You've just had the worst flight of your course. Your confidence is shaken, and tomorrow's flight could determine your future. How do you bounce back?

In the conclusion of our three-part Built for Pressure series, mental performance consultant Zoran Stojković explains how RCAF student pilots can recover from failure, approach difficult debriefs, rebuild confidence, and distinguish honest self-assessment from destructive self-criticism.

We also explore how Canada's allies are developing mental performance programs, how technology could improve pilot training, and why recovery is essential to sustained high performance.

Finally, Zoran shares practical habits to develop before arriving in Moose Jaw, advice for the first week of training, and a message for anyone questioning whether they belong after a difficult flight.

Find Zoran at:

https://www.instagram.com/kizoperformance
www.kizo.ca

CHAPTERS

(00:00:00) Introduction and Welcome
(00:02:40) Mental Performance Coaching Among Our Allies
(00:09:04) What's New in Mental Performance Coaching?
(00:18:07) The Future of Mental Performance in RCAF Training
(00:24:41) Preparing for a Debrief When You Think You've Failed
(00:31:00) Honest Self-Assessment vs. Beating Yourself Up
(00:38:06) Rebuilding Confidence After Failure
(00:47:39) Sustaining Performance: Do You Have to Earn Recovery?
(00:53:24) Knowing When to Push Harder and When to Rest
(00:57:07) Three Tips Before Arriving in Moose Jaw
(01:00:42) Habits to Start Building Now
(01:02:20) Your First Week at Moose Jaw
(01:04:20) Performance Advice Pilots Should Stop Following
(01:06:46) Where to Find Zoran's Resources
(01:08:29) A Message After Your Worst Flight
(01:11:34) How to Connect with Zoran

CONTINUE THE FLIGHT

Catch up on the first two parts of Built for Pressure:

Part 1: From Elite Sport to RCAF Pilot Training – Zoran Stojković
Part 2: Practical Mental Performance for RCAF Pilots – Zoran Stojković

https://podpilotproject.transistor.fm/

EXPLORE THE LOGBOOK

More stories from RCAF and mission aviation pilots:

The Pilot Project Podcast episode archive:
https://podpilotproject.transistor.fm/

What happens when you know the material cold, but freeze during a flight test?

Mental performance consultant Zoran Stojković returns for Part 2 of PERFORMANCE & SAFETY: BUILT FOR PRESSURE, where we explore practical tools for RCAF pilot training; from pre-flight routines and chair flying to performance cues, breathing and recovering after a cockpit mistake.

Drawing on Zoran’s work with student pilots, pro athletes, and Bryan’s flying experience, they discuss recognizing when you’re falling behind the aircraft, practicing resets before you need them, and helping students recover after a difficult flight.

Chapters

(00:00:00) Welcome and introduction
(00:01:08) Why students freeze during a test
(00:07:00) Preparing an Olympian versus preparing a pilot
(00:08:36) Can you perform well while feeling nervous?
(00:15:26) Tomorrow’s checkride: when to stop studying
(00:18:48) Building a useful pre-flight mental routine
(00:22:46) Making visualization and chair flying effective
(00:29:04) Adapting when the schedule or mission changes
(00:32:43) Performance cues and constructive self-talk
(00:41:55) Closing the gap between practice and cockpit performance
(00:44:13) Breathing as a performance tool while flying
(00:51:50) The OODA loop and helmet fires
(00:54:33) Recognizing when you’re falling behind the aircraft
(00:59:49) Resetting after a mistake in the cockpit
(01:03:14) Helping a student recover after a difficult flight
(01:06:13) Thanks and a look ahead to Part 3

Explore the Logbook

Continue from Part 1: PERFORMANCE & SAFETY: BUILT FOR PRESSURE Part 1: From Elite Sport to RCAF Pilot Training – Zoran Stojković.

Explore Zoran’s work: His Built for Pressure podcast and Kizo Performance resources are discussed throughout this episode.

Ask about the visualization resource: Zoran invites listeners to contact him through Kizo Performance on Instagram about resources, including the visualization template discussed in the interview.

Have a question, a guest suggestion or an idea for a future episode? Contact thepilotprojectpodcast@gmail.com or find us on social media @podpilotproject.

Help with the big three: like and follow us on social media, share with your friends, and follow and rate us five stars wherever you get your podcasts.

Keep the blue side up!

What happens when you know how to do something, but pressure makes it difficult to actually do it?

Certified Mental Performance Consultant Zoran Stojković has spent more than 15 years helping people perform under pressure, from professional athletes and Olympic hopefuls to RCAF pilot trainees.

In Part 1, Zoran shares the path that took him from competitive tennis and high-performance sport to 2 Canadian Forces Flying Training School in Moose Jaw. He explains what surprised him about the pressures facing student pilots, how he earned credibility as a civilian working inside military aviation, and why relationships became central to his work.

We also hear how Zoran supported aircrew during Jaw South in Texas, how mental performance coaching became embedded in the flying environment, and what aviation taught him about the difference between high stakes and real stakes.

CHAPTERS

(00:00:00) Introduction, welcome and bio
(00:01:52) What role did sport play growing up?
(00:04:28) Why can we perform in practice but struggle under pressure?
(00:09:41) When did mental performance become a career?
(00:13:03) What did Zoran get wrong when he started coaching?
(00:15:21) What kind of pressure are Olympians under?
(00:18:35) Helping a professional tennis player turn things around
(00:20:22) Going from athletes to pilots
(00:23:23) Walking into 2CFFTS for the first time
(00:26:53) What surprised Zoran about the pressure on student pilots?
(00:30:13) High stakes versus real stakes
(00:31:37) Earning credibility in aviation as an outsider
(00:34:17) What happens when pilots don’t buy into mental performance coaching?
(00:38:44) A pilot success story
(00:42:36) Deploying with Jaw South
(00:47:27) What is Jaw South, and where did Zoran fit in?
(00:51:57) Helping a student in crisis before a flight
(00:53:49) Making progress in a slow-moving institution
(00:57:03) Meeting Colonel Jeremy Hansen
(01:01:30) Advice for a student pilot before a test

EXPLORE THE LOGBOOK

More stories from RCAF and mission aviation pilots:

The Pilot Project Podcast episode archive:
https://podpilotproject.transistor.fm/episodes