mike cyrwus Posted June 3, 2007 Share Posted June 3, 2007 Are the two biggest things keeping me from improving. Fear of shooting like the shooter that I currently am. Pride, because I think Im a better shooter than I am. Why is it so hard to stay within my capabilities? I dont want to make excuses for my performances and pretend Im a better shooter. -this is thinking aloud more than anything else. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Merlin Orr Posted June 3, 2007 Share Posted June 3, 2007 Why is it so hard to stay within my capabilities? A race horse wants to RUN! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Jman Posted June 3, 2007 Share Posted June 3, 2007 IMO, the only thing that prohibits advancement in anything is commitment. The WORK involved. I can personally attest to that. Pride, I don't believe has EVER entered my games (shooting and golf). Humility has, you can take that to the bank. You'll search a long time to find two more humbling endeavors. We can analyze ourselves to paralysis's. Or, we can work on taking our game to the next level. Hire the services of a teaching professional. If you haven't, you need to. Better money can't be spent. The rest is up to you (us), work hard at what was learned and trust it. Were left with the confidence to just "grip it and rip it". Jim Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Steve Anderson Posted June 3, 2007 Share Posted June 3, 2007 I could go on for hours on this...but you need to read "with winning in mind" first. You shoot how you expect to shoot, not how you want to shoot. It's that simple. SA Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Chris Conley Posted June 3, 2007 Share Posted June 3, 2007 You shoot how you expect to shoot, not how you want to shoot. It's that simple.SA Took me awhile to figure that out but +1000 on that one Steve. Chris C. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Calamity Jane Posted June 3, 2007 Share Posted June 3, 2007 I could go on for hours on this...but you need to read "with winning in mind" first.You shoot how you expect to shoot, not how you want to shoot. It's that simple. SA If you chose WWIM I would suggest to get it on CD's. I've listened to this seminar/book on CD's 3 times while driving to work. It will answer alot of your questions. Best Wishes Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
mike cyrwus Posted June 4, 2007 Author Share Posted June 4, 2007 thanks all, I just placed an order for the wwim CD's; Im in the truck a lot, and theyll be good for the trip to nationals, too. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Lee Posted June 6, 2007 Share Posted June 6, 2007 You shoot how you expect to shoot, not how you want to shoot. It's that simple. SA Best thing I've read lately. Seen it in my shooting lately as well. Kevin Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
mike cyrwus Posted June 7, 2007 Author Share Posted June 7, 2007 Actually I think hes quoting or paraphrasing basset.. ...which I started listening to this afternoon! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Sam Posted June 8, 2007 Share Posted June 8, 2007 Pride and fear are emotions, which hope for an outcome. Outcomes take your attention from the present, where the shooting happens, to the future. It is totally impossible to do anything the future, because it hasn't happend yet. The key to shooting your best is to be present as the witness of the shooting. Do not judge, do not give yourself anything to live up to. We can only shoot as well as we have trained ourselves to shoot. To try to shoot only induces stress. Be content with your current ability. And accumulate practice to improve that ability. Consolidate, build strength where you feel weakness. We cannot raise our ability until we accept out current limitations. Practice dissolves limitations. Matches simply define where the current limits exist. The game of shooting is all about redefining our limits. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Duane Thomas Posted June 8, 2007 Share Posted June 8, 2007 Sam, Another absolutely frickin' excellent post. This just became my signature. You're my hero. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Sam Posted June 9, 2007 Share Posted June 9, 2007 Thank you, Duane! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
benos Posted June 20, 2007 Share Posted June 20, 2007 Yes, great post Sam. Probably the hardest thing to realize is that if you just shoot to your current capacity - that's all you can do. And that's not only good enough, it's the best you can do. You can't shoot any better than you are. It took me forever to figure that out, stop trying and just shoot. What's happening is where it's at. Tomorrow is yesterday's dream. ("Someone" probably already said that... it just came into my head.) be Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Sam Posted June 21, 2007 Share Posted June 21, 2007 Brian, I hope you can recognize the influence that you and others here are having on my approach to shooting. The attitudes that I posted earlier, I mostly learned right here. I'm going out to practice now. The struggle of self vs. selflessness is always in play, even in the background. Thank you for providing a place to learn. -Sam Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
