United States Eventing Association

For the past few months, we’ve been talking about the power of our words and how we can use those words to stop the flow of negative thoughts and replace them with more positive alternatives. When I teach clinics, I often remind riders that words are good, but they’re only as good as the actions they create...and that’s where this month's Pressure Proof tip comes in. Learning to believe in our ability to think in a positive way and take responsibility for our actions so that we can change unwanted feelings of hopeless or powerless into feelings of hopeful and powerful. This month, let’s continue talking about how we can use our words to evolve from worriers into warriors.

Last month we began a series of Pressure Proof tips dedicated to the idea that positive thinking is one of largest contributing factors to riding success: competitive, recreational, educational, or otherwise. This month we’ll continue talking about how what’s happening between your ears is just as important as what’s happening below them and that what’s happening below them is actually always being controlled by what’s happening between them.

No one’s perfect (nope, not you either) so it’s just a matter of time before you make a mistake, mess up or miss an opportunity. There’ll come a time when you do everything right but it’ll still go wrong, or a time when you do your very best but it won’t be good enough. Regardless of the mistake, mess-up, or missed opportunity you’ll always be able to make up and move on as long as you’re mindful of the words you’re using to describe that experience . . . and this is where verbal erasers come in.

Curiosity and inquisitiveness are signs of resilience because mentally tough riders continually seek answers to questions that might otherwise bother them. They continually ask the kind of questions that help them to replicate successful efforts; while also asking the kind of questions that help them to learn from, and avoid replicating unsuccessful ones. These self-directed questions become one of their greatest assets because they provide them with the valuable feedback needed to grow from every experienced, both good and bad. Without these questions, much of the learning that learning opportunities can deliver are simply left undelivered. In the world of sports psychology, it’s kind of like the opposite of Amazon Prime!

If you’re like most people there’s a good chance you made a New Year's resolution this month, and if you’re like most there’s a really good chance you’re going to have a hard time hanging onto it past the beginning of February!

Daniel Stewart is coming to Area III, January 22-23, 2022! Registration closes January 11, 2022.

Worrying about losing to a rider, or being beaten by another, is a common mistake many riders make. Wondering if you’re going to beat someone or be beaten by someone else is just as common. Together this kind of worrying and wondering is called the opponent effect and is one of the most obvious - and overwhelming - causes of show jitters and performance anxiety.

The only sure thing about riding is that sooner or later you’ll succeed- and sooner or later you’ll fail. Like it or not, the reality of a sport as complex and challenging as ours is that doing everything right doesn’t always guarantee things will turn out that way. You’ll present your horse the perfect fence with the perfect approach and perfect quality canter, all to have it go south because of a plastic bag in the corner! Unfortunately, you’ve picked the wrong sport if you wanted everything to go right all the time.

We all strive for greatness. Regardless of your age, level or discipline; your horse and sport are just too important for you to give anything less than your best. But what happens when mistakes or missed opportunities interfere with your ability to achieve that greatness? What happens when disappointments make you mess-up or feel let-down? Well, for most riders the answer is simple. Regret.

Chances are pretty high that you’ve experienced show-jitters before. Maybe it was before an important competition, a clinic with an unknown clinician, your first group lesson, or riding in front of a friend or family member for the first time. Regardless of the situation, you’ll probably agree that performance anxiety is one thing you’d rather avoid.