On Sep 11, 11:53*am, Tman x@x wrote:
When taking lessons with a CFI, I've often had them compliment various
aspects of my performance, while also offering constructive criticism.
It seems that this behavior is right out of the pages of CFI training.

Here's my question. *Does that make the CFI a sycophant, by the formal
definition of it?

I'm not sure if this is suppose to be a serious question or not.
Flying is challenging. There isn't a pilot on this list who can't be
challenged by a good CFI. To spend the entire time telling a pilot
about his short comings isn't productive because at a certain point
people just turn off; either because they just assume they suck or
because they assume the CFI is full of crap. Mixing the good comments
with the feedback gives the pilot a balance.

-Robert, CFII