Those are a few good suggestions Chuck. I have found that I learn a lure best when I use it exclusively on multiple trips. It took me a few more than usual to get decent with larger cranks, and I'm still not there yet to be completely honest, but repetition breeds success and success breeds confidence and I am slowly becoming confident with crankbaits. Never had a problem with smaller cranks though, I could generally catch a few crappie and perch with a small strike king crank, but larger cranks I wasnt real comfortable with until recently.
My next crank bait experience will be with silent cranks. I'm anxious to give them a try but I still need to learn a lot more with regular cranks before I would feel comfortable being able to compare the two.
However, with all of that being said, my favorite thing to do when the fishing is slow is to eat, lol. I love bringing snacks on the boat and just relaxing with a good snack while watching things around me. There is nothing more relaxing when the fishing is slow than to sit and enjoy the surroundings.