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Managing Work, Life and Volunteering – a conversation with Kate Ottavio Kent
17 Plays28 days ago
Kate Ottavio Kent is a mother, wife and the founder of KOK PR in Connecticut USA. Kate is also a volunteer at Ridgebury Farm.
Ridgebury Farm provides equine based therapy that supports individuals of all backgrounds and abilities in working to become the best version of themselves.
A similar organisation in the UK is Riding for the Disabled. In 1975 the BBC Children’s TV show Blue Peter annual appeal raised funds to provide Riding for the Disabled with a new pony. Viewers voted in a poll to select the name and called the pony Rags.
In this episode of the Abeceder work life balance podcast Rest and Recreation Kate explains how she planned her work commitments to enable her to volunteer.
Michael and Kate share experiences of learning to horseback riding, and the benefits of spending time with horses.
Kate explains her volunteering role at Ridgebury Farm, and the impact she has helped to create for the people who receive therapeutic services at the farm.
You will leave this episode understanding that the rewards that volunteering provide make the effort required to volunteer well worthwhile.
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Transcript
Podcast Introduction
00:00:05
Speaker
Made on Zencastr. Hello and welcome to Rest and Recreation, the work-life balance podcast from Abysida.
Guest Introduction & Topic Overview
00:00:14
Speaker
I am your host, Michael Millward, Managing Director of Abysida.
00:00:20
Speaker
Today, I am talking to Kate Octavia-Kent about managing work and life when life includes volunteering.
Zencastr Platform Promotion
00:00:30
Speaker
As the jingle at the start of this podcast says, rest and recreation is made on Zencastr. Zencastr is the all-in-one podcasting platform that really does make every stage of the podcasting production process from recording to distribution so easy.
Podcast Aim & Guest Details
00:00:49
Speaker
If you would like to try podcasting using Zencastr, visit zencastr.com using the link in the description and you'll get an automatic discount. Now that I have told you how wonderful Zencastr is for making podcasts, we should make one.
00:01:06
Speaker
One that will be well worth listening to, liking, downloading and subscribing to. As with every episode of Rest and Recreation, we won't be telling you what to think, but we are hoping to make you think.
00:01:22
Speaker
Today's Rest and Recreation guest is Kate Ottavia Kent.
Kate's Work & Volunteering
00:01:26
Speaker
who runs KOKPR.com and volunteers at Ridgebury Riders, a charity that offers different kinds of equine-focused therapy to help people lead better lives.
00:01:40
Speaker
Kate is based in Connecticut in the United States. It's a place that I have not only just visited, but also worked in, albeit for a very short period of time.
00:01:52
Speaker
When I travel to the United States or anywhere else, I make my travel arrangements at the Ultimate Travel Club because as a member of the Ultimate Travel Club, I can access trade prices on flights, hotels, trains, holidays and all sorts of other travel-related purchases.
00:02:09
Speaker
You can also access those trade prices on travel by joining the Ultimate Travel Club. There is a link in the description that has a built-in discount. Now that I've paid some bills, it is time to make an episode of Rest and Recreation and say hello, Kate.
00:02:28
Speaker
Hello, Michael. How are we today? Doing fabulous. How are you? I am also going to say I'm fabulous today because we have had long time of very warm, humid weather here in the United Kingdom.
00:02:42
Speaker
And now today it has rained. And I was out with my dog and got rained on and I thought, this is fantastic. She wasn't quite so pleased about it.
00:02:55
Speaker
Understandably. Yeah. And she demonstrated that displeasure when she got back by sort deciding to shake herself in the middle of the kitchen. but yeah But hey, you know, it's British weather, which isn't that dissimilar to Connecticut, really, is it?
00:03:11
Speaker
Not too bad. Yeah, ill I'll continue to send you cooler breezes from from the side of the Atlantic. Thank you very much. Thank you. Please could we start by you telling us a little bit about what you do with KOKPR and how you came to be running that and also how you started volunteering.
Equine Therapy & Work-Life Balance
00:03:29
Speaker
I graduated from Quinnipiac University here in Connecticut with my degree in public relations.
00:03:36
Speaker
in 2008, my goodness, and I thought I was going to be Katie Couric initially and decided I'd rather be behind the camera and found myself in in the field of PR.
00:03:48
Speaker
I, by some miracle, got a job out of college in a terrible, terrible recession here in the States and have fallen in love with it and worked in the space ever since, both at large and small PR agencies, as well as in-house at a tech company for a short stint.
