Playlist: Horses and Emotional Intelligence
Compiled By: Chuck Wolfe
Horses have always been special to me. I grew up watching famous horses partner with the cowboy heroes on television. As I entered adulthood I had a yearning to learn more about horses and to ride them. I had the great opportunity to learn from friends about riding and I decided I wanted to have my own horse. Daphne, a beautiful Appaloosa born in 1999, was six months old when I met her. 1999 was the same year I began working with the pioneers in emotional intelligence. Interestingly I noticed that when my friend Jay Larsen, who taught me much about riding, talked about the relationship between a horse and a rider, that some of the ways he described working together with the horse,... Show full description
A TRIBUTE to Veterans and Horses: Helping Each Other to Heal
From Chuck Wolfe | Part of the The Emotion Roadmap: Take the Wheel & Control How You Feel series | 48:09
Listen to this fascinating interview with Mike Beck, singer, song writer, horseman, and volunteer contributor to the Joyful Horse Project. The Joyful Horse Project helps combat veterans who have dealt with, or are dealing with some tough issues themselves partner with horses in need of emotional rescue. Mike created a TRIBUTE CD of lovely songs, mostly about horses, available for sale with all profits going to the project. The interview describes the program, the benefits, and we play and talk about my favorite songs from the CD.
The Joyful Horse Project is about rescuing horses. It also has a unique program designed to partner veterans with horses called the Veterans Equine Therapy Service (VETS). Combat veterans work closely with a horse and a coach while their family members enjoy relaxing time with other military families. Veterans, through their training, become expert at understanding the importance of trust building and creating teamwork. This background, along with the coach's guidance, enables veterans to help emotionally needy horses re-establish trust and bonds with people. At the same time the horses are receiving guidance, the veterans also find that this work helps them to deal with their own stress. Many report gaining insights into and improving relationships.
Learn how Horses are Helping People Grow as Leaders
From Chuck Wolfe | Part of the The Emotion Roadmap: Take the Wheel & Control How You Feel series | 54:54
Real "Horse Power" is being used to help people develop social and emotional intelligence which leads to improved leadership. Linda Kohanov and Lissa Pohl are two expert leaders in the field. Linda is known for her understanding of use of the wisdom of horses on her ranch, in her workshops and in her writing. Her latest book is one of the best I have seen for practical strategies to improve leadership and emotional intelligence. Lissa Pohl is a member of the University of Kentucky's Center for Leadership Development where she just helped lead a pilot study where she and her team used horses for guided leadership education to develop emotional intelligence in expert nurses. The very positive results of a "one" day workshop were still in evidence six months after the session ended!
If you love horses and are intrigued by the idea of using horses to develop relationship skills, to increase social and emotional intelligence and to develop leadership skills, you will want to listen. As an expert in emotional intelligence and a proud owner of a beautiful Appaloosa that I love riding bareback, this 50+ minute interview was fun and very informative. If you know someone that loves horses please let them know about this interview.