Sheep Dogs and Relationships

Every year in Heber Valley, Utah the Soldier Hollow Classic sheepdog trials take place. This is an extremely hard competition and people travel with their dogs from all over the world to compete. These trials require the sheep dog to travel far up a hillside while
their owner remains at the base of the hill. Using only whistles, the owner must have the dog guide the sheep through a course of gates, separate them into two groups, and end by herding them into a pen.

These dogs and owners spend a lot of time together and have a real working relationship based on trust and understanding. The dogs must be focused in order to hear the owners commands and the owners must show a real care for their dogs in order for their dogs to respond. I have been thinking a lot about this relationship recently and how these principles can apply to other areas in life. The journey that the dogs are on is a difficult one. There are many obstacles they have to overcome and they cannot see the finish from the start of the course. They have to trust their owner and be paying attention for the signals so they understand where to go. This trust can only be built through hard work on the owners part. The love of a dog is a great thing to have and has to be earned over time.

So often today many people are focused on success and making it to the next level. We sometimes believe that our family and friends will always be there for us and, because they want us to succeed, it is ok to put developing those relationships on the back burner while we pursue our goals. In his book "How Will You Measure Your Life?" Clayton Christensen discusses this topic and states that those relationships are too valuable to lose. Our relationships with our family and friends are the ones that need constant nourishment. After all, when we do succeed, what is success without having someone there to share it with?

I think that everyone wants to know that when they speak their friends will hear. When they need someone that their friends will be there for them. That relationship goes both ways and is in need of constant nourishment. The relationships we develop with our friends and family are the most important successes we can have in our lives.

This is Beaux. He is a border collie and is very smart. He would do anything for me because we have worked and are constantly working to build our relationship. 

Below is a video further detailing the sheep dog trails. Feel free to watch for more information.