I know many people think they aren’t very creative, especially when it comes to training. I’d like to suggest that being creative isn’t an intrinsic characteristic. One person isn’t born more creative than another. Creativity is something that is learned. Creativity can be developed. Maybe in school you got the message that you just weren’t creative. You heard that so often, you started to believe it. So sad.

Horses can help you change that view of yourself. Here’s how:

Add lots of stuff to your training environment. The more stuff you have, the more possibilities you’ll see for some fun training games.

An empty arena is a huge blank slate. It can be hard to think of new things to do. Put out a circle of cones with a mat in the middle, and you will begin to see more options for the day’s lesson.

If all your cones are orange, decorate them with colored duct tape. Now you have blue and green and red cones. The colors will help you see even more patterns you can play with. You can ride across the circle leaving through a red gate and returning via a blue gate. You can ask your horse to stop at every green cone.

Add more mats. You’ll see more possibilities. Creativity comes from having more options to play with. When you feel stuck, add stuff.

In the photo I’m using cones of different sizes, jump blocks, cardboard boxes and colored mats to create a colorful playground for Robin.

Modern Horse Training embraces the word “yet”

Yet is a wonderful word. Stanford psychologist, Carol Dweck, reminds us to add yet to dead end statements.

Here’s what that means. If you find yourself saying you aren’t creative, that’s a dead end statement. Say it often enough and you will start to believe it. Add “yet” to the end of that sentence and everything changes.

You aren’t very creative – yet. That opens up the possibility for change. Modern Horse Training helps transform that sentence into you are becoming a very creative, inventive trainer.

Here’s a great way to begin. Pick a simple object your horse is comfortable with. Maybe it’s a plastic dog toy. Think of all the ways a clicker trained horse could interact with this toy. He could orient to it with his nose. He could follow it to the ground to help teach head lowering. He can learn to retrieve it. You can hang it from a fence and teach him to stand next to a stationary target. That’s just the beginning.

Pick a different object. Maybe it’s a wash cloth. You can ask for many of the same things that you taught with the dog toy. You can add some new things, as well.

He can stand on it so now you have a portable mat you can carry in your pocket.

He can stand still on one wash cloth while you groom him all over with another wash cloth.

You can hang it on your fence and teach him to go out to it. Put a ground pole in his path and that’s the beginning of jumping at liberty.

You can teach him to orient to the wash cloth with his ear, his shoulder, his hip, etc. This will help you with many husbandry skills including prepping him for medical care.

Each new object expands the possibilities and contributes to your becoming more creative.

Have fun!

You can order my new book, “Modern Horse Training” through my web site: theclickercenter.com or get it from Amazon and other booksellers. When you order through Amazon, do please leave a five star review. Your good reviews help others to find this work.