Knowledge comes from everywhere. My full time job is in the equine industry, but I don’t train or ride horses from 9 to 5. I’ve been fortunate in that my job not only encourages but expects me to attend equine events of all types. A huge perk was attending some of the bigger Grand Prixs and finals. I’ve always ridden hunter/jumper/equitation, and when I first took the job years ago, I’ll admit that I was a little skeptical of attending equine events that weren’t centered around my discipline. I mean, what could the Houston Rodeo or NEDA Fall Symposium really offer me, Ms. Black Coat and Pearl Earrings Equitation Queen?
Being an imposter.
I had convinced myself that, in addition to occasionally looking like a fish out of water (I got the boots for the rodeo, but just couldn’t bring myself to wear the hat), I would be bored to tears because I didn’t understand the upper-level mechanics or semantics of the disciplines I was watching. I felt like an imposter – a phony because I wasn’t really sure was passage was and didn’t know very much about western riding, period. But it was my job to be at the events, and I figured if I was already there, I might as well listen in to some of the educational parts.
Light bulb.
The more I paid attention to what was going on at the events, the more I found myself bringing tidbits of what I saw/heard back to my own barn. I started to hear Christoph Hess‘s voice in my head when riding greenies after he taught at the NEDA Fall Symposium. I started thinking about the barrel racers and how they balanced speed and turning while I was schooling my jumper. I found myself trying to join up with horses on the lunge line. Once I was conscious of the knowledge I was gaining from other disciplines, I started to seek it. And at no point did anyone stop me at an event and say “you don’t belong here”. In fact, I made friends with people I met at events and we continue to learn from each other.
IMO.
The idea that the only way to learn how to ride better is to watch people within your discipline is ridiculous. No one discipline has every aspect of riding horses figured out, and you can become quite the horsewoman and rider by extracting whatever knowledge you can from any educational opportunity presented to you. And if imposter syndrome is holding you back, be at ease knowing that nobody really cares what you already know. Most people will be doing the same thing you are – sponging up every bit of knowledge available to become a better rider.
P.S. I still don’t really understand passage, but at least now I can say it properly.
This hot take originally published in the Heels Down Spark in January 2021. Get more conversation starters in your inbox every weekday morning by subscribing to the Spark now.