Tea Time with Elsa

Chatting about: The Art Of Bonding…
Originally aired on: June 16th, 2026
In this episode we talk about how the art of bonding is in the problems you can solve together. Much of normal horse training is about creating a problem for the horse that you can then solve together. In Freedom Based Training® we do our best to find naturally occurring problems we can help the horse solve, by understanding their hierarchy of needs and seeing where their priorities might be. This bonds us together, one solved problem at a time.

Chatting about: The long walk of shame…
Originally aired on: June 12th, 2026 
In this episode we talk about how sometimes, when we push a little too much in horse training and the horses have the freedom to walk away, we end up taking a long walk to figure out where things went wrong. Once we figure out what went wrong, we get to make a plan of what we might do differently when we see the horses again. I recently adopted two mustang mares and tried out some new ideas of training with them. The results were good, but we were not nearly as fast to make progress as I expected. I took a “long walk” across the ocean to teach in Europe for four weeks and half way through my trip I think I figured it out. Now I am on my way home to see if I can prove to my mares I learned something while I was away, and can do better now.

Chatting about: We All Get To Decide What Is Important?…
Originally aired on: May 5th, 2026
In this episode we talk about how we all get to decide where to focus and where we focus and how we show what is important to us as an individual. However, if the relationship to others is important, then what we focus on gets shaped by what is important to them. This is the primary way we show a horse that our relationship to them is valued.

Chatting about: Don’t Fight Reality…
In this episode we talk about how working without tools is a great time to accept the reality of the horse’s state of mind. In each moment the horse will either have: a good idea, a bad idea, or no idea at all. If they have no ideas at all, the door is open for you to have an idea for them, if they are having a bad idea (pushing against you or pulling away from you) this is a reality you probably can’t change in the moment it is happening, all you can do is stay out of the way and learn something from it, so you can do better next time you see a similar situation brewing.
Originally aired on: May 17th, 2026

Chatting about: The Luxury Of Appreciation…
In this episode we talk about how the greatest quality of life comes from a habit of appreciating whatever is naturally occurring. This however is a luxury we may or may not have depending on our situation. When a situation becomes time pressured around change, focusing on what is wrong and what must change becomes the priority. Seeing these options on a spectrum helps us slide toward a greater quality of life in the times it is possible.
Originally aired on: April 28th, 2026

Chatting about: If you can do it better, do it again…
Originally Recorded 26_04_21
In this episode we talk about how training is always a guess. Any action we take has a result. Once we see the result we have to take a guess and ask ourselves “If I repeated the same action, or an adjusted version of the action, would the result be better?” I think I should always repeat actions I think I can do better.
Originally aired on: April 21st, 2026

Chatting about: Don’t Change, Appreciate…
In this episode we talk about the natural pressures of life that push us to train change faster than a horse might choose, and what the side effects of that might be. If reasonable, I always prefer to train at the speed the horse would choose, appreciating things so that we can build on things the horse already knows and practices. If that is unreasonable for any reason, it is ok to train faster. Knowing the side effects of training faster helps us to manage outcomes with the horse’s best interest in mind.
Originally aired on: April 14th, 2026

Chatting about: What Does Pressure Mean?
In this episode we talk about the challenge horses have in learning what pressure means in relationship to humans. At a base level pressure should mean to change something. That change might be physical, mental, or sensory. What change is needed is a puzzle horses must figure out and for that reason I like starting with "pressure means change the use of the senses" first. If horses learn a sensory first approach to pressure they have a better chance of gathering enough information to figure out what other changes might be needed. I also like to start with action around the horse to cause sensory use before I start the more challenging exercises of action moving toward the horse in ways that feel more like pressure. If we can start small with training and slowly build complexity from a solid base, horses are much more keen to learn with us.
Originally aired on: April 7th, 2026