i am forced to fish off shore of a pond. and i usually slowly real in(let sink to bottom then pop it up and let in sink and do it all as im reeling in. or i real it in at the speed of a fish and giving it jerks and twitches). am i doing this right. i never catch anything on them and i have most colors and sizes.

Childers...Try a very slow, steady retrieve...As far as colors go, neutral colors such as motor oil or pumpkinseed are often more effective than bright, unnatural colors...

Generally for most strikes, smaller is better...Fish as light a jig head and as small a lure as your tackle will allow..

I normally jig through the ice or from a boat be it anchored or drifting. I like to just sit back and let my lure bounce up and down off the bottom. But, sometimes fish are higher up and I try to keep it in around the range they are at. Ie.... like lake trout may be suspended in 100 feet of water and just hanf around 7o feet, it would do me no good fishing the bottom in those cases.