Don't be a victim. Be busy with your horse so you stay out of trouble - otherwise, trouble will come and find you”, Brannaman would say. “Be assertive but don't be aggressive, if you are aggressive you'll make the horse flighty. The horse needs perimeters like anyone else. Give them guidance, support, rules. The same rules. Don't change the game. Don't let them have excuses just cause of their past. And love them.

On a horse there is a perfect position of balance where he doesn't feel like he's pushing you along with him or dragging you along with him. It's like two converging currents in a river, where those currents converge, there is a point where there is no movement, no energy; and that's what you're thinking when you're on the back of a horse.

The horse seems to wanna please the human and so many times if the human isn’t much of a leader well then the horse has gotta do it’s own thinking. The horse isn’t really designed very well to be the leader but just because the horse is responding to ya, I don’t really think of it as it succumbing to you. I think it’s more of the horse sort of joining you, being more of a partner.

When riding, ask yourself what will my horse get out of it if I get what I want? Many times, human nature is to take and to not give anything back.

You can't look forward and backward at the same time...........so I choose to look forward.

There are things that change all through your life the way you deal with people, the way you approach problems.

Someone might steal your childhood, but they can't steal your will. There is a point where you're given the opportunity in life to stop blaming everyone else and start taking responsibility for your life.