My New Superpower: Thinking Again

Recently, I started reading "Think Again, The Power of Knowing What You Don't Know" by Adam Grant.

It was vital for me to read this book because I often found that the thought processes and framework that allowed us to succeed at my non-profit, Dreams Soar, were no longer relevant for the work I wanted to do with my new platform.

For my work with this AVIATE platform, I needed to think again.

George Bernard Shaw once said, "progress is impossible without change, and those who cannot change their mind, cannot change anything."

Adam Grant's book emphasizes this point and shares many examples of people getting stuck in the overconfidence cycle, which unfortunately leads them to no longer listening to or learning from anyone because of the irresistible feeling of being right overpowering actually being right.

In growing the AVIATE platform, I find myself challenged by technology and the operations side of our business. I am no longer flying solo in a single-engine airplane around the world, with a supporting ground team of more than 20 volunteers.

Instead, I am now in a partnership, making critical decisions with another person, and humbly learning media tactics, public relations, business, and challenges of all sorts.

On numerous occasions, I've felt the urge to 'preach' to my business partner, Michael Wildes, Business Editor for Flying Magazine, that my way of doing it was the right way, simply because that was how we successfully did it with the non-profit.

I say 'preach' because, as Adam Grant aptly pointed out in his book, there are four thinking modes we use to approach problems:

1. Preacher
2. Prosecutor
3. Politician
4. Scientist?

"When we're in preacher mode, we're convinced we're right," Grant says. However, to succeed in this new mission, I now need to think like a 'scientist.'

Grant says when you think like a scientist, "you favor humility over pride and curiosity over conviction."?He explains, "you look for reasons why you might be wrong, not just reasons why you must be right."

Mind ?? blown! It isn't a sign of weakness or failure when you change your mind. It means progress. You're closer to your goal than before. When you put it like that, it is crucial to seek out evidence to test your concept when you're doing something new.?

For example: here's a clip where Michael and I didn't see eye to eye on a strategy.

Separately, I've tried to apply the lesson of 'Think Again' to figure out why the aviation industry doesn't have more women or diverse people.

Why do the percentage of women pilots, mechanics, and engineers continue to be in the single digits and significantly lower globally? How is it that so many organizations have well-funded and meaningful initiatives to increase diversity within their company, yet the needle doesn't move much?

Can we, as an industry, think again?

What if, instead of framing this as a problem, we thought of it as an opportunity- an opportunity to show off this industry that we love for many reasons.

Traditional outreach methods have been essential in getting to where we are today, and they should continue, but let's not stop there.

That's why Michael and I are working diligently, thinking hard about continuing to inspire young professionals through Dreams Soar AND empowering women through the AVIATE Platform. We have so much planned for you. Stay tuned.

I have an extended weekly newsletter where I offer more insights into how we think about this problem. I would love to engage with you more. You can subscribe here or email me at [email protected].

Helpful reads

1. Why is it so hard to attract and retain women to the aviation workforce? (Forbes)
2. There's even a new way to think inside the flight deck. (AIN)
3. 'Flatline growth': you can still fit all the female airline captains on one plane (Dr. Lutte)