Attitude Adjustment

What I normally write about and try to convey concerning fishing is typically educational in nature. I attempt to pass along what I have learned from others, personal observation, and most significantly from trying about every darn thing imaginable in order to get the confounding creatures to bite…consistently. This boils down to the mechanics of angling. Where we actually fish and how we manipulate whatever we send down below in our efforts to entice them. Couple this with some basic insight as to understanding why and what the fish are doing based on calendar periods and various weather patterns and you have at least have a base of knowledge in which to begin your hunt for whatever species tickles your fancy on any given day.

Now this is all good and fine and some may even say makes for some interesting reading; but how many of you actually break from exactly what you have been doing for years? Yeah you say, “It kind of makes sense what this guy is saying, but what I do generally works too and why stray too far from what I know and am accustomed to?”

Why you say? Because generally works is not good enough. There is an awful lot of room between generally and always. Meaning that you are having a number of trips where you catch little to no fish. If you have any sense of pride, let alone purpose at all, you should be aggressively seeking ways in which to catch fish on every single outing. I know this may be nearly impossible…but a worthy goal nonetheless. Let’s face facts here, the aesthetics of fishing can be great if the weather cooperates and it is nice just to get outdoors and enjoy Mother Nature. But I am not afraid to admit it and neither should you, I go fishing to catch fish-plain and simple. I’m greedy in that sense and have no stage of denial. I choose to meet this addiction head on. Meaning I always strive to catch more and bigger fish.

If I just wanted to be outdoors and enjoy the scenery, I could do so with much less expense and effort by simply sitting on the patio or deck of a good resort overlooking the water and enjoy the same surroundings with the added bonus of having some significantly enhanced scenery in the form of a pretty waitress bringing me cocktails as needed…or not. I will be the judge of that one.

There is plenty of time for this kind of activity once you have actually got your butt out and actually caught some fish. In order to do so consistently, you need to become a more well rounded fisherman and maybe-just maybe-apply some on the new tactics you hear so much about in all the magazines and TV shows you just can’t do without. An attitude adjustment is in order here for a good number of you. It is high time you evolve from the boring, albeit predictable anglers you have let yourselves become. Predictable in this sense is not a good thing as I can predict you can become a much better angler if you would just open your mind up to the possibilities.

Isn’t that what drew most of us to fishing in the first place? The wondering and anticipation about what was going to happen. Would the bobber go down or not? Same concept with trying new methods, as you are anticipating if that smart-alecky writer actually knows what he is talking about as you await your first bite while trying the newfangled methods he insists you must try.