When Women Fly

Send a text

In this first episode of 2021, Sylvia talks with Alaska native and speaker Shannon Huffman Polson about her journey as a thought leader on grit and resilience. She served as one of the first women to fly the Apache helicopter in the US Army and earned her MBA at the Tuck School of Business at Dartmouth before writing The Grit Factor: Courage, Resilience, and Leadership in the Most Male-Dominated Organization in the World and founding The Grit Institute where she coaches people on developing grit in careers and workplaces. We talk a lot about grit, what it is, how it is built and what its soft underbelly looks like. 

 We get under surface and talk about Shannon’s childhood in Alaska, the challenges and opportunities behind her military career, the tragic loss of her father and stepmother in the Arctic, parenting during COVID, books and much more.

Topics Include:

• Resetting and refocusing; understanding what you truly want out of life
• Growing up in Alaska
• Mountain summits, literal and metaphorical
• Resilience in the face of adversity
• Grit: dogged determination in the face of adverse circumstances
• Grit as a character trait that can be developed
• Learning to fly helicopters
• Tuning out the noise; focusing on your core mission
• The grit triad: Commit, Learn, Launch
• Post-traumatic growth and grounded optimism
• Women in male-dominated industries
• Raising gritty kids
• Advice: not to listen to the naysayers
• And other topics...

...

Shannon's work mentioned:
http://www.shannonpolson.com/
The Grit Factor: Courage, Resilience, and Leadership in the Most Male-Dominated Organization in the World,  2020
North of Hope: A Daughter's Arctic Journey, 2013
@ABorderLife

Other resources mentioned:
Angela Duckworth’s work on grit
www.angeladuckworth.com
www.characterlab.org
Grit: The Power of Passion and Perseverance, 2016

Carol Dweck’s work on growth mindset
www.mindsetworks.com

Want to connect with us? Visit us online!
Website: https://www.whenwomenfly.com/
Instagram: @whenwomenfly

Send a text

In this short New Year's Eve Episode, Sylvia reflects on the complexities and challenges we've gone through collectively in 2020. Sylvia opens up about the formation of the When Women Fly podcast, shares a bit of her backstory, touches on the powerful metaphor of flight, and discusses the value of telling stories.

...

Resources mentioned:
Diane Ackerman
On Extended Wings
www.dianeackerman.com

Elizabeth Lesser
Cassandra Speaks: When Women Are the Storytellers, the Human Story Changes
www.elizabethlesser.org

Brené Brown
The Gift of Imperfection
The Power of Vulnerability
Daring Greatly
Podcasts - Unlocking Us; Dare to Lead
www.brenebrown.com

TED talk by Chimamanda Ngozi Adichie
The Danger of the Single Story
...

Want to connect with us? Visit us online!
Website: https://www.whenwomenfly.com/
Instagram: @whenwomenfly

Send a text

In this episode, Sylvia talks with pilot and yogi Leigh Coates about practice, migration, flying, commitment, acceptance, and much more. Her journey is one of a trailblazer bringing dreams to reality and finding a way to pursue a core calling. We talk flying in Alaska, practicing yoga on-the-job, enduring a devastating injury, and using setbacks to comeback with more determination and moxie. We also talk about being an entrepreneur, using photography to share on IG, and the value of creating an Instagram community especially during COVID. Leigh is hard to pigeonhole - you will just have to listen yourself!

Topics Include:

• Finding consistency in yoga practice
• Being the first female Jet Suit and Jetpack pilot 
• The possibility of jet pack based sports
• Learning to fly as a teenager
• Flying to bordercross snowboarding and back to flying
• The freak accident that ended her snowboarding career
• Finding gratitude, overcoming challenges
• Valdez, Southern Alaska, glaciers, peaks and wilderness
• Connection to the outdoors and remote places
• Using social media to build community
• And other topics.

...

Resources mentioned:
IG: @leighyogipilot
IG: @helipilotleigh
Gravity Jetsuit: https://gravity.co
Books mentioned:
Illusions by Richard Bach
The Four Agreements: A Practical Guide to Personal Freedom by Don Miguel Ruiz

Want to connect with us? Visit us online!
Website: https://www.whenwomenfly.com/
Instagram: @whenwomenfly

Send a text

Sylvia is joined by Lexi duPont, a professional big mountain freeskier, filmmaker, and pilot from Sun Valley, Idaho. She was a Freeskiing World Tour and Red Bull Cold Rush contender, who has been featured in several films such as Warren Miller’s Wintervention and Future Retro.  Shaped by Descent is  a beautiful story of Lexi's 10-year obsession with the amazing terrain and unparalleled descents in the mountains of Alaska. 

Topics Include:

• Growing up in Sun Valley,  Idaho
• Her mom, the first women to go inverted on skis, mastering the backflip
• The crossover of skiing, flying, and activism
• Big mountain skiing in southeast Alaska
• Comradery amongst women and female firsts
• Filmmaking
• Living with the duPont legacy
• Future flying adventures in the Amazon
• Travel and sustainable living
• Morning routines
• The importance of goals
• Always striving for adventure
• And other topics

...

