Shaking off a bad match

[Jared]

For you guys that shoot competition, and really care a lot about how you do, what do you do when you have a match where EVERYTHING goes wrong?

Normally after a match, I have things that I feel good about and bad about. I then try to fix the things that went wrong. I also usually look at what went right as a positive, and try to look at those things as proof that I am getting better. That helps keep me from just beating myself up over the bad and getting demoralized.

Today, I honestly have nothing to look at and say that I did well. My accuracy wasn't very good. I was slow and choppy. I never felt comfortable with my stage plans. I just plain sucked out loud all day at every aspect of my shooting.

My first instinct is just to erase it from my memory and chalk it up to "one of those days," and "it'll be better next time." Kinda like a really bad practice session.

But I would like some input from some of the other hardcore gamers if there is another way I should be looking at this. Thanks in advance.

[Lon]

I usually video tape my matches so I can watch what went right and wrong. Then I plan practice sessions around what went wrong.

Sometimes, kitten happens. Try to get over it. One of the guys I shoot with really struggles with getting past a bad stage, drill, whatever. Not sure how to teach someone to get past it.

[jetfire]

This will get a little into performance theory, but bear with me. If possible, can you identify why the bad things happened? We're your skills not up to the shooting tasks, were you unfocused mentally, etc. Did you have equipment issues? Once you've nailed down the causes of the problems, it's important to address whether or the problem is fixable. For example: a bad stage due to a equipment issue is something that can be addressed ASAP. A bad stage because you lost focus is more difficult.

Usually after a match I'll take the rest of the day off (good or bad performance) to distance myself from the emotion. Then the following day I'll review scores and video and do an analysis of my performance as dispassionately as possible. It's especially important to remove yourself from the emotion of the match before you do your hot wash. Placing well can mask errors you know you made, and having a poor finish can cause you to be harsh when you shot well. The inverse is also applicable.

[Jared]

Thanks guys. I've slept on it, and some things are starting to jump out at me. In a nutshell, I never really settled into a groove at any point during the day because I was pretty tense and unusually nervous. So basically, I choked. I've got some ideas as to why now. I just need to figure out how to fix it.

It's very frustrating for me, because at last months match, I performed better than I ever had before and felt like I'd put the bonehead stuff behind me. I came crashing down to earth hard today.

[Wheeler]

Due to my work schedule and budget, my matches are my practice sessions most of the time. That being said I usually have something specific I want to focus on. For instance, I shot my first Steel Challenge with my new to me P07. Knowing that the double action trigger was different than what I was used to I used the match to concentrate on getting a first shot hit on the first plate. I was predictably slow at the beginning but things sped up towards the end of the match. I was able to identify a few other things that needed work as well, most of which could be addressed with dry fire.
I save my competitive juices for the occasional sanctioned match I participate in.

[Slavex]

I learned a good lesson from Angus Hobdell years ago, treat every stage like you just rocked the last one. Do not carry negativity around with you ever. If you do, you'll suck.
If I blow a stage or a match, I just move on. Doesn't matter if it's a Nationals or a local club match, a match is a match is a match. I'll analyze my performance logically and work on the things I think I need to work on, but I do it without any emotion.

[BN]

It's very frustrating for me, because at last months match, I performed better than I ever had before and felt like I'd put the bonehead stuff behind me. I came crashing down to earth hard today.

Ah, now I see. You had expectations. ;) You were expecting to do very good. Flexmoney said something a while ago. When all else fails, execute the fundamentals.

[Jared]

I learned a good lesson from Angus Hobdell years ago, treat every stage like you just rocked the last one. Do not carry negativity around with you ever. If you do, you'll suck.


I appreciate this advice, but how do you do that? I know that a lot of athletes and the like talk about a "short memory" where you basically forgive yourself and move on right now, but I've never really explored learning how to do it.

[Jared]

Ah, now I see. You had expectations. ;) You were expecting to do very good. Flexmoney said something a while ago. When all else fails, execute the fundamentals.

I guess I did have expectations in a way. I didn't walk up there like I was the greatest ever or anything like that, but like I said, after last months match, I felt like the truly idiotic stuff was behind me and I could move further forward.

