Hest Connections:
A small, welcoming peer community for people doing meaningful work with horses.
Secure your spot;
apply to be a member.
A Place for Equine Practitioners to Support of One Another
The work we do with horses and people can be deeply rewarding. It can also be complicated, unpredictable, and, at times, surprisingly lonely.
Hest Connections is a place to talk about the real work with people who understand it.
Bring your questions, ideas, challenges, discoveries and wins. Share what you're learning. Get another perspective. Find encouragement. Make connections that can grow into collaboration, friendship and inspiration.
You don't have to work alone.
Hest Connections is Different By Design:
Space is limited to 20 members at a time. New members are welcomed off our waitlist as space opens up. This ensures consistency and safety without the overwhelm of digital communities.
❋ We’re A Micro Peer Group
All members must agree to our core values including that this peer group is a place to co-create not self promote. We all want to improve but together we rise each other up.
❋ Collaboration Not Promotion
This community is coach hosted but sessions are not formally structured, instead conversations are organically curated driven by engagement and conversation. You bring your ideas, we get curious together.
❋ Expert Facilitation
Our monthly connection calls should feel like catching up with friends. A chance to share wins, get feedback, and expand your mind with new ideas and resources. We learn from each other, not from an agenda or curriculum.
❋ A Safe Space to Open
No curriculum; no sales pitch; no experts.
Just a group of people who love horses navigating challenges together.
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Whether you're an equine coach, facilitator, trainer, instructor, educator, therapist, or another professional working with horses and people, there are parts of this work that are hard to explain to someone who isn't doing it themselves.
Maybe you're navigating a challenging client situation.
Maybe you're wondering how to grow or sustain your practice.
Maybe you've had an idea you want to explore.
Maybe something wonderful happened and you want to share it with people who understand why it matters.
Or maybe you simply need to hear:
"I've been there, too."
Hest Connections gives us a place to have those conversations.
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Hest Connections is intentionally simple.
There is no curriculum to complete, methodology to follow, or particular certification required.
Instead, we gather once a month for a facilitated Connection Circle and stay connected between gatherings through our private community space.
I'll host and facilitate the conversations, but I won't always have the answers—and I'm not expected to.
The wisdom of Hest Connections lives in the room.
Everyone brings something different: experience, perspective, curiosity, questions, ideas and lived experience.
Hest Connections is shaped by it’s members.
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You don't have to show up with something polished or profound.
Some days you might have a question.
Some days you might have an idea.
Some days you might have a win to celebrate.
And some days you might simply listen.
All of those ways of participating have value.
We're here to learn from one another, support each other, and make the work a little more sustainable along the way.
Hest Connections is an investment in your sustainability. Like the horses we aren’t meant navigate our work alone. We can accomplish more together.
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Hest Connections is a place to build genuine professional relationships, not simply exchange business cards.
As we get to know one another, there may be opportunities to:
Share ideas and resources
Exchange skills and experience
Refer one another
Brainstorm together
Partner on projects
Co-create something new
Encourage one another's work
There is room for opportunity here. It just starts with relationship.
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Monthly Connection Circle
75–90 minutes · Zoom
One gathering each month, facilitated by Hannah Waen, ACC an equine assisted facilitator, coach, and, marketing strategist.
No slides. No lectures. No required topic.
We'll make space for whatever is most useful to the people in the room.
Conversations might include:
Challenging client or horse situations
Building a sustainable practice
Boundaries and burnout
Questions about our work
New ideas and opportunities
Ethical questions
Things we're trying to figure out
Things that are working
Wins worth celebrating
The conversation belongs to the group.
Between Circles
Private Hest Connections community
A simple place to stay connected between gatherings.
Ask a question. Share something you've discovered. Celebrate a win. Continue a conversation. Reach out to someone whose experience resonates with yours.
You don't have to keep up. You can simply drop in when you have something to share or need a little connection.
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Hest Connections is for people actively doing or seriously exploring work involving horses and people.
You might be a:
Equine-assisted coach or facilitator
Equine professional or trainer
Riding or horsemanship instructor
Equine educator
Therapist or helping professional incorporating horses into your work
Practitioner building an equine-related business
Professional exploring what's next
You don't need a particular certification, training program, or methodology.
What matters more is how you show up: with curiosity, generosity, respect and a genuine interest in learning from others.
Find Your People
Be Part of a Supportive Herd
Join The Founding Circle
We are about to launch. Apply now to gain founder access and benefits!
20 founding members maximum
Founding members will join at:
$35/month
Your founding rate stays with you for as long as you remain a member.
Membership includes:
Monthly 90 minute Connection Circles Hosted over Zoom
Private Hest Connections community
Member introductions
Peer conversation and support
Opportunities for collaboration and connection
A welcoming place to talk honestly about the work
Once the Founding Circle is full, new members will join at the current membership rate.
If a founding member leaves and later decides to return, they may rejoin at the then-current rate if space is available.
Small Is the Point
We’re not trying to build the biggest online community.
We want to build a good one.
A place where you recognize the names in the room.
Where you can ask a question without worrying about whether it's the "right" question.
Where someone remembers what you were working through last month.
Where a conversation can lead somewhere unexpected.
Where professional relationships can become meaningful relationships.
And where you occasionally leave thinking:
"I'm really glad I found these people."
Help Shape the First Circle
Hest Connections is beginning with a small Founding Circle.
We’re looking for 8–12 people to help shape the first community, with space for up to 20 founding members.
If you've been looking for more connection, perspective and community in this work, we would love to have you be part of it.
Founding membership: $35/month; limited to the first 20 members. Membership will begin once the minimum founding group is reached. At that time applicants will be surveyed to find the best mutual time to meet, based on Pacific Time zone. No payment is needed until launch.
How Onboarding Works
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Answer a few short questions so we can learn more about you and decide if you could benefit from joining our peer group.
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Once we reach enough applications to launch our first connection call, we will contact you with next steps to secure your space with payment and a community agreement, as well as a survey link to help identify the best time to host our monthly sessions.
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You will be invited to a private community group space (likely What’sApp) where we can talk between calls. You will also be invited to recurring Zoom call so you know when and how to join our first call.
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If after launch we still have a few spaces left for new members we would love for you to help share this resource with other equine practitioners. Also participating in surveys will help us refine our community and shape it’s future. You can be an active part of creating the support system you need!
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The sky’s the limited (mostly). Keep us continue to evolve and grow so we can fight isolation, improve our industry, and create the future we want to work in. Together we can build momentum and nourish change.