When People Feel Good, They Are More Likely To Go Out And Do Good Things In The World - Kelly Jamieson

Pilots are ambitious by nature and we are always chasing the next biggest and best thing. It’s often difficult to know how to appreciate the journey until we are at a place where we can look back to truly see how valuable it has been and how far we’ve come.

1. Tell us more about your company and your journey.

Black Rose Mind & Body is a health and wellness company that I launched just before the pandemic began (#timing). I offer holistic health and wellness packages that incorporate Neurofeedback, fitness programs, and health coaching to anyone who is seeking to transform and improve their quality of life.

As a long-time airline pilot, this is a new direction for me. I’ve always had a passion for fitness, but now that I’m settling into the second half of my flying career, I’ve shifted focus more toward health and well-being. 

In the last five years, I’ve lost my mother, gotten married, bought a house, survived a serious car crash (while 26 weeks pregnant), finished a master’s degree, and given birth to two baby boys—so my perspective on life is wildly different than it was when I first became a pilot at age 18. 

I still love flying, but I love coming home more. I feel like I have a lot of important work to do in the world aside from flying, and I’m looking forward to new paths and challenges ahead.


2. How did you come up with this idea and go about executing it?

Like many of the projects in my life, it started with the question: What problem in the world do you want to help solve?

I’ve always had a passion for helping people and Black Rose has just been a new extension of that. I wanted to offer an innovative combination of tools and programs that help empower people to optimize and change their lives. 

It’s about reclaiming cognitive power, developing physical and emotional strength and resilience, and increasing happiness—with the simple goal of helping people to feel good again. 

I believe that when people feel good, they are more likely to go out and do good things in the world, and more now than ever, we need more good things in this world. 

As far as actually executing the idea, I’ll quote Teara Fraser—a long-time friend of mine who has helped simplify many of life’s complexities for me: “Dream it. Design it. Do it.”


3. What do you think are the most important qualities of a successful entrepreneur?

In no specific order, there are six C’s that ring true for me.

• Crazy — In general, I think you need to be a little bit crazy. You need to be an unconventional thinker, take innovative approaches, creatively outdo others, and take whatever risks are needed to give life to your ideas—and at times, this might feel crazy.

• Clarity — You need to be ultra-clear and have a deep understanding of what you’re doing and why. The clearer it is for you, the easier it will be for others to see your vision and support the pursuit of your dream.

• Courageous — You need to anticipate and accept that the journey will be uncomfortable. Starting any business will require you to regularly call on your courage and step into scary new spaces of personal and professional growth.

• Committed — You need a strong commitment to the path you’ve taken and the resilience to push through uncertainty and any setbacks you encounter along the way. It’s helpful to define what “success” means to you and to expect that the path leading you to that place will likely be wildly different than anything you’ve actually envisioned.

• Compassion and self-care — Entrepreneurship is difficult for so many reasons. When you’re working for yourself, there’s not a lot of consistent encouragement around to remind you that you’re doing great or are truly making progress. Showing yourself some compassion and prioritizing self-care can go a long way to help ensure your resilience and sustainability. Working with an executive coach or a mentor can also help give you the support you need to stay motivated, focused, and moving forward.

• Community-minded — It is through our communities and networks that our success in business is cultivated. In order to truly thrive when we are meeting a need in the world, it is our communities that help fan the fires that have brought our ideas to life. Nothing great is ever accomplished alone. Calling on those around us enables us to create stronger more collective paths to success.

4. What qualities make a good pilot and what should one know about this profession?

Some of the best pilots I’ve ever worked with have had a mix of the following qualities: 

• Dedication to Professionalism — they demonstrate strong technical skills and abilities, high procedural proficiency, and a wholehearted commitment to safety.
• Effective Communication Skills — they are able to effectively communicate with all types of people and foster trusting working relationships quickly.
• Empowering Leadership — as a leader, they inspire confidence while also recognizing the value of fellow crew members.
• Open and Adaptable — they are willing to listen, willing to learn, and willing to make collaborative decisions.
• Resilient and Calm — they are able to effectively handle the many stresses of the job with patience and grace and inspire that behaviour in others.
• Ego-in-Check — they demonstrate confidence but also humility and humanness throughout the challenges we face in the flight deck.
• Sense of Humour and Positive Attitude — they are able to see the bright side of things and maintain a positive working environment.

What should one know about the profession? While it is never as glamourous as it is often portrayed, being an airline pilot is still an amazing job that offers the best office views in the world.


5. What is the best piece of flying advice given to you?

“Enjoy the ride up because it sure happens fast.” 

When I was 22 years old and struggling to find my first flying job in a post 9/11 market, I had a retiring airline pilot say this to me. I heard him, but at the time, I didn’t believe him. When I look back at my life now, he was right. The 10 most challenging years of my career now seem like just the blink of an eye. 

Pilots are ambitious by nature and we are always chasing the next biggest and best thing. It’s often difficult to know how to appreciate the journey until we are at a place where we can look back to truly see how valuable it has been and how far we’ve come. 

Over the years as a pilot I’ve also been told, “Never get too comfortable in a job or in a seat” because in an industry like aviation, we can literally lose everything we’ve achieved in our careers overnight. 

We’ve started to witness this as the COVID-19 pandemic continues to cripple travel and tourism on a global scale, forcing airlines around the world to significantly—and abruptly—reduce their workforces. 

Back in 2002, I was lucky to meet Captain Rosella Bjornson, Canada’s first-ever female airline pilot, and at that time she told me, “It’s not if you ever get laid off, it’s when.” Aviation is so cyclical and to truly thrive, you need the passion, patience, and resilience to play the long game.


6. What piece of advice would you like to give to aspiring entrepreneurs and pilots?

Surround yourself with people who throw fuel on your fire, who believe in you, and fully support the pursuit of your dreams.

There is nothing more powerful in life than having people around you who are as excited about your goals and your success as you are.


7. Which is your favourite book(s) and why? 

It’s almost impossible to pick just one favourite, so I’ll share two. I truly believe the world would be a much better place if every person on the planet could read and grasp the content of these two books: “Learning in Relationship” by Ron Short, PhD, and “Systems Thinking for Social Change” by David Peter Stroh.

“Learning in Relationship” is this gem of a guidebook that can help you increase awareness and understanding of how you operate and relate with others. 

We seem to be losing the ability to effectively relate with one another lately (especially those who are different from us) and this book provides simple yet brilliant insights as to why this happens and what we can do about it.

“Systems Thinking for Social Change” is a guide to changing the way that we think and how we approach complex problems in our lives. Our interdependence in the world is increasing and our understanding of that interdependence is decreasing. 

Stroh breaks down and applies Systems Thinking in a way that helps deepen our understanding of the power we hold in our own spheres of influence, and teaches us how to use that influence to inspire change within our own systems.

- Kelly Jamieson (Airbus A320 Pilot, Founder - Black Rose Mind And Body & The Everyday Systems Thinker)

LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/kelly-jamieson-vancouver/
Websites: Black Rose Mind And Body & The Everyday Systems Thinker

Facebook: @blackrosemindandbody and @everydaysystemsthinker

Interviewed By Tuhina Rana