I came to a conclusion this weekend.

[beginner shooter]

So this weekend I realized Ive been achieving total awareness. I never thought of it before, but this weekend as I was jumping out of planes it all came togeather. What Brian sais in his book about awareness and focus are totaly embodied in the sport of skydiving. Every moment is its own and what just happened doesent matter, what is going to happen in the next moment doesnt matter, but only the moment you're currently in has any relevance. From the freefall to the parachute ride to landing the parachute every moment is its own. Now the question is how do I translate this to my shooting? Im going to try next time I shoot to focus my mind to achieve the same level of awareness that I get when jumping.

-Mike

[Skydiver]

Yes! When you are cranking out those points with your friends with no effort at all. The grip is just there when you need it. It's a great feeling! Then when it's time to track, you can actually feel your body lift. Amazing!

Blue Skies!

[beginner shooter]

Blues to you as well. Cool to see others here share my same addictions.

[benos]

So this weekend I realized Ive been achieving total awareness. I never thought of it before, but this weekend as I was jumping out of planes it all came togeather. What Brian sais in his book about awareness and focus are totaly embodied in the sport of skydiving. Every moment is its own and what just happened doesent matter, what is going to happen in the next moment doesnt matter, but only the moment you're currently in has any relevance. From the freefall to the parachute ride to landing the parachute every moment is its own. Now the question is how do I translate this to my shooting?

At each moment, figure out where attention needs to be that will allow your full capacity to manifest, which will allow each job to be done to its best.

Also you might experiment with the Pause Principle. Getting started with full presence of mind is key.

be

[beginner shooter]

So Brian, do you think that self preservation plays a role in ones awareness?

[benos]

So Brian, do you think that self preservation plays a role in ones awareness?

Absolutely!

Survival is at the core of human being's nature. So if were are aware at all, any perceived threat will automatically take us into a heightened state of awareness.

But nowadays. in the grand scheme of our life, attention regarding survival is but the teeniest amount. So we're typically only very aware when something startles us, or when we care about what we are doing. So in that sense, that we don't have to give much attention to survial is contributing factor to dullness and mundaneness.

The cure for mundaneness is to do every act like it was your last.

be

[Skydiver]

I have to agree about that heightened sense of awareness when it's a matter of survival. I hesitated to put this on my original post above in case in frightened any future skydivers, but I'll relate it now.

I had a double malfunction a few years ago. My main deployed but was mess of fabric overhead putting me into a really tight spin giving me a wonderful view of earth-sky-earth-sky-earth-sky. As per training, I remember noting my altitude (2400) as I started my emergency procedures. There was a particular calmness in finding the breakaway and reserve handles, and then peeling and pulling each of them off the velcro in sequence, and then arching again. While arched for about 2 seconds, I found it unusual that my reserve had not deployed yet, so looked over my shoulder to breakup the airstream just in case my reserve pilot chute was just sitting in my burble. What I saw was the reserve pilot chute's bridle wrapped around my right foot. I calmly let go of the reserve and breakaway handles. I reached back with my right hand to unwrap the bridle while adjusting my body position, left arm, and left leg to continue falling flat and stable. I know that I was flat as stable because out of the corner of my eye, I could see the DZ and the horizon. With the bridle cleared, I threw it and the reserve pilot chute into the windstream, and arched again. I was rewarded to see my beautiful white reserve above me as I settled into the my rigs legstraps. Check altitude again: 1600 feet. I calmly picked out my landing spot near a stretch of road between the wind tunnel and the landing area at Skydive AZ. I remember making the quick decision to sacrifice a bit of altitude to get to that spot because it gave me more options for landing directions, rather than trying for an accuracy landing between branches, brambles, and rough earth in a spot nearby. I also had to give up on keeping track of where my main was floating off to, while I double checked my preferred landing spot. I had a nice stand up landing, gathered up my reserve, took off my helmet, and then my hands started shaking as I thought back about what had just happened.

From the point in time of the first malfunction to when I had gathered up my reserve, there was just that sense of "observing" what was happening and having the confidence in relying on emergency procedures training. What was amazing to me, was the quick assessment I made in figuring out that the bridle was wrapped around my foot and knowing which direction was the correct way to unwind it. I could have just as easily wound it the wrong direction and not be writing this account now. The second amazing thing was the instinctive adjustment to body position to fall flat and stable despite the odd position I had to get into to reach back to my foot.

[beginner shooter]

The cure for mundaneness is to do every act like it was your last.

Now THAT is a nugget! Never tried doing any action this way unless that one moment could very possibly be my very last one. Interresting way of looking at it Brian and Im going to start to put it into practice.

Skydiver,

What you just described is the embodyment of awareness. I read your post and actually got that 'stomach in the neck' feeling, but as you describe you didnt experience this at all during the series of moments when it really mattered. You took care of buisness and saved your life. Good job.

Every act like it was your last. I like it, and its closer to the truth than anyone realizes. As a people I believe we put ourselves in a state of comfort and only a traumatic/adrenaline powered event can take us out of it. But recognizing that one is falling into a state of comfort and mundaneness is the very thing that I will use to try to avoid falling into it... In both life and shooting.

Blue Skies to both Skydiver and BE.

[benos]

Thanks for sharing that awesome story Skydiver! I got some great chills from it.

[Powder Finger]

Cool story of how time can kindof be manipulated.

??? do you know how long it takes to go from 2400 (start of bad day) to 1600 (very,very good day)?

[beginner shooter]

About 7 sec sub-terminal.