The Missing Link in Peak Performance
Consistency is what every shooter wants—and what almost no one can explain. One round everything clicks. The next, it’s gone. Most shooters assume the answer lies in better mechanics, more practice, or different equipment. But after more than three decades of teaching shooters at every level, Dan Schindler discovered something surprising: inconsistency isn’t caused by a lack of skill. It’s caused by something far more subtle—and far more powerful.
Competitive sporting clays is a demanding sport. Targets are fast, presentations change from station to station, and decisions must be made under real pressure. At first glance, it would seem that mastery depends on sharper eyes, better gear, or flawless technique. Yet time and again, shooters with solid fundamentals fail to perform when it matters most.
Dan Schindler saw this pattern early—and refused to accept the usual explanations.
As the founder of the Paragon School of Sporting, Dan has spent more than three decades teaching thousands of shooters, from beginners to elite competitors. Paragon is not a weekend workshop or a quick clinic. It is a system refined over decades, built on observation, results, and relentless simplification.
Dan’s credentials reflect that depth. He is the first American—and one of only a small number worldwide—certified by England’s Guild of Shooting Instructors, the historical standard-bearer for the sport. He also holds the highest level of certification offered by the NSCA in the United States. Long before “mental game” became a buzzword, Dan was writing instructional articles for Sporting Clays magazine in the early 1990s, testing ideas in real time with real shooters.
That experience led naturally to his books.
His first two—Take Your Best Shot and To the Target—focus on the physical fundamentals: how to point, move, and break targets efficiently. They established Dan as a technical authority. But as those books reached shooters around the world, something became clear. Shooters weren’t failing because they didn’t know what to do. They were failing because they couldn’t do it when pressure entered the picture.
That realization led to Beyond the Target.
Unlike traditional instruction manuals, Beyond the Target focuses on the mental side of shooting required for consistent performance. The book found an immediate global audience, selling in more than 27 countries—evidence of a universal problem shooters everywhere recognized but couldn’t name.
The core insight is simple but profound: the biggest obstacle to consistency is not technique. It’s the conscious mind interfering at the wrong moment.
Under pressure, the brain does what it thinks is helpful—it analyzes, checks, questions, and warns. Don’t miss this one. Everyone’s watching. Make sure you keep your head down. That internal chatter creates hesitation, and hesitation disrupts a movement that already knows how to work.
The skill is there. The problem is interference.
Dan’s approach is not about adding more thoughts or more steps. It’s about subtraction. By directing conscious attention to one simple, specific focus, the mental noise fades. The body is allowed to do what it has already learned to do.
When that happens, consistency emerges—not because the shooter tried harder, but because nothing got in the way.
This is why Dan’s students often experience dramatic improvement quickly. The talent was never missing. It was being blocked by overthinking, second-guessing, and self-imposed pressure. Technique is the engine. Complexity is the emergency brake.
Most instruction focuses on the gun and the target. Dan Schindler focuses on the processor in between—the shooter’s mind.
Across decades of teaching, writing, and refining his system, one truth has remained constant: technique is required, but it is not enough. Consistency comes from learning when to step aside mentally and trust what you already know.
For many shooters, the missing component isn’t more knowledge.
If consistency has been elusive, it may be time to stop adding answers—and start removing the one thing standing in your way.
In closing, if X consistency is very important to you, be absolutely sure the shooting methods you are learning are 100% dependable. Don’t ever compromise on that. For those methods, see Book Three, Beyond The Target.
Daniel L. Schindler's 3-Book Collection: Take Your Best Shot, To The Target and Beyond The Target offers excellent advice, field-tested teachings, and tips for sporting clays, skeet, trap, wingshooters, and coaches from all walks of life and skill levels. Schindler's books provide the clearest and most dependable system for building shooting excellence. Extremely valuable for SCTP and ACUI Shooters and Coaches. (Shipped to 27 countries). Shooters rave about these books!
Experience these proven methods firsthand:
If you wish to become more consistent in your shooting, Dan Schindler will be happy to chat (828.693.6600) with you and share what you can honestly expect from lessons.
Book your clay target or wingshooting instruction with Dan Schindler at the Paragon School of Sporting.
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👤 About Dan Schindler
Dan Schindler is one of only 35 worldwide members of the Guild of Shooting Instructors (UK) and an NSCA Level III Instructor since 1995. He founded the Paragon School of Sporting with a mission: deliver the simplest, most effective, and practical instruction for Sporting Clays and Wingshooting.
Dan helps shooters break more targets, call and correct their own misses, and replace frustration with confidence—all in just minutes. Lessons are fun, enlightening, and results-driven.
📚 Dan Schindler’s Books
Recommended for shooters of all skill levels, coaches, instructors, and parents of youth shooters.
Trusted by shooters around the world, these books are a true investment in good shooting. Written in plain, uncomplicated language, they strip away the mystery and lay a rock-solid foundation for improving scores and building consistency.
Take the mystery out of missing targets and feathers with Dan’s simple, easy-to-understand books. These bestsellers are your roadmap to more Xs on your scorecard—and in the field.
⚠️ Shooters say, “If you lend these books out, you may never get them back. Some say they’d give up their spouse before giving up these books.”
- 📘 Take Your Best Shot (Book I)
THE gold standard primer used by shooters and shooting teams worldwide. Solid fundamentals that help shooters of all skill levels break more targets with less guesswork.
Testimonial: “The best clay and wingshooting primer on the market... The brilliance of its simplicity aids successful shooting for ANY shooter.” – David T. Dobson
- 📗 To The Target (Book II)
Builds on Book I and emphasizes Gun Management and developing a trustworthy swing.
Clay Shooting USA: “One of the most innovative and important books yet published on the art of shooting clay targets.”
- 📕 Beyond The Target (Book III)
Want to take Dan Schindler home with you? This third volume delivers unmatched insight, humor, and practical solutions that stick—on and off the course.
Randy Lawrence: “The second-best thing to booking a lesson with Dan Schindler. A clear and proven blueprint for breaking more targets—with great heart.”
👉 Order Books Now!
Cheryl Schindler is co-founder of the Paragon School of Sporting, where she has spent more than three decades shaping methods that produce consistent, high-level performance. Known for translating performance principles across disciplines, she is a trusted consultant to Fortune 500 companies and small businesses facing complex challenges. Cheryl is also the Founder of AMillion Capital (money@AMillionCapital.com) and a Private Money Broker, connecting investors with strategic funding solutions for non-owner-occupied real estate, including ground-up construction, fix-and-flip projects, rental portfolios, commercial real estate investments, and bridge loans.
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