As a life-long horse lover, I'm really excited this week to be training in Equine Assisted Coaching. This is going to be such a fantastic addition to my coaching business because it gives me the opportunity to work in a very different and unique way, by using horses as a medium for developing leadership skills and working on communication and confidence.
Equine Assisted Coaching, Horse Assisted Development, call it what you will, is wonderful for working with a wide range of people, but has been shown to be particularly effective with teenagers with eating disorders; autism/ASD; team development; leadership skills and so much more.
As there's no riding involved, clients don't even need to be horsey-types to get involved and make real changes.
How does it work? Well, horses respond purely from their natural instincts. They don't judge you by what you're wearing, or how many qualifications you hold. You can't make a horse do something just because you think it's a great idea! You have to use natural, animal-based communication to win the horse round and develop it's trust. Once it sees you as it's leader, you will be amazed at the things you can achieve....
Last week, whilst working with my favourite pony at my local riding school (ironically she's also called Heidi - and quite a grumpy mare she is too!), I built up enough of a bond with her that she would follow me around the arena at a trot, with no lead rein, stopping instantly the moment I stopped jogging around, with her nose just at the side of my shoulder for the whole time. It might not sound like much, but I can tell you it was a very moving experience.
So, watch out for my next blog, when I'll be telling you how I got on with my formal training.... I'm also looking out for someone to work with as a case study, so do let me know if anyone springs to mind.
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