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