When planning any journey, knowing where you’re starting from is a necessity. For those new to Concealed Carry and for those who have been carrying for a while, having some kind of Standard to benchmark your ability against is the way to determine where you’re at, skills wise.

Marksmanship skill is not the be all and end all of the skills involved in Concealed Carry, as my Serious Mistakes and Negative Outcomes commentary shows. However, understanding where your capability fits in the big picture helps decision‑making more than is often realized. Some degree of skill helps a gunowner focus on the solution to the problem of a criminal encounter instead of focusing on possession of the gun as the solution.

I’ve previously written about a Comparative Standards skillset that one of my editors developed. He wrote a more expansive explanation of the Standards and the logic behind them in The Shooting Wire. It’s well worth reading as an explanation of what we mean by competency and a benchmark for measuring it.

It’s also worth keeping in mind that what these kind of Standards are is simply a Status Report of where you’re at. As I mentioned in my recent interview with the Armed Citizens’ Legal Defense Network, people often confuse a Status Report with the Report Cards we received in High School. Report Cards carry a connotation at that age of emotionally measuring your value as a person. Status Reports, on the other hand, have the emotional value of measuring what the pressure is in the tires of your car, i.e., no emotional value whatsoever. If the tire pressure is low, you just put more air in the tire, that’s all. If your performance on a Standard isn’t what you’d like it to be, just figure out what you could do better and then practice more.

The Shooting Wire article about Comparative Standards is available at this link. http://www.shootingwire.com/features/d106a136-873f-4bc7-af6e-ba4d2db12375

I’ve written two different eBooks for those who are interested in improving their skill with handguns. They provide a roadmap to improving your competency at your own pace and within the resources you have available to you. For less than the price of a box of ammo, you’ll be able to use your time and other resources much more effectively.

For those who carry a concealed firearm, Concealed Carry Skills and Drills is appropriate for you. The link to the downloadable eBook is here. http://concealedcarryskillsanddrills.com

For those who don’t carry a concealed firearm but keep a handgun for home defense, Indoor Range Practice Sessions is appropriate for you. The link to the downloadable eBook is here. http://indoorrangepracticesessions.com

If you would just like my target to try the Comparative Standards with, here is the download link. Printable Silhouette