1 – Reading Targets
In skeet the targets are set, you know the flightline of the target and where they will travel. This in itself is a positive and a negative. There are preconceptions of the difficulty within the stands; many say H3, Pair4, L5 are difficult targets, for example. The key is coaching, then relaying this coaching from your short term memory to your long term memory, ensuring you are subconsciously shooting targets once you have mastered them.
The most important element of reading targets is to know how to shoot them correctly. There are many different styles to shooting skeet. Once you have mastered the right one for you, you need to stick to it. The tip is this – get the right coaching, stick to what you have been taught, then practice both physically and mentally.

2 – Relaxation
Skeet is about the correct style for you, coupled with a smoothness in your swing and approach to shooting the target. Our research of heart rates show that the top shot is in control of the target at all times, knows where they will shoot it and, most of all, is able to control aggression and equally raise the mental approach to the target at the right time.
The top shot can switch off and switch on at the right time. Relaxation is key to this, so make sure you are using the relaxation techniques from the website and the handbook. Try them in practice and simulate a round of skeet.

3 – Competition Practice
In skeet it is easy to get out and practice, get good scores and feel on a high. However when you get into competition the scores go down. Tis change in score can be mental pressures, a poor day or a lack of competition preparation. When you shoot a round of skeet in competition how many people are within the squad and how long does it take to shoot the round?
The key here is to train your brain to shooting in competition; go to the range and try and shoot a competition round, shoot first and then work on switching on and off as if someone else was shooting - shooters 2, 3, 4 etc. What do you do with the time? Do you get distracted? Do you concentrate enough? This is such a valuable exercise to do as it will show you that you must competition-style practice. We suggest the aim for your next session is to employ this technique. Our Masterclasses demonstrate the use of an exercise just for this.

4 – Visualise
With skeet the result is usually down to a single clay as it is a precise clay discipline. Even at the very top of Olympic Skeet a clay can be the difference between a Gold and 7th place. If you visualise the way you shoot, the feel of it and the way you will shoot in competition, visualisation can be one of the most powerful elements you can use in shooting (indeed any sport), but is needs to be the right visualisation.
So what is the right visualisation? In our research the area we found the most powerful was the visualisation of how it feels just before you call for the target. What do you feel? Could you feel your heart rate or not? Did you feel confident or not? In the coming weeks, ask yourself the night or morning before a competition what will it feel like to shoot; how do you feel in yourself and how did it feel when you shot well? If you want to be the best or better that the best, then you need to do more than those you will compete against.

5 – Pace and tempo
When you are next on the range shooting get someone to video you. What is the pace that you personally shoot at? Try and work through in your head what your optimum time on the stand is - naturally it changes per stand, but you should be able to, over time, judge the speed and tempo you shoot at. This is very indepth, but it is vital. You need to feel what that feels like and what the timing of it is.
The reason for doing this will be vital when you are having a poor day, if you can feel what you time on the stand is then you can adjust – if you are too slow, it probably shows nerves or trying to hard – equally if it is too fast. This is a great example of how skeet is a mental game. The timing will always show how you can make a change to be back on track.