Episode 266 The Flipside with Michelle “MACE” Curran (Part 1)

John talks with Michelle “MACE” Curran — former combat pilot & F-16 fighter pilot, former Thunderbirds demonstration team pilot & lead pilot (2019–2022), author, keynote speaker, entrepreneur, and founder of Upside Down Dreams. Michelle shares her journey of becoming one of the few female combat pilots in the U.S., the story of how she got her call sign “MACE,” finding her true purpose beyond the cockpit and much more!

Listen to this episode to learn more:

[00:00] - Intro

[01:16] - Michelle’s bio

[02:00] - Thunderbirds and Blue Angels

[03:42] - Children’s books written by Michelle

[06:02] - Discovering her purpose by accident

[09:48] - What drew Michelle to become a fighter pilot?

[11:44] - Transitioning from college to the military

[12:55] - The process of becoming a fighter pilot 

[15:08] - Deployments and military assignments

[19:42] - How Michelle received her Callsign “MACE” 

[23:21] - How our pain shapes our purpose

[25:06] - Sharing the tough parts, not just the cool fighter pilot stuff

[26:33] - Majority of professional speakers are introverts

[28:53] - What it was like to join the Thunderbirds

[31:13] - Outro

NOTABLE QUOTES:

“There is power in seeing someone that you can personally relate to doing something that feels big and scary. And I know there are all these women, and all these little girls, watching those shows who rarely saw themselves represented.”

“I was willing to overcome another fear, of being a public speaker, and the fear of the judgment of others that comes with really putting yourself out there in the public eye, because I knew I could truly change lives in a positive way.”

“I’m going to start showing up more as just me and stop being hyper-vigilant about everything… how I react to jokes people make, and all the things. I’m just going to show up and be me.”

“I’m just going to show up and be me, because this is not sustainable, playing dress-up.”

“If I didn’t talk about the painful parts, it (speeches) would not have the impact that it does, not even a fraction.”

“You have to push through the uncomfortable, the anxiety, the scary part, because the rewards are massive.”

USEFUL RESOURCES:

https://macecurran.com/

https://www.linkedin.com/in/macecurran/

https://www.instagram.com/mace_curran/

https://www.facebook.com/macecurran/

https://x.com/mace_curran

https://www.youtube.com/@mace_curran5

"The Flipside: How to Invert Your Perspective and Turn Fear into Your Superpower" (https://a.co/d/6zgzEbT)

"Upside Down Dreams" (https://a.co/d/5HlDvhl)

"What's Your Callsign?" (https://a.co/d/ilF0djX)

CONNECT WITH JOHN

Website - https://iamjohnhulen.com   

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Facebook - https://www.facebook.com/johnhulen   

X - https://x.com/johnhulen   

LinkedIn - https://www.linkedin.com/in/johnhulen   

YouTube - https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCLX_NchE8lisC4NL2GciIWA   

EPISODE CREDITS

Intro and Outro music provided by Jeff Scheetz - https://jeffscheetz.com/