Learn Who You Really Enjoy Spending Time With

Life can be one awesome bad ass ride if you fish often, live right and stop to take the time to think about what really matters.

Keep Learning. The most successful anglers realize that fishing is a lifelong learning process. There is always a new technique, another species to target, new spots to try out or different lures to test. Don’t get close-minded or stuck in a rut. Fish with new people and try new things.

Make Mistakes. Chances are pretty good that if you forget “sideways pressure” or tie a knot wrong and end up losing a lunker, you won’t make that same mistake twice.

Be Humble. Just when you think you’re starting to get pretty good at fishing or at life, you tend to get slapped back down to reality by a much more experienced angler or much more powerful fish. Don’t pretend to know everything. Listen to advice, filter through it and apply what makes sense.

Get Messy. Stop all the fussing, let your hair down, get some bait on your hands and focus on what matters… fishing. You don’t need to be proper all the time. It’s exhausting.

Take it Slow. You can be competitive, you can insist upon always being the first to get to your fishing hole, you can throw that line in the water and start reeling like a fiend. However, you’ll find that the fish don’t respond to haste. Slow down and think about what you are doing. Enjoy the actual experience and process of fishing. Be intentional.

Lose the Expectations. Let go of high expectations the night before a big tournament or planned fishing trip. Sure, you want to do well, but certain things are out of your control and the best fishing days often end up being the impromptu ones.

Be Authentic. Don’t worry about what other people think. Just be you. Fish, praise the Lord, wear camo, walk around smelling like bait, talk to people about the lures you love or relay the story of the one that got away. You’ll find out pretty fast who your real friends are, you’ll learn who you have the most in common with and who you truly enjoy spending time around… isn’t that what life is all about?

Pay it Forward. Teach others how to fish or encourage them to get out on the water with you. We all go through tough times. Fishing can be a great escape from all of the chaos we deal with in our daily lives. Pay it forward. Take a kid or friend fishing and re-introduce them to the outdoors.

Choose Experiences Over Things. Don’t get me wrong, I know we all love buying fishing tackle and certainly wouldn’t turn away a new Skeeter or Triton. But, what’s more rewarding? The awesome memory you make when you spend a day on the water catching bass with your best buddy? Or having lots of stuff?

Don’t Let the Trash Jade You. You’re gonna catch a nasty catfish every once and awhile. They are a pain in the ass to take of the hook and no one ever wants to deal with them. Just remember that everyone has to deal with the trash every now and then. Focus on the positive and laugh at those slimy catfish. I guarantee that life will be much easier if you do.

The Trophy is More Rewarding When You’ve Had to Work for it. If you caught and released a truckload of 8 lb bass every day, you’d never have a true appreciation for the amount of work and skill involved. After a few weeks of dreaming and trying like mad to hook a big hog, it’s so much sweeter when it finally happens.

What life lessons have you learned from fishing? C’mon! Share your fishing thoughts and meditations by commenting on our blog!

All Smiles While Catching Redfish off Sanibel Island, Florida

DEB

Debbie Hanson, the blonde half of the B'ASS duo, grew up fishing with her grandfather in the Upper Peninsula of Michigan. She has fished competitively for the past nine years and writes on the subject of women and fishing for various online and offline publications. When off the water, she runs online content marketing and social media consulting agency. One of her biggest passions is to promote angling and empowerment among her fellow outdoors women.

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