The First Step

I just finished reading “Half-Broke Horses” the story of  Lily Casey Smith. Lily began helping her father break horses when she was six years old. At the age of fifteen she travelled  alone five hundred miles on horseback to her first job.  Lily was obviously one of those people who was completely fearless on a horse.

Those of us who are not Lily Smiths usually have something in our lives that brings out fear or anxiety in us.  We are usually embarrassed about our fear and so we hide it , avoid it or  compensate for it.   I stopped riding because it was a way to avoid the issue and because I was too embarrassed to tell anyone including my coach.

The first step in dealing with fear is to acknowledge that it really is okay to be afraid.  Fear is not something to be ashamed of.   For me personally the first step on the road back to successful riding was being able to speak up about my fear – to say to my coach “I am not confident enough or ready at this moment to do what you are asking me to.”

John Lyons is an internationally known and respected horse trainer.  In his DVD series on trail riding he speaks about rider fear:

“ Fear is okay. It is all right to have it.  Don’t fight it.  Learn to accept it as good common sense.  It means that we understand that it is possible to get hurt working around horses.”

So don’t be embarrassed or ashamed of your fear.  It takes courage to openly admit that you are afraid of something.   That first step is the hardest but once you bring it out in the open the chances are greater that you will do something about it.

I would like to leave you with two quotes that offer encouragement as you take that first step:

“The brave man is not he who does not feel afraid, but he who conquers that fear.”

Nelson Mandela

“Anything I’ve ever done that ultimately was worthwhile initially scared me to death.” Betty Bender

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