This was such a good post from Mauna Loa Helicopters I thought I would post it here!
From: Mauna Loa Helicopters in Hawaii March 27, 2010
Winston Churchill once remarked that, “Attitude is a little thing that makes a big difference.” Does it ever! Having a positive attitude can lead to your ultimate success in helicopter flight training much more than intelligence, than circumstance, than skill, education, money or background. A positive attitude towards your flight training can spark positive outcomes and extraordinary results. And that same positive attitude can and will give you an edge through your entire flying career.
It’s practically unheard of in our flight school to encounter an individual who simply does not possess the ability to fly a helicopter. Granted, it has occurred that the occasional student will give up and drop out, but that decision to quit has much more to do with the student’s attitude than it does with his or her skill.
The reverse also is true: a student faced with seemingly insurmountable hurdles can overcome those barriers and achieve success with a positive attitude.
In the time that I have been with Mauna Loa Helicopters, I’ve come to know dozens and dozens of would-be professional pilots. From the 17-year old fresh out of high school right up to and including a gentleman in his late sixties, all express a desire to master helicopter flight. And over the years it has become increasingly clear to me that those individuals who possess the right attitude have an overwhelming advantage over those who are taking up space and wasting time. That’s because the quality and effectiveness of training absorbed by a student is directly proportional to how involved that student becomes in the process.
When a student shows up late for a session, unprepared, distracted and perhaps tired from a late night out, the behavior demonstrates a casual attitude towards the mission at hand. Even if that student manages to ultimately graduate and land a flying job somewhere, the lackadaisical attitude will haunt his or her every working moment.
Compare that behavior with one that I see in a current student in Honolulu. Brad (not his real name) is a reasonably bright guy who exhibits a genuine curiosity towards his training. He frequently comes to the school, even if he’s not scheduled with an instructor, simply so he that can concentrate on his studies. I found out yesterday that he’s been taping his flight lessons so that he can listen to each lesson later to try to find ways to improve what he’s doing. With a winning attitude like that, Brad can expect great things in his future. Even though he just soloed, he’s already a professional at heart.
Adopting a proper attitude and focusing on your training in a positive manner can and will work wonders. Remember: excellence is not a skill, it’s an attitude.
P.J. O’Reilley
Honolulu Manager
Hey Jeff!
ReplyDeleteYa know, if you had really tried you could have added your comment to an older post!
December of 2005?
Man, it's good that I moderate the comments or I would never have seen yours!
Yes, you probably noticed I stopped by here earlier to check out your cross-country comments.
Wonderful. I'll probably refer future students to your blog so they can get a view through "newer" eyes than mine.
I've made the trip home from Torrance 19 times, mostly in R22's. The 44, as you might imagine, is a pleasure to make the trip in, whereas the R22, although fun, is work.
Not having the time to devote to your posts that I wanted, I skimmed them today and will come back to check in closer detail later.
You've probably noticed my blog is devoted not just to flying, but to life as I see it. It's NOT everyone's cup of tea, but you are welcome to come and agree/disagree anytime you'd like.
Thank you for your kind words and your thoughts my friend. I hope to hear more from you later.
Jeff, go here and add sitemeter to your blog. It'll give you an idea who is coming by, in some cases where they're from, how long they're staying, what pages they are viewing, and how they found your site.
ReplyDelete(For some reason, the link "here" didn't show up in the above comment, but is still clickable.
ReplyDeleteRight on, thanks Greybeard – I’ll check into that site meter, I think it’s what I need...yea you'll notice once you click on my links they turn the same color as the regular font. If I don't change the link color in my postings it will disappear once it’s clicked on...I can’t edit the comment links however.
ReplyDeleteExcellent post! Very true, a positive attitude is what it's all about. It can be tough to maintain at times because of circumstances but if you have a goal and some patience along with a positive attitude you can do anything!
ReplyDeleteI'm hoping to finish up my CFI rating with Mauna Loa Helicopters the last half of July.
I’ve had excellent training with Alyeska Helicopters up through the commercial rating. For the CFI rating I’d like to do my training in the R22 especially the full down autorotations. I should know how to put one down in the event of engine or component failure for myself and the student. The R22 is what I’ll be training students in for the next 800 hours or so. Alyeska Helicopters will only do full down autorotations in the R44 mainly due to insurance reasons. I can’t afford the high price of training in the R44 at this time and the R22 just makes more sense. It’s also a bad time of year here in Alaska for CFI sign offs in general. Summer time is the busy season for helicopters in Alaska and all the seasoned pilots who can do the training (full down autorotations) for the CFI rating are out in the bush working. My wife happens to be working in Hawaii on Oahu for the next couple of months where Mauna Loa Helicopters is located, so I’m going to take the opportunity to train with them, and I’ve heard nothing but good things about the school. I like the idea of getting a different perspective on training as well; plus its Hawaii, should be a good experience!
Greybeard,
ReplyDeleteThanks for stopping by! I'm a retired AF veteran and after perusing what I had time for on your blog site I could see we share a lot of the same ideals. I'll be sure to check in regularly.
They wanted to know at the factory who hit us over the head in order to get us to fly an R22 that far north to Alaska. It was painful but well worth the experience. I was more or less time building and got a pretty good deal to fly it left seat all the way to Alaska with a CFI pilot. I'd do it again, but would much rather fly the trip in an R44.