[Dr. No]

I can completely relate. I had been training hard for two months before a recent major match - I even fired 1500 rounds the week before. I started out slow and as I tried to push I completely cratered. It was frustrating as hell. I had built up my expectations and put a lot of pressure on myself to perform. I did not have fun at the match and I was aggravated.

I had a big 3 gun match shortly afterwards. I hadn't been practicing 3 gun stuff as much, so I decided to set my expectations low and concentrate on having fun on the range with my friends. Don't get me wrong, I still went through my normal match analysis but I focused on the fact that I was there to have fun and that I WAS having fun.

I was much more relaxed and ... not surprisingly ... I did very very well.

Set your own mindset, relax, and enjoy your time on the range. The work you've done will show up.

[BN]

Set your own mindset, relax, and enjoy your time on the range. The work you've done will show up.

Awesome. :)

[ranger]

I stay busy at work and have limited spare time like many others. I started getting stressed out shooting competitively (USPSA and Sporting Clays) but then made a conscious decision that I would shoot for fun and focus on doing the best I can but above all else enjoy the shooting event (I had plenty of stress at work - why stress over "fun"?). Amazingly, my Sporting Clays scores improved when I did not stress out over every missed clay pigeon. The more relaxed I became, the better I shot. Now, if we could just do away with that buzzer for pistol matches......

[ST911]

"I'm already over it." -SuperDave

[Wheeler]

I stay busy at work and have limited spare time like many others. I started getting stressed out shooting competitively (USPSA and Sporting Clays) but then made a conscious decision that I would shoot for fun and focus on doing the best I can but above all else enjoy the shooting event (I had plenty of stress at work - why stress over "fun"?). Amazingly, my Sporting Clays scores improved when I did not stress out over every missed clay pigeon. The more relaxed I became, the better I shot. Now, if we could just do away with that buzzer for pistol matches......

The best bit of advice I ever received when shooting clays was to break them one at a time. That applies to pistol sports as well, one shot at a time.

[BaiHu]

This is a great thread for any kind of performance. As many already noted, expectations as compared to reality are the main enemy of the self during the execution phase. Anchor into good fundamentals and go from there. Lastly, all of this is easier said than done.

Sent from my SCH-I535 using Tapatalk

[Slavex]

You know, I started thinking my answer was kind of useless and I'd better do more explaining.

It's hard, when I first started shooting I'd keep thinking about my mistakes and getting frustrated more and more. This was especially true at larger matches and would affect me from stage to stage. But when I had the talk with Angus after watching him screw up a stage, we'll I guess a switch just flicked. What's done is done and can't be fixed, I just had to let go. I think the more you compete the more you get used to the mistakes, unless you let it get to you. I know it’s not probably what you were looking for, but all I can do is say work on the emotional attachment.

[Jared]

Thanks Slavex, that is helpful.

Ultimately, I let a lot of things that were beyond my control affect me. I just got the results. I was in the top 5 for Production division, which kinda tells me it was fairly rough on all the Production shooters. The stages were loaded with options, but were kind of hard to break into the shoot 8, reload on the move, shoot 8, reload on the move chunks that Production shooters like to do. Not an excuse, don't think that, just one thing that I did poorly.

At last months match, it was the first one I'd been able to shoot since last fall. I'd done a lot of work and felt like I should do better, and I really did. I still felt like I had a really long way to go, but I felt much improved compared to last year. Next month, I am most definitely gonna try to get back to a "no expectations" mental approach and just shoot as best I can and let the results shake out however they shake out.

I'm still gonna have to learn to let go of a bad stage and not let it affect the next one though.

[Slavex]

8 reload 8 reload 8 does get a bit boring after awhile. Good match designers should provide more options, but it's different for you guys as the different divisions can have different round counts. Here in Kanada everyone is 10 rounds in the mag regardless of division so stage design is probably a bit easier for us.
The easiest way to let go of a bad stage is to just focus on the next one. Until you've shot a stage you're perfect on it, so don't let previous poor performance cloud your mind. I know it sounds all Tony Robbin, but it's true. If you go in thinking badly, you'll perform badly. Visualization of a stage will help too, see every hit you need to make as you're waiting for your turn. Every A, every reload, every step if you can do it. Then step up to the line, breathe, and giver.

