What the Horses Taught Me

I attended a workshop on horses and leadership recently. This is a picture of me attempting to exercise “power with,” instead of “power OVER,” a horse named Forest.

What challenged me in this amazing exercise was not how big horses are, that there were no ropes or leads on them, or even my own expectation that I’d be able to lead them through force of will (…so NOT happening, by the way).

No, what challenged me was that the horses told me there’s still a way that I was not fully connected to my own inner power.

They saw, and reacted to, the fact that my initial contact with them was not as real as it could’ve been. I came forward with sweetness that was attempting to cover my own fear of making them startle. And they could feel the “hidden” fear, and therefore stayed away from me, in the beginning.

Once I saw this, I stopped in the middle of the arena and took time to ground myself, to drop my coping behavior, and to just be.

And lo and behold, Forest came trotting over to me.

So what does my experience have to offer you, my lovely readers?

I think it’s a story about how “fake it till ya make it” only works sometimes. It’s about how we can’t force deep connection, and trying to pursue it when there’s still turmoil inside ourselves is just going to scare the horses.

The next time I’m with them (and there will be a next time…I may even create an event, so let me know if you want to come with us!), I won’t be asking the horses to let me know that I’m ok.

I will start with validating myself, holding myself safe and nourished in my own Being, and trusting that the horses will come.