Are you looking to advance your horsemanship? Well, I’ve got nine tips that will help you get to a more advanced level. But some of them may surprise you! Do you want to up your horsemanship game and have better, more clear communication with your horse? Well, I guarantee these will help you no matter the discipline.
Before we dive in, let’s talk horsemanship and aids. The number one aid we use with our horses is our body language. But that isn’t all of course. We also use tools, examples include the bit, rein, or even whip. We also have verbal cues such as clucking or whistling. Next, we have touch where we use our legs or hands to touch a certain part of the horse. But I want you to consider your energy, your mood, and the way you view the horse, life, and horsemanship in general. So keep these aids in mind as you read on. But without further adieu, let’s look at how to advance your horsemanship.
Nine Ways to Advance Your Horsemanship
1. Work on Yourself
I’d like to see if you even keep reading after you see this first suggestion. But if you ask any advanced level horseman, I guarantee the answer is going to be similar. And it’s going to say a lot about you whether you agree with this statement and are willing to read on.
When you go out to your horse you bring everything about yourself with you. So you can learn all the techniques, have the best facilities, have the best horse money can buy, but if you can’t regulate your emotions or take care of other areas of your life well, then your horsemanship will never get to an advanced level. That sounds harsh, but it’s the hard truth.
Ask yourself these kinds of questions. How’s my relationships, my spiritual life, my eating habits, am I exercising? How’s my spending habits? Am I practicing gratitude? What are my values and am I living up to them? If you want your horse to the best he can be, do you not want the same for yourself?
2. Stop Negative Self Talk
This is huge, and it doesn’t just have to be just with your horse. Are you talking down to yourself at all? Are you saying you can’t do something? Or you’ll never learn? Maybe you’re even saying I’m too old or too young. Too heavy? This affects your mind more than you think. Would you talk to your friends or loved ones that way? Think about that for a moment and consider treating yourself more like you would a trusted friend. Your horsemanship will never advance unless you believe it will. Be kind to yourself.
3. Never Stop Wanting to Learn
I’m guessing by reading this article you want to learn more, but do you often think you’ll get to a point where you’ll know everything? WRONG! We will never know everything, and that is the beauty of it. It keeps us motivated and passionate. Yes, we will get to a point where we know more and we can share our knowledge with others, but as long as we live, we need to strive to keep learning. Read books, take courses, watch videos, ask questions, read articles, listen to podcasts, find like-minded people, take lessons, watch others, and go to events. Knowledge is an investment, and it pays huge rewards!
That being said, also be mindful of what advice you take. It can be hard with all the different voices out there on the internet. But it should line up with a certain amount of values and common sense.
4. Don’t dismiss the Basics
Any advanced level horseman knows that the basics are the foundation. And a strong foundation is key to any building. The basics aren’t boring. They aren’t repetitive. They aren’t for the novice. Everything else is built upon them. They are, in fact, the most important pieces.
Many highly skilled horse trainers who get a horse that is a quote a “problem horse” they will simply restart the horse as if they were a colt that didn’t know anything. Because it is the only way to fill in the missing foundation pieces. So if you are a person who wants to advance your horsemanship, then remember the basics will never leave you or your horse.
5. Take Pride in Other Areas of Your Life
Don’t just be meticulous about your horsemanship or your horse. Take pride in whatever you do whether it is cooking a nice meal, organizing your home or barn, and investing in others. People want to think they have separate areas of their life, such as work, family, home, and hobbies. But the truth is, everything carries over and spills into other areas. How can you be a slob at home and keep your tools and saddles in good shape and working well? Take pride in it all and in life, in general. Your life isn’t compartments it’s just you and the time you are given. It all depends on you what you do in that time. It doesn’t mean everything you do needs to be perfect, but have integrity and a certain respect for all aspects of your life.
6. Ask Yourself Why
This is another huge part of horsemanship that tends to get neglected. Your horse has no idea why you do the things you do with him. So you better know why. So ask yourself some questions? Why do I ride my horse? Why do I want to send him out on a circle? Why am I practicing this maneuver?
Do you even know why you do most of the things you do with your horse? Is it because someone once told you that you should? Or that’s what you’ve seen done?
Fundamentally, I work with my horse to build a connection with him and to be with him, and to learn to communicate together, and to learn each other’s language. To have a safe and willing partner. A partner that has a voice and can communicate with me. It is never to build in him discipline or obedience. It always comes back to the relationship I have with my horse and wanting a deeper level of connection. And to be able to share that with others such as my kids.
7. Stop the excuses
I’ve been guilty of this so much and it’s hard to make a shift out of this mindset. But don’t compare your situation to other equestrians. Or make excuses such as, I don’t have facilities or an arena. If only I had a round pen. I can’t haul my horse anywhere. I don’t have anywhere to ride. If only I had more time. The fact is nothing is ever perfect and you’ll never have enough time. Yes, some seasons of life are busier than others. For instance, I had very little time for my horses when my twins were born, but that time wasn’t forever. Things change and seasons change.
My advice is to make do with what you have. Get creative with the resources available to you. Because those excuses are only robbing you of time you could have with your horse and making progress. The difference between successful people and unsuccessful people is they don’t let the excuses stop them from doing it. If you want to advance your horsemanship, find ways to work with your horse, not find excuses.
8. Film Yourself
By filming yourself, you can visually see what you might be doing wrong. Maybe you didn’t realize you were holding your hands or arms a certain way. Maybe you were sitting too far forward. There is a reason there are mirrors set up in dressage arenas. They are not just for watching the horse, but for the rider as well. Dressage has many precise movements, and it is almost unnoticeable what cues the rider is giving. That is advanced level horsemanship! How much and how obvious are your cues? They need to be bigger and more obvious in the beginning when your horse is learning, but as he progresses, they need to be softer and more subtle. Filming your sessions could help!
9. Change the Way you View Failure
Be prepared to fail and realize that it is part of the process, not the outcome. If everything goes well, what did you learn? And if everything falls apart, you will have a chance to learn more. And well, getting upset, what good does it do? It doesn’t feel good to fail, but it shows you that you missed something. You then have the chance to go back and work on it some more. It’s actually a happy balance of expect great results, but don’t get upset when it doesn’t work.
I hope this article has inspired you. As you begin to implement these ideas, I know you will see results and you will advance your horsemanship! Are they overnight? No, but it’s a lifestyle and mindset shift. Comment below if this was helpful and if you have more ideas! Thanks for being here!
While you are here check out some of my other articles or ebooks.
Leave a Reply