No real formula, just get experience.
I think after you learn the rules pretty well. Then you spend half your time trying to figure out the mechanics and where to stand and when to stand. Then you then develop your skills with dealing with conflict and dealing with players and coaches. Then there comes a time when you just start to really officiate the game. You notice who has been getting calls on them. Who are the shooters, who are the blockers, what offense and defense is being run. When you get all that down, then you can really officiate. I think for me in the past 2 or 3 years I have been what I call on "autopilot." I do not worry about the little things nearly as much as I used to. I now concentrate on the many other things in the game. It took hard work, going to a lot of camps, talking basketball on this board and with many other officials(
), read as much as you can from NASO or even here and many other things it would take some time to translate. But you cannot just flip a switch and it is there. Because when you move up as well, you feel like a rookie until you have been there awhile. This is my 3rd year at the college level, and I am just starting to feel like I belong or understand what I am doing. But if I do a HS game, I am in my element. It just takes time and patients. This was the first year in my career that I was not really nerveous before my first game of the year. Now even big games are just another game. It just takes time to feel that way. And when you get to that point, you will know. You just will know.
Peace