Nailing multi-tasking… isn’t that the dream? Inevitably it’s spinning a lot of plates at the same time and hoping not to drop too many!
My name is Jodie Neill and my tag is ‘The Eventing Dentist’. I guess that’s me in a nutshell – I (very amateurly) event and I’m a Cosmetic Dentist. When I started The Eventing Dentist on social media, life was quite different.
I now have two children (2 ½ and eight months), three more horses, a new business and a new job – so multi-tasking is the only way forward!
I’m very fortunate to have my four fabulous mares at home. They are my absolute world – Clover (18, is my horse of a lifetime), Tilly (her foal who is now 2), fat Fernie (8) and Princess Darcie (5).
Lots of people ask how I balance two young children, horses, work and an online presence… unfortunately there’s no magic answer, I’m not sure I always do!
There’s nothing worse than the guilt of feeling like you are only giving everything 50%. The reality is that I live my life with systems and a VERY lengthy ‘to-do’ list! Super organisation is the only way I can make it work (and not smash too many of the aforementioned plates!).
After I had Ollie, my first baby, I felt as though I sprung straight back into my pre-birth horse life; I managed to muck out when he slept, rode in the evenings when he snoozed on my husband’s chest, even taking rising five year old Fern to Howe on Wednesday evenings with tiny baby and husband in tow.
Trying to do this with Jack, my second baby (and a toddler!) was a whole different kettle of fish! The lack of time has forced my horses to have a longer-than-normal holiday; I’ve been kind to myself and appreciated this will do them no harm.
Fern went out on loan for a few months whilst Darcie and Clover had a good break – they were 17 and 4, no issues at all. I think the key part to that was ‘kind to myself’. We can be so unkind to ourselves, saying things we would never tell our best friend but are happy to be so self-critical about.
Be kind to yourself
Inevitably life was going to change significantly after I had the boys and I completely accepted and allowed that. I thought sponsors might lose interest if you’re not out competing/promoting their brand but as it turns out, they were amazing and have continued to support us.
My mind was also very, very different after I had Jack. All of a sudden I was very conscious of the fact that two little people relied on mummy being safe, present and not broken! I was acutely aware of my own vulnerability, and I’ve had to be kind to myself (again) and take the pace much slower this time.
I have always wanted to be heavily involved within the sport I love so much, so when the opportunity came to do scoring in Control at a BE competition, I jumped at the chance.
And that’s where the love of commentating started. I sat on the microphone to give the REAL commentators a break a few times and so when I was pregnant with Ollie it was the ideal opportunity to still be part of it.
Let’s face it, if someone gives you the chance to sit and watch Eventing all day and talk ponies, you’re going to grab it with both hands! Can I take this chance to encourage everyone to volunteer if they can? If only for the bun run, it’s a great day out and keeps the sport we all love alive!
I similarly do commentating at a very amateur level but I honestly just love it. It’s a very long day from 9am – 7pm talking constantly but I always remember my family saying they were so grateful to the commentator for keeping them informed, so I try to give the rider and their families at 9am the same experience as the rider at 7pm.
Andrew Spalding has been an incredible mentor to me, he took me under his wing and has given me some great opportunities. I had to pinch myself last year when I did the commentary at Belsay International, it was recorded live on Horse and Country TV and I was sat alongside Tina Cook and Nicola Wilson! You just don’t forget moments like that.
Eventing is an amazing community, and one I am so proud and grateful to be part of. Social media has changed drastically since I started The Eventing Dentist (that’s for another blog!) but I still love the opportunities it offers.
If anyone reading this blog can take anything away from my experiences of multitasking I would have two key bits of advice:
Number 1: Create systems
I have systems for everything: whiteboards for family, whiteboards for horses, lists, a label maker, goal-setting diaries and a Filofax with my whole life in it – it’s the only way! For example, putting vaccination due dates in your diary the month before – there nothing worse than having to restart them!
Number 2: Be kind
Life is busy – work, children, horses, other animals, homes, social life, etc. Multi-tasking is necessary, but this sport shouldn’t come at the expense of our sanity, and you have to cut yourself some slack if it’s all becoming too much.
Be kind to yourself, but also be kind to others. For the most part, people are doing their best and life is too short to sweat the small stuff!
Jodie x
Thank you Jodie, you can follow The Eventing Dentist and find out about Jodie’s new business Spa at The Steading.
