This blog isn't going to be quite what you expected, judging from the title. Yes I'll be talking a lot about aims, but I'll be focussing on having sensible aims and goals. During my time as an instructor and coach I've had countless people say to me "I want to ride round Burghley", or, "I want to jump the puissance wall at HOYS" - it's great to have such a high end goal, but without having smaller, more achievable goals in the meantime, the larger aim is increasingly far off.
To have a higher end goal is a great way to set smaller goals along the way. I will always ensure that my clients have a weekly or fortnightly goal which is achievable for them within the time frame given. If I expected someone to go from learning to canter to jumping 1m courses within a months' time, it would be pretty unrealistic! But to have someone who's schooling around 1m courses at home, to expect them to gain a clear round around 90cm at a show within a month or so, is more achievable. And this is where my focus is today. | "A goal is not always meant to be reached, it often serves simply as something to aim at." |
Aims need to be discussed with your trainer in order for you and your horse to fully understand what is expected of you. If I were to say to a client "improve your jump by next week", they'd be all of a flap wondering exactly what I meant and would more than likely take a step back trying to improve too much at once. Instead, I might say something like "improve the quality of your turns onto your line by next week". The aim is much clearer, simpler, and it doesn't involve the rider flinging their horse over fences every day. Aims need to be specific and detailed without over-facing yourself.
S - Specific | Let's continue with the idea that I have asked a client to improve the quality of their turns onto a line within a week. How would I be able to tell if they have improved? During the current session I probably would have explained how to make a good turn, and why it is necessary. By the next session I'd expect to see the rider taking on board what I had told them (for example, using the outside aids). [Measurable] I'd also expect to see a difference in the actual line which they take onto a straight line - there's no point in using the correct aids to ride a badly planned, wobbly turn! As well as ensuring we can see a true difference in the rider's turn, I'd always set an aim that is doable for that specific rider. [Achievable & realistic] |
The final letter of my little acronym above is T for time. This is vastly important. An aim is only an aim if there is a time limit - as above, I'd said to my rider "improve the quality of your turns by next week". Simple, measurable, and within a good time limit. If I wanted the rider to improve the quality of their turns but their next lesson wasn't until the following month the rider is more likely to lose interest and focus (see my previous blog on concentration), dawdle around before their next lesson, by which time they may well have forgotten all about their homework. So if a client were to have larger gaps between sessions, I'd set 2 - 3 small but linked aims and check in on their progress.
It's all very well and good me setting aims for my clients, but I also encourage them to think for themselves. What do they want to achieve, what are their long term goals? If I spent all of my time creating fun, achievable goals for every single one of my clients, checking up on them and ensuring they know what they're doing I'd never get a moments rest! Instead we plan goals together, I'll invest a bit of knowledge into them to help them achieve that aim, and I let go of their hand and let them figure it out for themselves. If things go badly wrong, of course I'll step in, but for me one of the biggest, more difficult but rewarding goal is to be able to have the feel of the horse, be able to read them and correct how we ask as a rider in order to gain the outcome we were expecting. | |