From Training to the World Stage: A Conversation with Marin McKinney

Marin McKinney returns to the Lady K Podcast to share what has been a remarkable and transformative season. After completing her sophomore year at Hillsdale College, Marin devoted herself to training for USA Shooting selection matches and recently competed for the opportunity to represent the United States in international competition.

But this conversation goes far beyond athletics. Marin reflects on the pressures of competition, the lessons learned through setbacks, and the importance of developing a calm and disciplined mind. Together, Katy and Marin discuss perseverance, confidence, and why failure is often one of our greatest teachers.

Whether your child is an athlete, a student, or simply learning how to face challenges with courage, this episode offers practical wisdom and encouragement. It is a reminder that growth rarely comes without difficulty and that character is formed through the steady practice of beginning again.

Topics discussed include:

• USA Shooting and the selection match process
• Competing under pressure and learning from setbacks
• Developing mental discipline and confidence
• The importance of positive self-talk and preparation
• Why failure is a necessary part of growth
• Lessons that apply far beyond athletics

At Lafayette Academy: A Classical School, we believe education is about more than academics. It is about forming young men and women who are prepared to pursue excellence with humility, perseverance, and gratitude.

For more information about Lafayette Academy, A Classical School please visit https://lafayetteacademy.org/

For Referenced Resources from the LadyK Podcast Click Here for Download

Transcript

SPEAKER_01 0:00

Hello, welcome back. I am Katie McKinney, the founder and head of school for Lafayette Academy, a classical school, and you are at the Lady Kay Podcast. Today we are gonna have another wonderful guest on our show. Marin McKinney is back. I'm gonna consider this part two. Um she has had an incredible month of May, and we're gonna talk with her about what has happened in her life, which has been somewhat transformable, transformational, I should say. Um, and we're gonna hear a little bit more about that. I have some very deep questions I'm excited to ask you about. And uh, so welcome back.

SPEAKER_00 0:34

Thank you. I'm so glad to be back.

SPEAKER_01 0:36

So you you finished up your academic month or year, you got your sophomore year under your belt, then you didn't come home. We missed you greatly, but it was for a good cause. Um, you were training for your upcoming selection match, um, which just happened this last week. So tell us a little bit more about what you were preparing for.

SPEAKER_00 0:56

In the uh, I guess Olympic trial or sorry, it's not Olympic trials, it's just in the process um for competitions in Olympic um disciplines, you have a bunch of these matches called selection matches. And at each one of these matches, you or USA shooting chooses a new team. And the new team helps represent the US when they go to different countries or when they go to World Cups or World Tournaments. And those happen frequently throughout the year, and each team that's chosen is changed um at each selection match.

SPEAKER_01 1:36

So and that happens a couple times a year. Yeah. Right. So I remember we attended the one in November, which was in Arizona. In Tucson, yeah. In Tucson, yeah. And interestingly, you had made it into the final five, but unfortunately, as we were getting ready to begin that match, there were huge storm clouds that rolled in and they ended up canceling the entire um finals. And so you really didn't get an opportunity then. This time, you got into the finals, and let's kind of pick it up from there. You you first off, were you surprised that you made it to the finals or were you kind of expecting that that was gonna happen?

SPEAKER_00 2:12

I hadn't looked at my scores. I looked at my scores for the first couple of days, as it's a four-day competition, but after the first two days, I was like, okay, you you need to not look at your scores.

SPEAKER_01 2:22

Why do you not want to look at your scores?

SPEAKER_00 2:24

Um, because it just adds a little bit more extra pressure when you are needing to be really locked in and focused because in shooting, it's like 90% mental. And so when we're when I'm up on the line, if I have the thought of, oh, I'm tied with so and so, and oh, I really want to win, or I I really like need to make sure I hit at least a 23 on this round, like those thoughts are really intrusive and can mess you up really quickly. And so having like no distractions whatsoever going into the round is really helpful.

