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The horse industry job market is "bottom heavy." Lots of entry level positions exist, such as Stable Help or Groom. However, most people don't want to make a lifelong career out of daily care of horses and grooming. Although there is nothing wrong with this kind of career, most people want to move up the ladder to more advanced positions. As positions become more and more advanced, they become less and less numerous. Fewer jobs exist at the very top levels in the horse industry. This makes climbing the ladder of success very competitive. As you move up, more people may be competing for fewer jobs.
Some people end up leaving the horse industry because they have been unable to advance their careers. In many cases, the reasons for a stalled career can be resolved and the career can be given a jump start. For this to happen, the roadblocks to building a successful career must be identified and removed. The major areas to look at are competition, timing, skills/education, and track record.
Your Competition People commonly look at their own abilities, but they forget about their competition. Any good job will probably attract many applicants. You will be competing against other capable people when you apply for just about any job. You are a capable person with valuable gifts and talents, but remember that you are not alone in the job market. Some people will have more skills than you do; therefore, in some situations, they could be hired instead of you. If you try to build your career without knowing who your competition is, you could be frustrated with your progress and never know the reason why.
We discussed the importance of knowing your professional peers under Negotiating. Make sure to maintain ongoing relationships with your peers. We discussed the importance of getting to know employers and other important people in your part of the horse industry under Searching. Continue to introduce yourself to employers and other key people. As you make contacts, listen when people talk about their successes and failures, ask them about their goals, and find out about their background. Reflect on the information you gather to get a sense of where you realistically fit in your part of the industry. For instance, you might think you qualify to be a Trainer. However, after talking with a few people, you might discover that you really don't have as much experience as your competitors. You may find out that you don't have the complete set of skills needed to be a Trainer. Perhaps you should actually be seeking work as an Assistant Trainer. This realization could actually help you climb the career ladder. Instead of competing unsuccessfully with people who have more skills than you do, you will be competing with people who share your actual capacities. If you apply for jobs that really fit your current skill level, you will have better luck in the job market.
Questions to Ask Yourself When Assessing Your Competition Do I Have Enough Skills and Experience to Compete?
It is very important to know if you have the right level of skills for the job you want. When you actually start working, you will quickly find out whether you have enough experience for the job. If you don't have enough experience, it will be too late to correct your mistake. Don't let this happen.
Don't guess, don't depend on your school, and don't trust fate. You may think you have enough experience and that you can perform all the tasks for your chosen job, but do you actually possess all the skills to perform that job well? The only way to find out for sure is to do the research we have talked about in these pages.
Do I Have the Right Kind of Skills?
It is quite possible to "not know what you don't know." Although you may have taken numerous courses or spent lots of time observing people doing the job you want, it's still possible that you really don't know if you have the right kind of skills. Until you have asked employers about the abilities they seek when hiring and until you have talked with your peers, you will probably have an incomplete picture of the skills you need. For instance, being a Trainer frequently requires more than simply the ability to train horses. Trainers often need experience with sales, customer relations, farm management, and so on. Be sure you have done your homework so you understand the skills required to do your job.
Am I Asking for the Right Compensation?
General statistical information on compensation in the horse industry may be difficult to obtain. However, the only compensation information you really need is the pay level for your specific type of job. Some employers will have a stated salary for their position, which will give you some idea of the proper range. Other employers may be unfamiliar with the job market, and they may offer too little or too much compensation. Many employers will expect you to state your "asking salary." You must be ready to respond effectively in both situations: when being presented with a stated salary and when an employer wants to know your asking salary.
Without some idea of the appropriate range of compensation for your job, you may think a salary you are offered is either too low or too high when it is actually within the correct range. If you have not gathered as much information as you can about compensation and an employer wants to know your "asking salary," you may have no idea what to say. Once again, being prepared boils down to doing the necessary research. Talk to as many employers and peers as you possibly can.
Pitfall -- Because salary levels in the horse industry tend to be lower than in some other industries, it is common for horse industry job seekers to ask for salaries that are too high for their job type.
Idea -- Although statistical information for horse industry compensation is hard to find, there's a web site that may offer some help. Salary.com currently has statistics for a few horse related positions and may add more as time goes by. (If salary.com becomes unavailable or a better site is found, this link may connect you to a different site.)
Should I Get More Education? When a career seems stalled, it is very tempting to blame the problem on insufficient skills. When you can't seem to make the next step up the ladder, it is natural to conclude that you must need more ability. In most cases, skills are not the problem. You just need to do more research and networking to better understand the next step.
