After the Last Shot
Dry-Fire · At Home
Verified clear. Ten full sequences: draw, two presses, hold the sights on the target for a full second, lower to ready, look left and right and behind you, and only then holster slowly. The part after the shooting is the part people skip.
Live-Fire · At the Range
Twenty rounds at 7 yards in five strings of four. After each string, follow through, lower the gun, look around, and take a breath before you holster or go to the bench. Keep the muzzle downrange while you look.
Service Pistol
Looking around means actually seeing things. Have a partner hold up fingers behind you and call the number.
Concealed Carry
Holster slowly and reluctantly. Nobody has ever won anything by holstering fast.
Carbine
Carbine version: two rounds at 25 yards, then lower, look, apply the safety, and sling.
AUX (when ready): five strings in a row with a real look around and a correct count from your partner.
What you do after the shots is either practiced or skipped.
Your Daily Callout — By Archetype
You finish fast and move on. Stay in it for three more seconds.
Look for real. Do not just turn your head because the drill says to.
After the shots, your first job is finding out whether your people are all right.
Add the after-action steps to every sequence you run until they are automatic.
Layer: add a reload with retention before you holster.
- Treat every firearm as if it is loaded — always, no matter what you think you know.
- Never let the muzzle cover anything you are not willing to destroy.
- Keep your finger off the trigger until your sights are on target and you have decided to fire.
- Be sure of your target — and everything beyond it.
Dry-fire: no ammunition in the room. Verify the firearm is clear — twice. Use a safe backstop. When you finish, say it out loud: “Dry fire is over.”
The Four Universal Safety Rules
Non-negotiable. Every drill, every rep, every time. This applies to live fire and dry fire.
- Treat every firearm as if it is loaded — always, no matter what you think you know.
- Never let the muzzle cover anything you are not willing to destroy.
- Keep your finger off the trigger until your sights are on target and you have decided to fire.
- Be sure of your target — and everything beyond it.