is the most important part of the work.

— Plato

The difference between a successful person and others is not a lack of strength, not a lack of knowledge, but rather a lack of will.

— Vince Lombardi

Taking a new step . . . is what people fear most.

— Dostoyevski

Knowing is not enough; we must apply. Willing is not enough; we must do.

— Johann Wolfgang von Goethe

Every day you miss playing or practicing is one day longer it takes to be good.

— Ben Hogan

The only secret I have got is damned hard work.

— J. M. W. Turner

I want to be the best, so I go out and do the work.

— LeBron James

If you want to achieve excellence, you can get there today. As of this second, quit doing less-than-excellent work.

— Thomas J. Watson

If you really want to achieve something in your life, whatever you do to achieve the goal is not a sacrifice. It is something you have to do.

— Chris Evert

You have to train your mind like you train your body.

— Bruce Jenner

In all cases we must invest our total identity into the activity if we are to find the magic it may hold for us. If we are to reach the delight that comes with the joyful exercise of well-developed skills, we must practice, we must work, we must occasionally fail, and we must endure times of complete frustration. Unless we wish to be mere dilettantes, this is the price we have to pay. Those who do find themselves pay willingly.

— Harry Bauer

If you don't have time to do it right, when will you have time to do it over?

— John Wooden

In my business you can’t have too much detail in preparation. . . . Don’t leave it to chance if you don’t have to. If you want to win at something then put the time in beforehand so that when it really happens, you’re confident. You’re not scared of it, you’re not worried about it, you’re just ready. Probably the biggest indicator of readiness for space flight was that the overriding emotion on launch is not one of fear or nervousness, it’s one of relief. Because finally, after all that preparation . . . you finally are actually going.

— Chris Hadfield

Happiness does not come from doing easy work but from the afterglow of satisfaction that comes after the achievement of a difficult task that demanded our best.

— Theodore I. Rubin

My motto was always to keep swinging. Whether I was in a slump or feeling badly or having trouble off the field, the only thing to do was keep swinging

— Hank Aaron

However many holy words you read, however many you speak, what good will they do you, if you do not act upon them?

— Buddha

To know what we do not know is the beginning of wisdom.

— Maha Sthavira Sangarakshita

Aviation is not only my life, it taught me how to live. It taught me about life and death, good and evil, victory and defeat, and most importantly, being prepared.

— Randy 'Duke' Cunningham

Your work is to discover your work and then with all your heart to give yourself to it.

— Buddha

Far better it is to dare mighty things, to win glorious triumphs, even though checkered by failure, than to take rank with those poor spirits who neither enjoy nor suffer too much, because they live in the gray twilight that knows not victory nor defeat.

— Theodore Roosevelt

The time is always right to do what is right.

— Martin Luther King, Jr.

Tentative efforts lead to tentative outcomes. Therefore give yourself fully to your endeavors. Decide to construct your character through excellent actions and determine to pay the price of a worthy goal. The trials you encounter will introduce you to your strengths. Remain steadfast...and one day you will build something that endures; something worthy of your potential.

— Epicurus

The Buddhas of past, present, and future, and all of their scriptural discourses, are all in your original nature, inherently complete. You do not need to seek, but you must save yourself. No one can do it for you.

— Hsueh-feng

The Art of Peace begins with you. Work on yourself and your appointed task in the Art of Peace. Everyone has a spirit that can be refined, a body that can be trained in some manner, a suitable path to follow. You are here for no other purpose than to realize your inner divinity and manifest your innate enlightenment. Foster peace in your own life and then apply the Art to all that you encounter.

— Morihei Ueshiba

As yesterday is history, and tomorrow may never come, I have resolved from this day on, I will do all the business I can honestly, have all the fun I can reasonably, do all the good I can willingly, and save my digestion by thinking pleasantly.

—Robert Louis Stevenson

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