As most of you know, I recently adopted a little Beagle mix dog named Daisy. In many ways she is the perfect little girl. She adapted to crate training quickly, hasn’t chewed anything to death, got over her fear of cats, and seldom barks. She loves to cuddle, too.

But, Daisy has a couple little quirks that have caused me to spend my evenings watching Cesar Millan (The Dog Whisperer) on TV at night. 

1. She has learned to potty outside, but will only go when on walks. The backyard is her sacred living space and not to be soiled. Actually, I think she is just holding out so that she can train me to walk her more often than twice a day.
2. She gets overly excited when she sees other dogs on our walks. This results in barking and pulling on the leash or twisting around. She is not aggressive, but this can be pretty embarrassing and hard to handle.

And so, I have become a student (via video) of Cesar Millan and dog training. Some of what he says sounds familiar, almost like life coaching. He says things like:

• Your energy is everything. Focus on feeling and projecting a sense of calm confidence.
• You can change your energy by acting as if you are already feeling the way you want or thinking about something you love.
• Live in the moment (like a dog).
• Daily life should include exercise, discipline, rewards and affection.
• Don’t get stuck in the stories you make up about things.
• Maintain rules and boundaries that teach others how you want to be treated.
• Follow your instincts and respect your natural skills, personality, and position in the pack.
• When you lead your pack projecting calm, assertive energy, they will feel safer and do better.
• Remember that life is naturally simple and we humans like to make it complicated.

I’ve actually quoted Cesar to a couple clients today. Maybe I’m getting carried away with this whole dog/human training thing. But, I think living by these dog training principles, just might make my life better.

What about you? How would they impact your life?

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