I think there's a healthy middle ground between buying everything and trying new techniques. It's important to expand your abilities and learn new techniques just don't go crazy all at once (ask me how I know). If you're trying a new technqiue I'd just do your research on what are some good solid baits that are reliable and get one or two for that technqiue. You don't need 8 different colors of 3 different sizes. If you find yourself loving that technqiue and doing well then you can jump down the rabbit hole and fine tune it. Another mistake I made was trying to find "diamonds in the rough" instead of just going ahead and buying the slightly more expensive but proven bait to start.

90% of my baits I use throughout a season could probably fit into a single Plano box. I've got like 15-20 bags of worms and I might use like 4 frequently. I've got a dozen lipless cranks and I might use 2-3. Spinnerbaits are my favorite lure and I've probably got 50...I might use 4-5 in rotation. The point is yes find what you like but if you're spending more time picking through your lures trying to find the perfect one for that day rather than just spending the time fishing you can get lost in the weeds.

10 minutes ago, MassYak85 said:

I think there's a healthy middle ground between buying everything and trying new techniques. It's important to expand your abilities and learn new techniques just don't go crazy all at once (ask me how I know). If you're trying a new technqiue I'd just do your research on what are some good solid baits that are reliable and get one or two for that technqiue. You don't need 8 different colors of 3 different sizes. If you find yourself loving that technqiue and doing well then you can jump down the rabbit hole and fine tune it. Another mistake I made was trying to find "diamonds in the rough" instead of just going ahead and buying the slightly more expensive but proven bait to start.

90% of my baits I use throughout a season could probably fit into a single Plano box. I've got like 15-20 bags of worms and I might use like 4 frequently. I've got a dozen lipless cranks and I might use 2-3. Spinnerbaits are my favorite lure and I've probably got 50...I might use 4-5 in rotation. The point is yes find what you like but if you're spending more time picking through your lures trying to find the perfect one for that day rather than just spending the time fishing you can get lost in the weeds.

Awesome write up! This is a lot how I fish. Very small bag one small plastic box and a few bags of plastics or trailers. I keep it super simple. And don’t fall into the color deal.