Lost, Confused and Inconsistent?

PULL. X. PULL. X. PULL. X. Your instructor says…see, you’re getting better. Looks that way, but are you really? Well, look at those three Xs. Can't argue with them. They gotta mean something, right? Yes, they do. The question is, what do those three Xs really mean? Let’s look at how a common misunderstanding leads to grief.

As a full-time instructor and coach, handling a lot of inquiries, I am blessed to be busy. As you would expect, folks call for different reasons. Many…who are seeking improvement in their shooting…want to discuss instruction. Tired of hitting targets “sometimes”…scores up one day, down the next…these folks want to know why they are inconsistent. These are good questions and deserve good answers. They want to learn…what’s not working…what will work …specifically…not just today but tomorrow and each day after. To gain real, measurable improvement in their shooting skills. Here, in this case, your instructor has some very specific obligations.  Obligations we’ll talk about in a moment.

On the other hand, not all folks want instruction per se. Some are seeking a good time. Entertainment. To be safe and break a lot of targets. They want “the experience.” Not teaching. Not coaching. Learning how to shoot better, coming to school, quite frankly, isn’t on their agenda. This is a corporate group or a family group, maybe three or four people. Or maybe two busloads of folks, many of whom have never, ever, touched a gun. In my instructor certification classes, I call this type of event Gentleman’s Coaching. 

In Gentleman’s Coaching, the instructor has two obligations. First is safety, across the board for all lessons. The second is entertainment. Take the shooters to what I call “can’t miss” targets. Incoming and outgoing target presentations. Super slow. Friendly. Basically, point and shoot. As planned…and expected…X. X. X. X. X. X. Everyone is breaking targets. Lots and lots of broken targets. Customers, course owners and instructors, everyone goes home happy.

Is anything wrong with that? Absolutely not. Right up until…

My caller today is not only frustrated but upset, saying he’s been to two instructors over this last year and taken multiple lessons. Now, lost, confused and inconsistent, his shooting continues to disappoint. Week after week, month after month…progress? None.

After listening to this caller for a while, very diplomatically, I share Gentleman’s Coaching. Which, I’m promptly told, is exactly what happened during his/her “lessons.” Each and every time, after breaking a lot of targets, he left his lesson (?) believing he was improving. Hard to argue with all those Xs. But, what did he actually learn? Nada. He went through those paid lessons to learn…to measurably improve his shooting…not just break a lot of targets. A serious misunderstanding here, the fault belongs to the instructor. 

Regrettably, based on the number of callers who share this story with us, this is a common experience across the U.S. I’ve written this article to express caution. If you are serious about improving your shooting and considering engaging an instructor, don’t fall into a Gentleman’s Coaching session.

Here’s an example of Gentleman’s Coaching and the illusion of improving.

Fred, in a corporate group of three, was on the course with an instructor for maybe an hour, each guest shooting fifty targets. Fred almost broke’em all. Remember now, these were all “can’t miss” targets. No real teaching was requested or delivered. Arriving home, recounting today’s experience, Fred told his wife, he had no idea what an expert shooter he was. The next morning, Fred borrows his neighbor’s shotgun and drives to the local gun shop for ammunition. Arriving at the gun club, hopes and expectations high, he gets a controller and drives his cart to Station 1 on the Red Course. Needless to say, we know what happened next, not just on this station but all the way around the course. A very humbling, frustrating experience for Fred. What the heck happened here? 

Gentleman’s Coaching happened. The same thing happens when Gentleman’s Coaching is substituted for real teaching. Based on all the Xs today, the student leaves under the illusion real improvement took place…when it didn’t. 

In a formal lesson, where shooting improvement is your stated and very specific goal, in my professional opinion, please allow me to share your instructor’s obligations. With your improvement being top priority, you have every right to expect your instructor to meet the following obligations.

After safety (of course, first and foremost), here’s your instructor’s number one obligation: To fully PREPARE you to continue succeeding…continue improving…AFTER your lesson(s) are over…when you are standing in the shooting box alone…with no instructor behind you.

To achieve this goal takes us to your instructor’s second obligation. Standing in the box with no instructor behind you, when you miss a target, do you know why? NOT where you missed. WHY. Because the mistake took place in your swing, behind the muzzle, not out ‘yonder. Do you know what the set-up and/or swing error was? Specifically? So you can “self-correct” your error, on your own, and break the very next target. On purpose. If, on the other hand, you are lost and confused, how can you correct your error…O to X with one shell? Asked respectfully, where will your improvement come from now? This takes us back to your instructor’s first and most important obligation. Goal? Not met.

Third obligation. X. Congratulations. Do you know WHY that target broke? Here’s why I’m asking. If that X was an accident, pure luck, do you know what the swing error was? If not, how can you make sure you won’t repeat the swing error? Again, can you self-correct the error with the very next shell? X? Intentionally? If the target broke and your swing was correct, do you know that as well? So you know what swing to repeat.

X and O, good shooters know why. Truth is, they have to know why. So they can correct the error or repeat the correct X swing, whatever is needed. If improvement is your goal, that’s what you’re paying your instructor to learn. Very specifically, what to do, what not to do and why. So you can set up properly before the call, then actually watch the required basics, the steps unfold in your swing, start to finish. No more mystery about why you missed, why the target broke. None. Right or incorrect, you saw everything. Knowing what to do with the next shell, this knowledge is required, not optional. Once you are taught…once you learn the Basics…you’re on your way. Folks, there is no other way to advance one’s skills. In shooting and every other sport.

Gentleman’s Coaching ≠ Improvement

All to say, if real improvement is your goal…stated upfront to your instructor…be very careful you don’t fall into a Gentleman’s Coaching session. Both sessions do indeed have merit but their purposes are not the same and should never be confused or misstated.

Spring has sprung! Take good care and we hope to see you out on the course.

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About Dan Schindler

Dan Schindler is one of only 60 worldwide members of the Guild of Shooting Instructors (UK) and is one of the most highly respected Sporting Clays, Skeet, Trap and Wingshooting Instructors in the US. Dan is an NSCA Level III Instructor (since 1995) and founded the Paragon School of Sporting with one goal in mind. Whether it be for the advanced competitor or providing the basics to the entry-level shooter, Paragon provides the simplest, most practical and most effective Instruction, Coaching and Mental Training for the Sporting Clays & Wingshooting enthusiast. Dan Schindler helps shooters alleviate a lot of their frustration by taking the mystery out of breaking targets, calling their own misses, and make their own corrections. Lessons are fun, enlightening and our clients learn to shoot better in minutes!  

Dan Schindler's Books

"Recommended for shooters of all skill levels, Coaches, Instructors

and parents of youth shooters."

Take the mystery out of missing targets and feathers with Dan Schindler's simple, easy-to-understand books. They're your road map for consistently and dependably shooting higher scores.

Take Your Best Shot (Book I), 3rd Edition is THE Gold Standard Primer It's all about the fundamentals, a requirement for good shooting. This book is used by high school and college shooting teams, recreational and competitive shooters from around the world. Solid, valuable, concise information that has helped thousands of shooters shoot more consistently with higher scores.

To The Target (Book II) Builds on the steps outlined in Book I. Emphasises Gun Management skills when the trap fires, creating a consistent, reliable, trustworthy swing.

Beyond the Target (Book III) is for shooters of all levels, filled with valuable information, clay target truths. Entertaining and a culmination of 3 decades of Dan's life's work as a teacher, competitor, published writer, and much more.

Here's what Shooters, Coaches and Clay Shooting USA saying...

Take Your Best Shot (Book I), 3rd Edition

To The Target (Book II)

Beyond The Target (Book III)