Close the Gap
Abraham Maslow illuminated his concept of self-actualization by saying, “what one can be, one must be.” One of my favorite coaches, Brian Johnson, who also embraces this concept of our desire to self-actualize, talks about “closing the gap.” There are always gaps between who we are and who we can be… actualization occurs through the effort to actively close those gaps (see our mission statement – we serve you to close gaps). OPI is an effort to encourage us to not only close gaps, but to make sure we are identifying and closing the right gaps.
As a helicopter rescue pilot (and a pilot in general), there are several annual evaluations (referred to as “check rides”) in which you must perform to a certain standard or lose your qualification (credentials to do your job). I wrote to my team after one of our annual unit evaluations about consistency, “If we were to plot pilot proficiency, we would want to avoid big peaks and valleys. The pilots who regularly study hard for an evaluation then give themselves a “break” are wasting a lot of effort, and not fully capitalizing on their hard work. Consistency is the key to strong airmanship. It is okay to oscillate a bit and take a weekend off after a big evaluation or syllabus completion, or enjoy some leave with family and friends, but don’t waste prior effort by taking weeks off… stay after it and avoid significant knowledge dips. We want small oscillations with a steady trend up. Consistent effort aggregates and compounds.”
Brian Johnson (the same coach who did a great job of framing self-actualization above) regularly presents the following equation to show how people become truly excellent at their craft:
The degree of excellence = (time x energy x focus x “what is important now”) ^ consistency.
The point is that the consistency results in exponential growth.
The figure includes two example plots. The blue line is a proficiency plot for a brand-new Aircraft Commander (level 5 = average CG aviator) who allows him or herself to succumb to a “sophomore” slump (taking the foot off the airmanship gas pedal “enjoying” the new AC qual and potentially focusing on other things). The small peaks indicate when they were tasked with an interesting mission that required some planning, or partook in pilot training, and the bigger peaks reflect studying for evaluations. Overall, the plot shows they did not obligate much time and effort before or after those events to do consistent work to improve their craft.
In contrast, the orange line shows a motivated, inquisitive Copilot (level – 0 to start). He or she worked hard at the the initial designation course, the annual proficiency course, and prepared thoroughly for periodic check rides but also spent a lot of time and disciplined effort working on his or her aviation game between these events.
Imagine what these motivated pilots can do for our community if they continue this path. They will have the ability and credibility to develop the next generation of helicopter aircrews ready to serve others in a time of need. They will rapidly surpass the AC who did not remain consistent and continue to do the work to spiral up (blue plot). Small, consistent efforts and contributions aggregate and compound.
Personally, if I want to be consistent with something, it must occur before the majority of the world is awake. My study occurs before 0600. What do you need to get consistent with to help your community spiral up?
