Don't chase first place at all costs
If you've never entered or attended a fishing competition before, it's a world that may surprise you. You can enter any number of competitions without being asked for any experience or results. Even if you don't want to go in with the aim of winning at all costs, trying out the competition will teach you a lot, both about your own practice and that of others.
In fact, it's perfectly possible to take part simply to discover new things and have a good time at the water's edge with other enthusiasts. The competition is also a good place to meet new people, to discuss your different visions of fishing and why not fish together later. The very principle of competition is to pull you up, make you analyze and think.
Observing others
When you enter your first competition, you often realize that you have a lot of progress to make. My personal experience of competition has enabled me to meet some very good anglers, whom I've been able to observe in their technique, their movements and their fishing strategies. Of course, if you happen to be eliminated early on, in competitions where each phase is eliminatory in the event of defeat, you can devote a good part of your time to trying to understand what other anglers are doing and who is working.
Becoming a good angler requires spending a lot of time at the water's edge, but it's a practice that also depends on the fish and the strategy you adopt. Observing a competitor during a final phase can save you a great deal of time in your learning process, and you in turn can exploit his or her fishing style when you return to the water's edge.
Challenging yourself
In competition, it's important not to rest on your laurels and always try to do better to be more efficient. Time is limited, so you can't just lounge around for an hour waiting for the fish to get busy. The great competitors are usually able to catch fish when the average angler thinks there's no hope and it's better to come back another day.
Of course, no one is a rocket scientist when it comes to fishing, but becoming a better angler is often a matter of questioning yourself, and trying to understand what others are doing to cross-check information. If you're simply afraid of entering a competition for whatever reason, try attending as a spectator first - it's well worth it.
