03/12/2025
I wish someone had told me this before I ever touched a plane:
Sitting in the cockpit and taxiing to the runway looks calm on camera. The first times I did it, I was anything but. I remember gripping the checklist, trying to look like I belonged there, while my heartbeat was doing aerobatics. I thought confidence was something you either had or didn’t.
Turns out, confidence isn’t a personality trait. It’s a side effect of repetition.
You don’t wake up one day feeling ready. You become ready because you’ve done the unglamorous loops a hundred times: check, re-check, brief, debrief, learn, repeat. Confidence doesn’t come from being perfect. It comes from showing up again and again until your nervous system finally goes, “Okay. We’ve been here before.”
That checklist? I used to think it meant someone didn’t trust me. Now I know it’s a design for freedom. It holds the details so your mind can hold the moment. It clears the noise so you can listen to what matters.
Have you ever wanted something so badly that your nerves tried to convince you you weren’t made for it?
People will underestimate you. Sometimes loudly, sometimes quietly, sometimes with a look that says, “You? Really?” Other people’s doubt is not your diagnosis. It’s just their limited imagination. And your “pilot voice” isn’t something you’re born with. You practice clarity when your insides feel messy, and slowly your body follows your voice.
I’ve been flying for 11 years now, and I still feel quiet respect on the roll out to every takeoff. Not fear, not ego. Respect. The sky rewards preparation, humility, and the courage to keep learning.
So if you feel behind, shaky, or not “ready yet”… keep rolling forward anyway. One lap at a time, one checklist at a time, until the cockpit, the runway, and your own mind start to feel like home.
If this hit you, save it for later and tell me: what do you wish someone had told you before you started your dream? I’d love to know !✈️💛
