What equestrians can learn from a surfer in California

I feel very honoured that Bert Sheffield has invited me to be a guest blogger on her
site and share my experience with you.

I was in Newport Beach, California over the weekend for a business meeting. The
meeting was on the Balboa Peninsula - a gorgeous place, white sands, dolphins
that could be watched from the beaches, 30 Degrees (86 F) and of course the
surfers with their surfboards. 
The surfers reminded me on the following principle:
Never take the first wave - never the last! It can be deadly.
Now, let me explain: When surfers go out in the morning they are patiently sitting on their boards out in the ocean and assess. They never rush into the water and take the first wave that they can catch. They watch where the majority of the waves are breaking and how they break, watch for currents (rip currents) and other factors like wind. They thoroughly assess the situation before catching their first wave of the day. 
Surfers also understand the importance when to get out of the water.  They know when it's the right time for their last wave of the day. When you are exhausted, mentally and physically, and you overestimate your stamina and focus ability, if it's later in the afternoon and it's getting dark - the last wave can be deadly; and it has been for many surfers!
Those principles in the surfing world can be applied to the business world. The first wave of social networking sites you may have never heard of was Six Degrees in 1997. The next one in 2002 was Friendster. If you had caught one of those waves you would not really spend time and talk about it 15 years later.
However, waiting patiently for the next wave of social media site would have paid huge dividends. This wave was a big one: It was 2004 when Facebook launched its services to the
world. 
Keep your eyes on the waves and observe. Because assessing is better than guessing! 

Apply the principle to your riding. You feel sluggish for your first wave/ride in the
morning on a horse that needs more than normal attention? Then, don’t do it.
Make sure your attention is fully on the task in front of you.
The rule applies to all of us regardless what we do.
Sincerely,
Dirk

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About Dirk Stroda, Legacy Coach, Canada

​Dirk Stroda is an author, speaker and personal coach for several world-class equestrian athletes. He conveyed his experience as the Team Mental Performance Coach to Equestrian Canada at World Equestrian Games, PanAm Games, and the Olympics/Paralympics. In his 30+ year coaching experience his athletes and teams participated at 13 Olympic Summer and Winter Games and countless National and International Championship events. Stroda co-authored widely recognized medical studies and research papers; one of them is published at the St. Andrews PGA Library. He is coaching leaders of multi-Million Dollar companies in the US and Canada.
Dirk lives with his family in Kelowna, British Columbia, Canada.
Contact: www.dirkstroda.com

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