Partnering with horses for human development

Free Rein Australia
Partnering with horses in the service of human development
Free Rein Australia
Free Rein Australia
Equine Facilitated Learning
www.freereinaustralia.com

For Leadership Development
For Team Development
We work with horses as co-facilitators
For Personal Development
For Individual Coaching

What Equine Facilitated Learning is NOT!
NOT about teaching horsemanship techniques
NOT about riding

How does it work?

Participants are invited to do an activity with the horses
Parameters are set
…such as no touching horses and no verbal communication

Participants are encouraged to get creative and utilise other ‘resources’ for accomplishing the task

Debrief after each activity
Facilitators lead discussions that help participants reflect on their experience to:
reveal individual insights
draw meaning
see parallels elsewhere in their lives

Why horses?

They retain their wild instincts
Despite breeding for colour, speed, size, conformation… horses have the same instincts and behaviours as their wild ancestors

They are herd animals
They live ‘in community’ where everyone matters. They each have a role that contributes to the safety and well-being of the herd.

What this means…
When a ‘human herd’ interacts with them, they expect the same level of coherence and harmony, and want to be part of our ‘herd’

They dislike violence and seek peaceful solutions
Violence distracts them from being alert to the environment and could render them injured and easy prey.

What this means…
They will let us know that they don’t like any form of aggression, dominance, force, lack of respect…

They seek leadership
Their safety is dependent on having a competent, trust-worthy leader.

What this means…
They need to know who we are – does our outer expression match our inner thoughts; are we clear and consistent; are we present and aware?

They have enhanced sensitivity to inconspicuous body language
In the late 1800’s a horse named Clever Hans captivated the world because he could answer mathematical questions correctly – he was reading his owner’s unintentional body language

What this means…
They see us for who we are …

They are curious
The way they learn about us and their environment is through curiosity.

They mirror
Like us, horses have mirror neurons that cause them to reflect our behaviours.

What this means…
We have the opportunity to see ourbehaviours reflected back at us

They don’t judge
They give us immediate, honest feedback without filters

What this means…
We can practice new behaviours without consequences

Our experience with the horses stays with us long after we’ve left them

What can we learn from horses?

As leaders we learn
To influence others, adapt to change, meet challenge with confidence and dignity

As members of a team we learn
To work in harmony, embrace diversity, build trust and increase creativity

As individuals we learn
To live with purposeand clarity

Free Rein Australia
Partnering with horses in the service of human development
Free Rein Australia
Free Rein Australia
Equine Facilitated Learning
www.freereinaustralia.com

Partnering with horses for human development

by Cindy Jacobs on Jul 11, 2010

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Partnering with horses for human development — Presentation Transcript