The Secret Ingredient to Effective Training: Fun!

Have you ever had that moment in riding or driving when just as you think about your next move, the horse responds immediately and it’s just magical, as if the horse is reading your mind?

I recall driving a four-in-hand team at a prestigious competition. They were just fantastic. Every moment was magical: my thoughts became actions with scarcely any conscious effort, and driving was just so easy and so much fun. It all went perfectly, and we took first place in that class. But later that same day, I competed again with the same team in another class, and finished third.  As the judge awarded the prizes for the class, he asked, “What happened? Your horses were incredible this afternoon, and I expected to see another incredible performance, but they were just OK.” The truth is, the only difference was that I was tired and not as acutely focused, and it showed.

Our mental focus is critical to a good connection with our horses. Just like a muscle, it needs time to develop, and it can get tired easily, not only when performing and competing, but also during training. When you’re tired or distracted and lose that mental focus, communicating with our horses seems much more difficult and less effective.

So what can we do to improve our mental focus, and make training more effective?

Let me ask you this:  As you approach your horse, are you fully present? Or are you distracted, thinking about everything else going on in your life?

Horses give us immediate and unbiased feedback. They react to whatever we are transmitting down the reins. Success is a team effort, requiring focus from both the human and the horse. It’s easy to forget this and blame the horse for a poor performance or a frustrating training session, but that’s not being honest with ourselves. Once we realize what our equine partner is trying to tell us, it can be a very humbling experience.

As we look more deeply at our equine partner, we find that they too have personalities. So how do we as trainers keep our equine partners actively engaged?

Changing our mental approach can make all the difference. When you think about your horse activities, what is your first thought? Is it something like, “I’ve got to work on….”?  If so, it may be time to think of your equine activities in a more playful, fun way! And not only for yourself – how often do we consciously try to make our activities fun for our horses, as well? Everyone – humans and horses – keeps their focus and learns much more easily when the activity is both fun and challenging.

Next time it seems that your training session just isn’t going well, ask yourself who’s having an “off” day, why, and what you can do to change it. For example, can time spent grooming your horse allow the struggles of the day to calm down, and get both you and your horse focused on really enjoying your activity together?  

Remember that every time you ride or drive, you’re training your horse.  Make it fun and rewarding for both of you, and you may find a better focus and better results!