If you've read any other of my blog posts, you might have seen previous references to Joanna.  I've written about her a couple of times as she continues her quest to overcome her fear of flying.  Notice I said "quest."  Nope, she's not there yet.  It's been a journey, and I'm not telling you her story so that you'll be discouraged and not ever begin to work on your own fear of flying.  I just want you to know that for many it's not an overnight fix.  It's a process, but with step-by-step choices, you CAN overcome a fear of flying. 

Our new poll "What's the Scariest Part of Flying" has been up on FearlessFlight.com for about a month.  Almost 900 people have voted.  Many more people have looked at the choices of the poll and have apparently been too afraid to even enter their opinion.   Takeoffs...ARGH.  Landings...Oh MY!  Turbulence...HOLY cow! 

I just read a California newspaper article about a certain actor who says he doesn't have a fear of flying--he just doesn't like "to be up in the air much."  Being in the fear of flying business, I immediately read between the lines and said, "Okay, he's afraid to fly."

Ever heard the saying "Put your money where your mouth is?"  I was thinking about that in regard to fear of flying while joyfully reading Martha Beck's book The Joy Diet: 10 Daily Practices for a Happier Life.

I love Martha Beck--her columns are the first thing I read in O Magazine.  So this book is a big, long drink of the Beck wisdom and wit I've come to expect from her columns. 

I just returned from my daily end-of-the-day drive to the mailbox to send Fearless FlightKits out into the universe.  With every Kit I send a wish that this fabulous product will assist the person who ordered it in overcoming their fear of flying.  Last week I mailed one to Singapore.  Today's mailing included one to Connecticut.  Fearful flyers are everywhere. 

What's the scariest part of flying for you? Courtney discovered that it was the hours leading up to her flight, not the flight itself that ruined her day. 

So how do you deal with what's going on inside you the day before your flight?  Even though Courtney left me a voice mail, it was easy to hear her anxiety and fear in her shaky voice.  She had called in the morning for a little reassurance for her flight later that evening. When I called back, she told me she was doing better but clearly she was really anxious about flying for the first time in two years. 

Our monthly Cleared for Takeoff class met yesterday at Sky Harbor Airport in Phoenix.  For three hours, fearful flyers shared, learned, and asked Capt. Ron about fear of flying, takeoffs, turbulence, and landings.  Capt. Ron earned six new fans as he patiently answered questions and made them laugh with his jokes: "Turbulence bothers me because I have to put down my copy of USA Today!"  One woman told Capt. Ron he should be on Oprah because he's so "caring and compassionate." 

If you read my previous blog post about fearful flyer Joanna--oops, let's make that former fearful flyer Joanna--you know that she's had some successes and failures in her quest to overcome her fear of flying.  It hasn't been a snap-your-fingers, get-over-it-now road to fearless flying.  That's fear of flying, for you.  It CAN be overcome, but it takes a lot of hard work and motivation and courage. 

The first time I flew with Capt. Ron and a group of fearful flyers, I heard him say, “It’s okay if today isn’t a good day to fly.”  A strange statement coming from a man who’s helping people to get on a plane rather than remain grounded in their fear, I thought.