What do I do when I’m in a shooting stand and am having problems with a target, then I get a lot of “free advice” on where I am missing? How do I handle this?
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We get this question a lot in our travels around the country. Everyone who shoots a shotgun wants the person shooting to do well. What they don’t realize is they may not be helping with their advice.
We tell our students, especially the ladies, to politely ask that the person watch your birds, but not offer any thoughts unless asked. Tell them you are trying to self-coach yourself and self-correct. If you are lost on a target and don’t have any idea how to correct it, then ask the person to make a suggestion.
It is better, however, for you to stay forward and focused on how to hit the target and not to be so concerned with where you missed it. Stay within yourself to make the decision on how to correct what you are doing. Once you turn around, your mind comes away from your objective and you lose focus on what you are doing. It is too hard to get back to the present. It also starts to create doubt in your mind that you don’t know how to hit the target. Once that doubt enters your mind, you might as well throw your shells in the bushes, because you are probably not going to hit that target.
Have confidence and trust in your ability to hit the targets. Don’t let other people make your decisions for you.
Stay forward and focused on hitting the targets. That is your job, not someone else’s. Spectators sometimes get a little overzealous and forget any kind of etiquette on the course. They can get your mind off of what you are doing in that stand by interrupting your thoughts. It is hard enough to become focused on the target without a lot of outside interruptions.
Please remember when you are on a clays course, everyone has their own reason for being there, whether for practice on specific birds or just for fun. So don’t offer any advice unless it is asked for.
