MA or Mayhem?

Some advice sounds helpful—until it costs you targets

For those of you on a path to improve your consistency and scores, consider what can help you avoid two rough, time-consuming detours.

Way back, in my US instructor certification classes, I was taught to visually “focus hard,” to see ONLY the target’s rim, shoulder, dome or bottom. Nothing else. Then, trust the swing to break it. It worked in our cert class because our targets back then were indeed a lot closer and easier. Certified, I began to teach this around the US. Successfully? Yes. Sometimes. The more important question being, were my students improving? No, time showed they weren’t and I promptly stopped teaching it. Returning to more reliable methods, student skills once again rose with increasing X consistency.

The Method I Almost Abandoned—And Was Glad I Didn’t

The question was, keep the old method or happily discard it? Thankfully, I kept it. Coupling the “hard” focus with the highly instinctive Churchill shooting method, my Wingshooting students proved it deadly on “flushing” game over retrievers. Pure magic.

On clay targets? Definitely not so much. Why? Having our visual focus solely on the target, we lose our Muzzle Awareness (MA) in our peripheral vision. If we lose MA in our swing, how can we “guide” our gun if we can’t see it? Yes, Churchill and hard focus (no MA) can work, up close and personal. With our constantly evolving, longer and faster target presentations – we need a softer (but still clear) focus on the bird with MA to deliberately remove those random gun movements that cost us targets. MA and a consistent X swing are inseparable.

The Second Detour: “Just Trust Yourself”

Maybe you've heard this one lately: “Just trust yourself and the target will break.”
That advice sounds nice. Encouraging, even. But there’s a critical piece missing.

Trust only works if you’ve first earned it.

Maybe you read about; heard; or have been told recently “just trust yourself” and the target will break? This can work, PROVIDED your FIRST knowing the right shooting method, as well as how and where to execute it. That knowledge, and more importantly, that earned skill are both required before one can begin to reliably trust what he/she is about to do. 

As for those instructors recommending the “trust yourself” mantra, it fails to remember, the gun in our hands (while admittedly loved and admired) is simply a tool. For it to work as expected, it must be used properly. And “properly” requires first learning how, preferably with some instruction. Beware of being asked to trust what you haven’t learned yet.

We’d Love to Hear from You
What part of this message made the most sense to you—or raised a question you’d like answered? Let us know. We read every note and respond with care.

Looking Ahead
If you’re ready to move beyond confusion and guesswork—and toward consistent results—we invite you to explore a Paragon lesson. Every lesson is tailored to your individual success.