Unitasking

When I look around at a horse event, it seems like everyone has a lot going on.

And by a lot, I mean all at once. There are riders simultaneously trotting, texting and talking on their phones. Business transactions are being made on the phone and in person while hauling water buckets and bedding stalls. One horse is being exercised under saddle while ponying another for the same reason. 

It’s not just at shows that this happens; it’s everyday life for a lot of people — professionals and equine hobbyists alike. We have set up our days to where we’ve just GOT to fit it all in, and I’m just as guilty, if not more so, than the average rider.  

But I was reading about the glory of doing just one thing at a time and what a lost and beautiful art that is for the human mind, soul and psyche. We always praise ourselves for doing a lot because we feel like we are getting so much done at once, but the antithesis to multitasking might be just as effective. It’s called unitasking; essentially, it’s doing one thing at a time and putting all your time and attention into it. 

What a concept! For the everyday human, it seems. To the cowboy, it’s not very realistic. (How will you count cattle and keep your green colt from shaking you off?) To the horseman, it’s intriguing and seems like a refreshing take on working with his animals. 

To take a horse, or a maneuver, or a concept and put our mind’s energy to just that while it’s presented to us is really what horsemanship is all about for many. We take an animal and teach, nurture and guide it to achieve success in a certain area (whatever area and however success is defined for each individual). We grow as individuals in our processes, habits and minds, and hopefully our horse does the same.  

Efficiency makes my world go round, but sometimes, the line between efficient and distracted is a fuzzy one. Multitasking has become such an easy thing to do. Often, while I’m riding, I take care of other things as well, thanks to children, visitors and Apple products. But the claim is that unitasking (be that in the saddle or out of it) grants us increased productivity, deepens connections, reduces anxiety, lowers stress, and improves the clarity and quality of the task at hand. It allows us to stay focused, present and immersed in a given task or moment (which, in turn, seems like a safer bet when dealing with horses in general!) 

I fully understand that some tasks are compatible with this concept, and some are not. Sometimes, we just flat out don’t have the time. I don’t think my patterns will revolve around this concept, but I would like to exercise it a bit more and really throw myself into whatever task is at hand with my horsemanship, my paperwork and a little more life in general. 

So, if I don’t get back to you right away, you can just assume I’m busy for a bit … unitasking. 

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