There is a concept in aviation that properly understood could potentially make you more effective in other areas of your life.
All pilots in the United States must maintain satisfy certain basic currency requirements if he or she is to act as pilot in command of an aircraft carrying passengers under various conditions (day, night, instrument, etc.). These requirements are detailed in part 61.57 of the Code of Federal Regulations. The long and short of the requirements for daytime VFR (visual flight rules) flying are that a private pilot must have made at least three takeoffs and landings while a sole manipulator of the controls in an aircraft or approved flight simulator of the same category, class and type as the one he or she is intending to fly.
As a pilot, I can tell you that just meeting the requirement of three takeoffs and landings will keep you legal, but it likely won’t keep you safe. Piloting an aircraft is a complex process, especially when things go wrong. The basics of flying an aircraft are like riding a bike, but good pilots are proficient at much more than the basics, even for simple daytime visual (as opposed to instrument) flights.
So here’s the broader application I mentioned at the start: to excel at anything consistently you must, of course, satisfy the basic requirements, but you need to train to stay proficient. This is as true for your job as it is for your hobbies or for that matter, your responsibilities as a parent!
Training can come in many forms. You can train yourself. There are resources at hand (thanks largely to the internet) to help you sharpen your skills in virtually any activity. You can seek out a mentor. I’ve found that experts (especially retirees) generally love to share their experience. In aviation we have a number of legal requirements designed to help pilots stay safe and there are a dizzying array of training options to help a pilot not just stay current, but regularly gain proficiency.
A little discipline in this regard can go a long way. I can say that my knowledge and skills are barely recognizable compared to when I began flying 26 years ago. More importantly, I can confidently say a better pilot today than I was a week, a month and a year ago. The learning never stops, unless you stop learning.
Arrogance and complacency are your enemies in any sphere of activity. Even when you are great, there will always be room for improvement.
Gregory Hake 
Recently made the switch over to an iMac, and let me tell you…
After a lifetime of being a windows user…I am a beginner again.
Thank-fully there are many similarities, in principle to guide me in learning, however taking advantage of the internet, some tutorials, and…. a new friend, veteran to mac, who’s a developer for Apple.
I’m realizing that, despite the pull to return to the previous familiar state (Windows) the new experience will provide much, by way of opening my eyes to new possibilities!
LikeLike
I can consider your blog to be the capstone in the training in the living of life. Thank you for your posts!
LikeLike
Here we go again with one of what I call the fundamentals or basics of success, and that is Develop Your Skills. And you are right Gregg, there are countless sources for us to do that. At my age I am still more in the habit of reading books but I do recognize that there is much to be learned on the internet as well. And finding a mentor, especially one who has walked in your shoes, is invaluable. Older and wiser people are all over and delighted to lend a hand in your continued development. But you have to ask – you have to want it.
Another way of looking at this is this: when you stop learning you stop growing. That means that you have become as good at something as you ever will. Now one would be highly insulted if I, for example, told you that you are as good as you are going to get at something. I would hope that you would take that as an insult. Yet are you telling that to yourself? Well, I think that you are when you deliberately stop having a hunger to learn more and more.
LikeLike
Malcolm Gladwell, in his book “The Tipping Point”, related his research about spending at least 10,000 hours to become proficient at something. Working at a job 40 hrs a week would take almost 5 years to become proficient using this information but it amazes me how some can be on the job for a few weeks and think they have it wired or think someone SHOULD have it wired. Humility for what is factually required to get on top of a skill and then to stay there is a powerful assist in gaining the patience and understanding while someone is in the learning process. Great post, thank you.
LikeLike
Consistent training really is the only way that you are going to stay on top of your game. I don’t know why, but there are so many people that think they can just learn something once and be knowledgeable about it forever. Yet always, either skills degrade or advancements are made in the thing itself and if you didn’t keep up you aren’t going to be as sharp as someone who did.
There are activities that can kill you if you don’t stay proficient in them, flying being one of them. However, think about how not being proficient in other things can affect your life in a more subtle way. Since you mentioned it, I think that not maintaining proficiency in being a parent can affect someone just as much as being an unsafe pilot. It doesn’t matter if you ruin your life in a plane crash or over 20 years dealing with the results of bad parenting, it’s still ruined.
I think a first step is to really stop and think about what things matter most to you in life, and which things you can’t afford to be second-rate in. Start training there.
LikeLike
I have always felt this way and am constantly seeking to learn new things and to refine existing skills. It’s challenging and fun. I think as we do this, we become more agile, well-rounded and capable.
LikeLike