Only Human – News, Analysis, and Insights from the World of Human Performance

Dr. Tony Kern
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Over the last few years, we’ve pursued the goal of bridging the gap between who you are today and who you are capable of being by focusing on reducing human error and improving human performance from a mostly philosophical stance. Starting today, we’re centering practical application and real-world scenarios through the lens of the strategies and techniques we’ve been discussing. In this episode, Tony reviews an altercation between on-duty air traffic controllers at Ronald Reagan Airport, the experiences shared recently by the astronauts who were stranded on the International Space Station for

  1. 09/02/2025

    Podcast Hiatus Announcement

    In this very short not-an-episode, Tony announces that the podcast will be taking a hiatus for 4–6 weeks while he moves across the country and adjusts to some new professional responsibilities. Listen in for Tony's explanation, along with a few more details. This isn't an end to the podcast—just a short break before new beginnings. Thank you all for tuning into the podcast and we plan to see you again sometime in October!

    2 min

  2. 08/26/2025

    A Personal Discussion of Professional Ethics

    In some settings, just mentioning the phrase “professional ethics” makes the hairs on people’s arms stand up… but it shouldn’t. Part of the unease might stem from the fact that the term is often poorly defined or understood, leaving a nebulous gray area that makes people not only unsure of where they stand, but also where they should be standing. In this episode, Tony reviews a New York Post article on pilots who lied about medical conditions that would have disqualified them from flying and then demystifies the concept of professional ethics by offering some key metrics for standards of conduct in areas such as honesty, integrity, loyalty, and accountability, along with a set of definitions to identify those behaviors that meet or exceed the standard and those that don’t. Nobody’s perfect, but at least with clear definitions we can all shoot for a standard and know when we’re not meeting it. Even if—especially if—we’re the only ones measuring it or recognizing when we’ve fallen short.

    32 min

  3. 08/19/2025

    Soaring High – Celebrating National Aviation Day

    In case you didn’t know, August 19th is National Aviation Day, when we honor the birthday of Orville Wright, whose name should be familiar to even the non-aviation listeners of the podcast. But for those less familiar with the history of aviation, Tony covers some of the historical milestones that showcase how the human spirit pushes through boundaries, breaking free of the limits of the past, shaping the possibilities of the present, and weaving the tapestry of our future. From that initial flight at Kitty Hawk through early transcontinental flights, military applications in both world wars, and eventually achieving spaceflight, we choose to celebrate the history of aviation because it remains the most potent example in the last century of ordinary human beings achieving truly extraordinary things.

    24 min

  4. 08/12/2025

    How Engaged Followers Become Legendary Leaders

    Why are there so many books on “leadership” but almost none on “followership?” To answer that question, we first return to the cockpit recording from the midair helicopter collision over Reagan International this past spring. This scenario illustrates what can go wrong when people are unprepared for a reversal of the leader/follower roles they are used to. Tony uses this example to dive into the complex dynamics of these relationships and the critical skills that engaged followers should be learning from their leaders as they grow their team contribution and experience level. From big picture thinking to habit/routine creation to growing your relationship network, being an active follower builds all the foundational elements required to someday become a legendary leader.

    23 min

  5. 08/05/2025

    Death Hides Inside the Routine

    Most of us face a certain amount of danger every single day, whether it’s while driving, walking our dog, stopping at the bank or the grocery store, or working on a home improvement project. Because the likelihood of catastrophe is so low, most of us will spend that time thinking about other things, maybe daydreaming or listening to an audiobook, a podcast, or some music. This tendency toward complacency in our routine tasks is where the danger—and potentially the death—hides. In this week’s episode, Tony draws lessons from four examples of pilots who were lulled into complacency as everything seemed completely routine—until it wasn’t. From missing checklist steps to weather alerts, sometimes thinking we know a process or environment inside and out can lead to critical errors and tragedy, a lesson that applies equally to even the most common activities.

    23 min

  6. 07/29/2025

    When Leaders Truly Leave a Mark

    In this episode on good leaders versus mere managers, Tony discusses three people whose leadership lessons made their mark on him and influenced his own path as a leader. These examples range from his time as a B-1 pilot to teaching military history at the US Air Force Academy and finally as the Director of Aviation for the US Forest Service, with a critical leader in each position leaving him with valuable lessons and insights into what makes a true leadership legacy. Tony shares what made these men great examples, what they taught him, and focuses on a few major points to improve both leadership and followership alike.

    32 min

  7. 07/22/2025

    How Air India Flight 171 Exposes the Need for a New Approach to the Mental Health Epidemic

    The recent crash of Air India Flight 171—a tragedy that appears to have been caused by one of the pilots deliberately cutting fuel to the engines immediately after takeoff—reminds us once again of the importance of mental health support, not just for pilots but for all working professionals. Tony discusses a similar accident 10 years ago, when the pilot of Germanwings Flight 9525 deliberately crashed the airplane into a mountainside during an ongoing mental health crisis. Based on the evidence collected from Flight 171 thus far, it is very likely the pilot responsible was also suffering from personal mental health issues. And while some positive steps were made after Flight 9525 to better identify struggling pilots and help—rather than punish—them, more work still needs to be done to address mental health struggles across professions and in society. Tony closes by offering his own insight into additional steps that could be taken to help prevent more of these incidents in the future.

    20 min

  8. 07/15/2025

    Why Leadership Books Keep Getting It Wrong

    How many leadership books do you own—or have actually read? If your shelves look anything like mine, you probably have dozens. But here’s the question: Are they helping, or just collecting dust? In today’s episode, Dr. Tony Kern dives into why so many leadership books miss the mark. He’ll challenge the assumptions behind popular leadership advice, explore what real-world leaders actually do differently, and ask if there’s anything truly worth keeping from the leadership shelf.

    27 min
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About

Over the last few years, we’ve pursued the goal of bridging the gap between who you are today and who you are capable of being by focusing on reducing human error and improving human performance from a mostly philosophical stance. Starting today, we’re centering practical application and real-world scenarios through the lens of the strategies and techniques we’ve been discussing. In this episode, Tony reviews an altercation between on-duty air traffic controllers at Ronald Reagan Airport, the experiences shared recently by the astronauts who were stranded on the International Space Station for

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