[Jared]

Our stage designer is a pretty good Limited shooter, and I will definitely give him credit, he doesn't just build stages to his strengths, he builds them generally loaded with options and usually sticks a target or two here and there that's easy to forget about. I remember once he did that and forgot it himself, leading to a humorous moment where he said something about forgetting to shoot a target he set up himself. Anyhoo....

If everything is 8 reload, etc., it definitely gets boring. I could have made this match much easier on myself if I hadn't slavishly adhered to the idea that one should not do a standing reload in USPSA unless one absolutely has to. Half of my plans got real complicated because I tried to make good and sure all my reloads were moving reloads, and as a result, I had to treat 3 of our 6 stages like memory stages. That led to me kind of timidly hunting and pecking around for targets. If I'd just been willing to eat a couple standing reloads, I could have been a lot more aggressive. I probably could have made up every bit of the time I would have lost with the stationary reloads and more just by being more comfortable and being able to be more aggressive.

[Jared]

I can completely relate. I had been training hard for two months before a recent major match - I even fired 1500 rounds the week before. I started out slow and as I tried to push I completely cratered. It was frustrating as hell. I had built up my expectations and put a lot of pressure on myself to perform. I did not have fun at the match and I was aggravated.

I had a big 3 gun match shortly afterwards. I hadn't been practicing 3 gun stuff as much, so I decided to set my expectations low and concentrate on having fun on the range with my friends. Don't get me wrong, I still went through my normal match analysis but I focused on the fact that I was there to have fun and that I WAS having fun.

I was much more relaxed and ... not surprisingly ... I did very very well.

Set your own mindset, relax, and enjoy your time on the range. The work you've done will show up.

Dr. NO,

Sorry, I unfortunately overlooked your post. Thanks. This makes a great deal of sense.

Referencing having fun. I frankly didn't this time. It was my own fault, but I didn't. I was 3 stages in, one disaster after the next, and a helicopter flew over. I looked up at it and thought that if they'd drop me a ladder, I would climb up and bail on this mess. I'd never felt that bad before.

[Slavex]

I like to freak new shooters out at matches when there is a stage that seems to flow best with a start of maybe 2 or 3 shots then dump the mag and go. It really freaks them out to see that happen, but sometimes it's the best plan.
Another good mental tip, don't watch people shoot right before it's your turn, their screwups or different plans will melt into yours if you're not super tuned in and that can affect things. I prefer to watch a different squad vs my own squad on a stage.

[Jared]

Yeah, I've done the shoot three, ditch mag, get out of that spot. People look at you like you are nuts.

I appreciate the mental tips. I honestly have not paid one minutes attention to the mental game. I just always felt like I was so slow (because I was/kind of still am), that my focus was always on being able to shoot faster, draw faster, reload faster, etc. and still keep my accuracy up there. So I always said to myself that the mental game was important, but that I just wasn't good enough at the shooting part to justify taking time I could spend improving technical skills and spending it on the mind.

[TheTrevor]

Jared, I got DQ'd in an abundance-of-caution 180 call where I, admittedly, was probably at 178 degrees as I drew... on the second stage of my second USPSA match, after getting back into competition this year. If you want to learn how to process an upsetting outcome I'd say that's a good one to try, but I don't recommend it. :)

At match #3 I went slow (a fair bit slower than I could have gone) and tried to max out on points per stage instead. I shot within 2-4 points of perfect on a couple of stages, didn't get DQ'd, and actually had a pretty good hit factor on one stage that was mostly shooting with some easy movement. Focusing on the fundamentals, and proving to myself that (a) I actually could shoot very well and (b) wasn't one of Those New Guys who was a constant safety hazard did an awful lot to restore my confidence competing in the USPSA context.

For folks who have competed a lot, there's a tremendous experience base to draw upon to say "I'm better than that last stage". For others, sometimes it takes a deliberate but positive experience at the next match to restore confidence. Or something in between, of course.

It also helps to not take it especially seriously. When we figured out that our USPSA Classifier ("Melody Line") was set up wrong and wouldn't count, I opted to take the much slower headshots just to get practice working the trigger against an array of low-probability targets at 10yd. Killed my stage score and match ranking, but didn't care -- it was good training.

