Training Mindset

We all know the guy who has a gun for every day of the year, but has very little clue as to how to employ them. We also know the guy that goes to the range with a mountain of ammo and zero structure, then leaves with a ragged target (and most likely, target stand) and not a thing learned. He looked great and had fun doing it, though!

Then there are those who seek to master their craft through education and professional training. Those who seek and participate in firearms training tend to be part of a class of a niche, of a niche, of a niche, of a niche of shooters within the 2A community. When choosing a school or class (one of which should be Lodestone), there is a plethora of options. Once you attend, you will quickly find out if it was worth your time and money or not, especially when compared to previous training.

Every experience can be learned from, and they generally fall into two categories. “Hell yea, I will definitely take this stuff to heart and expand on it!” or “I am going to ‘brain dump’ everything that person just taught me.” You will know what it looks like when you see it, and generally, if it involves putting myself or someone else in avoidable danger, the technique is ripe for the ‘brain dumping’. Unfortunately, for those who do not have a foundation to understand if something needs ‘brain dumping’, it is usually realized through experience (hopefully safely) and follow-on training.  For those pursuing the route taught by the instructor, ensure that you leave the range with as many tools as you can to improve on what was taught.

Proficiency and consistency will not be achieved in the class because that is not the Instructor’s job. The Instructor’s job is to “not give you a fish, but teach you how to fish” through taking the material and dissecting it into bite-sized pieces to digest and grow from. If you are instructor-dependent and constantly ‘plateauing’, then you need to pump the brakes and slow down.

The ‘tactical tool box’ gets brought up a lot and it’s a great analogy. We put the tools given to us by instructors (both on the range and the metaphysical instructor manifested through real-life experience) into our ‘tactical tool box’. But you want to ensure that the tool box is organized. When that day comes, your heart rate is in condition black, and your brain does the mental equivalent of blindly grabbing into the tactical tool box. It had better pull out the right tools for the job. That only comes from an organized tool box where the mind knows what the the right tool is, where to find it and how to employ it. That will come through getting effective training presented by experienced and knowledgeable instructors. 

—Win