The Imperfect Ride : Your Guide to Being Better By Not Trying to Be the Best

Summary: Busting the perfectionism myth so you can improve your performance in the saddle.Andrea Waldo—rider, trainer, instructor, and former psychotherapist—is back with her long-awaited follow-up to the bestselling Brain Training for Riders. This time, she tackles the problem of perfectionism, providing a roadmap for riders to identify how the idea of “perfect” interferes with their natural progression and distracts from the day-to-day enjoyment of the equestrian experience.Drawing from research and her own riding life, Waldo helps readers recognize the pros and cons of perfectionism, guiding them toward a healthier perspective. With practical exercises, she encourages self-improvement in a way that benefits both rider and horse by emphasizing that growth necessitates mistakes and the “messy middle”—the phase between mastering a skill and finding the next step.With humor, insight, and her clear love for horses and equestrian sport, Waldo provides tools for riders to set high standards without the pressure of perfection, fostering a more satisfying, successful, and less stressful relationship with themselves and their horses. Author Bio: Andrea Monsarrat Waldo holds a master’s degree in counseling and was certified in 2008 as a riding instructor by the United States Eventing Association. She is co-owner of Triple Combination Farm in Ferrisburgh, Vermont, where she and her two business partners train horses and riders of all ages and abilities in the sports of eventing and dressage. Waldo competes through advance level in eventing, has shown through third level in dressage, and has brought along several horses from the very beginning of their training. She was a practicing psychotherapist from 1994 until 2012 and now does StressLess Riding Performance Coaching in workshops and individual sessions with equestrians at all levels of horse sports. Waldo lives in Monkton, Vermont, and is the author of the bestselling book Brain Training for Riders (triplecombinationfarm.com).