The Chris Wolfe Podcast: Overcoming Headwinds with Adam Cmejlia

·47 min·4 clips

Chris Wolfe admits he failed his instrument rating checkride and kept it secret from most people.

The episode begins with Chris Wolfe introducing Adam Cmejla on the EyeCode Media podcast, recorded at a VisionSource regional meeting in Bloomington, Illinois. Chris explains the reason for the conversation: to discuss his challenging journey to obtain his instrument rating, which he initially failed. He describes wanting the rating to become a safer pilot and avoid being caught in bad weather, as well as for professional pride among pilots. Chris recounts using Sheppard Air for exam preparation and passing the written test, but then attempting an accelerated training schedule that his instructor warned against. He details the checkride failure, where he made errors like not turning correctly on departure and failing to reload the GPS for a localizer approach, causing him to miss waypoints. After failing, Chris experienced self-doubt and considered quitting flying, but his instructor, George, helped by offering early morning training sessions and arranging access to a better-equipped plane. Chris retrained over several weeks, driving to Fremont before patient hours, and eventually passed his checkride with a different examiner. Adam Cmejla, host of 2020 Money: The Business of Optometry, interjects with insights linking aviation experiences to business principles. He discusses optionality in decision-making, the Dunning-Kruger effect in overconfidence, the importance of aligned mentorships, the distinction between wanting and willing to achieve goals, and how equipment impacts performance. Chris reflects on the value of failure for personal growth, especially for men, and Adam extends this to women, referencing Stoic philosophy about imagined fears. The episode concludes with a story about a chance encounter in Tahlequah, Oklahoma, highlighting the small world of aviation and optometry.

As heard by us

A pilot's instrument-training mistakes show how a small systems assumption can compound under pressure.

An instrument-training story turns into a practical study of preparation, spatial awareness, and the assumptions pilots make about their equipment.

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Why you'd press play

You want a real cockpit story where a bad heading indicator and a GPS reload assumption test one pilot's spatial awareness.

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