Scared Teen Transforms Into Fearless Fighter Pilot | Lt. Col Rob Waldman Speech | Goalcast

✪ "I panicked, I couldn't breathe, I thought I was going to die" - This is the story of a scared boy who became a fearless Air Force jet fighter pilot. Lt. Col. Rob "Waldo" Waldman takes you on an exhilarating journey of the scariest moments in his life.
✪ Scared Boy Transforms Into Fearless Fighter Pilot | Lt. Col Rob Waldman Speech | Goalcast

Video Script:: 

words can't describe the passion that I had for flying jets living my dream but words also can't describe some of the fears and doubts I faced every single time I strapped into that jet to fly I had to deal with this fear and this phobia this uncertainty and doubt that threatened to paralyze my ability to do what I loved more than anything else and so we're gonna talk about commitment today commitment number one a wing tip number one is commitment to excellence the passion and drive now I learned about excellence at a very early age my dad was a mechanic at Kennedy Airport in New York City he used to come home after a 16-hour day working overtime to feed the family cuts all over his hands grease on his uniform smelling like jet fuel from head to toe was always preach it to the kids do it right the first time but don't do it at all was his favorite he said you hang out with garbage you're gonna become garbage be careful who you spend time with on the weekends the early bird gets the worm don't take the easy way out pull my finger so my life changed for me when dad took me and my identical twin brother Dave the Kennedy Airport when we eight years old little tour I'll remember for the life of me forget jumping onto the tarmac and smelling the sweet smell of JP for jet fuel fill my lungs hearing the rumble of the jet engines watching the floating birds I was hooked and that dad sat us in the cockpit of that 747 jumbo jet and I started to play with the switches I said dad what's this place for he said it's the cockpit Rob it's where the pilot flies the plane and I knew in a heartbeat that I didn't want to fix the planes like my dad I wanted to fly him so I said dad I want to fly these things what do I need to do and he said listen son you forgot you're afraid of heights probably not the best career choice for you and I said I don't care Donald joined the airforce if I have to which really ticked him off because he was a Navy vet and I said I don't care dad I'm gonna do it I'm gonna find a way because my passion was greater than my fear I applied to the Air Force Academy made a commitment to step out of my comfort zone go for excellence and I signed on the dotted line and freshman year I show up to swim class and in the corner of that brand-spankin'-new Olympic sized swimming pool was this 33 feet high diving board staring me down I freaked out perhaps some of you can relate I looked at the instructor I said excuse me sir do I have to jump off that thing he said as a matter of fact cadet Waldman you do you don't even graduate the Academy and I have any chance of being a pilot unless you're complete water survival training and jump off that diving board with a 35 pound pack on your back and my mouth got parched dry as I thought this was not in a darn marketing brochure I jumped off that diving board folks last in my entire class to do it because there was no way in a hedge on that I was gonna let 33 feet stand between me my dreams life isn't always in the brochure is it you see I jumped made a commitment to excellence and I graduated the Air Force Academy and was fortunate enough to be in the top 33% and I got to go to pilot training and in pilot training you have to compete with your peers and there's always a limited number of slots for fighter pilots and they will cut them back in around 1990 when I graduated so I graduated at the top of my class but I wasn't number one and there was only one fighter slot and captain Andy Toth got that fire and so I took the next best thing which was to be an instructor pilot I didn't want to be a tanker or a heavy pilot and big travel the wall and these big cockpits and be bored I wanted to be pulling G's and flying formation and and and and learning how to do maneuvers and so I decided to be an instructor and teach young men and women how to fly and the key was I would recompete after three or four years of that instructor tour get rank-ordered and i have another shot at she was in my jet hopefully choosing my dream f-16 and everything was going great for me I was loving instructing and then around two years into my flying career I had a missile shot at me had nothing to do with flying at first I decided to go scuba diving with a couple of my buddies it was in the Caribbean never been before and I'm thinking how hard could it be put your mask on go in the water and swim but five seconds into the water I was wishing I paid just a little more attention to the mission briefing because I'm flying like an idiot I'm using my arms instead of my