SPEAKER_01 3:01

So just to give people perspective, a round is 25 shots. Yes. And in bunker, which is Olympic trap, it's if you're familiar with the the discipline of trap, the clay bird gets shot out of the thrower, what, 70 miles an hour, roughly?

SPEAKER_00 3:17

Yeah, it's close.

SPEAKER_01 3:18

Okay, and you have, we won't get into all the semantics here, but basically when that bird comes out, it can go anywhere, right? High, low, left, right, center. And it's it's hard and fast. And so you need to make sure that you are, I mean, from a just prep us, for example, when you get up to the line and you're about to shoot, what is sort of your process to be ready for that bird when it comes out of the shoot?

SPEAKER_00 3:41

Usually I've gotten into a good rhythm now where I will walk up to the line and I first set my feet. And the feet are really important because it sets up the balance for your whole body. And I've been really working recently on smooth turns moving left and right. Um, so set my feet and then I put my gun down, put two bullets or holes in the in my barrel, and you get two shots at every target until you get into the finals, in which case you only have one shot. Um, but so you put in two, and on each one of my bullets, there's a little engraved win on each one. And so I always try and have the win facing upwards for both of them. And so then from there you wait for the person ahead of you to shoot.

SPEAKER_01 4:30

And I just real quick to interrupt. So while they're shooting, what are you thinking about?

SPEAKER_00 4:35

I'm trying not to think. Okay, that's the goal. And so I'm really working on keeping my mind calm and relaxed, keeping my body relaxed. Um, I always have my eyes closed. A lot of people do it differently, but I find that with my eyes closed, it's easier for me to not focus on other people. I'm a really competitive person, which can be helpful, but can also be not helpful. And so I um work to keep my eyes closed in between shots because then it eliminates distractions and eliminates the the temptation to look at the scoreboard or look at like I once you have shot bunker or anything long enough, you're able to be like, oh, they just missed one. That means that they're down this many and I'm up this many, or vice versa.

SPEAKER_01 5:23

And so those mental calculations are not helpful when you're just needing to focus.

SPEAKER_00 5:27

And they happen so immediate, and when it when you see something happen, like they miss or hit it. So it's like you just I need to get rid of that distraction entirely. So I just always close my eyes.

SPEAKER_01 5:37

Um I feel like you're almost like you have to be a mental soldier guarding your own thought to sort of bar the door from any sort of outside influences. And that's that's a full-time job when you're up there.

SPEAKER_00 5:52

It's it's amazing. Usually with other with American disciplines, it seems like it doesn't actually take as much effort as Olympic trap does. Okay. Um, but after every round, I'm always exhausted because it just is like mentally so taxing to stand up there and you try and be relaxed in between shots because it really matters when you're mounted and ready to ready to shoot the target. Um, but it's you still have to be on it for a lot of the round. So I end up like mounting my gun after I put my target bullets in and everything on it. Right. Okay. And then um I'll like breathe in really deeply and then start breathing out. And as soon as the person ahead of me hits their target, um, I will close my close my gun. I won't open my eyes until I mount the gun. Um, because that makes sure that their the pieces from their target, if they hit it or if they missed it, are not distractions because they've already landed on the ground. So I've like eliminated that distraction as well. And then from there, I'll mount the gun and I'll hold my gun really still. And it's really helpful if you have a still gun and still eyes and have your look point really just calm and like kind of soft focus is what we call it. Um, and then I call for the target and then the target will shoot out in where, like you said, wherever it comes out. Um, and then at that point you want to have no hesitation whatsoever. And that no hesitation, just it's like pure reaction and pure instinct, and it's just you smoke it or you don't.

SPEAKER_01 7:28

And so you don't and you have two shots, so you maybe get a second shot.

