Robin “R.D.” Kardon Podcast

A Woman in the Cockpit Captain's Chair

Robin "R.D." Kardon Ep. 25 - In the 1960's Robin wanted to be an astronaut. Her mother gave her the bad news that girls could not grow up to be astronauts. She studied journalism but instead of becoming a writer, she went to law school. After 10 unfilling years as an attorney, she took an introductory flying lesson at a local airport. Kardon loved flying so much, she gave up her career as a lawyer to become a professional pilot in the cockpit of every type of airplane from small single-engine Cessnas to the Boeing 737 with three Captain qualifications. What she did not love was the personal and professional turbulence that came with being a woman in the cockpit. She was harassed and bullied by men who saw her less as an equally well-trained colleague than as a check in a human resources box. And when the going got particularly rough, Kardon got out her notebook.

Top Takeaways:

- How a child becomes the same way as the environment they grew up in
- How discrimination against women in the airline business makes it difficult for them to progress
- Why success doesn't always have to be fireworks and quiet success is still success

Listen in to learn why you shouldn't allow where you come from or your circumstances to stop you from becoming who you want to become.

"Your quiet success is still success." - Robin Kardon

Best Inspirational Podcast for Finding Your Career

Robin Kardon grew up in a dysfunctional family looking for love, craving attention. She shares what she learned did and didn't work.

Long before it became a book, Robin "R.D." Kardon's debut novel, "Flygirl," about discrimination in the cockpit, was therapy. The soul-searching and problem-solving took place in a notebook, where the San Diego author hashed out the frustrating, humiliating and infuriating things that happened to her during her 12 years in the testosterone-fueled world of aviation.

Pilot Tris, the key person in her two novels, was 25 years in the making as she attempts to shatter aviation's blue ceiling while dealing with grief, sexism, and a perilous flight to Europe. The first book, Flygirl, was published in 2019 and it went on to become a Top Shelf Book Awards nominee and an International Book Award Finalist.

In book two, Angel Flight, Tris goes on to conquer more challenges including career challenges, love-life difficulties, sexism, and mental health issues. And she's on track for her next set of awards!

Hear why 'Flygirl' is a must-read book to better understand discrimination in the airline business, among other things.

Key Moments:

Robin Kardon describes her growing up as a child of a single mother in a negative environment [1:01]

How people not getting along negatively affected Robin to become exactly like them [2:40]

She describes her career as a lawyer and her dreams of becoming a writer [4:08]

Robin opens up about her career as a pilot and how it was always her dream even after having a law career [5:50]

The discrimination that exists against women in the airline business [8:38]

How the 9/11 incident changed the trajectory of Robin's career and life [12:27]

Robin explains how she deals with her feelings of inadequacy by completing everything she sets out to do [16:09]

How she's motivated by setting and completing her goals [16:55]

The process of writing a novel and why Robin took 25 years before publishing her first one [18:06]

Why you should work hard and not expect the world to welcome you with open arms [21:46]