The sport of bass fishing, whether for recreation or in tournaments, presents anglers with countless variables over which we have no control- wind, water clarity, fishing pressure, or poor weather conditions. That being said, one thing that has helped me TREMENDOUSLY is developing an attitude that is 110% positive. What I mean by that is whenever I encounter a situation that nearly everyone would see as being negative, I try to list at least two good things that will result from it. For instance, if the wind is blowing 20 mph on your favorite fishing spot; yeah, that’s bad for boat control, but at the same time it will keep other fisherman and pleasure boaters out of the area, it stirs up the water column (oxygenating the water, pushing plankton around which keeps the baitfish active which makes the bass more active, AND it helps to position the fish).

See, just by using my knowledge of how both bass and bass fisherman work, I’ve turned a bad situation into a great chance to go out and drill some nice fish. Imagine this as well; you pull up on a new fishing spot that your trying for the first time. The second cast in you get hammered and a 5-pounder comes up, shakes his head and throws your lure. Your first thought is probably not a very positive one. However, your first thought should be, “YAHTZEE”! Because now you know that (A.) there are fish (and good fish) in the area, (B) they could be quite aggressive, (C) you could already have the right lure tied on, and (D) because of this, you will probably be paying very close attention to your fishing and end up getting “in the zone.” Developing an attitude such as this makes all the difference in the world when it comes to fishing. After all, how many times have you caught a 10-pounder when you were ticked-off and frustrated for some reason? Bottom line, keep it positive no matter what and see how many more fish a good attitude puts on the end of your line.