SPEAKER_00 7:32

So if you if it's like let's say something really doesn't go right and you flinch or like you shoot too quickly or something like that, you you have a kind of bit of a backup um with that second shot, but I don't like shooting with second shot because for me it feels like oh well now I've really pushed it to the limit and now I don't have a like a safety net anymore. And so it's important to me to really like the whole setup um is really crucial because then as soon as you call for that target, nothing else matters. You have to you either have to hit it on your first shot, and hopefully, if you don't hit it on your second shot, or it's a missed target and and you just need to move on. Yes. And that's it.

SPEAKER_01 8:17

Yes. So okay, so take us back to, I know as as you were going through these four days of competition, we were getting we my me and the other kids, your siblings were at home. Your dad is your mental coach, and I know he was working with you all week long, but you get to the final day, the fourth day, you're in the final. What I understood was in that setup you had two Olympians that you were competing against and two army marksmen ladies. Is that right?

SPEAKER_00 8:43

Yes. In the final, there's a new format. They take the top eight people. And so the top eight people, um, there was one other girl who had never been in an open final before. So there, I'll back up. There are two finals. There's a junior final and then there's the open final. And the open final are just all top ten or top eight women, and then the junior final are top eight women under 21. I was in both, but first was the open final. And I ended up, I was bib six, and bib just means like place six. Um, and so I was competing against there were two women from the Army Marksmanship unit. Um, one of which or I I don't want to say this wrong, so I'm not sure. One of them has definitely been to the Olympics. Um, and I'm not quite sure about the second. Let's go. Sorry about that. But they're um in the finals. Yeah, so they're in the final, and then um another woman who also went to the Olympics, she took um sil silver medal at the Olympics in 2021. Wow. Um, and then a couple people who are on the junior national team, and then one other girl who had never been in the final, just like me before. And so the top eight of us were all competing, and in the final you have only one shot at each target. And so it really makes that in and uh in and of itself makes it much more difficult. Yes. But the way the whole thing works is you have first the first ten shots, and after the first ten shots, two people get eliminated, depending on who shot the best. Okay.

SPEAKER_01 10:17

So the lowest, the let's say the ones who miss the most at that, that they are eliminated, and then you keep going to the next round.

SPEAKER_00 10:24

Yep. And so then you go and you shoot another five. And then after another five, two more people get eliminated. And so this new final format, it used to be different, um, but they recently changed it. And this new format really amps up the pressure because it you have uh major eliminations right off the bat.

SPEAKER_01 10:44

And so by the time Survivor Island wrote it off.

SPEAKER_00 10:49

It's crazy. And so really hitting the first 10 targets, I come to find out after the final is like crucial because that's what sets you up to stay or to leave. And so that was it was it was just a really good thing.

SPEAKER_01 11:06

So, how did you how did you maintain your mental equipoise during this time? Because it's the first time you've done this. First time. So that's that's pressure. Secondly, you're with these, you know, previous Olympians, um, army marksmen, shooters. Um, that's that's alone another pressure. You know, how do you keep your composure, your mental balance? That's incredible.

SPEAKER_00 11:28

It was so fun. I I had I was fortunate enough earlier in the competition to have shot with both of the ladies from the AMU. And so I felt I there was more pressure at the beginning of the competition because I was like, oh my gosh, these people are like so amazing, and I'm shooting with them for the first time. But after I'd caught kind of shot with them and figured out their rhythm, it was easier to do that in the final. And one of the other women was uh or is my teammate at Hillsale College, and so I have shot with her a million times, and I she and I are very close, and so it was nice to have a friend up there. And so going into the final, I remember thinking, you know what, we're just going to go in and we're just gonna see what happens. And I'm just happy to be here. And at that point, I hadn't I like I was just grateful to be up there. I didn't really mind whether or not I shot amazing, or if I didn't shoot amazing, I was just happy to be there. And I think that was actually really helpful because if I'd gone in being like, okay, I have to win this, or I'm so excited I get to be here, but now it's like down to the wire, and I'm going to either like get out first or I'm going to like win the whole thing or whatnot. And so that my calm state of mind, I think, really protected me from having um outside thoughts creep in just like that are distracting. Because believe it or not, if you have thoughts that are like like you got this, or like if you have overconfidence or if you have underconfidence, those thoughts creep in while you're shooting, and those are distractions from shooting. And so regardless whether they're positive or they're negative, it's really beneficial to just keep your mind still as can be, and then from there just let everything happen.