benos Posted June 21, 2007 Share Posted June 21, 2007 The struggle of self vs. selflessness is always in play, even in the background. In the beginning, it's the "self" that gets into shooting, and eventually into competition. It's a great, fun challenge. But if we stick with it long enough, we start to realize that the same self that got us into shooting is now the reason for all our mistakes and problems. (The beginning of the struggle for selflessness.) At this point our training becomes mostly mental. We have the skills - they just don't come out in the match often enough. So the problem becomes: "I can do this over and over in practice, why did I fail on match day?" Still searching and training, we start to touch on selflessness experiences in competition. Now we're really hooked. We realize there's so much more to shooting than how we hold the gun or what bullets we use. Then, when all the conditions are just right and you stop trying anything at all, suddenly, you finish shooting a stage and you realize that any sense of self and of passing time was completely suspended... You wonder, "what just happened?" "That string could not be improved, and, it was effortless." Then the habit-mind kicks in and says, "How can I repeat that?" So you try to remember what you did, and what you were thinking right before the buzzer. But since "you" weren't there, there's nothing to remember. So we feel a bit bewildered, but still we shoot. But for whole new reason. I have noticed quite an evolution in your posts over the years. . Thank you for providing a place to learn. You're very welcome. It's posts like your's that make my day. be Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Duane Thomas Posted June 22, 2007 Share Posted June 22, 2007 Thank you, Duane! Yer welcome. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
mpeltier Posted June 25, 2007 Share Posted June 25, 2007 This has been a great thread for me. This weekend at our local match I had my son video tape my shooting for the first time. I have been shooting this game for about 7 yrs now and learning all the time but have been trying to get over the hump at bieng really fast. On two stages I had a failure to clear early on. In the video you can hear the shots, bang---------------bang---------------------bang--------------------bang, jam, and after clearing the jam I forgot all about the rest of the stage and it sounded like bang--bang-----bang--bang-----bang--bang----bang--bang and I got all my hits. Iprobably ended up with as fast or faster a time than I would have, had I not had a jam. The difference was that I just let myself go and did not think about what I was doing I just let it happen. Now if I can just do that every time. Video seems to be a great tool, as well as this forum. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
benos Posted June 27, 2007 Share Posted June 27, 2007 ...The difference was that I just let myself go and did not think about what I was doing I just let it happen. That was a cool experience with a nice lesson. ... Now if I can just do that every time. That's where it gets tricky. Care too much, especially about the wrong things (score, time, finish, or anything ego-related), and we won't do our best. Try not to care (like when you just say "F' it! - let's let 'er rip"), and we get sloppy and don't pay attention to subtle details. Which is where a good performance comes from. But if we really pay attention to just what is happening - what you're seeing and feeling - then we usually do pretty good. And by "really pay attention," I mean paying attention to your own mind's thoughts - thereby weeding out by exposing ego-related-"try" thoughts - long before you get to the line, in addition to what is happening as you are actually shooting. Step up to the line with your mind clean (doubt-free), fully prepared, and confident, and what happens will be within your control. be Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Service Desk Posted July 5, 2007 Share Posted July 5, 2007 Pride & Fear are both the products of conscious thought - both are brought about by expectation and a loss of focus. When you are reminiscing about the past or anticipating the future you are out of the "now". So......shoot to your abilities by staying focussed on what you are doing now; your immediate reactions will be what you have trained and rehearsed.......forget what you have experienced in the past or what you wish will happen in the future and stay in the moment. Learn to focus while training and you will build an ability to perform when you need to. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
