Who are your special guides in life?

“Being empowered means that you can do what you want to do alone. But it also means that you will be guided by others if you let them into your life. With their help, you will be able to do more and you will do it faster and better. Do not try to live like an island.”
By Kari Fulmek

Just around the point in my life when I was empowered to start my own equine assisted learning business and I believed I could do it on my own, Eppie Borger walked into my life.

He was a true horseman from the Peace River area in Alberta. It was obvious from the start that his knowledge of working with horses was more in depth and amazing than anyone I had ever seen.

He was willing to work with the EAL Building Block program and be part of it.

I recognized him for what he was in my life: a guide.

Guides appear in a variety of forms when we need them if we watch for them. Sometimes the guide is an article or book that catches our eye and gives us the insight we were missing.

Sometimes it is a conversation or a chance meeting or a business acquaintance who has knowledge you don’t have, and is willing to share.

Eppie springs to mind as one of the most amazing guides I encountered as I was setting up my business. I am forever grateful to this calm and quiet man who encouraged me to consider different ideas about the kinds of horses who should be brought into my herd.

He was only with me as a guide for two short years before his life was ended in a tragic accident on his ranch. Because of his influence, I became a better horse person than I could have become alone, no matter how much I studied and worked. He taught me connection skills with the horses that it might have taken me my whole life to learn.

You have guides in your life as well, and more will enter it as you empower yourself further.

Sometimes it will be difficult to understand what they are saying to you, but it is vital that you keep listening until you genuinely understand.

When you are trying to bring your idea to reality and someone offers to help, consider it carefully. Don’t just dismiss it and assume you have to do everything alone.

You can never know as much as everyone about a given subject. If others have different insights or approaches, at least consider them.

My horses are my guides as well as people. It took me time to understand that there are other sources of guiding that are not human. Many people learn from the land and from nature. Some, like myself, also find guidance in our belief in a spiritual power in our lives.

Whatever force guides you, accept it. This is how you will grow and fuel your empowerment.

Kari Fulmek is the author of “Two Weeks to Empowerment: How to take charge of your life and find your true purpose” and the founder and owner of Equine Connection – The Academy of Equine Assisted Learning Inc. She is a Certified Master EAL Instructor and a Certified EAL Facilitator. From her base near Calgary, AB in the foothills of Canada’s Rocky Mountains, she travels the globe to empower clients. To learn more about Kari, visit her website at: https://equineconnection.ca.