05/12/2026
20+ years in the horse industry has taught me a lot… but these 5 lessons stand out the most.
1. SET BOUNDARIES — and STICK TO THEM.
For some reason, in this industry professionals are expected to bend over backwards to accommodate everyone while also being accessible 24/7. That mindset will burn you out fast.
I no longer answer non-emergency texts, calls, or messages late at night, on holidays, or on my day off. I do my best to respond to business messages within 24 hours. Calls can be a little trickier because, well… I have 4-year-old twins 😅 But I will send a text acknowledging your voicemail and schedule a time to call back.
And if you see posts going up on social media before you get a response from me, please remember we have admins on this page and scheduled posts exist — most of our content is planned ahead of time.
I no longer allow people to take advantage of our barn hours. If you show up at 8:20 PM, you’re still leaving at 8:30 PM when the barn closes to the public.
I also no longer guilt myself into scheduling lessons, consultations, training rides, or sale appointments on my day off either, or even “one more appointment” on a day I’m already booked full.
Boundaries are necessary.
2. IT IS NOT YOUR JOB TO MAKE SOMEONE ELSE’S HOBBY AFFORDABLE
Charge for your time. Charge for your knowledge.
Growing up, I had people help me tremendously because they saw how badly I wanted to learn. I’ll never forget that, and for years I tried to pay it forward by discounting lessons, training rides, and services for people who “really wanted it.”
Unfortunately, I got burned almost every single time.
Funny how people “can’t afford” lessons or training rides… but somehow show up with brand-new tack sets or custom show outfits.
Your time, experience, and knowledge have value. Don’t feel guilty for charging accordingly.
3. DOCUMENT EVERYTHING.
We take intake photos when horses arrive. Training horses receive regular progress photos and videos. Owners get written updates at minimum every two weeks. We occasionally video lessons to show rider progress as well.
At some point, no matter how hard you work, you will eventually encounter an unhappy client — and the trainer is often the first one blamed.
Having photos, videos, contracts, and written communication will save you more times than you can count. 😉
4. ALWAYS TRUST YOUR GUT
If something feels off about a person, a horse, or a situation… trust that feeling.
No amount of money is worth the stress, liability, or chaos that comes with ignoring your intuition.
The number of times I told myself I was “just being judgmental” and overrode my gut feeling… you’d think I would’ve learned this lesson much sooner 😂
5. SOME PEOPLE SIMPLY SHOULD NOT OWN HORSES
You can lead an owner to knowledge, but you can’t make them learn. And you definitely can’t make them care.
Some people want instant gratification instead of taking the time to truly understand and communicate with their horse. They’d rather throw stronger equipment on the horse to make it “listen” instead of learning how to ride and communicate correctly.
Others make poor decisions regarding the horse’s physical or mental wellbeing and then wonder why the horse falls apart.
And some expect a horse to be perfectly behaved at all times because it had 60 or 90 days of training.. That’s not how this works.
One of the hardest lessons I’ve learned is this:
The clients you bend the rules the most for… the ones you discount your services for… the ones you exhaust yourself trying to help… are often the first to leave and trash your name when they don’t get their way.
And honestly? That’s okay.
They were not your people.
Those experiences taught me valuable lessons that ultimately opened stalls for the right people — the ones who value my time, trust my knowledge, appreciate the work put into their horses, and are willing to put in the effort themselves.
Those are the clients that make this job fulfilling.
