A Trainer’s Manifesto
1. Above all else, know this: we want you to be successful. We want this for you because that’s our job, of course—to produce successful students, at whatever “success” means to you. Whether winning the Olympics or just cantering two circles around without being afraid, we want you to Win at It. And if you doubt that we want you to win simply because its in our natures, consider this: happy clients are more likely to keep paying us, and more likely to tell others they should pay us. Happy clients = good business.
2. We do not do this for the money. While, yes, it is very possible to have a successful and profitable horse business, it involves 18 hour days, getting very dirty and sweaty, and getting on 1,200 pound toddlers that can maim and kill us simply by tripping and falling down, or by doing as their prey-animal natures intend and shying away from something. If profit was our driving motivation, we’d do something else.
3. When we make a suggestion to you—to have the vet see your horse, to keep your horse in training with us instead of just seeing you for lessons, to invest in a different saddle or different bit—it is because we want you to succeed, not because we are out to get your money. See #1 and #2. We will make way more money off you by keeping you happy and trucking along, and if we think your horse is uncomfortable with his tack, would benefit from more time with a professional rider on his back, or is unsound, we would like to remedy those situations so that you will stay happy and successful.
Read the rest at The Chronicle of the Horse!