Never Give In, Never Give Up, Never Quit – Ask a Question

Everything I learned, I learned from my horse - Gary Douglas

By Sarah Watt

Somewhere along the way, we were taught that we had to get it right.
That if something wasn’t working, the answer was to push harder, try harder, or give up altogether.

But horses don’t do that.

They don’t give up. They don’t push through. They don’t make themselves wrong.

They stop.
They pause.
They turn their heads.
They shift their feet.
They breathe.

And in that moment, they’re asking a question—not with words, but with energy:
“What is this showing me? And what can I do different?”

That question has become a compass in my life.

When Nothing Goes to Plan

There have been days with my horses where everything felt off. The energy, the communication, the connection. Where what worked yesterday didn’t work today. Where I caught myself thinking, “Maybe I’m not cut out for this.”

But that’s the moment I remember to ask.

What is this showing me?

Is it about the horse—or about me?
Is it about this moment—or an expectation I’m still holding onto?
Is there a gift here I haven’t been willing to receive?

And from there… what can I do different?

Horses don’t pretend to be okay when they’re not. They don’t force themselves to go faster when their body says slow. They don’t function from guilt or obligation. They function from awareness. They ask. They respond. They choose.

What if that’s the very space we could function from with everything?

Never Giving In Doesn’t Mean Pushing Through

There’s a difference between never giving in—and never listening.

Horses have shown me that staying present and refusing to quit isn’t about being tough. It’s about being aware. It’s about refusing to abandon yourself in the name of outcome. It’s about having the courage to choose again.

If a horse spooks, stumbles, bucks, or stops—most people go to judgment. “What’s wrong?” “What did I do?” “Why are they being difficult?”

But if you ask:
“What is this showing me, and what can I do different?”
You step out of reaction. You step into creation.

Sometimes the answer is to shift the energy.
Sometimes it’s to wait.
Sometimes it’s to walk away and come back with a new space tomorrow.
But in every case, there’s a different possibility—if you’re willing to ask.

Miracles Don’t Always Look Like You Thought They Would

One of the greatest things horses have taught me is that “success” doesn’t always look like what I planned.

It looks like trust.
Like presence.
Like the ride that doesn’t happen because the horse said no—and I listened.
Like the quiet moment at the gate where something unwinds in my world, even though we never left the paddock.

When I ask, “What is this showing me?”
I receive way more than I ever did when I made it about doing it right.

When I ask, “What can I do different?”
I open the door to choice. Not better. Not worse. Just different.

And in that space, anything is possible.

What If This Applies to Everything?

Yes, this is about horses. But it’s also about you.

It’s about the project you’re about to walk away from.
The relationship that feels stuck.
The days you feel like giving up.

Instead of defaulting to frustration or conclusion… what if you asked:

• What is this showing me about me?
• What is this showing me about what I haven’t acknowledged yet?
• And what can I do different, today—not perfectly, just differently?

Never giving in, never giving up, never quitting—it’s not about forcing anything.

It’s about staying present.

It’s about not walking away from your knowing.

It’s about trusting that the questions you ask can open doors that don’t even exist until you ask them.

So… what is this showing you? And what can you do different?

Because if the horses have shown me anything, it’s that there is always another possibility.

Even in the quiet.
Even in the mess.
Even in the space between hoofbeats.


Join us for the next 6-Day Event; Never Give Up, Never Give In, Never Quit, Ask a Question