Saturday, March 28, 2009

How's Your Integrity?



"Integrity is what we do, what we say and what we say we do."- Don Galer

Integrity is one of the most important qualities a riding instructor can have. But it's the quality that will be most often challenged and needs the most protection.

What Is It?
Integrity- Adherence to moral and ethical principals; soundness of moral character; honesty (courtesy of www.dictionary.com) Integrity says a lot about who you are and whether or not a client should do business with you.
Honesty- A person who has integrity is honest with customers. They don't over charge. They don't charge for services that they have not given.
Do What You Say-Riding instructors with integrity don't make promises that they can't deliver on. A person with integrity does what he or she says they will do. If you say you will give a lesson on Tuesday at 5 pm- then be there! Just do it. And do it on time.
Fairness-A person with integrity treats all clients the same. In other words, they don't favor and do a better job for the slender girl with the lovely horse, than they do for the chubby girl with the ancient horse. They don't favor the wealthy client over the good middle class client. They don't treat the warmblood better than the grade horse. The give everyone their money's worth equally. If Susie pays $40 for a lesson but can only afford rubber boots, her lesson should be the same quality as Jane's who also pays $40 and shows up in Dehner's.
Incorruptible-A person with integrity is incorruptible. In other words, Susie, with the rubber boots, gets the same quality $40 lesson as Jane, even if Jane offers to buy YOU a pair of Dehners!!!
Principles-A person with integrity has principles. A person who has strong principles doesn't compromise in order to keep business. Compromising is not the same thing as adapting. If, for instance, I strongly believe that my barn will not allow stallions because I believe they are unsafe around children, and then I allow a client to bring a stallion in, I have compromised. It doesn't matter if the client owns 6 of the horses in my barn, it's still a compromise. if I agree to go teach her on her stallion at a barn that allows stallions, that's adapting.
Trustworthy-A person who has integrity is trustworthy. If I leave my horses with you for training and I go out of town, you'll train my horses when I'm gone because you're trustworthy. If you missed some days because you had the stomach flu, you'll be truthful and tell me when I return.
"It is curious that physical courage should be so common in the world and moral courage so rare. " - Mark Twain
When Integrity is Challenged.
Your integrity will be challenged constantly, all through your life.
Money-The need for money is the biggest corrupter of a person's integrity. The need to pay your bills will tempt you to be less than truthful. Even after the bills are paid the love of the things money can buy will tempt you again. For instance, a huge commission under the table on the sale of a horse might help purchase those gorgeous tack trunks you've been wanting. The temptation to want more is always there.

Omission- Sometimes a horseman's integrity is challenged when they want to get rid of a horse. The temptation may come in the form of just omitting something about the horse that might ruin the sale. Or maybe you'd be tempted to knock a few years off of the horse's age. And maybe it won't be because of money. Maybe you'll have an animal that you just want to get out of your barn.
When Accidents Happen
- integrity is challenged when something happens that you really don't want to admit. Sometimes it can be very hard to face the music.

When You Want to Be Nice-
Sometimes your integrity will be challenged when a client asks your opinion of how far they could go in their riding. You don't want to say something hurtful, so what do you do?

It Never Ends-
The challenges to your integrity never end. And the ways in which you'll be challenged are limitless. Everyone is challenged. It's how you handle the challenges that will determine whether or not you have integrity.

How to Protect Your Integrity.
The bad news is that we are the ones who damage our own integrity. It's not the trainer down the road or the guys at the feed store, it's you. You make the choices and the decisions for your own life. But the good news is that since we are in control of our own integrity, we can choose to protect it.
Principles-
Start out by developing a clear set of principles for yourself. You'll need a clear set of standards or beliefs for how you will conduct your personal life and your business life. You'll do this by assessing your abilities and by assessing your personality. For instance, will you only teach beginner riders? Or are you qualified to teach the Grand Prix level?Trying to teach above your ability is one place that you can swiftly compromise your integrity. Do you plan on allowing your clients to become involved in your personal life- or are you more of a private person?

