Kelly Marks Perfect confidence

[RubysGold]

Kelly Marks Perfect confidence book.
Has anyone bought this? Is it any good?
I'm a really nervous rider and was wondering if this book could help me?
Nickie

 

[nicolaread]

if you are very nervous it might be better to find a good instructor who understands confidence issues to work one to one with you, that way they will atleast know wot you struggle with most + can guide you from there.

 

[chestnut cob]

Sorry to say this but too many horses are ruined when very nervous people try the IH or similar techniques. IMO you need to be pretty confident riding and handling before you try the methods in the books. I've done a little bit of this and you need to have the confidence to take control - the IH techniques are about making you the leader in your "herd" of you and your horse, and if you're very nervous you risk making the horse the same.

I would get a good instructor who understands nerves to work through them with you. Do you have your own horse? If not, the KM book will probably be of no use anyway as it will be about the bond between you and your horse. If so, I really would recommend finding a good instructor in your area you can go to (or who will come to you) rather than trying IH techniques. If you don't have your own horse, and never have had, it might be more a case of just being around horses in a safe environment as much as possible.

 

[spider]

I found the book very helpful. It is not all stuff to do with horses either.

 

[bushbaby28]

i've brought this. didn't find it overly helpful but thats mainly because i have tried the techniques before and they just don't work for me.

It seems to be mainly based on cognitive behavioural therapy (CBT) and thought challenging which can be used for all kinds of life situations including general confidence, stress, anxiety, habbits, everything really!

As the others have said, if you lack confidence the best thing to do is work one on one with an instructor you trust. this is not always easy so look around at more than one instructor- they all have different methods.

One other technicque i have found that helps is visualisation- picture where you want to be (be it jumping a clear round or just walking down the road) and imagine it going really well... imagine how you feel and really try to put yourself if that picture/movie.

ALSO!...new very popular technique is mindfulness and staying 'in the moment', i.e. not letting your thoughts run away with you and thinking about the future or what could be or what your having for tea... but being on your horse and just 'being'... look it up! might help.

 

[cordelia]

I liked this book alot... the confidence tips can be applied to everyday situations too, not just around horses. KM seems to know her stuff when it comes to human psychology and how it can help us when we're around horses.

 

[lannerch]

I found it excellant, really helped, after all confidence is mind over matter, it does not push you either into the unachievable, is great for confidence in general.

You do have to go through the book slowly though and do the excercises it advises, I found it worked better than one to one with an instructor as competing I have to be their with just my hores, my instructor cannot come round the course with me, so it is my mind and attitude in times of stress that matter. Probalby though Ihve the ideal reading the book and having one to one tuition!

It worked for me

 

[BBH]

I have all of Kelly's books and this is the one I enjoyed the least, for me I found it like a management theory book and it didn't relate too well to horses. I thought I would come away briming with a new found confidence but I didn't even finish the book which was a shame.

 

[Ashgrove]

I have this book, just finished reading it last night, I thought it was really good, very helpful.

 

[Kenzo]

I dont think any book is a waste of time, it what you take from it that counts.

The only thing you don't get from a book is someone to talk back to you and pick you up on where your going wrong, which you'll get from a good instructor or an experienced friend, its easy to read about something but putting into practice is a different story and everyone's opinions on a book can vary anyway.

If you've got a chance of reading then it won't do you any harm in furthering your knowledge and understanding of a horses mind but like others say, if your putting it into practice then work closely with a good instructor.

 

[Gorgeous George]

I have confidence issues and bought this book as I'd enjoyed Kelly's other ones, and I found it really helpful But like others have said a good instructor is also a godsend.