
04/08/2025
DON’T LOSE YOURSELF IN THE REVOLUTION…
(or, That’s Not a Rabbithole, That’s a Sinkhole!)
I’ve lived through a few.
The natural horsemanship revolution…
The barefoot revolution…
And three years ago, I got pulled into a maelstrom revolution that nearly stripped me of my identity as a horseman.
A new method was taking off, and everyone around me was using the same buzzwords, tagging me, urging me to try it, talking about how it was revolutionizing everything. It happened almost overnight. It was like being hit by a tsunamic wave. A good friend even gifted me access to it, and I felt like I couldn’t say no.
At first, it seemed helpful. But then the originator reached out privately and demanded I tag them in my posts. They began steering how I talked about it. They discouraged me from using my own words, or sharing from my own lens. This went on for months, until I finally bronced under the pressure when they tried to take credit for the work I’d already been doing.
I cut off communication and stopped the work cold turkey.
And when I finally stepped back, I realized the things I’d been excited about weren’t actually working the way I thought they were. And I saw myself and my horses re-stabilize.
But the aftermath was brutal. I got private messages. People associated with the method targeted me and my work, both training and trimming, in spaces where I had always felt safe. I left a hoofcare group that I had helped build for 10 years because of it.
I never once made a public post condemning the method or any of the people harassing me. I just quietly stepped away.
I’m not much for calling out individual methods. I think it’s much more helpful to identify problematic trends in the industry in general, instead.
But even that took time.
It took a long time to feel safe enough to speak about this, even indirectly.
For years, I avoided certain terminology. I kept my recommendations vague. Even subtle references felt risky.
Since then, I’ve had quite a few people reach out once they read between the lines, to share their own experiences. And they confirmed what I’d already felt- that what goes on behind the scenes can be very different than public personas and presentations of safe, empathetic spaces.
I felt better realizing it wasn’t just me.
But in a way, it WAS.
It was my own lack of belief in myself that allowed an opening.
And taking ownership of that changed me as a person.
What I came away with is a much more grounded sense of my own horsemanship. A hard-won respect for my own experience and understanding. And sometimes that’s going to come off as arrogant, and I’m okay with that.
I used to be a little too teachable.
I wanted to learn from everyone. I would let anyone teach me, and I would l let anyone talk over me, even if it contradicted or diminished or disregarded my own experience.
That’s why classical training grounds me. When things get noisy or uncertain, I go back to the work. It reminds me who I am.
And I’ve learned- it’s okay to say no.
A good friend of mine is currently recovering from a similar experience with clicker training, and that’s partly why I wanted to finally share this story.
But honestly, I should’ve shared it earlier.
I’m ashamed of the times I stayed silent while friends and colleagues questioned themselves, questioned their experience, questioned their methods.
I watched some of them get lost.
One even abandoned their profession completely because of the maelstrom methodology. And I regret not speaking up.
Which is why I’m speaking up now.
It’s kind of a landmine out there, whether it’s training systems, barefoot methods, bodywork approaches, or nutritional think-groups. Some of them help. Some of them harm. And some do both.
As a recovering groupie of several of these systems myself, I know better now. So whenever I see familiar patterns- language being policed, identities wrapped tightly around a modality, people told they can’t possibly understand from the outside -I pull back.
That doesn’t mean I think those systems can’t help. But I do understand the limits they impose, especially when they revolve around a single originator.
And I now value my own experience enough to choose what I bring into my work.
I want other people to know that’s okay, too.
Yes, it’s important to stay curious.
To try new things.
To challenge yourself and your current paradigm.
If you get excited about something new, I’m going to be excited for you. But if you see me also being a little guarded, rest assured, it’s not you. It’s me.
I’m also going to get excited when I see someone stand firm and say…
“I love that for you.
But it’s not for me.”
I’ve been so busy recently that I’ve been relying mostly on drafts and no new content, and this one’s been sitting in drafts for awhile. In fact, I’d almost forgotten about it. But in light of my friend emerging from the sinkhole of their experience with clicker training, I think it’s perfect timing.
(Yes, I love clicker training.
Just don’t lose yourself in it.
In fact, we see FinnDragon below spontaneously offering an absolutely goofy piaffe for a cookie. He’s so unserious. 😅)