How Do You Guys Come Up With Your Hunting Goals?

[The Silence]

Just joined the site today. Looking forward to getting to know some of you guys. Have really been enjoying the videos that Dan and Mario put together a few months ago. Good stuff.

As you guys consider your upcoming hunting season, what are some of the things you take into consideration as you think through your hunting goals. For example: As I take into consideration
how much time I have to hunt, age class of deer on and around the properties I hunt, my hunting experience and number of deer I've shot in the past. How do you balance wanting your hunts
to be challenging enough and going after older age class deer as well as keeping it hopeful and interesting by keeping your goals realistic. I don't feel like I have to shoot something every
bow season or even several bow seasons in a row but I'm trying to keep it challenging but not a total grind.

The other thing I've been thinking about is "What is my definition of a successful hunt". For me pulling the release trigger isn't the end all, it's really the journey leading up to that and
especially when I can put a plan into place based on scouting, trail cam intel, historical data and other factors and then have that plan come together on the age class of deer I was
after. That's when I get a really satisfied feeling.

[Jonny]

I set realistic goals that I know I can reach. Deer hunting and life in general. Reaching a goal is motivation to reach another. Setting an unreal goal won't get you anywhere. Start small. None of my hunting related goals involve me shooting a deer either. Starting small, setting goals I know I have the ability, capabilities and what I'm lacking this year, time to reach them

[GoInLight]

kill a bigun every year

[Dewey]

My goal is always to just have fun. When I stick to that specific goal everything else seems to fall right into place.

Some guys set very unrealistic goals that are not attainable and are devastated when they are forced to eat a tag at the end of the season. Years ago I was one of those guys. When I started focussing more on the journey than the destination is when hunting became so much more fun to me.

[stash59]

My physical limitations seem to ebb and flow. So I tend to adapt on the fly with how that's going. Do what keeps "you" happy! And stop and smell the roses along the way.

[seazofcheeze]

I run a ton of cameras and spend a lot of time glassing. I have a very good idea of what the better deer are in my hunting areas. I'm looking to shoot a buck that is representative of the top 10-20% of what I've seen preseason, which generally means I will have 5-10 bucks i know id like to shoot, but im not set on shooting those specific bucks, just something of that caliber.

[Stanley]

My goal is to do the best I can.

[Boogieman1]

My goal is like some stated above have fun, do my best, and enjoy my god given right to pursue these creatures. I'm not a numbers guy I have never even measured a buck or care if they are called book bucks or not. My p&y entry money could always be better spent on something else. But I do hunt age, I try to locate as many mature bucks as I can and the first one that presents me a shot, I take it. Set goals that are achievable for yourself and your area that still keep it a challenge.

[Uncle Lou]

At this point, I am not into goals for hunting. As hunting is my recreation. I do enjoy eating wild game, so if I have a tag, I am after food - dont need it but I want it.

If I desire a challenge beyond that,, I simply pick a new piece of ground to explore.

[elk yinzer]

Have fun, be safe, and do so with friends and family is first and foremost. It's a hobby and not a job for me, thank God. I got no one to impress. Pragmatically, I need two deer per year in the freezer because I love venny but that has never been tough to achieve. The biggest thing is just hitting the sweet spot, find that balance, because I could hunt every day but that would leave me divorced and unemployed.

I am at a stage in my hunting journey where I do pass up legal bucks. I don't fault those who don't because that was me for many years. Using trailcams has definitely increased my awareness of what is running around. You gotta be realistic if you aren't lucky enough to hunt a state like Iowa every fall. Realistically any PY buck where I hunt is that top 5% class of bucks. Tough part for me is we have 100" mature bucks and 2 year olds that size also. Distinguishing them is not easy. I dig the really old bucks regardless of antler size. Huge racks are cool but only tell a small sliver of the overall story. I am pretty selective early but if am holding a tag come the last week of archery my standards will drop pretty fast.

[Rich M]

I don't set goals either. I hunt about 10 days/year and like to eat deer meat. Hunting is fun for about 10 days, after that I'm not as into it.

[bowfreak8]

My only goal coming into a hunting season is to kill a mature buck. I am blessed with a lot of private property and also very good public property as well so I always have the chance to chase a mature buck.

Now I have fun along the way and enjoy every second of it but I have had plenty of seasons where I have eaten tag soup. When I look back that was not a successful season. There may be things I learned that help in the future or memories I will have forever so the season is not a total loss.

It wasn't always like this but a gradual progression over time.

[<DK>]

I base new goals every season on my failures from the previous. One goal of mine that never changes is learning new terrain bedding in the off seasons.

[Brickhouse]

I base new goals every season on my failures from the previous. One goal of mine that never changes is learning new terrain bedding in the off seasons.

This is close to what I do. I have several goals in mind this year but I just love spending time in the woods. My biggest goal this year is that every time I step foot in the woods, it is for a purpose. If I do that, my other goals will take care of themselves. One of the Wensel brothers said "Where we hunt is more important than how we hunt, but why we hunt is more important than either."

[Corylewis]

Goal 1 and the same goal every year is to shoot a doe for for the freezer.

Goal 2 is to find a buck bed and hunt it. I am new to beast hunting this year so keeping my goals realistic and I mainly just enjoy being in the woods.

Under promise over deliver!