Jon Cheney’s journey through whitewater kayaking offers profound insights into overcoming life’s challenges, embracing creativity, and finding purpose amid uncertainty. This fascinating conversation reveals how extreme sports can teach us valuable lessons about resilience, focus, and faith.
Photos Courtesy of Jon Cheney
As a creator at heart, Jon has pursued multiple passions throughout his life – from music composition and piano performance to entrepreneurship and adventure sports. His story begins with early exposure to music, with parents who prioritized having a piano in their home before they even had proper furniture. This foundation in music developed Jon’s understanding of patterns, improvisation, and creation. His ability to play and compose music translated unexpectedly into his aptitude for languages, allowing him to quickly master Spanish during his teenage years in Paraguay and later Mandarin Chinese during his mission and college studies.
What makes Jon’s story particularly compelling is his introduction to whitewater kayaking as an adult. After attending a kayaking school called Otter Bar in Northern California, he discovered a passion that would challenge him physically, mentally, and spiritually. The sport of whitewater kayaking serves as a perfect metaphor for life’s unexpected challenges – you will inevitably flip over, but learning how to roll back upright is the key to progress and enjoyment.
Jon explains that the process of learning to kayak involves overcoming the natural fear of being trapped upside down underwater. This uncomfortable and initially panic-inducing experience parallels many of life’s challenges where we find ourselves disoriented and struggling. What’s particularly insightful about Jon’s perspective is his emphasis on learning how to recover rather than avoiding failure altogether. “Once you get that, then you’re not afraid of flipping, then you learn how to not flip. That’s step three,” he explains.
The conversation takes a thrilling turn when Jon describes his experience kayaking down a 35-foot waterfall. The intense preparation, visualization, and prayer that preceded this challenge demonstrate how adventure sports can push us to confront our fears in controlled but consequential environments. Jon’s description of the physical impact – “like getting hit by a water balloon in the head, but like a hundred of them from all sides” – vividly illustrates the power of nature and the vulnerability we experience when testing our limits.
Perhaps most profound is Jon’s discussion of finding peace and awareness amid chaos. As he progressed in his kayaking skills, his focus shifted from simply surviving rapids to developing awareness in chaotic situations – a skill with applications far beyond the river. This ability to remain calm and make split-second decisions while being bombarded with sensory information represents a form of mastery not just in sport but in life. 
The conversation culminates with Jon sharing his ongoing struggle to determine which of his many talents and interests to focus on – music, adventure, entrepreneurship, or writing. His recent epiphany, inspired by Elder Uchtdorf’s teaching that “it mattereth not, only be faithful,” offers a liberating perspective for anyone feeling paralyzed by too many options. This wisdom suggests that the specific path may matter less than the faithfulness with which we walk it.
Jon Cheney’s multifaceted journey reminds us that our diverse interests and experiences are not distractions but rather complementary aspects of who we are. Whether navigating literal rapids or metaphorical challenges in business and life, the principles remain the same: learn to recover from inevitable setbacks, remain aware amid chaos, and above all, be faithful to your core values.
