A Life Among Horses - 4:1

Growing up, I had always been fascinated with horses, and my enamored soul quickly caught horse fever. At age six, I convinced my mother to enroll me in riding lessons, where I quickly created a lifelong soul connection with these gentle giants. Since the beginning, horses have been my solace, but through knowing them, I have gained crucial characteristics that will carry me far within the realm of the business world.

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From ages six to twelve, I rode as a semi-competitive dressage rider at Callie Farms, located in Minnesota. Dressage, in my opinion, is one of the most beautiful and complex forms of riding. Timing, communication, respect and level-headedness are all crucial parts of the sport. The vision of the ride itself is evocative - a perfectly coordinated dance between horse and rider, a seamless communication between two bodies and minds as if they were one. It is truly a magnificent and difficult sport that leaves audiences worldwide breathless.

Dressage taught me the importance of communication without words. In the sport, one is judged on how effectively they can communicate with their horse with the most subtle cues and movements - the softer and more seamless the cue, the better the score. Through this discipline, I had to learn to become proficient in "horse" - which molded my sensitive and adaptable nature to how it is today. Through horses, I learned how to adapt to others' non-verbal language, how to mirror mine to theirs and how to communicate effectively on different levels.

At age thirteen, I wanted to expand my horizons and look toward getting a horse of my own. Since dressage horses cost so much, I decided to take up a new discipline entirely, and entered the realm of the western way. I made my way to Pat Jensen Stables, where I fell in love with a cranky fourteen-year-old mare named Rebecca. Rebecca was a chubby horse that wanted nothing to do with the ways of riding I wanted to master, but I was bound and determined to teach an old horse new tricks. For six months, I half-leased Rebecca, and went to the barn daily to work with her. My days consisted of "gentling" her - teaching her to trust and respect me through my own extension of trust and respect towards her. This is an especially crucial practice that most leaders in the business world need to succeed - mutual bonds of trust and respect, and the practice of a leader not demanding anything of anyone that they themselves wouldn't do. Rebecca taught me that. Although she was sweet, she had a stubborn streak that quickly taught me humility - I was to treat her as an equal if I wanted progress.

After an unfortunate incident at Pat Jensen Stables, I was forced to surrender Rebecca and find a new stable to ride at. At that point, I had taught her everything I could - to dote on her would have been pointless - which is also crucial in the business world: sometimes the projects we spend hours on must be scrapped to make room for newer and better ideas - not that I "scrapped" her in any sense, the matter was entirely circumstantial. However, it was then when I met the horse of my dreams, the one who would shape me in the most profound way. Riley. Young and curious, I fell in love with his for his personality and the way his soul seemed to align with mine. He was "green broke", which in equestrian lingo means "this horse has absolutely no experience nor training - good luck trying to ride him". Nevertheless, something told me that this horse was for me, and my grandparents - ever my supporters - bought him for me.

I have owned Riley for nearly 7 years now, and the process of training him has been a rollercoaster of lessons, hardships and triumphs. Since day one I dedicated myself to bettering myself as a rider and building him up to be the champion I knew he could be. Through patience, trust and practice, he quickly became a wonder-horse, turning heads at competitions all across Minnesota. The goal of western gaming is speed and agility - bravery was mandatory for this sport. Horses can reach a speed of forty-five miles per hour - and that combined with patterns can be nerve-wracking. Riley and I actually broke a record once, in an event called Key Race. The typical clocked time for the event is 8 seconds, and the really speedy duos can run in in the 7 and thousandths of a second range. However, we broke all records (and minds) with a run of 5.374 seconds. It was stunning and triumphant, and that moment alone was worth all the time, tears and sweat I had put into this horse.

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Currently, I ride for the NDSU Equestrian team. We train and practice on home turf and travel to barns in the tri-state area to compete. The form of riding is a bit different than my previous disciplines - it has the gracefulness of dressage and the attire of western, blended seamlessly to create the art of western pleasure. Riding for a team has proven to be different and challenging, as I am used to only a team between horse and rider, not multiple sets of horses and riders working as one. However, it has taught me two forms of simultaneous communication, and has provided me with valuable connections in the horse world.

Overall, living side-by-side with horses has been my greatest joy, the source of my comfort, the teacher of my trials and tribulations, and the crowning achievement to show for my efforts. It has shaped me in many ways and I am so grateful for all the lessons I have learned through the eyes of a horse.

(middle photo is Riley)