Episode 269 Reps Remove Doubt
Ready 4 Pushback
Nik Fialka
4.8 • 716 Ratings
🗓️ 7 August 2025
⏱️ 10 minutes
🧾️ Download transcript
Summary
In this solo show, Nik reflects on one of the most overlooked yet critical parts of pilot development—reps. Whether you're learning to fly, prepping for an interview, or stepping into leadership, repetition builds the confidence, clarity, and capability you need to succeed.
With a packed schedule of pilot hiring expos on the horizon, Nik shares a personal reminder to aspiring aviators: don't wait until the last minute. Get your reps in now. Drawing on his own experience—where he completed more mock interviews than anyone in Spitfire history—Nik explains how consistent, intentional preparation not only removes doubt, but makes you more agile, professional, and confident under pressure.
What You'll Learn:
Why repetition is essential at every stage of your pilot career
How building muscle memory improves your performance in the sim, flight deck, and interview room
The difference between showing up confident versus showing up unprepared
What real preparation looks like—and how it can give you an edge at hiring events and beyond
Why even a failed opportunity can become a launchpad—if you've done the work
CONNECT WITH US
Are you ready to take your preparation to the next level? Don’t wait until it’s too late. Use the promo code “R4P2025” and save 10% on all our services. Check us out at www.spitfireelite.com! If you want to recommend someone to guest on the show, email Nik at [email protected], and if you need a professional pilot resume, go to www.spitfireelite.com/podcast/ for FREE templates!
SPONSOR
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Transcript
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| 0:00.0 | Hey, pilot, welcome back to Ready for Pushback. I'm Nick Fialca, solo show. We're doing it |
| 0:09.5 | because reps remove doubt. It all started as a spark. Maybe it was the sound of jets |
| 0:18.1 | racing across the sky. |
| 0:21.1 | Or the feeling of your heart racing as you watch Crop Duster flying low and slow. |
| 0:27.3 | Even then, you knew you were meant to fly. |
| 0:31.0 | For pilots, it's more than just a job. |
| 0:33.7 | It's a calling. |
| 0:35.7 | The early mornings, the long hours, the relentless training, you didn't do it for the money. |
| 0:41.6 | You did it for that moment. |
| 0:43.6 | That moment when the wheels lift off and the earth falls away beneath you. |
| 0:48.3 | But flying is just the beginning. |
| 0:50.2 | The journey to your dream job takes more than just skill in the sky. |
| 0:54.0 | It takes strategy on the ground and a lifetime of learning. |
| 0:58.0 | Most pilots don't understand what career opportunities are available in the world of aviation. |
| 1:04.0 | Learn how to go from good to great, from flight school to regional to major, and from hopeful to hired. |
| 1:12.1 | Whether you're sharpening your skills, building your resume, or preparing for that big |
| 1:16.8 | interview, this is where pilots come to level up. Let's get ready for pushback. |
| 1:22.4 | Here's your host and my dad, Nick Fialca. |
| 1:26.6 | I am in the middle of releasing a couple interviews from the Professional Asian Pilots Association. |
| 1:34.3 | I'm getting ready to go to the Organization of Black Aerospace Professionals, and that'll be followed up by the Latino Pilots Association Expo. |
| 1:43.0 | And then, after that, is the Rotary to Air Group Convention out in Denver. |
| 1:49.3 | Got a lot of things going on. |
... |
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