I am an Executive Coach, and I work mainly with people in legal and accountancy firms, having previously been a partner in a firm of patent attorneys. I have loved horses for as long as I can remember, but until about ten years’ ago, I didn’t think too much about the way I communicated with them. I just went along with the traditional way of doing things, which really puts the onus on the horse to understand and obey the human. When I discovered the work of Monty Roberts and some of the other “horse whisperers” I started to re-think this. I also looked into the way dolphin trainers can get dolphins to perform willingly with only fish and a whistle. They can’t use headcollars, sticks or any form of coercion and yet they get the animals to perform for them. As I explored what it takes to build a good relationship with a horse, I found myself using the skills and insights in the rest of my life, especially in relationships at work. It seemed the horses had taught me something valuable. And because they gave me direct, genuine feedback, I could practise on them before trying things out in the more complicated world of humans. I wanted to share this learning with others and was incredibly lucky to meet Louise, who was as excited about this opportunity as I was. Louise has brought her invaluable knowledge of coaching and training to the project and even I think she went beyond the call of duty when she bought herself a horse!
I am an Executive Coach, and I work mainly with people in legal and accountancy firms, having previously been a partner in a firm of patent attorneys.
I have loved horses for as long as I can remember, but until about ten years’ ago, I didn’t think too much about the way I communicated with them. I just went along with the traditional way of doing things, which really puts the onus on the horse to understand and obey the human.
When I discovered the work of Monty Roberts and some of the other “horse whisperers” I started to re-think this. I also looked into the way dolphin trainers can get dolphins to perform willingly with only fish and a whistle. They can’t use headcollars, sticks or any form of coercion and yet they get the animals to perform for them.
As I explored what it takes to build a good relationship with a horse, I found myself using the skills and insights in the rest of my life, especially in relationships at work. It seemed the horses had taught me something valuable. And because they gave me direct, genuine feedback, I could practise on them before trying things out in the more complicated world of humans.
I wanted to share this learning with others and was incredibly lucky to meet Louise, who was as excited about this opportunity as I was. Louise has brought her invaluable knowledge of coaching and training to the project and even I think she went beyond the call of duty when she bought herself a horse!