mike cyrwus Posted July 5, 2007 Author Share Posted July 5, 2007 Any of you all read Eckart Tolle's "The Power of Now"? It was more spiritual than I may have liked, but it was a real breath of fresh air a few years ago. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
38superman Posted July 5, 2007 Share Posted July 5, 2007 (edited) All good posts, but I am not quite as philosophical about it. Why is it so hard to stay within your capabilities? Because your not supposed to. Let go of fear and replace it with faith. Believe in yourself and your ability to reach higher. No matter how well or poorly you perform, walk away from every match thinking "I can do better". When you stop believing that, you're done. Tls Edited July 5, 2007 by 38superman Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
little_kahuna Posted April 2, 2008 Share Posted April 2, 2008 (edited) Nick here... I just wanted to thank all of you, this thread has really hepled me in just a few minutes reading it. I've been stuck at this point in my shooting career for far too long, and the only thing that has been restraining me is myself. I can perform the fundamentals, but i can't do it consistently...when I try to. I tanked a stage at the last match, i was way too nervous about results and was not actively engaged in the "observation without thought or judgement" part of my performance. The results, as you may have expected, were definitely displeasing to me at the time, then just now I realized that they were appropriate for how i was psychologically prepared to shoot. The valuable information posted here, I believe, has significantly improved my mental game. I feel as if i will be overcoming this psychological obstacle very soon now. Thank you all very much. Nick S. Edited April 2, 2008 by little_kahuna Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
HSMITH Posted April 2, 2008 Share Posted April 2, 2008 Nick, you and me both buddy......... The only way I shoot decently is to just shoot. I don't practice, I don't dryfire, I don't do any of the things we are supposed to do, but I can shoot decently if I just shoot what the dot/front sight gives me. I have been blessed with good natural speed and aggression, if I temper that with what the dot/front sight gives me I perform well. If I don't I should have thrown $50 out the window and gone home. Letting go enough to let the dot/front sight control the shooting is really hard, but for me there is no higher performance level in a match. Thanks for digging this thread up, it is one that really makes a difference!! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
fastshooter03 Posted April 2, 2008 Share Posted April 2, 2008 "Don't think you're faster. KNOW you're faster" Nick Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
el pres Posted April 20, 2008 Share Posted April 20, 2008 (edited) Just when I want to start a new thread due to yesterday's match performance, few clicks and I find this... This forum is awsome, I'm at a point where my biggest performance flaw is that piece of jelly in my skull. I've done a lot of practice over the last couple of months and pretty much worked the fundementals to death. Had some really amazing matches and stages since then where I'm in my own little sight alingment slow motion world. "Not Careing" about my time because it was not that fast anyway. Then I find out its 0 down and 2 seconds better then everyone else. Now I have this mental baggadge, I did'nt expect it but now that I can smell it' I want it .. I liked it better when I new that I sucked. The thing is that now I'm "trying" to shoot a level above me to end up a level below me. Expectations are shooting for me, basically 3rd place, or 97%, with 7 mikes !!! I find more and more that the whole game is one big mental game. The technical stuff is important, but not as much, you can learn to swing a hammer with your weak arm but it's what you are thinking, or lack of, while swinging that hammer that lets you just do it !! Look at the Limited Nationals last year, Leatham won like one stage or something and placed all over the place on the other stages. Travis T. won like half the stages but came in second. The one thing that everyone in the top 6-7th had except Leatham was at least one crash and burn stage in like 60th place or worse. Since these are the top shooters in the world and their technique is flawless it only leaves a mechanical or mental failure. Pride, fear, expectations, trying, "Ego", whatever. You could say that Leatham is the best shooter but I would say he is the best "Thinker". It's a lot easier to learn to shoot a group then to control a thought right ??? Now I'm just babbling,venting, for my lack of self control, dont mind me .... Edited April 20, 2008 by DIRTY CHAMBER Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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