How to Succeed in Aviation

I’ve always found aviation to be an instant friendship, as well as an instant acceptance field particularly among flight crews. I’ve spent over 35 years as a major airline pilot and 20+ years helping pilots advance their careers and continue to see the importance of 4 basic ideas for a successful career and a fulfilling life.  These are:
 

1. Show your passion for your chosen work (flying in this instance)
2. Show those who can help you that you’re serious
3. Be proactive on your own behalf
4. Make it easy for others to help you

Most important is to show your passion for flying.  Whatever your niche may be, show others who can help you that you are serious.  For pilots that means hanging out at the airport, which we’ve all done (and enjoy doing), talking flying, learning from others, sharing the excitement of aviation with others and letting them know you’re EXCITED.  Go that extra mile to let them know it’s a pleasure to be there and you’re ready to get involved.

 

Then comes the part that counts…showing others who can help you that you are serious.  My book, Flight Guide for Success: Tips and Tactics for the Aspiring Airline Pilot, is all about demonstrating to those who can help you that you’re serious about aviation and will make sacrifices to show that you’re not just a ‘wannabe’.  Remember that we have all been helped by someone at some point in our careers and were able to move up thanks to their assistance.  As we advance, it’s our job to help those coming up behind us.  It is important to be concerned about making sure we help the REAL ones, not just the ‘wannabes’.  Therefore, your job is to demonstrate that you’ll make good use of the advice received, follow through with the job leads and report back to your advisor on your progress.  Staying in touch is the essence of successful networking.

 
Being proactive on your own behalf is crucial to your success.  If you need to find a contact in a particular company, talk with your source first, then send them an email reminding them of your needs. Provide them with the info they need to do the task you have requested, be it an address or a refresher on how you met and why you feel the reference would be appropriate.  Don’t make them extract the information from you. 
 

Finally, make it easy for others to help you.  If it’s a letter of recommendation you’re seeking, you can give them a de-identified letter that someone else has prepared for you, helping them to know more about you and what others think of you. If you’ve had special interactions with them, give them a short list of what you’ve accomplished.  Rather than making them feel it’s a burden or a big job to comply with your request, show them you’ve practically done their work for them. Remember, give them the tools to help you do what you’re asking for and you’ll quickly get what you need. 

Reflecting Upon Women's History Month

Since this is National Women’s History Month, I think it’s only appropriate for me to look back over my many (now 33+) interesting, exciting, challenging and rewarding years of flying commercially (not to mention the previous 9 years it took to accumulate enough flying time to get hired at a major airline).

Yes, “we’ve come along way, baby,” as the saying goes and it’s interesting to note some of the yardsticks that remind me of just how far we’ve come. I won’t have time to describe all the major accomplishments of women in various fields, including space, science, medicine, sports and technology, just to name a few, but what I notice is the natural acceptance of women in what is really a gender-neutral field. In the past I used to quip to myself, when an occasional passenger would give me a shocked look as he (or she!) deplaned, “Why should you care who’s flying this bird? When you find an airplane that can tell you the sex of the person who’s flying it, I’ll stop!” These days, most everyone is in the “thumbs up” mode when they learn a woman is at the controls. They know that our skills are equal to or (many cases) better than our male counterparts, due to the constant scrutiny we get from our peers, regulators and the public. All female crews are not uncommon, although I rarely have the opportunity to fly with another woman.

Being one of the first female airline pilots, I have seen everything from “don’t touch any switches, just sit there” commands from narrow-minded captains, to a round of applause from my passengers when we landed safely after a turbulence-filled and weather delayed flight. I enjoy seeing women move up the seniority ladder in my profession and their surprise at knowing there was a time when airline management actually asked the women pilots NOT to make pubic address announcements on the airplane for fear of scaring the passengers! I certainly hope more women will accept the challenge and follow their passions, whatever their dream may be.
My book, Flight Guide for Success, outlines the keys to moving forward quickly along your chosen path. Your goal is to find someone who will guide you and help you make that journey a smooth one. Your challenge is to show them that you ARE worth helping and that you will put their assistance to good use. My numerous tips for networking, finding jobs, marketing yourself, resume-writing, completing job applications, and interviewing apply to anyone (not just pilots) wanting to be successful in their career.

Having achieved my own dream, my goal is to help other young (or young-spirited) people by giving them the essential tools necessary to succeed in any field. I see only blue skies for today’s women if they will learn to be proactive on their own behalf. To purchase a copy of my book, Flight Guide for Success, visit my website at www.captainkarenkahn.com/order. If you’d like an autographed or personalized copy, just let me know.