From Shedding Skin to Riding Forward

Why the Year of the Horse Matters for Us as Leaders

Yesterday, I took my family horseback riding.

Not because it was convenient. Not because it was trendy. Because it felt symbolic.

As the Year of the Snake closes and the Year of the Horse begins, I didn’t want to simply think about the transition. I wanted to feel it. To embody it. To mark it with action.

There’s something powerful about putting your foot in the stirrup, swinging your leg over, and feeling the strength of a horse beneath you. It’s grounding. It’s humbling. It’s clarifying.

And it reminded me of something important:

Leadership is not theoretical. It is embodied.

The Year of the Snake: Shedding What No Longer Fits

The snake represents wisdom, strategy, introspection, and transformation.

But most importantly, it represents shedding. And boy did I shed!!! Anyone else? 

The snake grows by releasing its skin. It cannot expand while clinging to what once fit. And if we’re honest, this past year may have required the same from many of us.

We may have shed:

• Old identities

• Outdated expectations

• Roles we had outgrown

• Beliefs that once protected us but now limited us

• Insecurities we were finally ready to face

Shedding is not glamorous. It is vulnerable. It exposes us. It can feel disorienting.

As leaders, the Year of the Snake invited us inward. It asked us to reflect:

Who am I becoming?
What patterns are no longer serving me?
What version of me am I ready to release?

The snake moves slowly. It observes. It calculates. It waits.

And that season of reflection is sacred.

But it cannot last forever.

At some point, shedding must give way to movement.

The Year of the Horse: Momentum, Courage, and Forward Motion

The horse represents power, freedom, stamina, courage, and partnership.

If the snake was about internal work, the horse is about external expression.

When we were riding yesterday, one thing became very clear: you cannot half-ride a horse.

You either lead with clarity, or the horse senses hesitation.
You either commit to movement, or you remain stuck.

Horses respond to confidence. They respond to direction. They respond to presence.

Leadership is the same.

The Year of the Horse invites us to stop overanalyzing and start embodying. To stop circling ideas and start executing them. To stop apologizing for growth and start living into it.

This is a year of motion.

Not frantic motion.
Not chaotic motion.

But intentional forward movement.

Why This Matters for Us as Leaders

Leadership has seasons.

There are seasons of introspection.
There are seasons of acceleration.

Problems arise when we try to live in one season for too long.

Some of us have been reflecting long enough.
Some of us have been healing long enough.
Some of us have been preparing long enough.

The Year of the Horse asks a different question:

Where are we ready to run?

As leaders, this year invites us to:

Lead with momentum.
Clarity without action leads to stagnation.

Trust our strength.
Horses are powerful but sensitive. Great leaders are too.

Embrace partnership.
The rider and horse move as one. Leadership is not domination, it is alignment.

Commit fully.
Half-hearted leadership creates confused teams. Decisive leadership builds trust.

The Lesson From Riding With My Family

Watching my kids mount their horses was one leadership lesson in itself.

There was nervousness and excitement. 
There was uncertainty and readiness. 
There was love and fear. 

Then the horses began to move.

At first, there was adjustment. Then, slowly, confidence.

That’s growth.

We don’t wait until we feel completely ready. We step in. We adjust in motion. We learn while moving.

The same is true for us as leaders.

We do not need another year of perfect planning.
We need the year of courageous execution.

Reflection for the Year Ahead

As we close the Year of the Snake and enter the Year of the Horse, consider:

What did I shed this past year?
What am I done carrying?
Where have I been hesitating?
What would it look like to move with confidence instead of caution?
Who am I riding alongside this year?

From Reflection to Acceleration

The snake prepared us.

The horse propels us.

One season refined us.
This season moves us.

May this be the year we stop shrinking and start expanding.
May this be the year we stop circling and start charging.
May this be the year we fully step into the version of ourselves we’ve been quietly becoming.

Remember… we cannot half-ride a horse.

This is the year we ride.