Flying in the Face of Fear

A Fighter Pilot's Lessons on Leading with Courage

De: Kim Campbell

Narrado por: Erin deWard

In Flying in the Face of Fear: Lessons on Leading with Courage, former fighter pilot and retired Air Force Colonel Kim Campbell delivers an inspiring and practical discussion of leadership and decision-making. In the book, you'll follow the author's journey through the principles that got her through her twenty-four-year career in the high-stakes and high-risk world of aerial combat.

You'll discover lessons and stories that will serve as a resource for you as you lead your students, employees, and others through the challenges of life and work, learning to create a positive impact and make a big difference in the lives of the people who follow you. You'll also find: specific strategies and techniques for leading in situations of extreme stress and risk; methods for female leaders to overcome the challenges of working in male-dominated environments; and ways to act in critical moments by recognizing that being brave and afraid at the same time is both normal and necessary.

An essential leadership blueprint for business and military professionals seeking to improve their ability to inspire others to greater achievements, Flying in the Face of Fear will also earn a place in the libraries of young and mid-career professionals looking for mentorship and sound, proven advice.

©2023 Kim Campbell (P)2023 Ascent Audio

Story good, life lessons out of place

This should be two books, one for her life and Air Force story and the other for management techniques or goals.

KC should have been the reader

I’d like to caveat that.

I am a retired Air Force fighter pilot, and also an Air Force Academy graduate. My time of service predates KC’s and I didn’t stay in long enough to be promoted to the positions that she was.

The reason I say that she should’ve been the reader is that there are some nuances to the fighter pilot jargon, and combat terminology that the reader, who in this case is a professional reader missed. It’s very subtle, but for those of us who are on the inside. It’s also kind of cringey.

Also, I understand that this book is designed to not only tell the story of a fighter pilot, and the trials and tribulations of deployment send the conflicting issues that are part of being a married person, and a deployable warrior. However, this book tends to want to also be a training manual for leadership.

I have no quarrel with that, but I think that inserting the business leadership aspects of this book and wedging it into the experiences of a combat fighter pilot are awkward at best, and in some cases just a poor fit.

OK now the good news is that this author’s experience is something that few if any could write. The fact that she had a serious emergency early in her career, handled it superbly and lived to tell it is well worth the time and effort to put down. I also think that the story of being a married fighter pilot with children and married to another fighter pilot is a compelling story in itself and I am very grateful for having been able to hear that.

This is a review of the audio version of the book which was read by a professional reader. I’ve heard KC speak, and I think she could’ve done exceptional job doing it herself. I also understand the reason for this choice.

Inspiring story and great leadership lessons for life

I am a very biased reviewer because I know the author personally and have flown combat missions with her in the A-10.
This book is interesting, enjoyable to read/listen to and includes some great leadership lessons based on the author’s exceptional Air Force career. As an aviator it was fun to have her correlate flying truths to team leadership situations.
I really wish KC would have read for the audio version. While the professional reader had a good voice she doesn’t pronounce nuanced military terms/jargon correctly and I found that frustrating.
Overall this book is as inspiring as KC is in real life and I’m so grateful to be able to read it and share it with others.
ATTACK! The A-10 experience was amazing.

Narration needs improvement,

I've listened to many audiobooks that cover combat pilots, and I want to hear Kim's story but not with this narration. The A10 is my favorite plane, short breath, and I have a friend, short breath, who flew in the first missions, short breath, ever flown in the war... I apologize for my candor but I've been spoiled.
I will read the book.
Thank you Kim, for putting your life on the line and thank you Erin for trying to convey exactly what Kim was trying to say.

Remarkable story.

Kim Campbell made a remarkable contribution to our country's defense and demonstrated great courage and dedication beginning at a very early age.

Her story and the lessons she offers are useful and very relevant. This is a timely and very well written book.

Inspiring and informative

Very inspiring. KC is a leader to look up to. Learning about how she got to where she is was very interesting also.

Docked a star because she is a little dry/stiff/formal. I found myself wanting her to show a little bit more of her personal opinions on the matter rather than just professional. The whole thing is very “polished” for better or for worse. I prefer memoirs that are a bit more personal, but that’s just my opinion. Other than that it’s very good.

What a brag fest.

I did this, I did that. I'm so amazing. There are way better memoirs of women in the military and personal memoirs of courage. This is an utter brag fest.

Great story

I loved this story. I grew up the next island over from Curaçao, so I had some connection there. Anyone who has any knowledge of the A10 knows it a a gun with wings, and her stories prove it.

Poor Narration

Great book but I did not enjoy the narrator. Robotic a lot of the time and then would emotionally charge some words searingly at random.

Not Just for Leaders

Flying in the Face of Fear is a fantastic resource for leaders and managers. It presents valuable leadership and life lessons from a unique perspective: fighter pilot culture. This alone is a compelling enough reason to buy this book for yourself or a leader in your life. But Colonel Campbell’s book is about way more than leadership.

- It’s the inspiring life story of a young girl who has to overcome a variety of obstacles to pursue her dream to serve her country.
- It’s an inside look at the career of an accomplished pilot and Air Force officer.
- It vividly puts the reader “inside the cockpit” during A-10 combat missions, including her famous mission over Baghdad.

So, yes, this is a book for leaders. But it’s also for anyone else who wants to learn essential life skills, needs inspiration, or just wants to read some really cool tales about our nation’s heroes.