Last year was great! I expect 2020 to be even better! One thing I want to do differently is to set some goals for 2020. Not resolutions. Just goals that will hopefully guide me to grow in the areas that I want rather than just winging it like I did last year.
The theme for my goals this year is “less stuff, more experience”. My reasoning behind this theme is that while I love new gear, I’d like to focus my discretionary spending to be primarily focusing on skill improvement. This means I have to get out there and do more with the gear I already have. Wish me luck, as I’m not exactly known for my impulse control skills.
Competition
I plan on continuing my participation in IDPA competitions. I may also venture out and try a USPSA competition as well. Neither one of these activities will require new gear, so I should be able to stay true to the theme for this year.
My goal is participate in at least 12 competitions like I did last year.
One other competition goal is to shoot a qualifier and get classified in IDPA. I’d like to qualify at the Marksman level (just one notch above Novice), and will train and practice towards that. Depending on how involved I get with USPSA I may look into shooting a classifier as well.
Hunting
I plan to keep refilling the freezer with more deer this year. This may mean an exotic deer hunt during the late spring or early summer and some whitetail deer during the next season towards the end of 2020.
One other hunting goal is to take my wife on her first deer hunt. She showed a lot of interest in my hunting activities during 2019 and we got get outfitted in 2019 as well. With any luck, she will harvest her first deer in 2020.
Recreation
I’d like to take daughter the youngest out plinking more during 2020. We really didn’t much of it during 2019. However, she’s also shown a lot less interest as of late. I think this may have a lot to do with her “growing up” as she approaches the teenage years. I’ll have to see how it goes.
I have no other recreational plans or goals beyond those listed in the other categories.
Self Defense
Self defense will be my primary focus this year. Last year as a real eye opener for me after attending my first couple of professional training courses. I learned that I’m not as good as I’d like to be especially with a pistol. With that said, I plan to:
- dry practice at least once per week with a stretch goal of getting into the habit of dry practicing at least 5 minutes per day,
- live fire practice at least once per month (competitions don’t count),
- attend three professional training courses in addition to Gabe White’s Pistol Shooting Solutions course which I’ve already registered for.
Gabe White’s class is a big deal for me. I’ve been told by people who have taken it that it’s a very technical advanced pistol shooting course. I’d like to walk away from it having earned the Dark Pin. Given what I’ve heard and the published standards required to earning a pin will require me to practice and train regularly between now an October in order to achieve this goal.
Firearms
There really isn’t a firearm that I need at this point to participate in any of the competitions, hunting activities, recreational activities, or self defense activities that I am planning for in 2020. That said, I am well aware that I may not be able to resist the temptation to purchase one of the several guns I’ve been day dreaming about.
I really should set the goal of zero firearms added to the collection in 2020 in order to stay completely true to the theme, but that’s not realistic. It’s also why the theme starts with “less stuff” instead of “no stuff”. With that in mind, I’m going to put the goal at no more than two guns added to the collection in 2020.
Wish me luck as I work towards these goals in 2020!