Ep 89: The Significance of Small Gestures
A few weeks ago, my family and I took a trip to North Dakota to celebrate the 2021 North Dakota Cowboy Hall of Fame induction ceremony. I cannot express how humbled and honored I felt to be part of this group, and the emotional aspect of that day was greater than I could have imagined.
At the ceremony, each inductee had the opportunity to get up and say an acceptance speech. I thought long and hard about what I wanted to include in my speech, and it ended up evolving into a story about a series of small gestures that made me who I am today.
Many people may not know this, but I didn’t grow up in a rodeo family. I grew up on a place with 1.2 acres, and while my family always loved horses, we never got into rodeo much when I was younger.
But, there was one small gesture that changed the trajectory of my life forever―my dad buying our first pony. At the time, my dad probably didn’t realize just how grand of a gesture that pony was. But, that small pony impacted my career, my family, and my entire life’s purpose.
When I arrived at that point in my speech, a flood of memories and what-ifs came washing over me. What if my dad had never brought home that pony? What if I hadn’t realized my passion for horses? I wouldn’t have met my wife, Bridget. I wouldn’t have my kids, Hannah and Wade.
In that moment, I realized just how significant a small gesture can be.
The significance of a small gesture applies not only to life, but to horses, too. Often times, the smallest gestures are the ones that make the biggest difference in our horsemanship journey. Whether that is a slight change in hand or body position, or the simple gesture of kindness toward a horse, each of those small gestures compound over time to create significant results.
Each day, we have the opportunity to gain influence from somebody and to give influence to somebody--whether that somebody is a horse or a person. Make sure that each of those influential moments you create along the way leaves things a little better than you found them.
As you go through this week, I challenge you to be aware of the small gestures you’re making throughout the day--in both your horsemanship journey and in your everyday life. Seek out ways to help others. Seek out ways to make someone else’s day 1% easier, 1% better, or 1% more positive.
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