I recently saw an info-graphic about Success that highlighted the differences between Successful People vs Unsuccessful People.
I recognized these were also the Horse Riding Success Factors that every Great Horsemanship Master knows and every student needs to learn, especially if they want to become GREAT.
It went something like this:
Successful People
- compliment
- forgive others
- accept responsibility for their failures
- keep a journal
- want others to succeed
- keep a “to be” list
- set goals
- exude joy
- share info and data
- talk about ideas
- read every day
- have a sense of gratitude
Unsuccessful People
- criticize
- blame others for their failures
- say they keep a journal but really don’t
- think they know it all
- operate from a place of fear
- fly by the seat of their pants
- fear change
- watch TV every day
- take all the credit for their victories
- have a sense of entitlement
As I was reading, the bells were going off all over the place in my head!
In studying the Greats of Horsemanship, I look for patterns they all share.
The Greats of Horsemanship all have the traits of Successful People.
Buster McLaury is always quoting from books he has read and he journals almost every day. I also know he often reaches out to his peers to talk about ideas. In my own experience with Buster, I was recently riding a little mare I had restarted. She still had a lot of nervous energy, and I was really working hard to get her to give more moments of staying with me. I have to say the moments were present but fleeting and by the 4th day of riding her in open, challenging territory, I was losing my confidence in my abilities. I just wanted her to take a deep breath and relax and walk without that fraying nervous energy. The funny thing was at the end of the 4th day of a 5 day ride, Buster, his wife Sheryl and I were riding our horses to the paddock to turn them out. I was explaining why I had went off on my own for a little while to see if I could get her to tune in better. As I was talking I noticed my mare was walking quietly with me, no fraying nervous energy. She was tuned in; relaxed.
Buster said while looking at my horse, “You have that now”. I replied, “Yeah, Now!” with a hint of defeat and sarcasm. He said, “Well, that is what you wanted isn’t it?”.
Busted by Buster.
Gratitude. Successful People have a sense of Gratitude.
When I spoke with Terri Church, author of “Finding Pegasus“, she told me about her humiliation when she first started to learn from Tom Dorrance.
She thought, “I’m a professional, I’m supposed to know what I’m doing,” yet, according to Tom’s standards, she couldn’t even get her horse to stand quietly. It was very hard for her to come to terms with the fact that she ruined her relationship with her horse. When she finally accepted responsibility for her failures, that was when she truly started on the road to success.
When I see the students of these Greats, it is easy to recognize who will eventually grow and succeed and who will not.
Those who are trying with a successful mindset will eventually instill that same emotional mindset in their horses. click to tweet
How many unsuccessful mindset horse people have you met that know-it-all and criticize everyone and act entitled and on and on it goes? I don’t know about you but I always find myself trying to get away from them as fast as my legs will take me and if that isn’t possible, I ignore them, tune them out, etc. What does that instill in their horses? I’m guessing the same basic emotional state as me!
What successful mindsets can you add in your daily life to improve your Horse Riding Success Factor mentality?
Post a comment below and share what successful mindset you need to start implementing today in your life and riding!
If you would like to learn more about MaryEllen Tribby and how she came up with the Success Indicator , click here.
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I think the biggest factor of success is the “accepting of responsibility for fail”. The people that take ownership of problems instead of blame others get way further ahead.
For example, if you take an exam and do poorly, do you blame the prof for being a bad prof? Or do you say “Dam, I should of studied more..”
Small difference in mindset that can make all the difference!
True enough, Matt. accepting responsibility for failures can be big pill to swallow for a lot of people. It seems to be one of the biggest ones I see holding people back too. I recently saw a friend who gave me 15 excuses in 15 minutes for why she was failing and none of them included her!
Great read! I think the corollary to this consists of two parts. 1) horses can have “off days.” They may be stiff or sore, they may be tired from overwork, very slightly colicky, etc., etc. I believe the rider is asking too much if he expects perfection from his horse day in and day out. 2) Obviously the rider’s emotions can vary widely day to day and those emotions transmit instantly to your horse. We try to “check our emotions at the door”, but realistically it doesn’t always work.
The successful horseman will soon realize when the day’s training isn’t going well. That’s the day that it’s perfectly OK to (end on a good note that your horse knows well and) return your horse to his box and try again tomorrow.
True enough, Bill! A successful mindset reminds us to be forgiving to the horse and to ourselves.
Keeping my vision focused on where I am going, always looking ahead, provides great
Direction and course for the horse and me to follow. The clearer
the vision, and course, the more confident we both feel, and when supported with calmness
And clear intent. So much easier to reach our destination.
Thank you for Sharing, Bob:)