We had an opportunity last weekend to join in a two day seminar with Blaine Carter of Merrymeeting Kennels hosted by the Southeast Michigan NAVHDA. What an incredible learning opportunity! And of course it was spent with a group of beautiful dogs. It was like the perfect storm for me. Learning, dogs and photography. My ultimate trifecta! Anyone training a versatile hunting dog should absolutely seek out one of these incredible seminars!
The funny thing about learning how to better train dogs is that it also teaches you how to better train yourself. Set goals, create a training plan to achieve those goals, and read your dog.
How do we know where we are going if we don’t set a destination/goal? Goal setting comes easy for me. It is the second step I have trouble with. Before we go anywhere we need to know how we are going to get there. Maybe having a GPS in my car is to blame. I type in my destination these days and I just let my car lead the way. I miss the old days of paper maps and pens highlighting the route. Sitting down and planning the trip before hopping in the car. One of the lessons re-learned at the seminar was that flying by the seat of your pants may get you there sometimes, but not always. More importantly if you don’t know how you got there how can you get there again?
Intentional goal achievement plans have to be a focus for me. Just like Leo, I have the talent, the know how and the tools to get where I want to go. I just need to pull out that paper map and a few pens. write it down… live it!
Then of course, the final step is to listen to the cues that life gives you. Keep an eye out for those ever present and often necessary detour signs along the way.
