Bringing a Participant Back on Track

Sometimes participants may start sharing lots of thoughts or stories that aren’t related to the task at hand. This is common—and totally okay!—but it’s important to help bring their attention back to riding in a gentle and supportive way.

Here are a few helpful strategies:

• Use redirecting language like: “Let’s talk about riding.”, “Let’s talk about trotting/turning/getting the ball.”, “Thanks for telling me—let’s talk about that later.”, “We are riding now.”

• Offer a quick physical action to help refocus attention: “Give her a pat.”, “Touch her mane.”

• Use first/then language to structure expectations: “First we will ride, then you can tell me about that.”

These simple, clear prompts help participants re-engage with the activity and gently shift away from unrelated thoughts.

Thanks for being such a calm and thoughtful presence!