[Mr_White]

It's much easier said than done, but if I want to do well, I have to put that aside and instead want that which will result in me doing well. I must focus on the process rather than the outcome. I must focus on the task at hand, no matter how much my emotions want to intrude and distract me. The task at hand is largely composed of sights and trigger.

I do find it very difficult to let go of a bad stage at a match, but it has to be done. Very challenging for me though.

[jetfire]

It's much easier said than done, but if I want to do well, I have to put that aside and instead want that which will result in me doing well. I must focus on the process rather than the outcome. I must focus on the task at hand, no matter how much my emotions want to intrude and distract me. The task at hand is largely composed of sights and trigger.

I do find it very difficult to let go of a bad stage at a match, but it has to be done. Very challenging for me though.

The difficulty of managing expectations is something I have to fight with even in individual practice sessions. I was working on reloads last night, and getting frustrated (new gun, things weren't going right) because I expected to be able to automatically match my performance with a new gun to my performance with a different gun. It was only when I took a step back and turned down the wick that I started seeing success.

[Jared]

It's much easier said than done, but if I want to do well, I have to put that aside and instead want that which will result in me doing well. I must focus on the process rather than the outcome. I must focus on the task at hand, no matter how much my emotions want to intrude and distract me. The task at hand is largely composed of sights and trigger.

I do find it very difficult to let go of a bad stage at a match, but it has to be done. Very challenging for me though.


OAK,

If I may, I'd like to try to get you to elaborate on this a bit. Rather that a full stage, lets just say a reload in a practice session. If I'm reading you correctly, I'm (leaping to the assumption) thinking that you would mentally break it down to ejecting the mag properly, grasping the new mag properly, orienting the pistol in the proper way to receive the fresh mag, inserting, reacquire grip, and on step by step to the point that the shot is fired.

Me, I normally think, "I wanna do this reload fast!" and then check the timer after it is over. Then, when I fail, I tend to grit my teeth, and go again. Finally, after a couple bad reps, I'll breathe a bit, shake my hands out, think about what I want to do, then I almost invariably execute much better.

I don't mean to pester, it's just that more efficient practice techniques are a HUGE topic of interest to me at this point, and I'm finding that I have a really bad tendency to rip off say, ten runs without doing a proper analysis after each run, and also failing to think before each run exactly what I wish to accomplish. I've seen improvement from where I was this time a year ago, but I've been plateaued for about a month and I'm trying to bust through.

[Mr_White]

You aren't pestering me at all, Jared. I just hope I can give a useful answer. This is all trying to describe what goes on inside, so bear with me as I try to articulate it.

With regard to your reload example, I think you are basically paraphrasing me correctly, in the sense that wanting a fast reload isn't necessarily going to result in a fast reload. Maybe it will in some instances, but I don't find that kind of thinking (outcome-oriented) effective for me.

I am leery of your description in that it seems to suggest consciously working my way through each physical step that comprises a reload. Still, the fundamental idea you express of focusing on the process, rather than the outcome, is exactly where I'm at.

The longhand description you wrote of a reload seems to me to be more suitable to learning the technique in the first place, rather than sharpening that technique once you can do it without thinking your way through it. To me, ingraining or sharpening the technique is to turn those words that describe conscious thoughts about the reloading process into an internal feeling associated with the execution of that process. That feeling and the ability to summon it at will is what I'm after.

I don't even know what the right word is, so I am going to call this 'finding my center' or 'achieving the right mindstate' - I don't know what it should really be called - but in addition to the overall process vs. outcome issue, I am also talking about some physical motion, position, feeling, whatever point of mental focus or awareness, that brings my mind into a performance state for the task at hand. This ranges from a very simple to progressively more complex tasks/sets of tasks - at one end, shooting one shot, progressing to more complex actions like draws, reloads, multiple target engagements, whole stages at the much more complex end - and it gets more difficult the more complex it is.

