What is Equine Inspired Coaching?

“Bless those who challenge us to grow,

to stretch, to move beyond the

knowable,

to come back home to our

elemental and essential nature.

Bless those who challenge us,

for they remind us of doors we

have closed

and doors we have yet to open.”

~ Navajo saying

COACHING:

Question: What is Coaching?

Answer: Coaching is a powerfully creative process of self-discovery that helps you maximize your personal and professional potential. Coach and client co-create a partnership based on trust, confidentiality and mutual respect. We deepen your learning and raise your awareness, empowering you to make new choices and lasting change.

This life changing relationship also supports you in discovering your deepest truth, motivations and purpose. Once you know what is most important to you, you are able to align your decisions and actions to support those intentions. This enables you to making empowering choices that will help you achieve extraordinary results, including increased fulfillment.

Rachel is your translator and partners with the horses to elicit your wisdom through thought provoking questions, reflections, acknowledgment and visioning. Her role is to remain focused on your goals while encouraging and inspiring you to challenge yourself for the next level of satisfaction and fulfillment.

Question: Why would I go to a coach?

Answer: Coaching is powerful tool to gain awareness, clarity and create change in your life. As such, there are many reasons you or your team may choose to work with a coach. Those may include:

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searching for direction, clarity and purpose

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challenged with life or career transitions

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need for accelerated results

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motivated to achieve a specific goal

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experienced a set back, or extreme success, requiring re-prioritization

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work and life are out of balance and too complicated

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striving to be more effective and more satisfied

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self-management, organization and decision making could be improved

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knowledge, skill or confidence gap

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more balance, joy, peace of mind, simplicity, quality of life

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less stress, financial pressure, confusion

Question: What will I get out of it?

Answer: Every client brings personal goals to the process and has their unique passion to discover. And, like everything else, the results are commensurate with the effort invested. You will gain new perspective, new tools and skills to integrate into your life. Your goals will be clear, which makes decision making and life balance much more achievable. You will gain confidence as you experience positive results in your personal and professional fulfillment and goals.

Question: Does the coach tell me what to do?

Answer: The coaching relationship holds the power, not the coach. That means that you define all of the goals and focus for you or your team. The coach is specially trained to listen in specific ways, to ask questions, make observations and provide concepts and principles which can assist in generating possibilities and identifying actions.

Question: Is Coaching like Therapy?

Answer: Coaching is like therapy in that it is a relationship between a qualified professional and a client. However, coaching is different than therapy in several key areas. First, the emphasis of coaching is on action, accountability and follow through. Second, the client is the expert who defines all goals and outcomes; the coach does not have any expectations of the client other than they do what is most important to them.

While coaching supports personal and professional growth and development based on the pursuit of specific actionable outcomes, therapy focuses on healing pain, dysfunction and conflict. The focus is often on resolving difficulties arising from the past which hamper an individual's emotional functioning in the present. Coaching is focused on forward moving, thinking, feeling, being and doing.

Coaching is founded on the belief we are all creative and resourceful, and inherently hold the answers we need to thrive in our own unique way. Accessing that wisdom often requires practice, as well as an objective view point.

Question: How long does Coaching take?

Answer: The length of a coaching partnership varies depending on the types of goals, client preferences, frequency of sessions, and the financial resources available to support the coaching. For some specific goals, 3 to 6 months may be sufficient. For other types of goals, people may find it beneficial to work with a coach for a longer period.

Question: Is it all hard work?

Answer: Personal development and growth require commitment and courage, and we create a safe and supportive environment to do the "hard work." Since all of us need to learn to care for and nurture ourselves, relax and play, that is woven into your exercises and activities. The beauty and harmony of the farm is also an amazing catalyst for growth.

EQUINE INSPIRED COACHING:

Question: What is the advantage to Equine Inspired Coaching?

Answer: Think of it as "swimming with the dolphins on land!" The most significant advantage to you is the opportunity to explore and practice new skills in a supportive environment with real-time feedback. You don't have to wait for the situation to arise in your daily life to practice a skill you talked about in a session - we create the scenario so that you can explore and hone the skills. That means that the learning is greatly accelerated and can be transferred directly to your life when you leave each session.

Question: How do the horses participate? What do the horses do?

Answer: The horses interact with you in a myriad of ways, depending on the scenario and whether the session is structured or un-structured. A series of simple exercises such as putting on a halter, leading and grooming the horses create fantastic opportunities for learning. For instance, if you are not focused, the horses may want to walk away from them. The human facilitator participates as a translator and as a guide to help you make meaning of the experiences. Please read about why the horses make the program so effective.

Question: Do I have to ride?

Answer: Absolutely not! Our horse partners interact with you as a participant in the activities which are done mostly on the ground. As the sessions progress, and as you build confidence and trust with the horses, a horse may suggest riding under direct supervision as a way of guiding you to a deeper awareness.

Question: Is it true that the horse will know I am afraid?

Answer: The horse will know you are afraid, angry, or sad, even if you do not. That is a piece of the power of collaborating with a partner whose skills are so drastically different than your own. It is also one of the most profound strengths of the approach.

Question: Do I have to know anything about horses?

Answer: Nope! You need to know that you are committed to personal or professional growth. The human and horse facilitators will guide you through the rest.

Question: Do I need to wear anything in particular?

Answer: For Equine Inspired Coaching, no special equipment is required. Participants should wear long pants (jeans), protective closed toe shoes, and a shirt. Otherwise, dress appropriately to be inside and outside - layers are encouraged in the winter and sunscreen all year round.

Question: Can the program be customized to the needs of our team, organization, or group?

Answer: Absolutely! We are adept at partnering with each client and creating programs for individuals as well as groups. The sessions can be structured or un-structured, depending on the goals and preferences of the client(s).

GENERAL:

Question: Where are you located?

Answer: We are located in Maple Valley, Washington, south-east of Seattle. While we are located in the country, we’re only 35 minutes from the Sea-Tac airport and 45 minutes from downtown Seattle.

Question: Can I bring my dog to the farm?

Answer: We ask that you do not bring your dogs to the farm to help us manage distractions and stay focused on your goals. Our dogs also participate in our work, so please let us know if you are uncomfortable with dogs and would like to address that. If you would like to see pictures of them to get to know them a bit before you visit, please visit our Photo Gallery.

Question: Are there things to do if I am waiting for someone?

Answer: Yes, there are designated waiting areas on the farm, as well as plenty of things to do nearby. Three miles away from the farm is a wonderful walking trail along the Cedar River. If you head into Maple Valley, (about 4 miles) there are coffee houses as well as grocery shopping, a public library, restaurants and one of the few wheat free bakeries in Western Washington! Sunny Valley Wheat Free Bakery has fantastic cakes, cookies, breads and meals, even if gluten isn't an issue for you. You can also head into Issaquah, (approximately 10 miles) where there is a larger variety of options available to you.

Question: Why is it called Redtail Farm?

Answer: We have a family of Red Tail Hawks that shares our space and we enjoy their presence so much, we wanted to honor them. They are always out doing chores with us, and their beautiful cry is so much a part of "home" that we miss it when we leave.

If you have a question that we have not answered, please contact us. We would be happy to talk more with you.

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Frequently Asked Questions