The Importance of Goal-Setting

From atop the horse, my eight-year-old self felt completely free.  I knew I had found a lifelong love at a very young age: horses.  Even better, my horseback instructor told me this could be a career if I worked very hard at it.  

My big goal, my dream, was to own a horse barn and teach riding lessons to kids.  I wanted to be the type of influence on others that my horseback instructor had on me and I wanted to share this love of horses and the feeling that riding gave me with others.  I wanted to grow up and work doing something I loved, every step of the way.  To get started, my first goal was to go to college for an equine degree (a long way off, about ten years away actually).

This was going to be something that needed lots of planning and goal-setting.  So, my eight-year-old self got started.  I compared college programs based on what I thought I wanted to learn and would help me achieve my goal.  I didn’t end up going to the college that I thought I would when I was little, but the steps I took to research colleges helped me in my decision-making process when it was time to pick the right college.  

Goals have the ability to motivate you and create a work-ethic that overflows into every part of your life.  


I’m a week shy of twenty-three and my eight-year-old dream is still my dream.  And I have completed that first goal, I graduated from Otterbein University with a Bachelor’s degree in Equine Science Business Management in May.  Looking back, there were steps I took to get to that goal, and there were others that would’ve helped me if I would’ve taken the time to write out and pursue those as well.  Now, I need to figure out what the next steps so that I can own a horse farm and create the business that I want.  One of my steps is working with essential oils.  This is important for my main goal because I want to be the equestrian that is always learning new things, cultivating a healthy lifestyle for myself and the horses I ride and take care of, and incorporating this education and lifestyle into my business practices, now and in the future.

It’s one thing to be visionary and have a beautiful dream and another to actually have goals, specific and measurable goals that help you achieve that desired dream.  


So, what goals do you have for your life?

My guess is that if you are an equestrian, you have some pretty big and wonderful dreams.  

Take the time to find smaller goals to align with your big dreams.  

Effective goals are SMART (Specific, Measurable, Attainable, Relevant, and Time-bound).  

Write these down, and give yourself grace because they will change and that’s okay!  Date your piece of paper and keep it somewhere special so that you can look at it often, adjust your goals, and celebrate your accomplishments!

- Elizabeth, Community Coordinator for The Oily Stable