Calm in the face of Tension

In riding Scout today, I found myself once again dealing with a nervous tension that he presents when asked for certain things. A higher neck posture and canter departures are what comes up most frequently. I am constantly tempted to either skirt around the tension by avoiding it all together, or push through it by becoming more demanding. Neither of which provide any positive results. So, instead I asked myself, what possible benefit might I get if I work without emotional attachment to the outcome. How would my interactions change? This gave me the shift I needed. Not only were his canter departs more relaxed, he began to bend into the left lead, something he constantly refused to do previously.

For Scout I do have sympathy that he will progress slower in certain areas, particularly collection and balance, considering his build and conformation. Though it is for this reason that I am all the more impressed by the amount of effort he puts into getting things just right for me, so much so that he seems to frustrate himself in the process. Though I can work on breath patterns on my own, I should like one day to learn how to teach my horses the same skill.