SPEAKER_01 13:21

I know you're also a faithful person in your faith. Does that play a role at all when you're up on the line?

SPEAKER_00 13:27

Yeah. Oh, sometimes when I'm really struggling to keep my mental composure, I will kind of give it to God and just be like, you know what? I'm just here to shoot and I'm just here to glorify God. And whatever that means for him and whatever he wants to have happen is gonna happen, and I'm just here along for the ride. And um, a lot of times that is really helpful because it takes off the pressure of the whole situation. Um, and it also reminds me of just like how much I love the sport, and finding that love for the sport is really amazing because it allows me to just enjoy the moment versus really getting down in the weeds of like, oh, you were ahead of the target or you were behind the target or so-and-so just hit it or so-and-so just missed it. And instead, it's like, oh, there's like wind in the grass and like the sun is shining, and I'm just so happy to be here. And it's it just kind of shifts the whole mental spot.

SPEAKER_01 14:33

It sounds to me like that that yielding is, I mean, it really, I can tell how ego can just creep into this whole process. And having watched you over the last, oh gosh, however many years you've been shooting, six or seven years. I remember there were times at your earlier stages where you were you are very competitive, which I think you're right. It has some great pros, but can also, you know, backfire. And I remember there was a time when you were super competitive and it was almost like even though you were on the same team, you you were feeling like I have to be the best on here. And and it had some negative effects. But once you recognize that, you were able to overcome that. And now I feel like you're in a such a different place mentally, channeling this sense of competition wherein maybe it's just with yourself at this point. Um, but that that kind of seeing this from a different vantage point in that you're just you're just giving the glory to him to be able to have this opportunity, kind of like you said, just takes off the pressure and allows you to just enjoy being right there in that moment. Yeah, completely. Okay, so let's get to the I'm excited about the because what was so neat was this was televised. So many of us on the opposite end, far away, were getting to watch this live. Yeah.

SPEAKER_00 15:41

And um Which also added, I was like, Did you know that was happening? Yeah. Well, I knew for the most part, because they were met like giant cameras set up and everything, and I was just like, okay, so I can't don't mess up, basically. But I but then then again, I was just like, okay, you know what? I'm just happy to be here and we're just gonna see what happens and yield, yield. Just gonna go one target at a time.

SPEAKER_01 16:05

Yeah. Okay, so you're in the final, let's say, five or six. The people have been voted off, so to speak. Um, okay, so take us to that moment. You've got four or five of you left. You're running through your rounds. What's going through your head at this point?

SPEAKER_00 16:18

I so I ended up hitting the first ten targets, and I was the first person, or not first person, I was the only person to do that in this final. And that was really helpful because it it gave me a leg up um for the next five. And I think I missed one at some point earlier on. And so as soon as I did that, I was like, okay, we're just gonna go back to your fundamentals. And whenever, whenever I have too much um stress or nerves or whatnot, I usually um I found that focing focusing on something external versus internal is really helpful. And such as, so like I will think and just put all of my mental energy towards like how my hand feels on the wood of my gun and something just super specific. And having that really like specific thing is really helpful because it takes away just your thought of like the future and what my results are gonna be and blah blah blah. And so having that that I like will focus on how my hand feels on the gun or how my um like the wind feels in my face, or like what's the sun feeling like on my skin, or something like that. And having just that one really specific thing that I'm feeling, like kind of gets me out of my head. Um, and so I did that a couple of times while I was up there in the last um five or four, whatever it was, and um that was super helpful. And I really was working on just being in a rhythm and not worrying about what other people are shooting, um, and just focusing on one target at a time. They had great music playing, and so I was like, this is like my childhood music. I know all these songs, and I was like, this is perfect. And um, so by the time we narrowed it down to four people, it was me, um, the two army marksmanship ladies, and then Kaylee Browning, who um was the silver medalist at the 2021 Olympics. And so I was just like, wow, I'm here now, and this is crazy. And um, I was having such a such a wonderful time. And at that point I was in the lead, which was also just mind-boggling.