Decisions
-Make decisions ahead of time. For instance, how will you handle the perpetually late riding student.? Or will you accept students who have fear issues? Will you expect your clients to pay at each lesson or will you charge them each month?
If you have principles and standards and you make decisions ahead of time, you'll be ready for a lot of the things that "come at you".
Do Your Best-
Do your best work all of the time.
"Every job is a self portrait of the person who does it. Autograph your work with excellence." author unknown

Don't Make Snap Decisions
- Reserve the right to say, "I'll get back to you on that." This is the best way not to become involved in things that you'll regret later. If someone proposes a plan to you and it is out of the norm, a wise person will give themselves time to think the situation through. Say "I'll get back to you in 2 days on this." And then do it. Follow through.

"Have the courage to say no. Have the courage to face the truth. Do the right thing because it's right. These are the magic keys of living your life with integrity."
- W. Clement Stone
Don't be afraid to say no. Don't be afraid to turn a client down if you know that the relationship will not be good for either of you. Saying no up front is easier than saying no later on.

Do Something Else
-Don't be afraid to take a job at the grocery store or Wal-Mart to supplement you're income while your business grows. Concentrate on doing things correctly instead of having to make all the money with horses.

"To speak ill of others is a dishonest way of praising ourselves."
-Will Durant

Don't gossip. Don't verbally run down the barn that is your competition, or someone's horse or their teaching style. Don't badmouth your client's previous instructor. Don't badmouth shows or judges or Vets or farriers, even if you know that what you would say is true. Bad mouthing and gossiping make you appear very untrustworthy to your clients and others. Gossip undermines your integrity.

Will You Succeed?-Protecting your integrity takes perseverance and diligence. It also requires a certain amount of maturity. But if you know what you stand for and you're willing to stick to your guns, you can be successful.

"If you have integrity, nothing else matters. If you don't have integrity, nothing else matters." - Alan Simpson

Barbara Fox- cultivating integrity
www.ushorsemanship.net
US Horsemanship Blog http://ushorsemanship.blogspot.com/


Monday, March 23, 2009

What's Your Motivation?



In other words, why do you teach or want to teach riding? Motivation, or the reason you teach, can have a direct effect on the quality of instruction you give, the importance you place on your students, and how durable you are in the horse business.
Do you teach because it makes it possible for you to ride?
A lot of young people learn early on that teaching a few lessons on the weekend is a great way to help pay for their riding bills.Countless good instructors have gotten a start by teaching the kid down the street or by teaching a few friends from 4H or Pony Club. It doesn't take long for a freelance instructor to build up several students, if their fees are reasonable and the money can go a long way towards helping to pay your shoeing, feed bills and entry fees.

If you begin to teach to support your "habit", you might be surprised to find out that you actually have talent for teaching. It's not unusual to have the ability to teach someone else the thing you like to do. If this happens and you think you may choose teaching as a career, be sure to look for educational opportunities to develop your skills. You might choose to become a working student, or you might look into an educational organization, such as United States Pony Club. Also, take a look at the certification programs offered by ARIA, CHA, USDF, and USEA.

Do you teach to supplement barn income?
Lessons can be a lucrative part of a barn's business, especially if riders have their own horses and the barn doesn't own school horses. You may be offering your clients the "total" package with boarding, lessons, coaching at shows etc. Some instructors teach with the sole goal of creating winners at horse shows. Perhaps your barn includes some of the "down to earth" skills involved in horse care. Or maybe you take the total horsemen approach, trying to develop riders who are capable horsemen and women on their own.

No matter what the structure is of your barn program, take a moment to consider the relationship you have with your students. Sometimes trainers try to keep students dependent on them so that they won't leave and take their income with them. Students become possessions, almost as if they belonged to the trainer. But maybe that's not you.

