08/11/2025
Food for thought
Advice to young trainers, fighting to make your name in this sometimes cut throat world...
~ focus on a really solid basics. If the vet and Farrier are impressed by your horses, they will give out your name and get your business started faster than laying your horse down while cracking a bull whip and wearing a bikini on an Instagram video ever will. 
~ don’t let students bully you into doing things they aren’t ready for!!! Make up some standardized benchmarks- if they can’t post without stirrups for two minutes, or ride a walk/trot pattern ba****ck, they are not allowed to canter/jump/show/whatever…. 
~ Your life is not worth a couple thousand bucks. I get it. You are struggling and think you have to take every troubled horse that comes through. The truth is, even if you make a ton of progress with that horse- then what? Can the owner ride them now? And be safe? We took in a LOT of troubled horses and you know what I learned- fear. Don't get me wrong- most of the 'troubled' horses were not actually troubled which is why we then marketed to them. But some were seriously not ok. I’m not saying those horses weren’t “fixable” but I am saying that there was nothing I was going to do in the 90 days I had that was going to make them safe for the owner who wasn’t interested in Lessons or continue training. 
~ With higher fees comes higher overhead. I remember hearing about these top level riders charging three times more than me and assumed they were actually making more money. Now I know better. People who pay that much for a month of training expect expensive footing, their horse's fly sheet to be washed and changed daily, one set of boots in the paddock, another to be ridden, and maybe another for in the stall, and don't forget daily hand walking, and complimentary therapies. The staff required alone will more than eat up the extra fees. If that's the type of business you want, that's fine- just know what you are getting into.
~ One more accolade won't mean you've 'made it'. You will need some kind of credentials, but I didn't get my silver USDF rider medal and suddenly have nicer horses in training. And after I was top ten in the Mustang Makeover all it really did was encourage people to bring me the horse that bucked, or couldn't be caught. You know what accolades I advertise now- my students. They make progress, and they are happy. That's what actually counts.
~ Don't ever build your business around having to get a horse to do something!!!!!!!! Thankfully I knew this one going in. I had a trainer (multiple life times ago) who had to get a horse sold to afford board and make his truck payment. That turns someone into a creep pretty quickly. I've seen trainers that got clients by winning (I see this more in western pleasure or cutting) and if they stop showing or stop winning, their business is doomed. That doesn't make a very horse friendly environment. Just saying.
~ You CAN’T NOT be a people person. Horses don't write checks. And no matter how good you are with horses, you still need to teach in order to get another human to work with that horse. You have to be likeable.
~ Don't hide stuff from clients. Did something bad happen with their horse? A ride went really south and the horse started bucking, or they got injured, or you suspect something is wrong? Speak up!!!! Maybe it was an isolated incident, but what if it happens again to the owner and they find out it's not the first time?
~ Set expectations with owners over and over. If they think their Shire is going to be the next Olympic dressage champion, explain that it's not happening. If you typically do groundwork for a month before putting on a first ride, let the owner know that before they write a check. Let them know that once a week riding lessons are not going to get them jumping courses in a year. Your ideal client will be relieved when they hear that. Your not-at-all ideal clients will w**d themselves out.
~ keep learning. This one sounds obvious, but when you are already working with Horses eight hours a day and you’re broke, it makes it hard to continue working your own horse or invest in your own education. But you can always video yourself riding and analyze it. You can keep riding your own horse. You can continue to become a better instructor. The scary reality is that there is no such thing as being stagnant- if you’re not growing, you are definitely back sliding
~ And, this industry isn't always cut throat. It can sure feel that way when you are trying to be fun and unique and make a name for yourself, and someone else keeps launching their amazing idea ten minutes after you had it. But there is room for all of us. It's a lot more fun to be friends with your colleagues, then to see yourself as being in competition with them. I have referred clients that didn't fit here to friends that I think would be a fit, and vice versa.

