Always remember fishing’s golden rule: Keep the main thing the main thing

About five months ago I happened to hear about how wonderful a new type of sonar system was for finding fish. I was intrigued and excited about what the technology could do, and I began researching everything I could find about it.

I’m always interested in new breakthroughs, but I try to be careful about going overboard on new stuff. My experience has been that adding new systems can create all kinds of unexpected issues. I was being cautious.

I spent a good month looking at information. The more I talked to other fishermen, watched YouTube videos and read articles, the more it seemed like this was a wonderful idea for me. I was stoked.

I bought the system and after getting it installed i made a maiden voyage to the lake. Turning it on, I immediately ran into my first issue. The sonar pictures I saw weren’t what I had expected and it wasn’t helping me much in my fishing style. Yes, my fishing conditions were different from the guys on the videos, but I had hoped it would be more helpful.

Next I found out that the system caused a problem with my trolling motor. It was a major issue I’d never seen addressed. It was becoming obvious that it wasn’t working for me as I thought it would. Was I missing something?

A day later I decided to call an experienced angler who I knew had been through the wars. Straight to the point, he said, “I would suggest you return it, then, go back to the basics that have been working for you. Keep the main thing the main thing!”

It’s great when someone who has a clear grasp of an issue can cut through the fog and give you the clarity you’re searching for! It was so obvious to me, once he pointed it out.

I was getting distracted and spending all my time trying to figure out how to use the system. I wasn’t fishing. I was making the minor thing the main thing because I was excited about it, but my efficiency and effectiveness were impacted.

One of the main things I’ve seen mess up anglers’ effectiveness is when they make the constant pursuit of the next big thing the main thing. Key upgrades are essential, but getting caught up in chasing the latest fad is not usually very helpful. I had taken off down this road.

Be careful about upgrading new technology. Many anglers never really learned how to use their current system, but think the new stuff will fix that problem. Instead, it usually just compounds it. It’s like buying a big computer, then only doing simple math on it.

In my experience, new tech systems take more time to learn than you think, seem to have hidden glitches , cost more than you thought and can take you off your game before you know it.

We took the system off. Making the main thing the main thing again made life simpler. The siren song of “new breakthroughs” can be deceptive and usually comes with a price. Basics, baby, basics!

Never give up!