Equestrian Life Coaching

As an equestrian, your ability to be a clear and confident leader for your horse is intrinsically connected to your self-leadership. Good horsemanship harnesses personal skills that require work outside of the arena in everyday life. Practicing and improving skills that improve your awareness, understanding, and self-leadership directly impact your horsemanship.

Who you are as a person is not separate from who you are as an equestrian, and vice versa. It is rare to be able to go about your daily life feeling anxious, reactive, or disconnected and expect to enter the arena with your horse consistently using your ability to be calm, responsive, and connected.

After all, the qualities required to be good with horses are the same qualities required to be good at life in general, and vice versa. - Mark Rashid

Why Work with Me as Your Coach

I can help you take a holistic approach to life and horses to strengthen your self-leadership to bridge the gap between your personal growth and horsemanship.

But what exactly is "the gap?"

The gap is the space between your understanding of who you are and your understanding of horses separately. The gap exists when your success as an equestrian is reflected in your horse’s training, your physical riding ability, or a combination of both. The gap exists when you expect your horses to be able to learn skills such as the ability to relax, focus or build confidence but are not willing to self-reflect and hold yourself accountable to learn the same. The gap exists when you expect 100% from your horse in effort and ability but create excuses and stories for why you are who you are, and you are more committed to your inability to change than grow.


Introducing the Equestrian Shift

How you were introduced to horses is a unique experience for all equestrians, yet a commonality weaves through many stories.

Commonly you were born into the passion, or you showed someone along the way that horses were in you, and you began riding lessons in one form or another. You learned how to sit in the tack and find your balance while the horse moved through the arena. Once you were safe to move beyond a walk, you learned how to move with the horse at new gaits, discovering the freedom your horses lend you and craving it more and more.

Once the riding spark was lit, you learned the less glorifying parts of horse life and love; the mucking, cleaning, grooming, feeding, sweeping, tacking, and working. You may have had organizations like pony club and 4H to guide you, boarding barns to show you, and riding instructors to shape you.

You were becoming an equestrian, and it was clear that the requirements of being a quality equestrian were to be able to ride and care for your horses’ physical needs. You knew what to wear, say, and do to have the honor of holding the title “Equestrian.”

You are experiencing a shift, or maybe you have been feeling it for quite some time now.

You no longer can climb on fearless and free. You can see the worry in your horse’s eye when you take them on the trail, and tasks that seemed so easy as a young equestrian seem to freeze you in your tracks. Life with horses isn’t quite so carefree; it is hard to tell, but are they getting more nervous, or are you?

The shift is not that you are less able; the shift has occurred because you have disconnected from yourself with every passing year between the start of your equestrian journey to now. You are no longer riding just for fun. Your mind is filled with to-dos, what-ifs, and overwhelm.

You can now see it is time to return to yourself, and the bonus is that your love of horses gives you purpose on the days that feel dark and disempowering. Not only do they give you the need to get out of bed, but they are the best feedback partner as you strip back the layers of who you are, who you want to be, and how you want to show up.

This is The Equestrian Shift.

I Help You Become a Whole Equestrian

The gap begins to close after the equestrian shift has occurred.

The goal is not to become a perfect equestrian but to become an aware, conscious, honest, open, gritty, willing, compassionate, connected equestrian: The Whole Equestrian.

As a whole equestrian, you lead your life and horse with the understanding that the quality of the lives of your horses depends significantly on how you show up for them as a person mentally, emotionally, physically, and spiritually. You recognize that your growth as an equestrian and as a person are interwoven, and you are lucky to have your horses as feedback partners to give you progress reports every time you are with them.

It is essential to understand that you can lead from this place within yourself, set goals, and seek accomplishments. You will do so with a commitment to truth and loving awareness to keep you grounded and accountable in your pursuits.


Ready to get started?