00:04:08
Speaker
And after I had my son 2021, I realized I needed a real change of pace and started my own consultancy shortly thereafter in 2023.
00:04:20
Speaker
It was utterly terrifying scary to be out on my own for the first time, but I really thought that I had finally reached a point of experience and tenure in the space of public relations that I could stand at my own two feet and start KOK Public Relations. i promised myself two things that I would work with people I aligned with in that they are kind and productive people who just want to leave the world a little bit of a better place then than how they found it.
00:04:56
Speaker
And um I also wanted to have time for myself because I truly do believe that work-life balance is is possible. My version of work-life balance is is giving to others. I was raised to to give my time and you know whatever small funds that public relations pays to just just try to leave a a positive mark on the world.
00:05:22
Speaker
I grew up horseback riding, hunter-jumper. i had really, really missed it. As ah as an adult, I'd go to work and had limited time and funds to be able to ride horses.
00:05:33
Speaker
It's an expensive sport, certainly. From there, I found... This website, after doing a little bit of research about Ridgebury riders, not too far from me in Ridgefield, Connecticut, and they were looking for volunteers to help with therapy for individuals on horseback.
00:05:52
Speaker
I had always known about equine therapy where the horse is getting therapy. I had never heard about what they call hippotherapy, where a child in in this case at Ridgebury, and i I understand they do serve people of all ages, but I predominantly work with the kiddos, get speech, physical and occupational therapy on horseback. And there's something scientific about the motion and the rocking of the horse that actually helps support the therapy being done. So my job is very simple there. I get to hold the kiddos leg down to make sure they don't slide off while the therapist and the horse lead do their do their magic.
00:06:35
Speaker
And I do this once a week and spend about two or three hours at the barn. And I stick to a ah schedule of going on every Thursday.
00:06:47
Speaker
And so I know I have that predictability of when I'm able to go and kind of, to use ah an equine term, let the reins loosen on work and and life at home.
00:06:59
Speaker
And I say all of this with complete acknowledgement of the privilege that I have of having a supportive spouse who carries a ton of weight at home and has a full-time job himself and the flexibility that I created myself to be able to work and volunteer.
PR, HR, & Human Interaction
00:07:20
Speaker
Sounds like you've got it very well sorted. see the If PR has taught me anything, it's that you can plan until the cows come home. This is going to be very farm themed, apparently.
00:07:31
Speaker
ah But ah but things will things will come up. There is a lack of predictability in the PR space, of course. So I try my best to plan and be relentlessly protective of my schedule and what I set out to do every week.
00:07:47
Speaker
But I also have learned the level of flexibility that just helps me go with the flow. There is a balance even in that, isn't there? And I know that there are yeah there are lots of similarities between the way in which PR people work and the way in which HR people like me work as well. You can plan and you can plan and you can plan.
00:08:05
Speaker
And if everything works to plan, that is sensational. But it's like the, what's the best way to describe it? It's when you put the people into the plan that things develop their ah adaptability or you have to develop your adaptability on paper, on the screen.
00:08:27
Speaker
Your plan is perfect. But once you try to implement it with an employee or a PR client, that's when the complications come in and you have to have the adaptability.
00:08:39
Speaker
So true. So true. I think it drives ah drives my husband nuts because you you're trained almost to poke holes in things and come up with alternative plans and ideas to make sure you're fully prepared. And he's like, just give can you let it lie? It's fine as it is.
00:08:57
Speaker
But you're almost like you have this healthy sense of paranoia. And that's served me well so far in life. So it's a good thing. I i see it. Yeah, it's about working out what the the journalist or the person in the media is going to ask you about the information that you've presented them with and making sure that something that might not be good is actually presented as something that is better than it might actually be. And you've got to predict what the person's reaction is going to be, haven't you?
00:09:27
Speaker
Precisely, yeah. Are horses more predictable than clients and the media? That is a very good
Therapeutic Nature of Horses
00:09:34
Speaker
question. no There are all kinds of kinds, just like people. Horses have personalities. They have good days. They have bad days.
00:09:44
Speaker
And that's one of the things that i love most about horseback riding. I would consider myself type A. I don't know how much your you and your listeners believe in zodiac signs. I'm a Virgo. So we're driven to perfectionism.
00:09:56
Speaker
And ah horses are the only thing in my life outside of my toddler that have taught me patience. They don't care who you are. what you do for a living, what you look like, you, you know, have to muck their stalls.
