You do the best you can under the circumstances you have to deal with.
It's my opinion that working in a class under a good trainer will do more for you in a shorter time as far as skill development than anything else you can do. BUT you need to work up to it in order to be ready to absorb as much as you can while you are in the class you have spent the $$$ to attend.
How do you do that?
Get your basics nailed down first. Safety is THE paramount issue with every professional trainer I have ever seen at work. If your safety habits (muzzle control, trigger finger index, mechanical safety use etc) aren't driven down to reflex level, you will likely have problems in class. If your safety habits are really bad, you may well not even get to finish the class. Other things to nail down before a 'big class' are gear issues (KISS applies here), how to keep your gun running, simple things like magazine changes etc. Your basic skills need to be down pat- and that includes hitting what you shoot at. You don't go to college to learn to recite your ABCs- get the 'first things first' taken care of before you worry about bigger things.
Start out with the absolute basics in your training program. A Hunter Safety Class is easily accessible to almost anyone, and free in most places. Time in the classroom listening to/working with an instructor- any instructor- and a class full of other students, will help prepare you for your "college time" with a big-name high-dollar trainer. If you have not had a Hunter Safety Course or the equivalent in your state, you need one anyway. If it's been a while since you had it, take it again as the first step on your new training program. It'll help you get over feeling self-conscious if nothing else.
There are thousands of NRA certified instructors at work all over the country teaching a number of classes. Most of them are pretty inexpensive. Again, it may seem awfully "basic" to you- but time in class working under an instructor is different from going to the range alone or with range buddies, reading books, or watching training videos. There is no substitute for learning how to be a good student of firearms before you spend the big bucks to work with a well-known instructor. Basic classes are a good place to get comfortable in your role as a student, and to help you nail down the basic skills you will need to build on later. See
http://www.nrahq.org/education/training/basictraining.asp to locate NRA certified trainers near you.
Look hard to see what other training opportunities are available near you. And when you find them, take advantage of them. For example, the police department in one larger city I lived in many years ago taught a free basic handgun class to the public a few times per year. I signed up for the next available class as soon as I found out about it. When I got to class, I was the only male present save for Sergeant Ron -----------, the PD's training sergeant and the class instructor. We spent 4 hours in the classroom, broke for lunch, and spent the afternoon on the PD range. I was shooting a 9mm, but there were .22 holes in my target too... . It was a genuine learning experience in a lot of ways, and I learned some invaluable lessons about instructing rank beginners from Sergeant Ron. And some important stuff about being a good student too.
Start yourself a training plan. Decide where you want to be in your training at whatever point in time, and then put in place the steps necessary to get you there. Start a training fund and start saving for that big class. Figure out who you want to train with, with what firearm or firearms, what skills, and start accumulating the ammunition and gear you will need for the class (most instructors issue handouts listing required and recommended gear for their classes). You will need some time to get that stuff together- and all of it will be useful in your shooting hobby in the meantime.
Get involved in some shooting competition. Whatever discipline you like, it doesn't matter- just do it. You need to learn to work under pressure, under time limits, under the eyes of other shooters and range officers. You need to get accustomed to listening to range commands and following instructions when your mind is teeming with other stuff. You need to learn how to get your gear together, get it somewhere away from home without losing/leaving important stuff. All those skills make classes go easier and help make sure that you can spend your class time (when you finally get it) learning stuff and not fiddling with gear, looking for lost stuff, etc.
If you are serious about training with a nationally known instructor, you WILL find a way to get it done. It will take work, and sacrifice on your part- it does for anyone who ever takes a class. It's just a question of priorities, like anything else in life.
Once you determine what instructor you want to study under, find out what materials that person has prepared. Read the books, watch the videos, and start getting ready to be as good a student as you can be. Read as many AARs (after action reports) as you can find from people who attended classes with that instructor- or ANY instructor for that matter. Get your head wrapped around what it takes to be a successful student in advance, and be ready to take full advantage of your training opportunity when you get to go to that class you've so long anticipated. You'll get the most out of the experience- and the investment- that way.
Best wishes,
lpl/nc (perpetual student)
