Goal Setting?

[Murray]

Why do most archers set their goals at reaching a particular number? I usually see posts like "I want to get 500 portsmouth" or "I want to get 1100 FITA"

But - that doesn't give any measure of consistency, and it dosn't do your headgame any good if each tournament you go to, you're comparing against some personal best or worse, some as yet unatttained target.

I've used a variety of measures like high average and low average, usually based on half dozens... e.g. 45-50 half dozens at 70m... and then compare each dozen to see where I am in the range. You can extend this to include variations depending on weather.

Focussing this way on each end (or two ends) helps me stick with the next shot and not get hung up on overall score.

So far I've shot two PBs that I've not been able to get near again - doesn't drive me mad, but doesn't fill me with joy either that they were potentially one-offs, but all I'm focussed on is upping my average where possible.

Just a thought. What do you do?

[mk1]

The scores we get are a tangible means of measuring our success. Just as Edinburgh 101, Edinburgh 67 ..... Edinburgh 17 signs tell me I'm getting nearer home after a long drive back from where ever archery tournament.

The thing is we shouldn't be working on a score we should be focusing on something else while we shoot. Whether its something abstract, or something we've been working on. Yes, we can empty our minds and let it flow, but most of us are at a stage when we are working on something and I've often found the most successfull days are spend focusing on one thing - the placement of a hand, the position of an elbow, the direction of a follow through, keeping a positive mood etc etc

The oucome of all this - the SCORE can give us the motivation.



oops the pop psychology catcher is coming over the hill

[moo-mop]

I don’t know what’s coming over me posting twice on something serious within an hour, but here goes.

Yes fundamentally I base my goals around a score, but not a pb - I am subjective about that score, i.e. it’s stated as such-and-such a score in reasonable conditions. Now as it happens I’ve done that score twice this year, only once in a star, but those were nice conditions, so I haven’t reached the goal. That’s OK as I do set goals that I know will be difficult to reach.

But the way to achieve the goal is more complicated and composed of sub goals. An ex-coach introduced this method of goal setting. I have eight what I call attributes (it's recommended that it's less than 10) that are needed in a good archer, although some I feel are more important than others. I score them out of 10. I base the score on saying 10 is for a 1300 ish shooter and 0 for an 1150 ish shooter, so of course this all a bit subjective, but I set it so I am about 6 on average. Then I put the methods that I will use to increase the score I have given myself underneath the attribute and work from there.

Now as it’s all a bit personal I don’t want to post what the goals are but I think an example may help others so here’s my one of my attributes from last year:
Endurance strength (score 5-7)
Need to build this to be able to shoot 2 day competitions without tiring. Also important as will allow more arrows to be shot during weekend practice session. Concerned that SPT/heavy volumes of shooting may lead to recurrence of injury. Aim to be able to shoot 200 arrows/day in control by next April.
Methods
Need to introduce regular (monthly) long sessions to test this ability, starting after Christmas?
Start building upper body strength with general weight training as still concerned about shoulder. If ok, will try to increase volume of arrows in garage and perhaps gentle SPT. Start weights now with 35 min, two times per week. After Christmas, want to start building specific strength by volume of arrows and SPT if required/possible.

[geoffretired]

Murray, I agree with what you are saying up to a point. I think one reason why a score is given as a goal is for a reason very similar to yours. I know of one who recently worked out a reasonable average for six arrows. That was doubled, and so on to give a score for the round. I think the initial idea comes from an average end, like yours. I imagine the thinking throughout the day will be more to do with each six arrows, than the total.
Perhaps there is also some allowance for improvement that can be added to the final score." I've been getting around X for a Portsmouth, so x+12 would be a nice target." If that is translated into scores for just six arrows, it is not really obvious.
mk1 is right about not focusing on a score, at least while we are shooting the arrows. If you do, the time will come when you are thinking, "I need a fourteen with this arrow to equal my last week's score."
Keeping track of the six, or dozen totals can work for some people. It can give them the kick they need for being careless, or give them some confidence when they do well. These feelings,which will show between ends, can be used to set a state of mind. That state of mind can be taken across the line to give an incentive.

[PorlyP]

I'll tell you what I do when setting score goals, but I'm still new so you might not take away anything from this.

For my score predictions or aims, I too use a ranged extimate for each distance, per dozen, based on whether I have a classification score to hit or simply a pb. at the moment, it's both, but that's bye the bye.

So, for example, in order for me to hit my short national 3rd class score, I'd worked out that beating 60pt dozens @50 and 80 pt dozens @40 would take me past my 403. It's a rough guide, but it's an easy way to get started, so if you need to do better on the shorter distance, you have plenty of room for manouevre. Having these "markers" not only gives me a guide, but I know that after 40, if I'm over 160, I'm doing better than I wanted.

The important part for me is the adjustment after a shoot. I look back at averages for the distance, then reset the markers.

One other thing I do is try and better my performance areas such as consistency, number of misses or outliers (1s,3s,5s), and shot speed.
Hope that gives you an idea, but it sounds like you're way better than someone who needs to do this

[WhitehartFB]

The subconcious mind plays a big part in achieving your goals.

How many times have you looked at your score a quarter or halfway through a shoot and thought wow if I keep this up I will get.... yet at the end of the day you score close to your average. This is your subconcious mind interfering because you are leaving your comfort zone and it wants you back where you belong.

