What Do You Do When This Happens

[basslover12345]

I had a long time pro angler that I've made friends with tell me today : "You are putting to much pressure on yourself because you want it so badly. "

What do I do?

[Kyle Mahaffey]

Just fish. If they are biting its a great day, if their not, well at least you are outside doing something you love.

[AK-Jax86]

Patience is the key to success

you can apply that to anything you do in life

[LgMouthGambler]

Pressure is a pshycomatic thing. If you like fishing, then just fish. I fish tournaments, and one thing I can say is, if you let the fun out of it, then its no fun anymore. If I win a tournament thats great, but, I if I lose, then, well, it was a good time fishing anyway. A bad day of fishing is better than a bad day at work. Enjoy the sport/hobby. Unless you are a sponsored pro, then there is no pressure on you. Your wife and kids are still proud of you no matter what.

[CKFishin]

It's called step back look at where your at and possibly take a break... You are 16 man there is alot to look forward to in life man....

[tomustang]

Take his gear!

[logan9209]

I've had plenty of days where I've put pressure on myself. Because of that I forget to have fun and as the day progresses I get more frustrated. The pressure for me is because I want to learn as much as fast as I can so I can go pro. I'm 35 and I feel my "window of opportunity" is slipping by too fast. A couple of things I have to remind myself is:

1) Having fun while fishing is more important and key to having more success and to learning.

2) Fishing is one sport that is for all ages, race, and gender.

3) You can't learn it all in one day, month, year, or even a decade. Most pros will tell you that fishing is a life time learning process.

4) The attitude you have can and often times will affect your day of fishing. The more positive you are, the more confident you get. The

more negative you are, the less confident you get, you're more likely to give up quickly, and you're less likely to get the lure

in the strike zone.

5) Patience is vital to fishing (and life in general). Being in a hurry and giving up quickly will cause you more problems in the long run.

Glenn posted yesterday a link to an article by Hank Parker. In it, Hank talks about how Takahiro Omuri might not have won the

Bassmaster's Classic on Lake Wylie if he had lost patience and given up.

6) Life is already hard enough as it is. Don't make it harder on yourself. Take the good with the bad. Enjoy those great moments every

chance you get and push through the bad days when they come.

[Sam]

^{There are really two fishing situations.}

^{The first is for fun. You hit the ponds, lakes or rivers and have a good time, trying to establish the pattern and enjoying nature's beauty.}

^{The second is for money. Tournament fishing can be stressfull.}

^{Yesterday I spent 10 hours fishing the Potomac River. I had 8 bites; landed 6 plus a snakehead. That's 8 total bites in 10 hours. Talk about stress.}

^{But when you realize that you are on the water; nature is unbelievable (saw two immature eagles flying around plus many Osprey) and that you live in a country that makes it possible for you to enjoy the outdoors and bass fishing, it brings everything back into prespective.}

^{Unless you are fishing for money or as a career, you really need to relax and enjoy yourself. It sure beats work and school.}

^{And for those of you who are curious, I ended up with 9.4 pounds and a big fish of 3.4. Came in 11th. However, seeing the wildlife and the beauty of nature and not falling out of the boat was worth every minute!!!}

[grampa1114]

Amen to "not falling out of the boat" Sam.........don'tcha hate that........unless it's really hot............

[basslover12345]

^{There are really two fishing situations.}

^{The first is for fun. You hit the ponds, lakes or rivers and have a good time, trying to establish the pattern and enjoying nature's beauty.}

^{The second is for money. Tournament fishing can be stressfull.}

^{Yesterday I spent 10 hours fishing the Potomac River. I had 8 bites; landed 6 plus a snakehead. That's 8 total bites in 10 hours. Talk about stress.}

^{But when you realize that you are on the water; nature is unbelievable (saw two immature eagles flying around plus many Osprey) and that you live in a country that makes it possible for you to enjoy the outdoors and bass fishing, it brings everything back into prespective.}

^{Unless you are fishing for money or as a career, you really need to relax and enjoy yourself. It sure beats work and school.}

^{And for those of you who are curious, I ended up with 9.4 pounds and a big fish of 3.4. Came in 11th. However, seeing the wildlife and the beauty of nature and not falling out of the boat was worth every minute!!!}

Thats where this all started Sam, I zeroed, not even a bite all day saturday on the Potomac in a club tournament for 8 hours straight

[Lund Explorer]

I had a long time pro angler that I've made friends with tell me today : "You are putting to much pressure on yourself because you want it so badly. "

What do I do?

