Horse people have only one job. And horses have only one job. It’s the most important job and it's the job that supersedes all other jobs. Nothing is more important when it comes to training. The job is to be focused and connected. That’s it. That’s the job. Even when doing other jobs, staying focused and connected to our horse and our horse to us overrides all other jobs in importance.
The one condition to the “one job” principle is that focus and connection are only important if you want a good relationship and a partnership. If you only care about a horse being an employee and doing a learned job, then focus and connection are less important provided the job gets done.
This is a quote from Ross Jacobs on his Good Horsemanship - Ross Jacobs Facebook page. If you’d like to learn more about Ross Jacobs and his teachings, check out his book, The Essence of Good Horsemanship. I think it should be on the reading list for all of us on the second half horsemanship journey.
Thinking back to my 30 plus years of riding as an adult, I can name the horses I had good focus and connection with and others where the focus and connection were infrequent or missing. The latter group of horses were the ones I was riding when I was thrown and injured
Horse people only have one job. And horses only have one job. It's the most important job, and it's the job that supersedes all other jobs. Nothing is more important when it comes to training. The job is to be focused and connected. That's it. That's the job. Even when doing other jobs, staying focused and connected to our horse, and our horse to us overrides all other jobs in importance. The one condition to the One Job principle is that focus and connection are only important if you want a good relationship and a partnership. If you only care about a horse being an employee and doing a learned job, then focus and connection are less important provided the job gets done. This is a quote from Ross Jacobs on his Good Horsemanship Ross Jacobs Facebook page. Welcome to the Daily Second Half Horsemanship Podcast, where we talk about using your mind more than your muscles on the path to better horsemanship in the second half of life. The podcast features a thought for the day, six days a week, and a more in depth discussion or interview on Saturdays. I'm your host, Paul Sherland. I've just returned to Texas from a Ross Jacobs clinic in Minnesota, and I have to say that this clinic was the most useful clinic I've ever attended to make progress on my second half horsemanship journey. Ross emphasizes and demonstrates acquiring, retaining, losing, and regaining focus and connection with your horse. His clinic demonstrations are with the horseman and horsewoman participating in the clinic, and sometimes with Ross working with a horse. Thinking back to my 30 plus years of riding as an adult, I can name the horses I had good focus and connection with, and others where the focus and connection was infrequent or missing. The latter group of horses were the ones I was riding when I was thrown and injured. One horse would be more focused and connected in the ring, and then when we left the arena, he'd tuned me out. I wish I'd known about Ross Jacobs then, because he could have helped me connect with this horse. If you'd like to learn more about Ross Jacobs and his teachings, check out his book, The Essence of Good Horsemanship. I think it should be on the reading list for all of us on the second half horsemanship journey. The Bluebonnet Equine Humane Society Training Challenge is coming up this weekend here in Texas. This is an event where professional and amateur trainers spend three to four months training rescued horses to give them a new start in life. If you'd like to donate, I'll have a link to the Bluebonnet Equine Humane Society website in the show notes. Thanks for listening to the Second Half Horsemanship Podcast. If you're also on the second half horsemanship journey, please leave a comment on our website, second half horsemanship.com. We're always looking for topic and interview ideas. When I use links to books, products, and services in the podcast, some of those links might be referral links. As an Amazon associate I earn from qualifying purchases. I earn a small commission when you purchase something through those links, but you will not be charged more by using the links. If you enjoyed the podcast, please leave a review wherever you listen to podcasts. Your reviews help the podcast reach a larger audience. Thank you very much.