Resources Mentioned:
Instagram: @lexidupont
Films: https://vimeo.com/lexidupont
Sponsors @eddiebauer @k2skis @pocsports

Want to connect with us? Visit us online!
Website: https://www.whenwomenfly.com/
Instagram: @whenwomenfly

Send a text

Sylvia is joined by Belinda Baggs, a world-renowned Australian longboard surfer, mother and surf ambassador for Patagonia. She campaigns as an athlete and climate activist using photography and film to magnify her message.  Belinda, who offers a perspective on what we can do to help, is passionate and deeply tuned into this environment she considers her happiest place, the ocean.

Topics Include:

• Longboard surfing
• Climate activism
• Surfing as an art form and a lifestyle
• Harnessing feminine energy as a surfer
• Toxic wetsuits, and ecological alternatives
• Maturing in life, starting a family
• Using photography and social media as an activist
• Life lessons from surfing
• And other topics

...

Resourced Mentioned:
https://www.saveourcoast.org.au
https://www.patagonia.com
https://www.instagram.com/belindabaggs/

Want to connect with us? Visit us online!
Website: https://www.whenwomenfly.com/
Instagram: @whenwomenfly

Send a text

Sylvia connects with high school friend, Kim Havell, of Jackson Hole, Wyoming - a mountaineer, professional skier, and mom. Outside Magazine named Kim as a “Preeminent Female Ski Mountaineer of our Time” in 2012. She was listed by Backcountry Magazine as one of “37 Most Important Women in Backcountry”. She has a lineup of past and present sponsors including Salomon and Osprey.

Kim shares how she made her way in the mountain sport world, and her transition into parenthood.

Topics Include:

• Taking risks, forging your own trail
• Building relationships and community on the fly
• Traveling the world, and lessons learned along the way
• Losing loved ones 
• Experiences and adrenaline of an alpinist
• The value of “first women” accomplishments
• Becoming a mom
• The Mom Force. Continuing to find adventure as a parent
• The power of believing in yourself

...

Resources Mentioned:
https://kimhavell.com

Want to connect with us? Visit our website @ whenwomenfly.com.

Send a text

In this episode of When Women Fly, Sylvia is joined by Bethany Miller to discuss living without limits. Bethany is a social scientist, aviator, businesswoman, and self-defined flux agent.

Topics Include:
- Growth vs fixed mindsets, and how they relate to resiliency
- How Bethany forged her own career path, from aviation to businesswoman to author
- Playing on the career jungle gym instead of climbing the career ladder
- The evolution of work in the post-2008 economic environment
- Understanding generation flux
- The endless journey of reinvention
- The Abingdon Foundation
- Empowering young women to pursue careers in STEAM fields
- And other topics

...

Resources Mentioned:
https://www.bethanyjjmiller.com
https://www.boundaryless.xyz
https://abingdonfoundation.org

Want to connect with us? Get in touch by visiting our website @ whenwomenfly.com

Send a text

Sylvia is joined by Patty Wagstaff to discuss her journey to becoming a US National Aerobatic Champion. Patty was the first woman to achieve this title, a feat she repeated twice thereafter, and has garnered worldwide recognition for her aerobatic routines.

Topics Include:

• Growing up abroad, traveling young
• Defying expectations of traditional gender roles
• Learning to fly after an accident while working in Alaska
• Resiliency, finding a mentor
• Becoming the first woman US National Aerobatic Champion
• Methodically attacking your goals
• Why talent can be a hindrance
• Zen and the Art of Archery
• Managing ADD, leveraging ADD as a strength
• Reinvention after achievement
• Opening the Patty Wagstaff Aerobatic School
• And other topics

...

Resources Mentioned:
https://pattywagstaff.com

Want to connect with us? Get in touch by visiting our website @ whenwomenfly.com.

Send a text

Sylvia connects with climber, surfer, and ayurvedic specialist Eliza Kerr. Eliza is a founding member of Balanced Rock, and Moonstone Retreat Center.

Topics Include:

• Eliza's transition from Illinois to Yosemite 
• Studying in Nepal
• Teaching at the Yosemite Institute
• Facing fear as a climber
• Risk vs reward in adventure sports 
• Connecting with our authentic selves
• Processing the death of loved ones
• Recovering from severe injuries
• The birth of Balanced Rock
• Creating a community of women
• Moonstone Retreat Center
• Living a life of kindness and gratitude
• Detaching from the digital world
• And other topics

Resources Mentioned:
http://balancedrock.org
http://elizakerr.com

Want to connect with us? Get in touch by visiting our website @ whenwomenfly.com

Send a text

Sylvia connects with Enid Otun to discuss overcoming childhood trauma and learning to fly. Enid was the first female chief pilot in Nigeria, and hosts the podcast If Women Were Meant To Fly, The Sky Would Be Pink.

Topics Include:

• Being bold. Refusing to be a victim
• Addressing and working through past traumas
• Post-traumatic growth and resilience
• Learning how to accept praise
• Learning to accept success after years of trauma
• Taking responsibility for your life
• Doing the work required to become the person you aspire to be
• Reading Russian classics
• Being a role-model
• Finding new normals through the seasons of life
• And other topics

Resources Mentioned:
Instagram: @pinkskypodcast
Podcast: If Women Were Meant To Fly, The Sky Would Be Pink
Website: www.skyispink.co.uk

Want to connect with us? Get in touch by visiting our website @ whenwomenfly.com