Episode 3: The topic of responsibility is going to be a two-part series. In this first part, I'm going to talk about the stages that riders actually go through when they are learning with horses. The three stages riders go through are the dreaming stage, the learning stage, and the balanced stage. Learn how to understand which stage you are in and how to work towards balance. Show Notes [01:07] The first stage that riders jump into is the dreaming stage. I call this my Disney moments. This is the stage that most people enter horses through. Whether it was cowboy movies or the Black Stallion books. [02:00] At some point, people transition into the learning stage. [02:17] The learning stage kicks off a lot of thoughts about how things function. I call this the nuts and bolts. [02:35] The third and final stage is the balanced stage. This is where someone believes in both of the stages. [03:22] Learning more doesn't mean you have to give up dreaming, and dreaming is not less than learning. It's beautiful when balance happens. [03:54] In the dreaming stage, you think everything works, and you give all of the responsibility to the horse. [04:29] In the learning stage, you can get too bogged down in the nuts and the bolts. [05:39] Thankfully, I found my way to a more balanced phase. [06:09] I don't criticize anyone who is dreaming, and I don't criticize anyone who is learning, but I love it when they can join me in the balanced stage. [06:56] You can still experience the magic of horses while learning the dynamics of how things work. [07:50] People who become horse trainers are often in that learner phase. They often move closer and closer to robotic training. [09:34] If you're a professional with horses, you can write your own rules. [09:48] Take a minute and reflect on the stages and see if you are in predominantly one stage or the other. Are you spending more time in one stage or the other? Have you found balance? Do you switch back and forth fairly frequently? Is there an area where you are stuck?

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