How Not to Win a Pistol Match (Or Ruin a Perfectly Good Foot)
Relying on what's always been true for you is dangerous — in this case, literally.
How Not to Win a Pistol Match (Or Ruin a Perfectly Good Foot)
I’ve been a firearms shooter since I was thirteen. I’ve spent countless hours in safety classes and refresher briefings, cleaning and caring for my firearms, and of course, at the range. When it comes to handguns—where I’m most comfortable—I can shoot pretty well with just about anything at any reasonable distance. Same with a shotgun.
Having spent most of my time at a range, I expected a steep learning curve when I tried my first pistol action competition over the weekend. Moving and shooting from behind cover? OK, that’s going to be different. Hitting moving targets at a distance, with a 3 inch barrel? Challenging, sure. But the one thing I wasn’t worried about? Safety.
I’ve had hundreds of hours of training. I’ve got trigger discipline etched into my muscle memory. I can muzzle-down like a champ.
So imagine my surprise when, after the first round of the competition, a range officer pulled me aside and told me I was on the verge of being disqualified… for unsafe firearm handling.
Apparently, all the gospel I’ve lived by—muzzle down, point at the ground—doesn’t apply in competition. In fact, in competition, if you follow that training too closely, you might just sweep your own foot.
Which I did.
A 9mm hole in my would’ve been a dramatic and painful way to learn this lesson. Luckily, I got off with just a lecture and a bruised ego. But it drove home the point:
What’s gospel in one context can be heresy in another.
Being good at racquetball doesn’t make you a tennis pro. (Learned that the hard way, too. The ball doesn’t bounce the same, and neither do the opponents.)
Cricket and baseball look similar… in the way that Neil Diamond and Lou Diamond Phillips both contain the word “Diamond.”
This is the challenge we all face—in business, in life, in every domain we care about.
Balancing your books doesn’t mean you can manage company finances. Pitching to your friends isn’t the same as selling to a skeptical customer. Being great at one thing often gives you just enough confidence to be dangerous in another.
The trick? Know what to keep and what to drop. Apply the pieces that still work. Let go of the parts that don’t. Unlearn quickly. Adapt faster.
Old tricks will keep you exactly where you are.
Adaptation is what moves you forward.
Netflix adapted. Blockbuster didn’t.
Canon, Sony, and Nikon adapted. Kodak didn’t.
Apple adapted. Blackberry… well, I think they started making smart toasters.
And now we’re all in the middle of another shift. AI is disrupting everyone, everywhere. The race is on.
So here’s the real question:
👉 What “absolute truth” are you holding onto that might shoot you in the foot if you don’t let go of it soon?
P.S. I’d love to hear from you—what skill, habit, or instinct did you hang on to too long before realizing it was holding you back?