To your reloading example, I think it's complex enough that I can't consciously think my way through it with the fluidity that is possible. The 'process-oriented thought/feeling' centers around the physical action, but it is mental shorthand for 'run the reload program.' For the reload, my feeling is of driving my support hand to the new magazine. Hard, and with fluid force and power. Drive it, make it accelerate until it's accomplished the first part of its job - clear the shirt and get the new magazine. Setting my mind to desire to experience that helps me jump into the reloading motor program, thus directing my mind in a useful way. And that, for me, is focusing on the process (for reloading.)

For drawing and for shooting, the same kind of thing applies. I want to see the sharp and clear sights on target. I want that because it will be the start of the 'hitting the target' program. Wanting to hit the target doesn't get it done for me. I need to want to see the visual reference (I use sight-focused shooting a whole lot) and press the trigger well. The internal/physical feeling I use to prime the shooting process is to flex my tiny eye muscles so my focal depth is where the front sight will be. When I feel that in my eyes, I am ready to perform. That's how I find my shooting center and jump in the river (get in the process) instead of thinking about the river from outside of it.

This is really all just what I get from introspection, from paying attention to what happens and what I feel. That's what I think it is really all about. Self-awareness and self-control. If those can be your guide, I think you can hardly go wrong. I can't imagine that you have to do it the same way or feel the same things as me.

[Jared]

OAK, Thank you. I appreciated the response.

I worded my example rather poorly. I wasn't referring to thinking about each step in a reload process as you do them, rather I was thinking in a dry fire concept, like start with a sight picture, reload, get another sight picture. I was referring to the act of visualizing what you want to do step by step, then pressing the timer button, and when the beep happens, executing what you visualized without thinking your way through each step. I've been trying to incorporate this into my live and dry fire work more lately.

Say, I'm doing a Bill Drill. I do a good run, paste it up, do another good run, paste it up, third run goes bad. So I will try to stop and visualize what I want to do. I may even "air-gun" it. Then do it again. It seems to help.

With something big, like a USPSA field course, it's really hard for me to be that detailed. When I do my stage breakdown, I mostly think about how hard I have to aim (and appropriate trigger control to go with that aim) on each target and where to reload, which target order I wish to use, etc.

Also, I am very new to the visualization process. I can tell from your response that you are much further along the road than I am in regards to focusing the mind. Gives me something to work toward.

I will add that I seem to have my best stages when I am almost "blank." If I'm uncertain, uncomfortable, or even timid (this usually indicates a lack of confidence in my stage plan) things wind up both slow and inaccurate. If I'm peaceful, maybe even confident, I do everything much more aggressively. Seems to result in faster times and better accuracy.

I'm still working on processing Saturday's disaster. These are some things that are leaping out at me.

[Mr_White]

OAK, Thank you. I appreciated the response.

I worded my example rather poorly. I wasn't referring to thinking about each step in a reload process as you do them, rather I was thinking in a dry fire concept, like start with a sight picture, reload, get another sight picture. I was referring to the act of visualizing what you want to do step by step, then pressing the timer button, and when the beep happens, executing what you visualized without thinking your way through each step. I've been trying to incorporate this into my live and dry fire work more lately.

Say, I'm doing a Bill Drill. I do a good run, paste it up, do another good run, paste it up, third run goes bad. So I will try to stop and visualize what I want to do. I may even "air-gun" it. Then do it again. It seems to help.

With something big, like a USPSA field course, it's really hard for me to be that detailed. When I do my stage breakdown, I mostly think about how hard I have to aim (and appropriate trigger control to go with that aim) on each target and where to reload, which target order I wish to use, etc.

Also, I am very new to the visualization process. I can tell from your response that you are much further along the road than I am in regards to focusing the mind. Gives me something to work toward.

I will add that I seem to have my best stages when I am almost "blank." If I'm uncertain, uncomfortable, or even timid (this usually indicates a lack of confidence in my stage plan) things wind up both slow and inaccurate. If I'm peaceful, maybe even confident, I do everything much more aggressively. Seems to result in faster times and better accuracy.

I'm still working on processing Saturday's disaster. These are some things that are leaping out at me.

I think my answer was full of mush. What you say above makes sense.

[Jared]

I liked your answer dude. I really did.

About this time last year, I read Brian Enos' book. This was before I ever set foot at an actual USPSA match, I read Enos as part of my "prep." Anyhoo, Enos' stuff went waaaaay over my head. I re-read a couple chapters this week. It made a lot more sense after actually seeing some of the things he talked about both in practice and in match settings.

