Riding instructors struggle with myriad obstacles throughout the day, the most frustrating of which is time. You can’t generate more of it, and the most precious things in life are those in short supply.
Riding lessons can’t stay on schedule if you don’t become a slave to time. The second you stop checking your watch, you find yourself twenty minutes late with a dozen irritated students and parents waiting for their lesson to start.
There are two main ways to keep riding lessons on schedule, and the correct solution for your horse business depends on how you approach riding lessons.
Solution #1: Give Yourself a Buffer
If you are having trouble keeping riding lessons on schedule, it might because you are scheduling your lessons too closely together. Saddle changes, horse changes, warming up—all of these things take time and will inevitably encroach on one rider’s lesson or another.
The solution is to create a buffer between riding lessons for concluding the previous lesson and beginning the next. Ten minutes is usually sufficient to change out horses, exchange tack and get riders mounted up and ready for their lessons.
Rather than offering hour-long riding lessons, change the format to fifty-minute riding lessons. Start on the hour, then end ten minutes before the next hour so you can get everything squared away.
This works well for riding instructors who want to keep their riding lessons on a strict schedule. Professionals who teach hundreds of riders each week will need this type of solution because their students come for one lesson (or two, or whatever) per week and deserve to receive what they are promised.
If you guarantee an hour and fail to deliver, you’ll lose customers.
Solution #2: Hire a Helper
You can also hire an assistant or helper if you have trouble keeping riding lessons on schedule. He or she can prep for the next lesson while you are still teaching the first, ensuring that the day runs smoothly.
This works best if you use different horses for each lesson or if your students ride their own horses. An assistant can get the ball rolling while you wrap up a lesson, and you’ll feel less frazzled during that in-between time. In fact, in some cases, there won’t be an “in-between time,” because your horses and kids are ready when the lesson starts.
Remind Yourself
Don’t force yourself to look at your watch constantly during riding lessons. Technology is a beautiful thing, and even riding instructors can take advantage of it.
I have found that setting alarms on my cell phone works wonders. I set one alarm as a five-minute warning before the end of class, then another to signal the end of a riding lesson. That way, I’m always on schedule.
About the Author: Laura Jane Thompson is the Editor in Chief of Riding Instructor University and the Feature writer for the horses section at Suite101. Follow her EquiTips on Twitter.
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About the Author: Laura Jane Thompson is the Chief Equestrian Officer of Riding Instructor University and the Feature writer for the horses section at Suite101. She believes that any horse business can succeed provided its owner practices smart strategy.
