My Attitude Determines What I Catch. Period, Case Closed!!!! by Bernard Williams

In order to consistently catch fish you have to do what winners do, put in time on the water and have the right attitude. You have to fish smart; have a workable game plan, and willing to make adjustments all day long. A game plan is simply just that, a plan. It’s great to have a plan; it’s not a requirement but a good idea. Flexibility is crucial; changing your plan from hour to hour or quickly has always been the successful way to approach any fishing.

I’ve had some great game plans only to arrive at the lake and see the situation totally different from practice days. Weather, wind, barometric, and current flow changes are leading factors that made my game plan go out the window. Sure, I could have tried to apply my plan regardless of the conditional changes but experience has taught me to abandon my plan and re-think what I needed to do to catch my limit of crappie.
I’ve interviewed some of the most consistent winners that fished the Magnolia Crappie Club. What I’ve discovered among all the consistent winners were not the equipment they use (boats, rods, lures) or lake knowledge, it was one thing only; P.M.A (Positive Mental Attitude). It’s what’s going on in the three pounds of mass between your ears. Your mind controls your attitude, if you can keep those negative thoughts out and think positive, it will show at the end of the day.

If I go out on the lake and fish a couple of hours and not catch anything, that negativity begins to creep in, I immediately zap it. I’ve come up with a simple technique that eliminates those negative thoughts. I once wore a rubber band on my risk; whenever I would start to think negative I would pop the rubber band. I wore this for over 30 days and went thru about 40 rubber bands. I can still feel the pain of that pop. It made me associate pain with negative thoughts. This helped me not only fishing but in my marriage and career.
If you’re going to doubt yourself fishing why go? If you have breakdowns or problems that pop up on the lake and you allow them to get in your head, you’re doomed. You’ve successfully defeated yourself. You got to work thru those problems and keep the focus. I refuse to let the small stuff control my emotions. I don’t listen to the negative stuff from others.

I got some good friends that are the world’s worst complainers. They try to dump their issues on me. I tell them politely that their issues are not my issues. Rather than complaining about this or that, I ask them, what do you think is the solution? Complaining about what’s wrong is not going to change one single thing.

I watch a YouTube video hosted by Bass Pro Gerald Swindle “The G-Man” where he discusses how he had employed a Mine Coach. We call them psychiatrist. Swindle says the best weapon for fishing is “Your Attitude. It doesn’t matter what equipment you have, if you fish like an idiot, you’re going to weigh-in like an idiot.” Gerald says, “What’s in your brain makes the biggest different between success and failure”.

“I’ve seen Kevin Van Damn miss three five-pounders in a row and never miss a beat. All he did was keep casting the same lure. I said Kevin; I would have come unglued, throwing rods, banging my head against the windshield and all. Kevin says, I’m just glad to know there’s big fish here and they’re hitting my bait”, according to Swindle. Gerald says, “Anybody can look good when you’re winning, it’s how you handled yourself when things are not going right it what separates people that catch them every day and people that don’t. I’ve had days where I’ve backlashed the toilet paper. Some people look for a reason to have a bad day.”

Gerald says, “It doesn’t matter if you’re not on fish, what really matters is, if you think you’re going to catch them. True fishermen fish where the fish are going not where you think they’re at. Don’t shoot behind the target. Don’t fish memories; fish the pattern and the moment”.

It’s how you live your life that makes you successful in fishing. If you live your life with a positive mental attitude then you’ll be successful in fishing. If you’re positive on land you’ll be positive on the water. Last but not least my final bit of advice is “don’t sweat the small stuff”. Bernard