I have been shooting guns on and off since I was about 7 years old. Early in 2011 I decided I wanted to take it back up as a hobby. So, I bought a couple of pistols; a semi-automatic 9mm and a 22LR revolver. I also found a great place to shoot, an indoor climate controlled range that offers a maximum shooting distance of 25 yards. The target carriers are computer controlled and allow you to set your target at any distance from 1’ to 75’. After shooting there a few times, I decided that I liked it so much that I bought an annual membership. When I told one of my non-shooting friends about this he said that it sounded like I joined a “country club for rednecks”. I have to laugh every time I think of this; especially given the number of professional people I have met shooting at this range.

I got good at shooting my two guns. Now, as most of you know, and my wife Brenda can attest to, I read a lot. This is especially true when I get involved in something I like. So I started surfing the net reading about shooting and watching videos. I also started reading articles and reviews about different guns. In December of 2011 I decide that I wanted to buy a semi-automatic 22 caliber pistol. I settle on a Ruger 22/45 target pistol with a Propoint red dot scope on it. After getting my new pistol I go to the shooting range.  My plan was to sight it in using a bench rest with the target set at 30 feet. After shooting about an hour I can shoot 40 rounds in a 2 inch group or circle.

I am feeling good about my new gun and my ability to shoot it. I get another target out; this one has a 1 inch bullseye with 6 concentric rings evenly spaced around it. The largest ring has a diameter of 12 inches, a little bigger than a dinner plate.  I put it on the carrier, hit the computer controls and send it out to 75 feet.  I figure I can shoot a 3 inch group at that distance. I load 3 magazines with 10 rounds each. Take my shooting position and shoot 30 rounds at the target. I hit the home button to bring the target back. Sadly, I discover that I had hit once within the 6 inch circle and a total of four times within the 12 inch circle. The rest of the shots missed the target and hit somewhere on the backing board. To say I was disappointed is probably an understatement. I wanted to shoot a 3 inch group at 75 feet and I had failed miserably. I think about this for a bit. Just to relax and have fun I shoot my other guns, doing well with both of them. I decide to pack up and head home.

Once home, I start thinking about what I done at the range. I realize that I will need to do something if I truly want to shoot a 3 inch group at 75 feet. That something is to properly set my goal. I grab my trusty Droid. Go to a little app that I use all the time called ColorNote and write; Shoot a 3 inch group at 75 feet. I also add that I want to accomplish this within 3 months. I then review what I had done at the range and the results. As I am thinking about this a great quote from Zig Ziglar comes to mind; “How can you hit a target that you can’t see”. For me seeing the “bullseye” at 75 feet was a bit of an issue. I wear bifocals and when shooting have two choices. Just shoot with safety glasses or shoot with a pair of safety glasses over my regular glasses, either way my ability to see is impacted. So, I figure that the first thing I need to do is solve my vision problem. I believe doing this would make accomplishing my goal much easier.

Coincidently, I was scheduled for a visit with my eye doctor the following week. We talked about my shooting and the problem seeing the target at longer distances. He suggested that I order shooting safety glasses. I did just that and the day after getting them I head to the range. Once there I quickly realize that I can see things much better. I load up my pistol, attach a target and send it down range 75 feet. Shoot 30 rounds. All 30 of them hit the paper with most of them within the 12” circle. However, the results were still not what I had expected. Suddenly a light went off in my head and I knew what I had to do. I had set a big goal. Even though the timeframe was only 3 months I thought of it as a long term goal. When I wrote the original goal I knew it was something that was going to take me awhile and a lot of work to complete. At this moment I realized that I needed to break it down into smaller short term goals if I was going to be successful in reaching it.

Like I said, I have always been goal oriented. I have always said that “goals must be reasonable, practical and obtainable”. I knew that my goal of shooting a 3 inch group met those requirements.  I also realized that my short coming was my failure to set interim, short term goals that drive me toward my long term goal. The fact is that your short term goals support your big goals.  They also allow for positive reinforcement of your big goals by providing success checkpoints as you move forward. So, with that in mind I decided to take a little break. I get my Droid out of my bag. Go to my goal of shooting a 3 inch group at 75 feet and start to work.

I break down my goal into short range (no pun intended) goals. These are really enabling goals and are designed to provide that positive feedback and feeling of accomplishment that we need. As I am doing this, I realized something else. In my failure to not set the goal properly to begin with I had also failed to allow myself enough time to complete it. With a renewed sense of how hard this was really going to be I set the timeframe for the goal to one year. I guess the fact was that I now understood that if it was really that easy I would have done it the first time I tried. Anyway, I have now done it right and am ready to go shoot again.

I put a new target on the carrier and send it out to 20 feet. Shoot 30 rounds and they are all within the 4 inch ring. I load up 4 magazines the next time, 40 rounds. Put on a new target, set it at 20 feet. I then go through my mental checklist of things I know you must do to shoot well: concentration, breathing, sight alignment, grip, stance, and trigger pull. Forty rounds later I have shot a 3 inch group at 20 feet.  Put another new target out at 20 feet and do it again. On subsequent trips I move the target out in 5 foot increments just like my short term goals tell me to do. On my last trip to the range I got a bit carried away. I did set the target out 5 more feet. However, after shooting the first 40 rounds I was, as some might say, “in the zone”. When I stopped I had shot 100+ rounds in a 3” group at 45 feet.  Moving forward I will continue to increment the target 5 foot at a time until I reach my goal. The positive feedback and reinforcement that I get from completing each of my short term goals keeps me motivated to continue on to finishing my big goal. That is the reasons that setting these enabling goals is such an important part of the goal setting process.

Ok, now it’s your turn. Set some big goals for yourself. One or several, it doesn’t matter. Personal or work related, it doesn’t matter. They should be things that you really want to do. Write them down. Next, break them down into as many short term goals as you need to accomplish each of your big goals. These can be “baby steps” or “big leaps”. Some may only take an hour or a day. Others may take a week or a month. You have to remember that these short term goals will be your enablers. They will provide you with the positive feedback and reinforcement that you need as you work towards you long term goals. They will help motivate you when you need motivation. They will provide you with a sense of accomplishment. They will allow you to see that by taking actions you are moving towards the completion of your big goals. Work at them. Hit your targets and you too will be hitting the “bullseye” over and over again. I know you can do it. I know you can be as successful as you want to be.

I hope you have a SUPER Day!! God bless!!
 

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