You can train your subconcious mind to believe that you shoot better than you can which will raise your scores not astronomically as the subconcious has to believe it. It worked for me getting over the 1100 Fita star after scoring 1098,1099,1099, in 3 stars then after using the cards 1104 then 1152.

I used flash cards as described by J Barrs in the Glade a few years ago.

No substitute for for shooting and good form but it can give you that little boost.

[its my party and]

When I first got my garden boss I was just firing arrows down and onto it to try and build a repetative muscle memory no real attempt to hit the gold but it soon came! I thought this was important as I was still quite new to Archery! It was a trick taught to me when I first got into hurdling as a young lad. A very clever england coach who had retired lived quite close by my track. And his first words to me were "Im going to teach you to know what your feet hands eyes and breathing are doing all at the same time" And Frank went systimatically about identifying to me what each bit of the body did. How my feet should land on the track where hands and eyes should be when approaching and when departing a hurdle. Over two years he reinforced this at every session asking me where I was looking what I was thinking about and how many hurdles were left. My progression from that point including lowering of my PB at 400mH was dramatic. We even went about repetative performances when I was nearly out on my feet to try and sharpen my perception and awareness when tired. Archery has a lot of the same features and in the few competitions Ive entered Ive soon come to realise there are a lot of things to improve on! These things will improve my PB because I wouldn't be thinking of the score and Ive only got x amount left to get to beat it.
I do keep an excell spread sheet of my garden performances over 20yds. Shooting six arrows five doz at a time on a 60 cm face and strictly in 1 to 6 order. This has allowed me to record what each arrow does! If Im not scoring so well at any particular time in the shoots and if one particular arrow is not so consistant or as good as the others! Lastly I keep golds and hits below 9 in each dozen as a seperate score all highlighted in seperate colours as this is my target not to go below with each arrow.
Presently I have shot.
23 rounds Scoring 11706 points Lowest score being 480 highest being 551 Averaging out at 508.6 for each round and the highest arrow average for a round was 9.18 lowest being 8.00
I have started highlighting on the scorecard before I shoot when I should think about my scores and concentrating a bit harder.
Not sure if its helping a whole lot yet especially as limbs and string have been changed this week but it gives a good reference point.
Also Ive found shooting in very low light allows you to concentrate on technique and not the end result at the target.
Blimey sorry its so long but its a "my own way" of improving technique.
Jock

[Deadeye Doc]

This is getting interesting. Rather than numerical goals the idea of setting "form" goals and plotting these on a linear scale (Likert Scale if you're scientific) is one thing that I use and have used over my years of competition in other sports. Matching these with how I feel on the day and the conditions can show improvements or reasons for deterioration and so on. I have not yet come accross a sport in which your "head" does not get in the way and setting goals can screw you.

How many of us shoot with the aim of shooting good groups regularly? The Head Aardvark - a wily old beast - tells me to go away and shoot so that I can consistently put all my shots inside the red rings. When that's done put the target at ten meters further off and do it again and so on.

I have mentioned what Al Henderson says before. Make it your goal to keep shooting inside the red rings. If you do that, how many arrows will land in gold? Perhaps 50%? Pretty bloody good,eh? Now why not that sort of target setting, rather than a numerical score.

Another sort of goal might relate to "practice" or serious competition. Do you shoot the same kind of scores in a FITA star as you do in practice? A goal I use is to close "the gap". I know that I can shoot "X" regularly for a Portsmouth in practice but that this is "X" minus 20 in competition.

I'm interested in It's My Party And's shooting in low light conditions. Blind Bossing has the same effect for me. Trying to shoot the form and "feeling" what is happening. Then trying to reproduce it in practice or competition (muscle memory) there's another goal.

The numbers are, for me, a means of measuring if it's working.

[Marcus26]

Murrey is totally spot on. However it is difficult to do and something you need to train for and practise.
Change your focus from score to execution.
Break down a good shot process into how it feels, how it looks and how it sounds.
If on the shot you did not get those things then analyse it
Did I do it correctly? If yes try again.
If no then identify and adjust.
The key is not shooting a X score, the key is doing the right things and the score will come.

For example.
You know you must keep all your arrows in the 8 ring or better to do well.
You draw, it feels wrong, and you shoot a 6.
Later you draw and it feels wrong again. Do not shoot the shot. How many of us have thought "it doesn't matter" or "I might get it in"
Another point is that you know that to shoot well you need to keep tension out of your arms. So for your round concentrate on keeping tension from your arms.
You also know you need to aim as tight as possible. To keep them in the 8 there is no point aiming larger than the 8, so concentrate on aiming tight which executing the shot.
Make these your goals and before long you won't give a crap about a 500 Portsmouth because you will be shooting 580's.

It does however take alot of concentration and control to do these things without worrying about the score.

[Marcus26]

Additional
One problem with score goal setting is that it is not accurate.
I always have a goal of 300 when I shot a Vegas round.
A few weeks ago I shot an absolute woeful round. I did everything wrong. And shot a 300. (with 11 x's LOL )
I was very unhappy with myself.
The next day I shot a 299 26x. I did just about everything right, just muffed one shot. I was much much happier because I base on goals on the execution, not the score result.

It might be better to be lucky than good, but at some point your luck runs out.