Tip:
When we look at how prepared we are for a potential attack, we must be honest with ourselves and look at our skills objectively. Unfortunately our fight cannot be rescheduled for a time that we are carrying more equipment or have more training. The attacker dictates the time and location of your engagement.
Time and ability:
To keep a metric of your performance, it is a good idea to have a log of your activities. Some people do this, but do not use a repeatable standard to see where their ability lies. If you use the same drills as your monthly “tests” you have an idea of how your practice is improving your abilities.
Pick specific deficiencies you have such as magazine change times, shot to shot speed or accuracy at range. Equipment that supports this effort lies in both a scorable target and in a shot timer (remember that some can be downloaded). Using these tools can give you a hard measurement of your progress. Remember that you have the rest of your life to prepare to survive a violent encounter. The length of that time period may be dependent upon you.
Always be safe and remember the 4 gun safety rules!