SPEAKER_01 18:38

Yeah, you shot beautifully, almost clean, I think.

SPEAKER_00 18:41

Yeah, I think I missed like one target or maybe two or something like that. Um, but going into the last four, I was still in the lead, and I was still in the lead until we got down to the last two, um, and which was me and Rachel Tojer um shooting for the gold medal. And um, I ended up losing my composure a little bit. Um, I missed three targets in a row, which did was not very helpful for me. But what happened in that moment? I to I keep trying to like go back and think about what happened there. And I think I just got out of my rhythm. I this is also the first time I've ever been in like something that high pressure before, um, which is also being televised, and all my teammates are behind me, and so is the rest of the world now. And um I was we had just dropped the bronze medalist. And so that I also think kind of got me out of my rhythm a little bit. I had been in a really good like rhythm um up until that point. And then after it was like down to two people and like some things changed in like the way we were starting and who was starting us, and just like there were a couple of things that just like twisted in my mind, just like, okay, what's happening? I don't know. And then on top of that, I what's nice in a final is that you know which direction the targets are gonna come out. Um, there's a pattern to which station um has which targets. And so I knew that for the entire final up until this point. And then I had just not been thinking about it and I was like, oh no, where is the target gonna come out? Is it right or is it left? And I can't remember. And um, I really you can use the person before you to help figure out which one's yours, but I was really, I was just like, okay, deep breath. Like there was just too many things going on in my mind to really focus like clearly on one thing at a time. And I didn't have a calm mind going into my first missed target, and then it kind of snowballed from there. Um, but the last two targets, I just remember thinking, okay, you you can pull this back together. It's not the end of the world and finished strong. And so I hit the last two and then I took the silver medal.

SPEAKER_01 21:02

So amazing that you were able to regain your composure. That to me is another win, though. You know, you don't see it in the scores, but from a mental standpoint, to to miss three there in the last five shots um and then pull it out with a two, that takes incredible composure to regain your mental, you know, balance. Um, so I would say congratulations on even just doing that too. So so you won the silver, that was incredible. So now what? What what two teams are you on and what what happens from here?

SPEAKER_00 21:32

Yeah, so I then went to the junior team or the junior final, and I was second bib versus sixth bib. Um, and I think I was just so exhausted and I didn't do very well in the junior final, but um I'm it was a really fun experience regardless. And so I ended up taking the or being in the top three for the junior final, or not junior final, sorry, the junior national team. So that means in September, me and a couple of my teammates, and then a couple other people are going to be flying to Propetto, Italy, um, for the junior World Cup, which is super exciting.

SPEAKER_01 22:11

That's very fun.

SPEAKER_00 22:12

Um, I'm really pumped about that, and then I got on the open development team. So there's the open team, which are people who are actually competing in open World Cups, um, and there's the open development team. And so I had the opportunity now to go to Italy and China this summer in July for um the World Cups um there. And I won't be shooting for a medal um because that was given to the uh open team members. Um, but I'll be shooting for world ranking points, which are just kind of like where you're placed out of everybody kind of thing, and how well you do um creates those points for you. So I'm just I'm excited. It's gonna be my first time shooting abroad, and I'm just I'm really pumped about that.

SPEAKER_01 22:59

So from here, I know your your end goal is the Olympics. So is this sort of the next step, the gateway to being on the international stage, gaining experience on that stage, and then prepping you for what a selection match for the Olympic team, or how does that work?

