What is purposeful practice? It’s practice in a way where every moment counts. Where every rep, shot, stroke, or whatever the action may be is accomplished with complete focus and accurate feedback. There is a purpose going into a practice session and a determination to better the results afterwards. It’s not just going through the motions but constantly pushing the boundaries to see what is really possible. Only then can a player, person, and/or athlete truly grow.

That’s great, but how does this relate to competitive gaming and Halo 5? I didn’t completely grasp it until I sat down and talked with one of the best Halo 5 pros out there. “We practice more than anyone else, honestly. We know our weaknesses and work tirelessly at them.” This Halo professional went on to discuss how he incorporated purposeful practice through creating his own practice map.

By going into the Halo 5 game mode called Forge, he created a map with explosive targets that were evenly spread throughout. He then gave himself practice drills, such as how many of the explosive targets he could hit with each weapon in 90 seconds. This tested both accuracy and speed of shots. This would be done for all of the weapons in Halo 5, from the Sniper Rifle down to the Needler. He would then expand these drills to incorporate strafing, which is a motion from side to side to avoid being hit by incoming shots. After the 90 seconds was up, he would again note how many targets he hit with each weapon. His goal for next time would be to increase the number of targets he could hit in that same time frame. He would test not only his weapon skills, but also his grenade skills. By placing targets in hard to reach locations, he would need to execute precise grenade tosses to take them out.

So how does this help you? You can take the same measures a Halo 5 pro takes and incorporate them into your own game. By going into Forge mode, placing several explosive targets throughout the map, and then incorporating drills with a timer, you can work on your skills and have accurate feedback. You can note whether you are progressing or not and set accurate goals based on your skills. Whether your goal is to be a Halo 5 pro or just have more fun, purposeful practice will help you.