However, sometimes you will need to increase your abilities before taking the next step. You can probably learn the skills you need without going back to school. In the horse industry, most people get the skills they need through on-the-job training. When you take on new duties or responsibilities, there is frequently someone around who can show you the ropes. If you are being asked to take on something totally new and there is no one to teach you the skills, your employer may suggest that you go back to school. Your employer may even pay your tuition. For instance, employers commonly send people involved in their breeding and foaling operations to one of the university short courses covering these subjects.
If you are having trouble making the next step up the career ladder, do not assume that going back to school to get a degree will enhance your attractiveness to employers. In most cases, it will probably make little difference. Your attractiveness to employers comes from a good employment track record, good references, and verifiable skills and abilities. If you are sure you have all the traits that make you attractive to employers, yet you lack a specific skill needed to make the next step, only then should you consider further education.
Remember -- Getting a degree or certificate from a college or trade school may not be the only way to get the training you need. By taking just a course or two, you may acquire the skills you need. Or, you may find that being an apprentice or working student with the right person will provide you with all the training necessary to make your next move.
Getting Promoted and Changing Jobs Being promoted means doing higher level tasks and taking on more responsibility. Promotions commonly happen in two ways: being "promoted from within" or changing jobs. Getting promoted by your current employer is the best way to advance your career. When you are promoted from within your organization, it benefits you in two ways. (1) You avoid the risks inherent in taking a completely new job and (2) the transition to your new responsibilities usually happens gradually. If you "promote yourself" by changing to a higher level job with a different employer, the risks increase and the transition is more abrupt. You may bite off more than you can chew because you will need to handle the extra risk and increased transition speed as well as the new tasks and responsibilities.
As a general rule, when your current employer doesn't provide you with opportunities to advance, it's best to search for another employer offering the same level of job you are already doing. We don't recommend changing employers and increasing your responsibilities at the same time. It is much easier to build an excellent track record with your new employer if you start out doing the kind of work you know best. Try to select an operation where there are opportunities to advance once you have established yourself.
Timing Timing is critical to successful career building. If you try to move ahead too fast, you may bite off more than you can chew. If you are not equipped to do a job and you perform it poorly, your reputation will suffer. A bad reputation can ruin a career. On the other hand, if you are too timid to take the risks needed to get ahead, you may end up stuck in a rut.
In general, it is better to stay too long in a job than to move ahead too quickly. If you continue to do the research and networking we recommend in these pages, you will be better prepared to time your career steps properly. Be ruthlessly objective about where you really are on the ladder of success. Be frank with yourself about what you are truly capable of doing right now. Don't be tempted to make your decisions based on abilities you think you will have in the future. Base your timing on your current skills.
Changing Careers and Switching from Other Industries The horse industry is a popular place to work. It is common for people to have a mid-career crisis, become dissatisfied with their current line of work, and want to switch to the horse industry. Workers already in the horse industry may also decide to make radical career changes. People changing job types within the horse industry or switching from another industry encounter similar challenges.
In most cases, changing careers means starting again from a lower level. In order to be successful, you will need to follow the steps in The Career Game from the beginning. Even if you are already familiar with researching and networking techniques, you still need to put them into practice to be successful in your new career.
Plan on spending the first few months of your new career establishing a good track record. Work toward your long-term goal in stages. If your long-term goal is to achieve an advanced position, remember that getting there may take some time. Be prepared to accept a decrease in pay and responsibility at first.
If you were transported to this page directly from The Career Game Welcome Page, click here to proceed to "Career Building Steps."
Wrapping Things Up You may want to take a closer look at some things that could stand in your way as you climb up the ladder of success. We recommend the book 101 Stupid Things Employees Do to Sabotage Success by Richard Baisner. It's lots of fun.
101 Stupid Things Employees Do to Sabotage Success
(If this book changes its title or becomes unavailable, you may be linked to a book with a different title.)
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Remember -- You learned the "3 R's" in grade school; now you know about
three more R's to help you remember the basics of good career building.
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Be sure to check out our other resource pages.
Frequently Asked Questions
Common Mistakes
Internet Resources
If you have questions or comments,
please email the Equimax Career Game Team: employment@equimax.com.
Success -- We hope you have enjoyed our presentation on building a career
in the horse industry. Take the things we have said, and build on
them. Become an expert career builder for yourself. You will
know you have succeeded when people ask you the secret of your success.