legs totally improper technique and my muscles begin to ache from head to toe I can't move frozen and then I start sinking in the water ten twenty thirty feet my mask inadvertently separates and I inhale a whole lung full of burning stinging saltwater I'll never forget the feeling my lungs felt like they were on fire and I began to choke it to the mask I freaked out wondering if I was gonna inhale more more water and then I had something called a panic attack didn't know what one was up into that moment thought I was going to die no combat mission could come close to that day and I got out of the water and said I'm never doing that again and a few days later I'm back in the jet flying a training mission and the weather was terrible master scottson thurible right thunderstorms lightning clouds everywhere couldn't see the Sun couldn't see the ground and I started a panic again I got really anxious and became lightheaded I looked down at the oxygen I'm like this so Oh with the oxygen I gotta land this plane but I realized there was nothing wrong with the oxygen but there was everything wrong with me as I became panicked again and experienced the same claustrophobic panic attack that I had a few days prior but instead of being 35 feet under the water now I'm 35,000 feet in the air like I'm claustrophobic probably not the best thing for a pilot to have with your eyes agreed and so when I came back to the squadron the next time I strapped into the plane to fly and basically for the next eight years I had to deal with this fear in this obeah this uncertainty in doubt that threatened to paralyze my ability to do what I love more than anything else I would go out on these training missions freaking out it was like jumping off the 33 feet high diving boards every single day I was panicked my fear became greater than my passion and I became doubtful and uncertain and full of fear and I'm like how am I gonna do this now no one knew about this fear that I had and I it wasn't impacting my ability to fly I was still able to do my job but there were times when I come back from some of these training missions with these wings on my hand saying I can't do this anymore this sucks by the time I walked into that squad room I put these wings back on and I said one more day one more day just get into that jet and it became easier and easier for me but I had a secret weapon you see when I strapped into that plane to teach these young men and women out of fly my associate so did so to speak I became monogamist on them how can I teach them how could I instruct them and serve them and help them live their dreams of putting these wings on their chest which is one of the most amazing things that can happen in the military I eventually became the number one instructor in my squadron number one at a 300 not 308 other pilots they rank the advocates so it came down to assignment night and my commander said congratulations Waldo you did it you're at the top of your class you can choose anything you want the c-17 the brand-new four-engine cargo plane travel the world big roomy cockpit take a nap in the back be bored out of your mind or choose that f-16 the jet of your dreams Waldo Mach 2 9 G's eight-hour night combat missions and a tiny little cockpit barely able to move and I had this choice to make do I choose the c-17 or choose the f16 do I play it safe and take the easy way out or push it up and you know which one I chose you see I didn't want to have to look back on my life and tell Maya the son is now 9 years old guess what your dad had a dream to fly the f-16 and as soon as he had the choice tan Shuzhen make the tough choice quit he took the easy way out don't do as your dad does son face your fear and take the road less travel because on opposite side of that fear is growth what I'm challenging you to do is to choose your f-16 every single day to make that tough choice to realize that we're gonna have some headwinds and turbulence and life is going to come at us and we're going to be full of fear and doubt that's normal that's part of earning your wings as a leader the scars of character that your teammates don't see the choice that you make the example that you've set for your kids for your associates for your country for your community that's the key that's the juice I'm asking you to think about what that is to you that the green smoothie or the donut the snooze were to get out of bed and hit the gym the tough conversation may be to pull it back not say anything to somebody that needs to hear your push it up and pull it back this is how we grow folks and a pie [Music] to face my fears and deal with my claustrophobia to fly a tower combat missiles and the tight a little cockpit that I believe that you can do anything so here's my challenge for you choose that f-16 set the example for yourself or your teammates and build that courage and credibility and confidence that it takes to lead with authenticity and serve your wingmen every day [Music]