2015 Fritz Recipient: Emily Staadecker
On the weekend of January 16th, 2016, I had the incredible opportunity of attending the USDF/USEF Young Rider Graduate Program in West Palm Beach with about 30 other participants from all over country. I am incredibly thankful to The Dressage Foundation who made it possible for me to attend the program and to the many generous speakers who graciously donated their time and knowledge. After returning home from the program I felt a renewed feeling of pride and confidence in my own journey and personal business, Emily Staadecker Dressage.
The first topic on Saturday morning was about sponsorships. Allyn Mann spoke of larger, corporate sponsorships while Kim Boyer more clearly defined Individual Sponsorships. Both Mann and Boyer gave advice on how to attract and keep a sponsor. Ultimately the key to both is how you handle yourself through both the ups and downs. Mann used a quote by Rosamund Stone Zander which I felt perfectly described the way a sponsored athlete must act, “You are more likely to be successful, overall, if you participate joyfully with projects and goals and do not think your life depends on achieving the mark.” Sponsors are going to be more attracted to those who are passionate about what they are doing and believe in the products they are using but also hold their head up high when things don’t go as planned. Boyer made it clear that you must not only be talented but also ethical, connected, teachable, loyal, organized and informed.
Following the topic of sponsorship, Rebecca Hart spoke with us about Horse Syndications. Hart felt strongly that attitude and being open to change are two of the most important factors in having a solid foundation for syndication. Other factors she felt were important were the ability to communicate, the game plan, willingness to protect your investors, and following through on your promises.
Before lunch we moved forward to other aspects of the horse industry with Dr. Kraig Kulikowski who spoke about Equine Sports Medicine and Yvonne Ocrant who spoke with us about Equine Law. Kulikowski explained some of the procedures he uses when doing a pre-purchase exam as well as some of the areas of sports medicine he thought were important but often times overlooked. Often overlooked areas included semi annual radiographs for the feet, looking more closely at the spine, and dental adjustments or adjustments to TMJ or poll to name just a few. He said the delay of appropriate therapy could be damaging. Many young professionals, including myself, find the subject of equine law or liability a little intimidating. Ocrant did a wonderful job explaining the steps we needed to be taking in order to protect ourselves. She went over the exceptions of liability protections and also covered drafting our own material terms.
After lunch, Chris Stafford addressed Marketing and Beth Baumert tackled finances. These two lectures were extremely useful to my business as I have been struggling with incorporating different marketing techniques and also have had many questions regarding savings. Stafford made it clear that marketing is a part of branding and it is important to post tidbits of training advice daily, preferably in the mornings to keep people coming back. She felt strongly that most people are interested in small snippets, and encouraged us to post short videos, pictures and training or nutritional advice. Since the program, I have made a small goal to be more active on my Facebook business page and have noticed a positive outcome from those who follow my journey. Stafford also recommended that young professionals be on Twitter as it is a more interactive social network. Beth Baumert was extremely helpful when educating us on Roth IRA’s. As soon as I got home, I went right to the bank!! She explained the “3 Buckets of Money” known as fixed expenses, savings/retirement, and most importantly giving. Baumert said you must give to a cause greater than yourself.
Later in the day, before our family dinner (as it felt anyway), Janet Foy passed on her knowledge about the USDF L Program and Lendon Gray and Tuny Page passionately encouraged us to seek out training opportunities in the United States as well as in Europe. Lendon encouraged us to ask ourselves, “What are you willing to give up? What can you give back? And how are you going to pay for it? You must be willing to work HARD!!”
Saturday came quickly and we had another full day of discussions ahead of us before heading home. The morning started with Christine Traurig who shared her thoughts on the USEF Young Horse Program. Traurig felt strongly that you should ALWAYS be a student and that luck is when preparation and opportunity meet. Traurig said the first experiences the horse has are the ones that imprint the horse for the rest of their life. When asked what she looks for in a young horse prospect she responded, “The horse needs to be able to move through the body. Slow hind legs are never good. Conformation, temperament, three good gaits and adjustability.”
Following Traurig we moved on to another topic, which I found extremely useful, the importance of professional ethics and balancing your personal and professional life. I feel that sometimes these topics can be a little unclear in your day to day routine but both Hilary Moore Hebert and Roz Kinstler gave helpful advice that I will use in the future. Roz said not to be afraid to set guidelines and a doable schedule so that you are able to do a good job. Some of the suggestions Kinstler made were to stick to your schedule, stay on task, be honest and hold yourself with integrity, and keep the lines between business and friendship clear.
Near the end of the program, we were able to hear about the evolving careers of Jennifer Baumert, Katherine Bateson-Chandler and Endel Ots. We heard some phenomenal stories of victories as well as defeats and how they handled the good and the bad.
The Young Rider Graduate Program was an outstanding experience and I am extremely thankful I was able to attend. I walked away with more tools to help my business succeed, confidence, and wonderful new friendships. Thank you USDF and USEF for having such an instrumental program to developing professionals and to The Dressage Foundation for making it possible for me to attend such a well organized and thought out program.
