The Small Win: Redefining Success
In the horse world, we’ve been taught that if we don’t come home with a championship at the end of the show, or nail 8 perfect distances we are a failure. If we are only looking at our show results we miss the whole purpose of why we ride in the first place. We miss the small successes we experience everyday that actually build us as horsemen.
In this program, we celebrate the small wins. Because the small wins are the ones that prove the partnership with our horse is actually working and growing.
What does a "Small Win" look like? A small win isn't loud. It doesn't come with a victory gallop or applause. Sometimes it is something someone on the outside doesn’t even see or know about.
It could be:
Staying emotionally steady when your horse gets distracted, instead of getting tense and escalating the situation.
Finding that perfect balance in your two-point for three strides longer than you did last week.
Correcting a lead change with a quiet aid rather than a frantic one. Or knowing you landed on the wrong lead and knowing how to correct it.
It can be holding your body tall and still at the deep distance. Not being a passenger to your fear, but helping your horse stay balanced. That moment where you didn’t find the perfect distance, but managed the imperfect one.
Small wins are important becausewhen we only chase the ribbon, the points or the perfect distance, we become transactional.The horse becomes a tool to get the result. But when we celebrate the small win, we are honoring our horse and their effort.
When we focus on small achievable goals, or our small wins, we build real unshakeable confidence. Lets face it, when our confidence if attached to a judges score card, or doing an exercise perfectly, it is fragile. If your confidence is tied to the fact that you and your horse finally "clicked" on a technical turn, maybe on the 7th try, it’s yours forever.
The long game success in this sport is built brick by brick, skill by skill. You cannot jump a 1.20m course—or even a cross-rail—with true harmony if you haven't mastered the small win of a balanced seat or supportive leg.
I tell my riders: Don't wait for the show to feel successful. Feel successful when you notice the subtle shift in your horse’s ears that tells you they are listening. Feel successful when you manage your own nerves so your horse feels safe. In this program, we don’t just look for ribbons. We look for progress. We look for trust. And we celebrate every single step that brings us closer to the horse.