That phrase means everything”, “It is the gentleman’s handshake. It means: We have an expectation of the professional execution of this mission. I pr… - Nicole Malachowski

"You know, whether we like it or not sometimes when you’re a first, you end up speaking on behalf of the group and that can be hard and that can be complex and gnarly but somebody has to go first,""And you definitely want to do it in a way that creates more opportunity for the people that follow.

I now know that your job shouldn’t be your identity. Boom, I go from this elite, high-performing person, physically and mentally, to just being completely broken overnight. I’m this independent confident type A fighter pilot, and now I can’t even go to the restroom by myself or bathe by myself—overnight,”

The Thunderbirds taught me nothing of significance is ever accomplished alone,” she says, recounting the time she tried and failed, multiple times, to master an extremely difficult air show maneuver requiring the jets to move from diamond formation into trail formation, putting the wing tips within inches of one another. Ultimately, getting it right required her to take a deep breath and admit to her teammates: “I need help.”