Winter is here, and in most places that brings freezing tempatures, rain ,snow and mud, busting water buckets and horse blankets. Of course if you are in Florida or South Texas you have no clue what I am talking about………….lucky, LUCKY YOU! I know a lot of us are planning for our upcoming seasons and some have already hit the road for the big winter rodeos. For most of you that follow this site you already know that Anne and I are BIG planners………at this point, that isn’t a secret. We set yearly, monthly and even daily goals and plan, plan, plan and work, work, work until those goals become accomplished and a reality. However when making goals I have always thought it is very important to set a goal that is actionable and measurable not a result. I think this is where a lot of people go wrong and then get very discouraged. For example, for 2012 I will ride my barrel horse 5 days a week for 40 minutes each session. This is a actionable and measurable goal. At the end of each week I can hold myself accountable and see if this goal was met. I don’t recommend setting a “result goal.” For example: In 2012 my goal is for my horse to run a 16.8 on a standard pattern. This is setting you and your horse up for failure. This may or may not be able to happen and when it doesn’t, discouragement and resentment sets in and your entire goal is sabotaged. Instead say “I will ride my horse 5 days a week for 40 minute sessions” and you will feel great about yourself when you accomplish it. This works for any kind of goal. Instead of saying “I am going to lose 5 pounds in two weeks” you can set a measurable goal and say “I will work out five times a week for two weeks and eat veggies with every meal and see what happens.” This is a healthy goal, not a goal that set you up for dissapointment in two weeks. I believe this helps in confidence and gets your mind set right. Plus, if you set goals like this you and your horse will be in shape and may go make a run that makes goose bumps run up your neck, who knows, but YOU will know that YOU did the work and that my friends is the best feeling in the world!
Good Luck!!!
Leigh