Every post of yours that I've read shows that you are serious about making this sport into a profession. Many of those posts have been questions regarding specific things that you've wanted to learn. If I remember correctly, another post mentioned a writing job about youth fishing which shows your desire to teach those things you've learned to others.

It sounds as if your friend may have given you advice that you either don't understand or possibly agree with. As he is a professional in this sport, I can only suggest that you do your best to understand why he is telling you these things. His mentoring is a gift that many others would give anything to recieve. I'm sure there is a reason he had for telling you this that none of us can understand. Therefore, any advice I could give you to the contrary may very well be a disservice.

[smalljaw67]

Thats where this all started Sam, I zeroed, not even a bite all day saturday on the Potomac in a club tournament for 8 hours straight

I'm assuming you were in the back of the boat and if so don't feel bad. It is hot right now in the East and I have fished the Potomac before and one thing I can tell you is when conditions aren't great the fish will be in specific locations and tight to cover and when this happens it is too easy to get "back boated" even if it wasn't intened to be like that. I fished a tournament a few years back and the fish were just in the first week of post spawn due to a cold spring and I remember my partner (team tournament) saying how the fish were scattered and with bright sun it was making it worse. Well I told him to try isolated pieces of cover and it worked but only for him, we would find a laydown and he would make a cast and catch a fish and then we would spend 10 minutes in the spot with me making 30 casts without a bite and it went like that until the end of the day when I took over the trolling motor for the last 20 minutes, I only caught one fish but it was lunker and got us a check. The point is when the bite is tough and fish set up in specific spots, if you are in the back of the boat it makes it hard to get bit and it is even worse if you are competing against the boater as he will purposely back boat you. Take it in stride and use it as a learning experience by keeping a log and writing down the conditions and the baits used and places fished and the next time you may find something that works.

[Hyrule Bass]

Thats where this all started Sam, I zeroed, not even a bite all day saturday on the Potomac in a club tournament for 8 hours straight

skunks happen to everyone. you just need to relax it seems like. youre too focused on fishing. take time to mix in doing other things you enjoy as well. dont go "fun fishing" and treat it like tournament day. dont overthink the situation. and remember, the pros didnt learn everything overnight, they have a lifetime of experience to build off of and look back to...

[Deleted account]

Be the fish..... Sorry, I couldn't help it (Now I gotta go watch Caddy Shack) After having worked with and for some pro athletes (real athletes not anglers) This is the common thread, I've found, almost without exception, the best of the best do it "their way" whatever that is, I'm not sure what you are doing that caused the comment (I have a feeling youth may have a lot to do with it too) but you can't change who you are or how you feel about things, ie be true to yourself. For what its worth, I'm a fairly successful tournament angler (real angling, not fresh water), and I find that once having gained the hard earned experience and know how (ie I'm old) the less I think about it and stress, the better I do. I hope that helps.

[Bassin' gal]

Be the fish..... Sorry, I couldn't help it (Now I gotta go watch Caddy Shack) After having worked with and for some pro athletes (real athletes not anglers) This is the common thread, I've found, almost without exception, the best of the best do it "their way" whatever that is, I'm not sure what you are doing that caused the comment (I have a feeling youth may have a lot to do with it too) but you can't change who you are or how you feel about things, ie be true to yourself. For what its worth, I'm a fairly successful tournament angler (real angling, not fresh water), and I find that once having gained the hard earned experience and know how (ie I'm old) the less I think about it and stress, the better I do. I hope that helps.