I guess what I'm saying in a long way, your answer reminded me a bit of Enos' book. I mean that as a compliment.

[Slavex]

The first time I read Brian's book I thought there was a lot of mumbo jumbo in it. Then I saw my front sight lift and watched it travel up and come back, and I mean really saw it, 100% clarity, and I stopped. I was shocked by what I'd just seen and realized how important it was to what I was doing. Since then I've come to realize just how bang on Brian was in everything he wrote, there really is a Zen feeling to shooting in competition or even in practice.

Now Bill Drills, they annoy me, a few weeks ago was the first time in a long long time, that I was getting all my shots off and on target in under 2 seconds, from an IPSC Production rig, not concealed like so many do. My hits are always good, but I've been struggling with the time for probably the last year or so. That was bothering me, just like bad stages or matches used to. I happened to come across a video of Larry Vickers and Rob Leatham and ran some of the drills they did, 6 shots in X time and slowly reducing the time until I was well under 2, clean for all 6 shots. Went out again a week later and was still doing good, all mental as far as I'm concerned.

[Jared]

Enos talks so much about Awareness and Focus, and until I really started doing the type of drills I do now, I totally didn't get it. It really makes more sense now. Where OAK was talking about awareness and such, that is what reminded me of Enos.

Part of my match mentality problem, I am starting to think, is that I'm a perfectionist, and very often, my own harshest critic. Been that way since I was like 12 or so. I was talking to a close friend about this last match. He asked where I placed, how many shooters, and then, finally, why I was so disappointed. Well, I left a lot on the table. I made a LOT of mistakes. He nodded, smiled, and said, something about how I should really learn to give myself a break. Thinking back on it, I had a Mike on my first stage, and I really hate shooting Mikes. I got my mind totally into "No more Mikes" mode. In the end, I did throw a couple more Mikes. I want to learn to not let that first stage dictate my match if it goes badly.

One little equipment issue I noticed. This was my first match since I got my fiber optic sights. Yesterday, I switched the red out for green. Today, I noticed a big difference in my ability to see the sight rather than a blurb of a dot. The green seems to make it easier for me to see the top edge of the sight.

[Mr_White]

Enos talks so much about Awareness and Focus

I think this kind of stuff is tough to talk about because it is so dependent on the perception of each person and how they articulate what they see, feel, and pay attention to, to others. It's just so subjective.


Part of my match mentality problem, I am starting to think, is that I'm a perfectionist, and very often, my own harshest critic. Been that way since I was like 12 or so. I was talking to a close friend about this last match. He asked where I placed, how many shooters, and then, finally, why I was so disappointed. Well, I left a lot on the table. I made a LOT of mistakes. He nodded, smiled, and said, something about how I should really learn to give myself a break. Thinking back on it, I had a Mike on my first stage, and I really hate shooting Mikes. I got my mind totally into "No more Mikes" mode. In the end, I did throw a couple more Mikes. I want to learn to not let that first stage dictate my match if it goes badly.

Heh. A few of us were talking about this at Rogers. The same drive that makes us do well also can make it hard to really enjoy what we do accomplish.

[Slavex]

I find I have an open mind when I'm slightly relaxed, which helps in practice and a closed mind when I'm stressing out too much. Stress can be caused by any number of things of course. But it's only when it gets too much that my mind just closes off. When I'm slightly stressed it's still pretty open, for me that is normal match stress. Practice stress can be like that, but if I'm out with friends that are good shooters, or on a kick ass course, the stress can start to get to the "too much" level if I'm not careful. Something like Rogers might take a couple trips for me to do reasonably well at. I certainly couldn't even imagine shooting 125 at all there I'd be happy over 100.

[Jared]

The internal drive to excel, it really can be a blessing and a curse I think. I've had moments in my private life and my professional life that I didn't take the time to really celebrate or appreciate because I wanted to get back to climbing. My March match was like that. Best match I ever shot. I was so wrapped up in how far I still had to go that even though I acknowledged that I'd make a bit of a leap, I really didn't let myself be as happy as I could have.

