Biggest hurdle/barrier to entry into hunting?

[Jack321]

Hands down, a mentor.

Would any of you go into a new church/religion and just walk in, sit down and just get after it? I dont care how many YouTube videos you watch beforehand from "experts" or how much reading you do on that religion before hand.

YouTube and reading internet information on your phone allows you to "test the waters" without any skin in the game. Its low investment with no downside because you can cut bait and move on if its not not for you.

But theres a catch-22 with YouTube and the internet. It only goes so deep. And moreover, often times theres TOOOO much information to wade through to know whats real and what isn't.

And learning about it and then DOING it are two different things.

I dont care how many times I watch a video on how to fix my car/heater/AC Unit/lawn mower/etc, if it doesnt go exactly how the YouTube video goes, I may not want to "tinker" and mess something up worse than it already is!

So, instead, I call a plumber/mechanic/electrician/etc.

Moreover, just look at commercialism! You watch a commercial on TV to go to a vacation--yeah, looks cool and all, maybe I'll go, but probably not. All beach vacations look the same anyway, right?

But a FRIEND books a trip and invites you & the wife along--yup, WAY more likely to go.

Why? Because you know them.

Going with a friend, buddy or mentorship program your way more likely to go.

Its why "story" is more important for marketing today than anything.

We are in the information overload day and age. There's more information in one week of the NY Times than Shakespear had in his lifetime.

We also have AI, deep fake videos and so much animosity in the news that people don't trust things. They may "trust but verify." Or they have to hear/see things 5x before it sinks in.

So people rely on relationship. They rely on people they know and trust, especially when it comes to something new.

Biggest hurdle to geting into this sport:
Mentorship. Period.

 

[Customweld]

Hands down, a mentor.

Would any of you go into a new church/religion and just walk in, sit down and just get after it? I dont care how many YouTube videos you watch beforehand from "experts" or how much reading you do on that religion before hand.

YouTube and reading internet information on your phone allows you to "test the waters" without any skin in the game. Its low investment with no downside because you can cut bait and move on if its not not for you.

But theres a catch-22 with YouTube and the internet. It only goes so deep. And moreover, often times theres TOOOO much information to wade through to know whats real and what isn't.

And learning about it and then DOING it are two different things.

I dont care how many times I watch a video on how to fix my car/heater/AC Unit/lawn mower/etc, if it doesnt go exactly how the YouTube video goes, I may not want to "tinker" and mess something up worse than it already is!

So, instead, I call a plumber/mechanic/electrician/etc.

Moreover, just look at commercialism! You watch a commercial on TV to go to a vacation--yeah, looks cool and all, maybe I'll go, but probably not. All beach vacations look the same anyway, right?

But a FRIEND books a trip and invites you & the wife along--yup, WAY more likely to go.

Why? Because you know them.

Going with a friend, buddy or mentorship program your way more likely to go.

Its why "story" is more important for marketing today than anything.

We are in the information overload day and age. There's more information in one week of the NY Times than Shakespear had in his lifetime.

We also have AI, deep fake videos and so much animosity in the news that people don't trust things. They may "trust but verify." Or they have to hear/see things 5x before it sinks in.

So people rely on relationship. They rely on people they know and trust, especially when it comes to something new.

Biggest hurdle to geting into this sport:
Mentorship. Period.

It's pretty easy to say "just get off ya arse and do it!" I know, I've said it myself. But there truly is a huge hill to get over if you grew up and didn't have anyone around to teach you the simple fundamentals. And there are a ton of simple things that those of us grew up doing this take for granted. Just being out in the woods and having somewhat of an idea of how not get yourself in trouble is a fundamental that I don't think about ,but I know that when that elk is 5 miles back and it's 80 degrees, I'm in over my head and I've been doing this since I was 10.
All that being said, if you have a chance to mentor someone, do it!

 

[BR549]

One is TV shows - Gotta have all the right clothes, do-dads and fancy equipment. Gotta pursue the biggest buck in the world.
A guy wandering the woods or fencerows with his shotgun looking for squirrels or rabbits in blue jeans and tennis shoes is having the same basic experience and learning stuff.

 

[Steve300xcw]

It both amazes and saddens me, at how many folks arent capable of just going for it and trying something new

It has never been easier to get good gear or info than right now.

As far as money is concerned... As pointed out earlier. You can do it on the cheap if you want. I am also not aware of very many hobbies/sports that dont take a bit of money to get started.

I'll see posts on here and other forums every so often. Where somebody is crying because they did everything right and still didnt kill a 32 point buck like they deserved Pretty easy to tell who is still clinging to their participation trophy's....


It is easy to toss the blame to everywhere but the problem. The biggest barrier to a new hunter is themselves.