Do you encourage independence among your students? Do you encourage them to periodically school without your help? Can you take them to a show and let them enter classes without coaching them every step of the way? Do you encourage them to take advantage of outside clinics with United States Pony Club or USDF or USEA? If this is a better description of your barn program, then it would seem that you care for students as individuals, as opposed to just a way to stay in business.

Do you teach because it is a passion?
Some instructors are compelled to teach. They teach because they love to share information and help people progress. They teach because it's part of who they are. Instructors in this category normally invest a lot of themselves in their students. The passionate instructor probably gives great lessons. The probably run over time and the instructor's enthusiasm is contagious. Passionate instructors are prone to emotional wounds because they become so involved in their students. This instructor needs to remember that students come and go. They move, they change disciplines, they leave for college, sometimes they give up riding. Be aware that your students may not be as committed to you, as you are to them. They come to learn to ride well.

All instructors are susceptible to "burn out". Burnout occurs when an instructor has been 'giving" excessively, not taking breaks, not doing things for themselves, not having a change of pace, etc. Passionate instructors are particularly prone to burnout. Another time I'll blog about burnout; how to avoid it and how to fix it if you have already experienced it.
Do you teach because you want to "give back" to the horse community?
There are many good riding instructors who teach because they want to "give back" to an activity that has impacted their lives in a positive way. United States Pony Club encourages their members to "give back". Since USPC is a not for profit organization many experienced horsemen and women donate untold numbers of hours teaching young people. "Giving back" is great, especially when you want to lend a hand to a young person in your community.

Do you teach because your ego needs to be fed?
I admire anyone with one of the motivations for teaching I listed above. There is one motivation that I don't admire and I truly hope it does not describe you:
Are you the type of instructor who lives to have an admiring crowd hang on your every word? Maybe you've met the type... they may have been very successful competitors at one time. They usually keep their students (and other clients ) on a very short rein. They are hard to approach when you have an issue regarding your lessons. They're prone to blow up at you during lessons, even belittling you. And they are usually the loudest coach in the warm up ring or on the show ring rail. Riding with the "ego feed" instructor can be a disheartening experience, to say the least.

Why do you teach horseback riding?
I'd love to learn more about your motivation. You can either comment to this blog or you can email me at bfox@ushorsemanship.net. And while you're at it why not become a The Riding Instructor blog follower. I'd love to have you.

Barbara Ellin Fox
Passionate
www.ushorsemanship.net

Sunday, March 8, 2009

Improve Your Riding Instruction Skills With These 10 Things

There Is A Lot Of Education Involved In Becoming A Good Riding Instructor.
You take riding lessons. You practice teaching. You might even work on certification. Perhaps you go to a school that will teach you to teach. But if you want to pull ahead of the pack and be better than the average instructor, you'll plan your own "continuing education" through self-education.