I like just a bit of pressure. I like to have a shooter on my squad who is really just a bit better than me. It's even better if they are in Limited or something where they are scoring Major to my Minor. If I can then spend the match working on competing with them, it seems to make my match better. Late last summer, at a level 2 match, I was squadded with a pair of M's and 1 GM. All Production shooters. There was no way I could beat them, or even come close, so that turned into me shooting my game, and just watching the show when they shot. I picked up a good bit that day, but to say it increased the pressure for me wouldn't be accurate.

[1986s4]

As a former elite athlete [World Champion, US Olympic Team] I had many less than stellar performances. Leave them be, even the great ones and live in moment. The world always looked brighter when I came up with a plan, any plan and carried it out.

[Jared]

As a former elite athlete [World Champion, US Olympic Team] I had many less than stellar performances. Leave them be, even the great ones and live in moment. The world always looked brighter when I came up with a plan, any plan and carried it out.

Thanks for the voice of experience. I think that for my May match, I'm gonna try to get closer to what you are talking about here, along with Mr Nesbit's "no expectations" thought process. I wanna see where that takes me.

To everyone else that posted, I appreciate all the help offered.

[revchuck]

Jared - Another reference you may find useful: Thinking Body, Dancing Mind (http://www.amazon.com/Thinking-Body-Dancing-Mind-Extraordinary/dp/0553373781/ref=sr_1_1?s=books&ie=UTF8&qid=1398984981&sr=1-1&keywords=thinking+body+dancing+mind) It's not specifically shooting-related, but addresses the same issues as Enos' book, IMO a bit more clearly.

[1986s4]

Thanks for the voice of experience. I think that for my May match, I'm gonna try to get closer to what you are talking about here, along with Mr Nesbit's "no expectations" thought process. I wanna see where that takes me.

To everyone else that posted, I appreciate all the help offered.

The sooner I got started on my plan the better and more confident I felt.

[Jared]

The sooner I got started on my plan the better and more confident I felt.

If you would indulge me digging a bit deeper here,

By your plan, do you mean the overall plan going forward, or a specific plan for how you want to approach the next event?

I feel like I have a solid overall plan going forward for this "competition season" as it is. I may be too confident in it as an overall plan, but I feel comfortable with what I have sketched out as far as a "big picture" thing. I'm kind of short on specific details from match to match within my overall big picture thing. My main focus is to improve my baseline shooting and gunhandling skills as I go and kind of let the odds and ends take care of themselves.

I'm having trouble getting from my brain to my keyboard what I'm exactly trying to convey, so I hope this is coming across correctly. Still, if there is some more detailed event specific planning aspect you are referencing, I would love to hear about it.

[Jared]

Jared - Another reference you may find useful: Thinking Body, Dancing Mind (http://www.amazon.com/Thinking-Body-Dancing-Mind-Extraordinary/dp/0553373781/ref=sr_1_1?s=books&ie=UTF8&qid=1398984981&sr=1-1&keywords=thinking+body+dancing+mind) It's not specifically shooting-related, but addresses the same issues as Enos' book, IMO a bit more clearly.

Will look into it, thanks.

[Slavex]

So, speaking of dancing, if you are serious about wanting to improve your scores at USPSA or IDPA, consider taking some dance lessons, ballroom stuff, something with lots of spins and, obviously, floor movement. Your turn and draws and shooting on the move will improve dramatically through that kind of instruction. And you'll learn how to dance too.

[Wheeler]

So, speaking of dancing, if you are serious about wanting to improve your scores at USPSA or IDPA, consider taking some dance lessons, ballroom stuff, something with lots of spins and, obviously, floor movement. Your turn and draws and shooting on the move will improve dramatically through that kind of instruction. And you'll learn how to dance too.

Not to mention the style points...

:-)

[Jared]

So, speaking of dancing, if you are serious about wanting to improve your scores at USPSA or IDPA, consider taking some dance lessons, ballroom stuff, something with lots of spins and, obviously, floor movement. Your turn and draws and shooting on the move will improve dramatically through that kind of instruction. And you'll learn how to dance too.

Soooo, my Dancing With the Stars addicted better half saw me reading that. Suffice to say that she's totally in to the idea. I'm not sold yet.