psychology for success
Advice: Decide in advance what a good day would look like and create a ridden strategy for achieving that specific goal. Use the knowledge you already have about yourself, your horse and the challenges, and adapt it to the demands of the day. Don’t be afraid to set different goals for different tests or rounds if necessary. Plan for success and progression over the season rather than expecting the horse to go to the best of its athletic ability every time out - it’s unlikely to happen and the sooner you take a realistic approach, the better for all concerned.
Why: Progress in anything requires some intuitive intelligence on the rider’s part. An ability to adapt your style to what the horse needs on this particular day under these
“If you think you can or you can’t... you
are probably right” Henry Ford
particular conditions so that he can learn, progress or deliver his best performance.
4. Unrealistic measures of Success Riders create pressure by setting unrealistic or irrelevant success measurement criteria. Typical examples would include measuring their progress or effectiveness against percentage points, placings, external comments or feedback, staying on or getting round. At events where the priority is winning, of
course clear rounds, placings or percentage points are critical to determine this, however they are not always a reliable indicator of effectiveness or competence in the saddle as results can influenced by many other external factors beyond your control. These measures are also one of the biggest confidence drainers when riders do not attain them.
Advice: Think more holistically about how to measure your success and make sure you have a balanced set of success measures that measure your progress
and effectiveness as well as your results on paper. If you are well mounted on capable horsepower and you are riding well, the paper results will generally follow.
If you are not, then
focus on riding to the best of your ability in a way that helps the horse to perform to the best of his.
Why: If you set inappropriate or heavily biased measures you will not get an accurate view of your actual progress and success as a rider. This becomes a source of frustration for many riders who then lose confidence in their own abilities and judgement under pressure.
5. Lack of Review Many riders do not think to stop and review whether their mental preparation and management strategies are still working as effectively as they used to. They will often continue to operate out of habit (such as their working in routine) rather than tailoring their thoughts and behaviours to the demands of the environment at that particular point in time.
Advice: Be conscious of what you did and why you did it. What subconscious messages were you giving yourself. Consider the impact your mood and behaviours had on the horse and others around you and take time to review what went well or less well in terms of your mental thought processes and emotional states….not just the technical bits!
Why: In order to optimise your performance in any situation, your preparation strategies, thoughts and behaviours have to be directly aligned to your outcomes. Habit is a ‘one size fits all T-shirt’ - it does an ok job but rarely gets the very best out of all situations.
Do these tips sound harsh? Damn right. If success came with no effort, there would be no winners!
Find out more...
Danielle Olding is an NLP Trainer, Master Sports Practitioner and UKCC Level 3 Accredited Coach.
Contact Danielle Olding by email: danielle@
fromtheneckup.co.uk or mobile: 07884 110735.
Visit the website at
www.fromtheneckup.co.uk
www.theequinesite.co.uk
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