Here Are 10 Ways That You Can Improve Your Instruction Skills :
1.
Be A Rail Bird At Horse Shows
Watch classes and sharpen your eye for good points and weaknesses in riders. Watch the "big guys" and pay attention to the detail of how they ride courses, patterns and compete in classes. Watch riders in the schooling area. Pay particular attention to the better competitors and how they school their horses. Listen to coaches.
2. Participate In As Many Course Walks As You Can
Ask if you can tag along. Listen to what more experienced coaches and instructors advise their students to do.
3. Attend Clinics, Even If You Go As An Auditor.
Sometimes you gain more from auditing than from riding because you don't have to worry about a horse. Attend a huge range of clinics from riding to saddle fit. Broaden your knowledge base.
4. Learn All Of The Rules Of Your Sport.
Teach the rules to your students. Make sure they are knowledgeable of rules before they enter a competition. There are few things more frustrating than having a student disqualified because they did not know the rules.
5. Learn To Ride A Discipline That Is Not Your Own.
This has several advantages. Not only does it expand your horizons, it puts you in the position of being a student, closer to a beginner again. This will refresh your mind regarding what students go through. Plus anytime you can ride with a new teacher you will pick up pointers, good or bad, for your own teaching methods.
6. Observe Classes and the Schooling Arena Of A Riding Discipline That Is Not Your Own.
Again this expands your horizons. You might be surprised at what you learn.
7. Volunteer As A Side Walker For A Therapeutic Riding Program.
You will have a fresh view of the effort some people put into learning. You will also get a new perspective of the joy some folks have at just being able to get on a horse.
8. Volunteer.
Offer to help with a 4H show or a Pony Club meeting, Be a jump judge for a local Horse Trials. Offer to be gateman for a local horseshow.
9. Watch DVDs.
We are fortunate to have DVDs on every aspect of horsemanship. Build a library of DVDs for yourself. Also you might be surprised at waht you can get through your local library
10. Read.
Reading can help you teach better. Read books on learning styles, teaching riding, and read the classics on horsemanship. Read about other riding theories, other disciplines. Read about the history of riding. The more knowledge and understanding that you posses, the more you will be able to give to your students.

Barbara Ellin Fox
http://www.ushorsemanship.net
US Horsemanship Blog

Monday, March 2, 2009

Be A Sham Wow

What does it take to be a good riding instructor? Is a person a good riding instructor because they have been on the Olympic team? Are great competitors good teachers? Are good riders good teachers? Does a certificate or a rating make a person a good riding instructor? Does it take great patience to teach? Do you need good tools; such as good horses, the right facilty, and super clients? Should you have trained with the big names in order to be a good riding instructor? Must you be from another country? Should you have taken a teaching course or studied pshychology and learning styles? Do young horsemen and women make good instructors? Do old horsemen and women make better instructors?

If I had to choose one quality that I would like to have in my riding students or my student instructors it would be "teachable passion". The definitions for passion range from ardent love to the suffering of Jesus. An additional definition for passion is "boundless enthusiasm".

A person with boundless enthusiasm for a subject, in this case riding, is like a sponge. A person with passion studies their subject and makes the information their own. A person with teachable passion is ever learning, ever listening, ever observing, ever growing. Students and instructors with teachable passion are more like a "Sham-Wow", soaking up 10 times its weight, than a sponge.

Passion is a quality of a good riding instructor. Passion imparts enthusiasm and encouragemnt to students. Passion enables the instructor to stand at the center of the arena in the sun, wind, and cold, season after season, lesson after lesson. It gives us grit and makes it necessary for us to go the extra mile for our students. Passion keeps riding instructors "giving" endlessly to students and parents, and makes it possible to deal with the difficult situations. Passion helps to pull us up by the proverbial bootstraps when we hit the lowest of lows and it helps prevent instructor "burnout".

Teachable passion is a quality that you will find in most "upwardly mobile" instructors. This riding instructor is always learning more about horses, more about teaching her students, more about handling stress and competition, more about riding methods... The Instructor who has teachable passion is the person who is boundless; boundless energy, boundless enthusiasm, and is not bound by limitations. These are the teachers who produce great students and enduring horsemen. And these are the instructors who are still around to teach the children of their current students.

Some of the synonyms for passion are zeal, inspiration, desire and enthusiasm. Each of these is an emotion. I'm not a football fan but I love Vince Lombardi. Vince Lombardi was a man who knew about emotions. He loved his sport and he loved life. His enthusiasm was contagious. Vince Lombardi said, "If you can't get emotional about what you believe in your heart, you're in the wrong business." Vince Lombardi had passion.

So I'll ask you again. What does it take to be a good riding instructor? Or better yet- what does it take to be good at anything? Give me passion anytime. It motivates. It inspires. It helps us achieve our goals.


Barbara Ellin Fox
boundless enthusiasm

Visit my U.S. Horsemanship web site at www.ushorsemanship.net