"YOU ARE ONLY LIMITED BY WHAT YOU CAN DREAM" - Dick Rutan

Early one December morning in 1986, my father, Dick Rutan, climbed into an airplane, built with his own two hands to do something few had thought possible. He was about to break a world's record, to be the first to fly around the globe without stopping. Sitting in the cockpit of his flimsy fiberglass plane that morning, Dad wasn't feeling confident he was scared. There was a real possibility he wouldn't even survive the takeoff, and he couldn't shake the image of a fireball at the end of the runway.

1. Positive reactions equal a good idea.

People's positive reactions to your business concept isn't a sign of a good idea. It just means you are a good storyteller. Your plan only becomes a viable business concept if someone is willing to give you a dollar for it.

2. Surround yourself with only success stories.

Positivitivity quotes and endless success stories, or as I like to call them, "entrepreneur porn," can lead to a false sense of brilliance. Keeping a clear view of reality will lead you away from the dream world and straight to making smart decisions.

I had a very normal childhood. I grew up in the small desert town of Mojave, CA. My family lived in a quaint house at the edge of a tiny neighborhood. Our house was nothing special it was just a simple home with a partially built airplane in the garage and one fully assembled in the living room, nothing unusual.

At least, that is how I remembered it up until one particular event in my life. It happened while I was in my mid-twenties, married to a handsome young test pilot, enjoying my life while living on a remote Air Force base in southern California. I had just settled into my lawn chair to participate in an old Air Force spouses' ritual that takes place on many military bases around the world.

As the world went into 2020, it faced a vast and growing pilot shortage. Just three months into the new year, a pilot shortage was no longer a problem. The beginnings of stay-at-home orders and social distancing requirements turned the high demand for air travel into thousands of unemployed pilots. A global pandemic seemed to be an unlikely solution to any shortage, but COVID-19 is likely to be the event that permanently redefines the role of the pilot.

When thinking of starting a new business, most entrepreneurs' advice is to find a problem and then create a solution. Sounds easy, but the trick is the problem must be relevant. People have to care about the issue you solve for any concept to be successful.

Problem: I need a better way to travel through the city

Solution: Rideshare companies like Uber/Lyft

These successful companies created a solution to a problem that affected many of us. Ten years ago, I never thought I would message a stranger to pick me up at the airport or take me to dinner. The concept was unheard of, even considered dangerous, but today living without this option is an inconvenience.

What exactly is a $100 hamburger? It is a burger consisting of Japanese Wagyu beef that has been infused with white truffle butter, topped with James Montgomery cheddar cheese, and a fried quail egg. (I can already tell this post will be very hard to write without a trip to In-N-Out.) But to my crazy flying family and pilots everywhere, the $100 hamburger is aviation slang for any burger served in a non-local small airport restaurant. The high price tag doesn't have anything to do with the burger's quality, and it has more to do with what it takes to get one.