Dear friends,
What a difference a month makes! Here in Colorado, we are in our third week of shutdown and second week of stay-at-home orders. We are all taking the pandemic seriously and doing our part to prevent spread, keep distance, protect the vulnerable and support our health care workers and first responders. My hope is that four weeks from now, I’ll be writing in this newsletter about how the worst of it is behind us. But for now, we have to hunker down, be smart and do what we can to contribute to flattening the curve.
Fortunately for me, much of my business is internet-based, so we can keep the virtual doors open! Our subscription services (streaming horse-training videos) and membership programs (online horsemanship curriculum and coaching) are going strong and many of you are making the most of this time by improving your horsemanship knowledge. Diana is standing by, both online and by phone (719-530-0531), to help you with customer service, as usual.
If you’re stuck at home, fantasizing about getting back to regular riding and cruising the internet, check out our online store at shop.juliegoodnight.com! We’re still open for business and processing orders and offering you FREE SHIPPING (no minimums) as an incentive to shop. In addition to our fabulous rope halters, training leads, and reins, we also offer unique grooming products that you can’t find anywhere else, streaming horse training videos, sticks and flags, and many other great products.
It was tragic that so many great horse expos had to cancel this spring. I’ve agreed to be a presenter next year at the Northwest Horse Fair (Albany, Oregon) and the Midwest Horse Fair (Madison, Wisconsin). We’ll pick up right where we left off! We are in the process of rescheduling horsemanship clinics as needed. My previously rigid schedule has suddenly gotten more flexible!
In response to the health crisis and the increasing amount of people under stay-at-home orders in this country (3 out of 4 Americans, at the time of this writing), I’ve started daily postings offering you horsemanship homework—both “Living Room Lessons” and arena lessons. I’ve either posted through Facebook Live (I love connecting with you in real time!) or through a video uploaded to my YouTube channel. We’re starting on our third week of Daily Doses! In case you’ve missed any or all of them, we’ve put them on the Goodnight Academy homepage, under What’s New? https://signin.juliegoodnight.com/
Also new in my shop this month (this week) is a brand new digital product—a horsemanship short course on Building Confidence with Horses. We’ve been working on the short courses for months, and now happens to be a good time and a good subject to release the first one. Check it out here: https://signin.juliegoodnight.com/goodnight-academy-short-courses/
Many of you are separated from your horses during this shutdown and I know that must be tough! I’m incredibly grateful to have my horses at home and to be able to go to the barn for a sense of normalcy. I’m making the most of this unplanned time at home to ride my horse more, catch up on back-burner projects and produce more educational content for our online Library (we’re releasing new content every week). I’m looking forward to getting back on the road for clinics and expos, but for now, I am content to stay home and do what I can to help. I am confident we will get through this with American determination and ingenuity.
Please check out my Daily Dose of Horsemanship Homework and join us for a live post if you can! Help spread the word to your horsey friends, especially those with kids at home that may need a horse fix.
Until next time, stay safe, be smart and let’s do this!
Take care,
Julie