"Real athletes, not anglers", "Real angling, not fresh water" - Excuse me but these professional anglers are REAL ATHLETES and fresh water anglers are REAL ANGLERS as much as any salt water angler.

[buzzfrog]

at the end of the day, you have a boat, lol i hear people pulling out of the dock b%tchin about getting skunked, i have been skunked the past 5 times out on the shore, no hard feeling but ya gotta have fun doing wether your catchin wally gals or watching your line fill your spool. trust me i have thought twice this summer on giving up, but i like it, i have slowed down on buyiing stuff though

[StinkyBass]

i'd have to agree with several of the posts before mine. some of the biggest fish ive caught were on days that i was "just fishing". when i'm "just fishing" i tend to stick to what works longer and try harder.

[basslover12345]

at the end of the day, you have a boat, lol i hear people pulling out of the dock b%tchin about getting skunked, i have been skunked the past 5 times out on the shore, no hard feeling but ya gotta have fun doing wether your catchin wally gals or watching your line fill your spool. trust me i have thought twice this summer on giving up, but i like it, i have slowed down on buyiing stuff though

I don't have a boat, I'm a co-angler

[Hyrule Bass]

I don't have a boat, I'm a co-angler

regardless, sounds like you need to take out all the equations and just fish. dont worry about weather, water temps, clarity, colors, structures, situations. forget about all the variables and stuff. just texas rig a worm, toss it out and fish, keep it simple and dont overthink. its ok to be serious about your fishing, but its also good to remember to have fun and enjoy yourself.

[buzzfrog]

Lol you still got a boat to fish from,

Either way you gotta just fish, if the lord wants us to catch em, he will open their mouths, many trials in life, just fish my friend just fish, domt let the hobby become work

[Fishing Rhino]

LOL. Are fishermen athletes? Golfers? Bowlers? Race car drivers?

Here's my two cents. Being in shape will make you a better golfer, fisherman, bowler, and race car driver. But, fishing, bowling, golfing (if you ride a cart), and driving a race car contribute precious little to physical conditioning, in and of themselves.

Definition of ATHLETE

: a person who is trained or skilled in exercises, sports, or games requiring physical strength, agility, or stamina

Having said that, any of these non-athletic sports can contribute to your physical, mental, and emotional well being. Unless you are doing something wrong, they should relieve stress, and be enjoyable.

[basslover12345]

So, basically I should just pretend I'm fun fishing?

[quanjig]

Yes, you should just pretend to be fun fishing, LOL! When you put yourself into the mix of competition, you may have a tendency to do things a little bit differently. With that being said, maybe you should work on being consistent. Don't be that try hard guy. You know how to do it, you have done it before, have the self confidence and know in your mind that what you do is correct. fishing behind a professional is a daunting task! I'm not sure they leave many to be caught by the co-angler! The best thing you can do is chalk it up to a learning experience and work on things that will make you a more rounded angler!

[buzzfrog]

So, basically I should just pretend I'm fun fishing?

when i was 15, i co anglerded with my uncle, did i ever put up numbers, yea once, but hell man i thought it was all fun fishing, again i am no hardcore tour guy, but if tournaments arent fun, why the h*ll do em..

i hope and pray the abve wasnt a can of worms opened,

[unionman]

Be the fish..... Sorry, I couldn't help it (Now I gotta go watch Caddy Shack) After having worked with and for some pro athletes (real athletes not anglers) This is the common thread, I've found, almost without exception, the best of the best do it "their way" whatever that is, I'm not sure what you are doing that caused the comment (I have a feeling youth may have a lot to do with it too) but you can't change who you are or how you feel about things, ie be true to yourself. For what its worth, I'm a fairly successful tournament angler (real angling, not fresh water), and I find that once having gained the hard earned experience and know how (ie I'm old) the less I think about it and stress, the better I do. I hope that helps.

When reading posts from pompous people (ie ego maniacs), its best to disregard (ie ignore) the whole comment...