Have you ever felt completely thrown off by what someone said about your riding?

In this episode, we dive deep into one of the biggest mental challenges riders face: dealing with other people’s opinions, whether they’re spoken out loud or just imagined in your head.

After coming back from a recent event surrounded by top-level riders, we share real, raw experiences of self-doubt, comparison, and criticism, and most importantly, how to handle it without letting it ruin your performance.

Because here’s the truth:

It’s not what people say that impacts you the most… It’s the meaning you give it.

What You’ll Learn in This Episode:

• Why you often think people are judging you (even when they’re not)
• The difference between facts vs. the story you create in your mind
• How to stop spiraling after someone makes a comment
• A powerful 3-step framework to process criticism quickly
• How to decide whose opinion actually matters
• Why discomfort (riding with top riders, competing higher) is actually a GOOD sign
• How to turn criticism into confidence and focus before competition

Real Story From This Episode

After being told to drop from 3-star all the way back to 1-star, I share how I:

• Broke down the comment objectively
• Separated fact from emotion
• Reframed the situation
• Regained focus before cross-country
• Delivered a strong performance anyway

This is a must-listen if you’ve ever doubted yourself before going into the ring.

Resources Mentioned:

📲Subscribe to Our YouTube Channel: https://www.youtube.com/@EquestrianPerformanceMindset

✉️ Register for our Weekly Mindset & Performance Hacks: https://www.mindeq.eu/weeklyhacks

Follow Jocelin on Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/jocelinlillienau

Follow Lorna on Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/lornahogarth_coaching/

Have you ever had a great warm-up… only to enter the arena and suddenly everything feels harder?

You can’t see your distances.

Your horse feels strong.

You start overthinking everything.

And before you know it… your round starts falling apart.

In this episode, I and Lorna dive into one of the most common (and misunderstood) performance blocks in riding:

👉 Where your focus goes under pressure.

Because here’s the truth:

It’s not that you’ve suddenly lost your ability.

It’s that your attention has shifted to the wrong place.

Whether it’s:

• Worrying about what others think
• Trying too hard to fix something
• Obsessing over distances
• Or focusing on the result instead of the process

All of these create narrow, rigid focus, and that’s what actually causes mistakes.

In this episode, we break down:

• Why riders develop “tunnel vision” under pressure
• How focusing on results destroys your feel
• The difference between process vs outcome focus
• Why “don’t think about it” NEVER works
• How to quickly reset your focus mid-round
• Practical tools to expand your awareness instantly
• The connection between your eyes, nervous system, and performance

Because the best riders aren’t the ones who never lose focus… They’re the ones who know how to shift it back, fast.

Resources Mentioned:

📲Subscribe to Our YouTube Channel: https://www.youtube.com/@EquestrianPerformanceMindset

✉️ Register for our Weekly Mindset & Performance Hacks: https://www.mindeq.eu/weeklyhacks

Follow Jocelin on Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/jocelinlillienau

Follow Lorna on Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/lornahogarth_coaching/

Ever had that moment where you feel like you’ve finally figured something out in your riding… Only for everything to suddenly fall apart again?

In this episode, I and Lorna spoke about one of the most frustrating moments every rider experiences: when progress seems to disappear overnight.

After months of consistent rounds and feeling like things were finally under control, I suddenly found myself in a competition round where my horse felt strong, unresponsive, and completely out of control.

The first thought?

“I’m simply not good enough to ride this horse.”

Sound familiar? But what happened next became one of the biggest breakthroughs in my riding.

Instead of staying stuck in judgment, I chose curiosity, asking better questions, seeking feedback, and experimenting with a completely different approach to riding my horse. And the results were powerful.

In this episode we dive into:

• Why progress in riding is never linear
• The dangerous trap of the “I’m a bad rider” story
• How your belief system (paradigm) shapes your performance
• Why the solution that worked before can suddenly stop working
• The difference between fighting your horse vs riding with them
• How stepping into curiosity instead of judgment unlocks growth
• Why feeling “out of control” might actually mean you're riding at the next level

Because sometimes the moment that feels like failure… Is actually the beginning of your next breakthrough.

Resources Mentioned:

📲Subscribe to Our YouTube Channel: https://www.youtube.com/@EquestrianPerformanceMindset

✉️ Register for our Weekly Mindset & Performance Hacks: https://www.mindeq.eu/weeklyhacks

Follow Jocelin on Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/jocelinlillienau

Follow Lorna on Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/lornahogarth_coaching/