Ep 151: The Key to Progression
When it comes to training horses, the process of getting from where we are now to where we want to be can feel overwhelming. When you have high expectations for yourself and your horses, it's easy to fall into the trap of thinking that every move you make has to be perfect. While it's important to be accurate with your cues, the expectation of perfect performance is not always realistic.
I’ve begun looking at my goals a little differently lately. Years ago, I used to look at my goals and only see how much further I had to go. I not only neglected to see how far I had come, but I also neglected the significance of small progressions. When you have an idea in your head about where your horse needs to be and what timeframe they need to get there, it’s easy to think that the only way to achieve that goal is through perfect execution. You may think that you don’t have time to mess up, when in reality, you don’t have time to wait to be perfect. The key to progress is focusing on progression, not perfection.
After nearly 40 years of training horses for the public, I’ll be the first to admit that there are days when I expect things to go a lot smoother than they do. When I walk out to the barn in the mornings, I have a game plan, and I expect to execute it according to plan. But, that’s just it – whether it’s life or training horses, things very rarely go perfectly as planned.
When you are faced with a situation where life is interrupted, learning how to get started again will be the single most important thing you do. Notice, I said starting again. Not, starting over.
Starting again does not mean you are starting over. I work with a lot of trainers who are coming back to the competitive scene after taking time off, and that progress v. perfection mentality is often their biggest hurdle. When you have been competitive in the past, you know exactly where you want to be. You have higher expectations for yourself and your horses. When things don’t go according to plan, it’s easy to feel like it’s not worth it if it’s not perfect. But, that couldn’t be further from the truth. The true success is in celebrating the small progressions that get you closer to your full potential.
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