ajcucinella

Hello guys and gals, I've been pursuing my private pilot certification for a few years now. The duration of this certificate was mostly extended due to my bad experiences with flight schools and instructors. I'm currently making great progress with UND Aerospace, located in Arizona. However, I'm feeling quite burnt out and unable to motivate myself to continue to study the private pilot material. My stage check is coming up and I'm looking for any advice on how to raise my motivation or any study techniques that have worked in the past. Overall, I've been reading through the aviation books which causes my fatigue at an increasing rate.

Any advice, technique, tips, or encouragement is highly appreciated!

Anthony.

magro99

Is your goal to become an airline pilot? If so, I think you might want to re-evaluate whether this is what you really want. It is a very long road and losing motivation during your private isn't a good start. This may be due to the instructor or school or whatever but this should be some of the most exciting times. It took me 15 years from my first flight to making it to my dream job at a Legacy. Many challenges along the way and many random jobs to afford the flight training. The last 13 years have been tough for everyone in the industry and hopefully your road won't be this long but what will you do if it is? I have seen a lot of guys quit along the way because they couldn't find the motivation to continue. The one thing that kept me going was that each time I got in the plane I knew I didn't want to do anything else. I really love my job and would do it again. Flying was my motivation and what got me through all of the studying, check rides, and years of crappy overnight hotels at the regional airline. Again, not trying to rip you but if the flying isn't enough to motivate you then you might think of doing something else...good luck with whatever you choose.

Ultrasweatproof

You can always rely on your fear of busting your flight with the examiner. I think Magro very well summed up my feelings regarding motivation and flying. There is so much more out there in life than to pursue something you are not motivated in, especially when it comes to aviation. Sometimes I wish I was fanatically interested in something else besides my urge to fly airplanes...for a living...It's taken me four years to go from beginning my instrument training to prepping for the CFI check-ride and that is with 110% motivation. Maybe broaden your scope to see if something else peaks your prospective career interests. Accounting, trains, real estate, the armed forces, medicine, law enforcement, the maritime academy, etc. Good luck in what ever route you take.

Yoda2

Gotta be more to the story than you have told. It doesn't seem as the instructors, Etc. are the problem any longer; as you say you're making progress now? People generally know what motivates them, sometimes not. Are there outside/personal issues? Have you told your instructor of this issue? They might be able to help. Do you have a plan for your life, goals, Etc? Or is flying just something you wanted to try or that seemed interesting? Are you paying for it or is someone else. Especially if someone besides yourself is financing this endeavor, you owe it to them to solve the problem quickly or stop. You might think about letting your instructor in on this. Good luck...

Flyhayes

Are you burned out or have you just reached a learning plateau? Everyone reaches a point in training where they plateau. Learning the material becomes more difficult or that one maneuver you've been working on just seems impossible to master. If this is the case, the remedy is usually surprisingly simple. Take 2 weeks off from flying. When you get back into it, you'll enter into the learning again with a rested mind and a fresh set of eyes.

criticalaoa

The best motivation I can think of is why I got into this field in the first place. I also attend UND (Grand Forks) and I understand the stage checks can be overwhelming but I just think of my first flight and how many people would like to be in my shoes.

Timbo

Do you have a friend or two that you can study with?

I found it was much easier to learn in a small group, 2-4 of us, taking turns asking questions and throwing info back and forth at each other, than just sitting alone in my room, trying to keep my eyes open while reading through a bunch of very dry regulations. We called it playing "Stump the Dummy" as we would try to find some obscure stuff and shed some light on it.

If you don't have a study buddy, (or even if you do) make some flash cards for yourself, based on possible oral questions you think you might get. Talk to as many IP's as possible, ask them what types of questions to expect, use those for the flash cards.

Just the act of writing the questions/answers down on a card will help cement the answers in your head. Every time you go to the crapper, take the cards in with you and run through them.

Before my instrument check in T38's, I brought a case of beer to one of my IP's house and asked if he would spend an hour bouncing questions off me, to prepare for the ride and the oral. I bought him another case after I passed!

Oh, and be sure you chair fly the entire check ride profile a few times every night before you go to sleep.

Cubdriver

Faltering at the primary level is one thing, but keeping motivated is something that affects all pilots at one point or other in such a demanding career field. You're gonna need a lot of energy to get over and through all the hoops, setbacks, challenges, and delays, but an honest self-inventory is always the best place to start.

When I was struggling with primary flight training I tended to work alone and I would do things to remind me why I was so interested. I actually only wanted a private pilot or instrument pilot license to begin with as a way to decorate my resume in other fields. No one thing was my sole source of motivation, being more or less absorbed in aviation all the time was the best thing for me. I would rent dramas with aviation themes, read the aviation magazines, sit at the field and watch aircraft come and go, take aviation pictures and share them, listen to my air band radio (a lot), do things for the college flying club, go to aviation museums, read the pilot forums, take flying lessons, watch the study videos, stuff like that. No one thing, just a lot of little things. After a trying time getting my private pilot and feeling the success of that endeavor, I fell in love with the process of getting flight tickets and really never quit until I had all of them. I saw each one as validation- more proof that I was worthy, useful, and admirable.

When you finally get your commercial you can start trying to fly for free or for pay. That's a shot in the arm, and it gets better with the CFI ticket as well. Having a regular performance outlet is a huge motivation to improve and grow as a pilot. I did skydivers, aerial surveys, glider tows, and teaching, all that was highly encouraging, so once you get your foot in the professional door you can grow much easier than when you are paying for each and every flight hour.

Hate to say it also, but if you really cannot get motivated and it seems like months between periods of being into the training game, this may be a sign flying is not your thing. There should be a point where the aviation bug definitely bites, so to speak. I know for me there was never any doubt I wanted to do it- I was smitten and there was no turning back at some point. I had a bad day every once in a while as does anyone doing anything, but the overall feeling was there was no better use of my talents and absolutely nothing I want to do more than to fly. And I tried a lot of things too- I did pro music, small business, several college tours, heavy equipment and construction, pro engineering, absolutely none of these was as good a fit to my needs as was flying an airplane. And at the risk of being immodest I was quite competitive at a couple of these endeavors, I just did not see myself doing any of them for multiple decades. Turns out I am a tad less than Chuck Yeager in flying itself, a tad maybe, but it fits my needs best of anything I ever did. You should feel about like I did about flying if you really want to be a legacy pilot one day and actually enjoy it.

ajcucinella

After talking with a few friends and instructors, I've concluded that it's a lack of energy rather than motivation. However, I thank all of you for your responses. What do you guys do to stay "energized" for your training? I currently use flash cards and training videos. Perhaps, I should try to make a group meetup with other students? I do believe my energy levels are affected do to outside stress and factors because I am constantly battling sinuses/allergy issues. Unfortunately, I'm still waiting for medical coverage to get examined by a doctor. Also, my father stated today that I could have hypo thyroid issues because he and my grandma have that problem.

Once again, thank you all for the replies and look forward to hearing more about what you guys do to keep energy high during your flight training.

bedrock

Sinus troubles could definitely be a problem as a pilot. You've got to be able to equalize the pressure. Many people have sinusitis which is a non specific allergic reaction causing swelling of the sinus tissues. There is no medication that is going to help this on any long term basis, however, you can help yourself. Get a sinus wash bottle and fill it with warm salt water, add a few drops of iodine and flush your sinuses 2x a day. It has remarkable results. You've also got to eat healthy. Cut out snacks and goods loaded with high fructose corn syrup which play havoc on your metabolism by causing insulin spikes and drops, leaving you tired.