Practice makes perfect

This old adage ... why is it that people don't follow it?  I talk the talk but don't walk the walk.  Just the other day, I was shooting a graduation event outdoors.  I did not think much about the event, only knowing that it would be outdoors.  I should have given it some more thoughts and prepare myself through the process, thinking of the different scenarios I might face and know how to dial my camera settings for the respective scenes.  Well, I did not, and so, I was shooting and thinking at the same time, how do I set the camera on high-speed sync with the flash gun!  I know there is a setting but as I scrolled through the menus, I realized I should have practiced the shots beforehand.  I gave up the search for the setting because I just did not have enough time.  It was hours after the event had concluded I started the remember--right, high-speed FP sync is not available in aperture-priority mode (which I was using)!  I had to switch to manual or shutter-priority mode.  Well, I will try to remember to practice before an event next time.