SPEAKER_00 23:15

So the Olympic trials um is a two-year process and it starts very soon, actually. Um, and that will I'm to be honest, I'm still like learning everything. It's a very, it's like a very complicated process. So I I don't really know everything there is to know, so I don't want to say something wrong. Um, but I know that to be chosen for the Olympics, you need to get world ranking points. And so this this is a wonderful first step for me um to be invited to come and shoot at um just amazing ranges around the world. And that is I'm excited because it's setting me up well for the next election match, which is in the end of uh August to September. Okay. Um, and that's in Fort Carson, Colorado. So I'm excited for that and we'll see from there how like what teams hopefully I'll get on, um, if that's a thing, and just moving on from there. That's exciting.

SPEAKER_01 24:15

Yeah well, obviously we'll stay tuned. This is a this is a journey, it's a process. And I guess just to wrap it up, as other students, other other athletes are coming into the sport, you know, now that you've you've gained that at this level, this high level, um, you have traversed quite a journey here. What advice, if you could give one piece of advice to the Alinas out there or the pains who are up and coming, um, who maybe have this in their sights, what what would you share with them to help them along their journey?

SPEAKER_00 24:44

I'd say having a really positive and um failure-friendly mindset will really uh create a a road for you to go down um as a new shooter um that is gonna just lead you towards wonderful opportunities. Um, I have friends who friends or just people I've shot with before who get really like mentally messed up when they miss a couple targets or they don't do as well as they want to do. And that's fine. That's it's good to have goals. Um, but it's also really beneficial to recognize that it's okay to to miss because you've learned something out of it. And taking that lesson and applying it to the next time you shoot and just working towards um having a good mental process versus um like being results oriented is so, so beneficial.

SPEAKER_01 25:50

There's a great book called uh fail forward. And it talks, I think when you say a fail, what did you say failure-friendly or something like that?

SPEAKER_00 25:59

Yes.

SPEAKER_01 25:59

So I think if I understand what you're saying somewhat, embrace the failure, embrace those lessons that come with failure, learn them quick and keep moving. Right. Is that what you're saying? Yeah, exactly.

SPEAKER_00 26:09

Because if you end up, if you can fail well and often, you figure out and without it hap like without it affecting you like drastically, then it's just like one like blip in the blip in the screen kind of thing, and you just move on and you just keep moving forward. And that is super helpful because you're gonna fail. You don't have time to not like you don't have time to let it affect you really. Yeah. And like that's while you're in the middle of a round, that's the same way. Like if you fail, if you miss a target and you really let it affect you, then you're maybe gonna miss the next three targets in a row. And then it's gonna be like turning it into a whole train wreck situation. Interesting. And so if you can get on top of it quickly and just mentally assert yourself and just say, you know what, I'm just gonna go back to my fundamentals, or I have a calm, clear process, or I have all of the equipment here and I have all the training necessary to shoot and hit this next target. Just having those positive affirmations ready and going back to what you know is so helpful. So it's I just say keep failing forward for new and beginner um athletes.

SPEAKER_01 27:22

Well, and that's fantastic advice on the field. It's fantastic advice if the kids are learning how to read or write, um, doing math, whatever it is in life, um, to fail quickly, fail often if you need to, learn the lesson and keep moving forward and don't let that failure slow you down.

SPEAKER_00 27:38

Totally.

SPEAKER_01 27:39

Um, that's fantastic advice. Well, thank you for being here. Thanks for the update. We'll look forward to hopefully sitting down another time with you after your maybe your abroad trips. But um, thanks for sharing. This is wonderful advice.

SPEAKER_00 27:52

Thank you so much. Thanks for having me.

SPEAKER_01 27:53

You're welcome. We are so grateful that you joined us for this Lady K podcast with Marin McKinney. Tune in next time and have a great day until.