It feels great to be seen as a kind and thoughtful person, but no one wants to be seen as a doormat. People pleasing misses the mark because it’s about the pleasing of the other person, rather than helping meaning you’re saying yes sometimes for all the wrong reasons.

If you’ve ever felt resentful, angry, or stressed about being asked to do something, that you said yes to, without analysing the impact of that decision on you – you could be a people pleaser.

This can put you at risk of lowered mental wellbeing, increased stress, and feelings of being taken for granted.

Luckily help is at hand and learning to say no isn’t nearly as hard as you might think.

My best friend at school loved horses. She desperately wanted me to love them too. But there was a problem. Every time I came close, the horse invariably STOOD on my foot, which cause me to squeal and my friends to laugh.
I avoided horses mostly after that, until I went to the Four Legged Sages in Dural NSW where the horse was the teacher and I was the pupil.

We had a few issues to sort out, like communication skills, collaboration and effective teamwork.

What I didn’t expect was the direct and immediate feedback from the teacher.
Whoa!
The insights and aha’s from that day have remained with me long after the event.

Which got me thinking. We’ve endured so much living at a time of a global pandemic but the one thing that will help us the most as we move into recovery mode will be our level of social and emotional intelligence. That’s your ability to recognise the strengths and skills in others and yourself so we can work together to build a better, brighter and happier future.

Have you ever had a lesson from a horse?