05/04/2024
“This is so basic I can’t believe it needs to be said”-
This is something frequently stated by commenters or auditors when I’m writing or teaching.
There’s a few things worthy of addressing here
1- I never assume anyone knows, or more, SHOULD know, anything.
You never know what someone’s background or education is, regardless of years of experience.
I learned plenty of not ideal things with horses growing up; and had to learn what I now consider very basic handling and facts as an adult. Should I have known better? Who’s to say? I had plenty of education, and I knew what I was presented with, until I was presented with better.
Should is irrelevant. You know what you know until you find better.
2- what’s considered basics to one is different for another. When people say something is a foundational skill, it’s all very relative.
My basics versus another persons basics may be completely different. So if someone doesn’t know MY basics, it doesn’t make them uneducated, it means they’re educated differently. I’m presenting a way of thinking along with a set of skills, but if you didn’t know them it is not a reflection of your ability - only a fact that you haven’t been presented with it yet.
3- just because someone thinks they know or are doing the “basics” well, does not mean they are actually doing them. Many of us need constant reminders or help doing our basics well, because bad habits are very easy to slip into. For example, I consider a basic skill being aware of your horse and surroundings, and yet, when I’m tired or in a bad mood or overwhelmed, this is the first thing to go. Do I know this basic skill? Yes. Am I doing it? No. Therefore I need reminders.
Those are just a few things to consider when presented with “basics” - it’s all relative, and we’re all human. Getting more aware of them and better at them will continue to pay dividends for years to come, and so it’s worth looking at reminders not as something “for other people,” but something to take to heart without judgement.
