One of the biggest misconceptions I encounter in my work as an Equestrian Mental Performance Consultant is that confidence is something you’re born with… or without. This way of understanding confidence is limiting. Firstly, because it’s not true and secondly because it prevents us from working on our confidence.
The truth is that confidence is a skill you can develop, just like learning how to ride a course or a canter transition. But it’s also important to recognize that self-belief is a choice—one that we have to make daily. It’s not always easy, especially when faced with setbacks, but choosing to believe in yourself each day is a crucial part of building and maintaining confidence. If you’re an equestrian athlete, you already know that confidence can make or break your results in the show ring. But here’s the thing: confidence is a muscle, and like any muscle, it gets stronger the more you work on it. Let’s dive into three practical mental tools you can use to practice the mental skill of confidence in the saddle: self-talk, visualization, and mindset.
Self-Talk: Your Inner Coach
We all have that little voice in our heads—sometimes it’s a cheerleader, and other times (far more often in fact) it’s a critic. The key to building confidence is training your inner voice to be your biggest supporter. Self-talk is all about what you say to yourself before, during, and after you ride. Positive self-talk can be a game-changer when it comes to building confidence. However, let it be noted that positive self-talk does not mean being cheerful or upbeat all of the time, or rejecting all negative thoughts or emotions. In sport, positive self-talk refers to helpful self-talk. It’s about saying the words to yourself that help you believe in yourself, learn, and move forward.
Here’s how you can use self-talk to your advantage:
- Reframe Negative Thoughts: When that pesky inner critic starts whispering, “I’m not good enough”, or, “I’m going to mess this up,” counter it with, “I’ve trained for this moment, and I’m ready.” Reframing negative thoughts into positive affirmations can shift your mindset and boost your confidence. At first, re-framing our negative thoughts can feel like trying to speak a new language. It may feel odd, or even awkward to adjust your inner narrative to be more positive. The key here is to stick with it. Let it be strange! Wth time you’ll find that helpful, supportive self-talk will begin to feel more natural.
- Be Your Own Hype Person: Before you ride, remind yourself of your strengths. Tell yourself things like, “I’m a skilled rider, and I know my horse inside out,” or “I’ve got this, I’m capable, and I’m prepared.” The more you reinforce these positive messages, the more your confidence will grow. Here’s a tip that makes practicing this easier. Get familiar with what you’re good at, i.e your skills, as a rider. This may seem really uncomfortable to consider, but I promise assessing and acknowledging your skill does not make you big-headed. Quite the opposite in fact! Having a good sense of our skill level helps us accurately assess whether we are prepared to meet the challenge ahead of us in the show ring.
- Practice Daily: Make positive self-talk a daily habit. Whether you’re tacking up, mucking out, or driving to the barn, take a few minutes to practice speaking to yourself in a helpful way. Not sure what to say to yourself? Start with a question such as What do I need to hear right now? What is important for me to focus on today? Or, How can I practice confidence today? Questions like these can stimulate new positive thinking. Over time, this will become second nature, and you’ll find that your confidence steadily increases.
Visualization: Seeing Is Believing
Visualization is like mental rehearsal. Just as you practice a jumping course or dressage test physically, you can practice it mentally too. Visualization helps you create a clear mental picture of success, which can significantly boost your confidence by helping us feel more prepared. The fascinating thing about visualization is that rehearing something mental does improve your ability to do it in real life. This is because our subconscious brain doesn’t know the difference between a vivid visualization and real-life practice.
Here’s how to make visualization work for you:
- Create a Mental Movie: Before your next ride, close your eyes and imagine yourself riding with complete confidence. Picture every detail—the way your horse moves beneath you, the rhythm of your breathing, the feel of the reins in your hands. See yourself riding the smooth, connected course or executing a powerful, beautifully executed dressage test.
- Engage All Your Senses: The more vivid your visualization, the more effective it will be. Try to engage all your senses—imagine the sound of your horse’s hooves, the smell of the arena, and the sight of the course or ring. The more real it feels, the more your brain will believe it.
- Visualize Success Daily: Like self-talk, visualization should be a daily practice. Spend a few minutes each day visualizing your success. Over time, this mental rehearsal will translate into real-world confidence as it helps you feel, and be, more prepared for what you are about to do.
Mindset: Embrace the Process
Confidence isn’t about being perfect; it’s about believing in your ability to handle whatever comes your way. Developing a growth mindset—where you see challenges as opportunities to learn and grow—can significantly boost your confidence. A growth mindset requires us to let go of the dream of being perfect, and embrace the concept of striving for excellence instead. Excellence is about valuing constant improvement and learning over perfection. If you want to learn and improve, you have to be willing to be less than perfect. As I often say to my clients, embrace the mess! It often has to be messy before it can be beautiful.
Here’s how to cultivate a confident mindset:
- Focus on Progress, Not Perfection: Instead of striving for perfection, focus on excellence through making consistent progress. Celebrate small victories, like mastering a new skill or improving your timing. This shift in focus can reduce pressure and help you build confidence incrementally.
- Embrace Mistakes as Learning Opportunities: Every rider makes mistakes, and that’s okay! Instead of beating yourself up, use mistakes as a chance to learn. If you are serious about improving your skill, then it is essential to accept mistakes as an unavoidable part of that process. When faced with a mistake, engage your curiosity by asking yourself, “What can I take away from this experience?” This approach will help you stay resilient and confident, even when things don’t go perfectly.
- Surround Yourself with Positivity: Confidence can be contagious, so surround yourself with supportive people who believe in you, and themselves. Whether it’s your coach, fellow riders, or supportive friends and family, having a positive circle can bolster your confidence. Watch for the way those around you speak about themselves, their progress and their mistakes. When the people around us accept mistakes and focus on growth over perfection, it helps us to do the same.
Your Daily Commitment to Practicing Confidence
Developing confidence is not about waiting for a magical moment when everything just clicks—it's about actively working on it, day in and day out. By using tools like self-talk, visualization, and a growth mindset, you're taking the first steps towards being more in control of your confidence. Remember, confidence isn't about being perfect; it's about being prepared, resilient, and believing in your ability to handle whatever comes your way. The next time you face a challenge in the saddle, trust in the work you've done on your confidence and come back to your tools to support yourself in the moment. Support yourself with helpful self-talk, pause and visualize what you want to have happen, and accept that it may not be perfect, but being perfect isn’t the point. The real goal is improvement and you have to keep going to improve – with every ride, you’re getting stronger.
About the Author
Annika is a Mental Performance Consultant who works with Equestrians to build confidence and develop key mental skills to support competence and progress in the saddle. Having grown up as a Three-Day Eventer in British Columbia, Canada, Annika worked internationally in eventing and show jumping after graduating high-school as a groom, rider, and coach in Ireland, Australia and America. During her riding career she encountered Sport Psychology and was fascinated by the impact it had on success in horse sport and so, after completing her Equine Canada Competition Coach certification, Annika returned to school to study psychology. Today, with an MSc in Sport and Exercise Psychology, Annika works with riders and other athletes to understand and build mental fitness for sport and performance. Her philosophy of practice is grounded in the science-backed tools and methods of performance psychology, and theoretical frameworks such as Cognitive Behavioural Coaching, Positive Psychology, and Solution Focused Coaching. Annika is a professional member of the Canadian Sport Psychology Association. Find out more at www.annikamcgivern.com or on instagram: @annikamcgivern.performance.
