Do I have the discipline to get better?

I have no problem being a finesse fisherman. It serves me well on my home lake. The lake I fish 95% of the time isn’t large, it has very clear water most of the time around 10 foot visibility. The shoreline is lines with boat docks and from late spring thru fall has an abundance of weeds. When you add all of those things together it becomes a challenge to work on different styles of fishing.

I have always wanted to push myself as far as I can into fishing tournaments but I seem to always hold myself back from actually pursuing them. I joined our local bass club when I was 17. For most of the tournaments the first five years in the club I wasn’t very good. Every lake was new to me and I really wasn’t that good at catching fish. As the years went on I got better, I understood the lakes better and I had really developed my style of fishing which was more finesse than anything. Fishing in Ohio is hard. Outside of Erie there isn’t a lake that people are traveling to from anywhere outside of Ohio to fish. After years of never winning a club tournament I finally figured it out and won nearly half of the tournaments over the next three years. I figured out how to catch five fish.

In most cases only a few guys in any tournament in Ohio are going to catch a limit. Once I adapted to a finesse style I was getting limits and getting wins. As I look to start expanding my tournament area I realize that putting five in the boat is still important but the size of those five is also important. Having fished lakes south of Ohio I know the odds of catching five are higher so that means I have to get better. Getting better means a lot of things. Map and graph reading, swimbaits, jigs and crankbaits. That is just to name a few things I have to get better at to compete at a higher level.

I can sit here in November and be motivated to get better but our lake is drawn down to winter levels so I can’t get on the boat. I can be motivated to watch videos and read magazines but I can’t put them into practice right now. Motivation comes and goes, It doesn’t last because it needs fuel. Discipline is different though. I have to build the discipline this winter so when I can get on the water come spring I can execute on the things I need to get better at. This will be the challenge. Do I have the discipline to build the skills to achieve what I want? – Michael