Don’t just horse around! Build yourself up well.

As a school boy I was in my early but very serious days of horse riding. We had access to Mounted Police horses and my riding instructor was a veteran rider. My mount, still remember her name - Rita- was temperamental. Could bolt off suddenly or stand on her hind legs.?

I needed to be on guard all the time. And when I would complain to my instructor he would always just smile and say, if you learn to ride her well, you can ride any horse well, anytime and anywhere. Made worse he would get me cross my stirrups on the horse’s neck and get me to trot without sliding off. Or mount the horse from either side without having a stirrup help hoist me up. The drill used to torment me then but when I look back today, it had some powerful leadership lessons.

You cannot be an ace unless you get your fundamentals right.?You need to train with constraints that challenging situations never scare you. One needs to dirty one’s hands before enjoying the ride. It taught me the power of building a rapport with my horse. Her tantrums not only kept me on my toes but I always would talk to her then calmly ‘No pony!! You are not throwing me off!”. And the horse finally understood that here was a tough rider and she too over time got aligned well. And she?would get my pats and rubs more generously. That also taught me, so many years before I knew of HR, the power of resolve, composure and positive strokes. And finally, the value of having a good boss, mentor and coach.?Someone who stretches you, pushes you to your limits, builds your confidence up and still is there to ensure you are not thrown off the saddle.?

#Careers are not a one trick pony. They are outcomes of tough riding schools of life experiences and humble learnings.

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