New Year's Resolutions You Will Want to Keep!

From the January 2014 issue of The Stable Magazine – www.thestablemagazine.com/january 2014

We're well into January now, so with 2014 out of the starting gate, we thought it was a good time to get serious about new year's resolutions!

Every single year a good percentage of us vow to change in the New Year. We’ll lose weight, quit smoking, get healthier, drink less, spend more time with the family, curb the excessive spending or pay off the credit card (a challenge with horses!) or, we’ll set ourselves one of another hundred self-improvement (and usually body image-related) feats, which we must have accomplished by the end of the year. 

Well, instead of another year of resolutions not kept - let’s focus on the fun (horse!) resolutions - the ones we want to stick to! - and everything else will just fall into place.

Resolutions you'll want to keep...

• A day without horses is a day wasted. Spend more time at the stables and in the saddle!
• Don’t miss a sale at your local saddlery! After all, bargains are few and far between - you have to snap them up whenever you can!
• Keep stress levels to a minimum and concentrate on the important things. Worry less about things that aren’t perfect. So what if the house isn’t spotless? If the tack room is in order, there’s nothing to worry about!
• Spending money on horse books and DVDs is also an investment in horse handling and riding skills. A healthy budget should be allocated to the purchase of ‘research materials’.
• Attending clinics and shows featuring big name riders is a must. Spending money on tickets to events is an investment in your riding skills.
• A second (or third) horse can in some way be viewed as an investment, rather than a financial burden... SEARCH FOR YOUR 2014 EQUINE INVESTMENT ON HORSEZONE HERE
• Every rider knows the value of education - so reading every FREE issue of The Stable will be beneficial - plus, it’ll keep you up to date with goings-on in the horse world!
• Splurging all of your Christmas money on a brand new saddle, bridle, set of float boots, portable round yard or brand new float will help you to get the jump on your competition.
• You need the best equipment to get the best results, right? Spoil yourself a little more!
• Stop and smell the roses. Or the freshly cut hay. You don’t live to work - you work to LIVE, and if you’re spending too much time working and not enough time LIVING (read: at the paddock or stable) you need a slight attitude adjustment. Resolve to re-think your priorities!

But wait there's more...

JOIN A CLUB
Meet new friends to ride with, get lessons, have great days out, and if you’re competitive, you can get the chance to enter approved shows. Google your local adult riding club to find out how to get involved!

GET MOTIVATED
Set goals (below) and motivate yourself to achieve them. Ride as often as possible, get yourself some lessons with a great instructor, team up with a friend to keep you going! Make 2014 YOUR year - go get ‘em!

LEARN NEW SKILLS – SAY 'NO' TO HORSE AND RIDER BOREDOM!
Mix up your routine and try something new. Why not give a new discipline a go? Learning new skills can help to improve your fitness, co-ordination, balance and lots of other attributes that might help in your chosen sport. Why not try something like equine soccer? Or horseball? Or campdrafting, polocrosse, endurance, or reining...?

GET OUT INTO THE WORLD!
There’s nothing quite like riding through beautiful Australian bushland. Or on the beach. Or by a river. Or camping with your horse. Get out there! Plan a trip to a suitably gorgeous location - and take the pony, too!

EDUCATE YOURSELF
Why not set aside some time in 2014 to complete a horse course? Plenty of options are available in different areas of the industry. Think about it - studying will be fun, and you can work towards a qualification in an area you’re passionate about. Who knows? It could lead to a career change!

Think about where you were at this time last year. How much have you achieved in the past 365 days? If you can list three achievements, milestones or goals accomplished, you’re doing well!

Challenge yourself in 2014 - to better yourself and your horse, and achieve your goals this year - no matter how small or enormous they might be!

SET GOALS
Focus on areas you’d like to improve and establish a plan to tackle them. They could be as simple as gaining the confidence to ride your horse up the driveway and back, or as difficult as winning your first serious event. Figure out how you’ll achieve those goals, make a plan, and track your progress.

BREAK BOUNDARIES
Why not challenge yourself to learn something new every day? At the end of the year, you’ll know at least 365 new things you didn’t know this year! Or aim to learn five new riding skills this year. Remember that it doesn’t matter how long the goal takes to achieve - it’s the progress that counts.

RID YOURSELF OF BAD HABITS
If you could fix just ONE bad habit this year, that’s an achievement! Maybe your seat isn’t what it used to be? Your temper is too quick? You have trouble motivating yourself to clean the paddocks? Aim to fix just ONE of these habits - then you can tackle another next year!

CLEAN OUT

Throw out anything that’s no good, make a pile of second hand goods to sell or to give to a horsey charity - and as you clean, make a list of anything you might need to replace and get shopping!

CHECK YOUR GEAR

Go over all of your tack and saddlery. Replace anything that’s too worn or broken.. Now is also a great time to re-stock your first aid kits (human and equine!) and your grooming kit, ready for a new year.

SAVE $$

Open a new savings account - and use it. If you can put $20 away every week, that’s more than $1000 in savings at the end of the year!

Get Our FREE 2014 Calendar! That’s right! Download it today from: www.thestablemagazine.com/2014calendar.pdf It’s already got handy reminders for when each issue of The Stable is released - and you can add your own dates! Brilliant!

GIVE

Why not see if you could put aside a small regular contribution to a registered equine charity? Get that warm fuzzy feeling and help neglected horses.

GET HEALTHY

Yeah, we said we weren’t doing those kind of resolutions - but this one’s more for your horse. Now is a great time to adjust your horse’s diet or get a nutritional consult, general health check, and make sure your worming, vaccinations and health routines are all up to scratch.

GET ORGANISED

Plan out your 2014. Pick some shows or events that are coming up that you might like to enter or watch. Look up upcoming clinics, and put them in your FREE calendar! Plan out your holidays for 2014 around the best riding weather, and plan outings with your horsey friends to as many rides out or shows as possible!

Try these goals on for size...

• Ride more often
• Ride bareback at least once this year
• Enter my first event
• Fix all fences on the property
• Be on time for lessons
• Clean saddle/float/gear more often
• Manage your budget better!
• Save deposit for dream property!

Thank you to The Stable Magazine for this article, which was originally published in their January 2014 issue. Check out The Stable Magazine online now for FREE. Read this article and many more at www.thestablemagazine.com