I don't listen to my podcasts after I record them. I prepare, record, add the bits to the ends and middle, and I send them off. But this week's episode (dropping Thursday) is a doozy - not only because it's an interview with Cynthia Horner (the 2024 Westminster winner++), but...
Tis the season of chasing goals. In agility, this means pushing to qualify for the Agility Invitational and crossing off big goals like MACHs and PACHs. Oh, but my fellow obedience, conformation, rally, and other dog sports players are not off the hook - this "chasing" catches all of us...
When I talk to handlers, comparison often comes up in some form or another - which is why I talk about it as much as I do, I suppose. This weekend, while giving a seminar, another possible cause of comparison surfaced: We look to others when we don't have a good way of measuring our own...
Compartmentalizing our lives seems to be the norm - we have our dog life, our work life, our parent life, our spouse life, and so on. I find that most people keep some type of emotional divider between the many complex aspects of being a human. In coaching, I...
We seem so afraid of being labeled selfish that we have forgotten how to put ourselves first when we need to.
Before Westminster, I worked with a few clients (agility and conformation) who each - in their own way - were having trouble putting themselves first when it came to preparing...
I'm on a motivation kick lately. It's no surprise as many of the lessons I share are ones I need for myself - and I could use some motivation!
The thing about motivation is that it's an emotion, and emotions come and go. So it shouldn't be a surprise that our motivation...
As humans, one of the things our brain is designed to do is see patterns and trends; it's how we learn so quickly. We also look for patterns when we need more information - like trying to solve a puzzle. Seeing patterns is a tremendously valuable skill set, and the best of us can uncover...
Sometimes, we're not upset for the reason we think we are. I've had several coaching clients lately who can tell they're getting more upset than usual, but they can't quite figure out why.
From what I see, meltdowns are rarely about the last thing that happened to send you over the...
I often annoy my coaching clients by "making them" understand why they had a good weekend. It's funny, handlers don't want to focus on the good with me; they want to talk about their problems instead. I get it - we're all trying to get better, and we believe we do...
Today, a client shared some advice she sought and received from another handler at a trial. She said the advice made sense to her logical brain. That simple sentence sparked an often-overlooked concept: when we ask emotional questions, we get emotional answers; when we ask rational...
I'm writing today's post in this sort of "in-between." I'm in between many handlers—and clients—coming home from the AKC Agility Nationals and my own preparation for my national specialty. So basically, expectations are flying!
My expectations are about the future, while...
I'm not sure who needs to hear this, but it's okay to forgive yourself. For mistakes made, for things not working out, or for the things you wish you could do over.
It's okay. You can let it go. You can forgive yourself.
You might be surprised to learn you're not alone in holding...