00:10:11
Speaker
And if they have a bad day, and they say spook at something, you're getting thrown off. And it's a, it's a very humbling experience, to say the least. And it always happens in slow motion.
00:10:25
Speaker
course it's like for some reason when you see someone else fall off it's over in a second but it hasn't happened to me very often but i do remember the first time it happened and it seemed to take forever to slide down this horse's body and i think like, I'm going left, please go right, please go right. all this stuff I know what you mean about the different personalities of a horse and how they're very straightforward animals in lots of ways. If you can get them on in a good mood on a good day, you're going to have a great day.
00:11:03
Speaker
But if if they don't want to do something that you want to do, then it's going to be a painful day. Indeed, indeed. And it's interesting now you're making me think of when I'm working with a person and be ah a client, a reporter, ah be a colleague, a ah per love a friend, and there's being challenging or I'm trying to navigate something difficult with them. You want to shake them and say, why don't you just listen to what I have to say? Like, listen to my advice or listen to my guidance. With horses, I find myself being so much more patient
00:11:37
Speaker
you know, they don't, they don't speak our language, you have to Be gentle in your approach and work with them rather than against them. And gosh, there's a lot of parallel takeaways to parenting indeed as well.
00:11:53
Speaker
um So yeah, it's interesting. My approach with horses is just a lot more collaborative, I would say. Not that I'm a combative person, but they they don't speak our language. So you have to find unique ways to communicate with them on their terms.
00:12:08
Speaker
So your volunteering is helping the people that are receiving the the therapy, regardless of their age, but you're actually learning quite a lot from the volunteering.
00:12:19
Speaker
Indeed. It feels very selfish. it there's There's no such thing as altruism, right? You're giving of your time and your energy, yet you get such wonderful feelings from it and and life lessons.
00:12:32
Speaker
Yes. Yeah. There's no better teacher than a horse in some situation. When I first started riding on a regular basis, like you say, horse riding is an expensive hobby.
00:12:44
Speaker
And I'd done it as a child. And then yeah when you're setting up homes and or've got all sorts of bills to pay, it's it's it's something that you have to sort of forego for a while. But then you get to a point where you can, you can do it again.
00:12:58
Speaker
And you decide to do it a little bit more seriously. And having a grey gelding who was about 16 and a half, 17 hands high, and um realizing that there was no way i was ever going to be able to force him to do anything that he didn't want to do He weighed over a tonne.
00:13:19
Speaker
sort of thing and yeah you're in his stall with him grooming him and you know if you have given him a bad time he knows that if he moves six inches to the left you are pinned against the wall oh gosh yes it's a scary thought but it's so true yep Yeah, you have to respect these animals and you have to treat them well.
00:13:40
Speaker
And if you do respect them and you treat them well, they will also treat you well. He taught me how to ride. Not the instructor that I had. That horse taught me how to ride.
00:13:51
Speaker
Yes. I'm sure he had as much fun doing it as I did. Well said.
Hippotherapy & Rider's Journey
00:13:55
Speaker
But you're too you're getting people onto horses that have all sorts of challenges in life.
00:14:02
Speaker
know, I can remember being three or four and being put on a, a retired racehorse, so this thing was big.
00:14:11
Speaker
and I could walk underneath him and was quite happy to do that, but be put his back, where my legs were like stuck out to the sides rather than anything that was touching him, feeling very much at risk.
00:14:28
Speaker
you've You've got to build the confidence of people who have all sorts of challenges in life to actually be comfortable on the horse. That's so accurate. I will give full credit to the therapists who work their magic with these riders.
00:14:44
Speaker
I think what I can contribute and the and my fellow volunteers can contribute is just a sense of calm and reassurance. Riding a giant animal is probably terrifying to most.
00:14:57
Speaker
I started riding when I was seven and I just had fantasized about horses for my entire childhood. So I was one of those eager beavers ready to jump right on. But, you know, when you're a kid and then add ah maybe a speech challenge or a physical challenge on top of that, these are intimidating animals as gentle as they appear at first.
00:15:21
Speaker
the the beautiful thing too about most of the horses used in hippotherapy, both at Ridgeberry and other farms is that they're they're really well-trained and in the equine space, you call them bomb-proof because they're they're so well desensitized to things that would typically scare them. These are these are prey animals, right? They're they're inherently going to run away from danger. And these horses, there's something that they they just know that there is a gentle soul sitting on their back. And it's almost like you can sense that they protect their rider. So I really have the easiest job in the world volunteering there because I so i stand there and I cheer these these riders on and try to maintain a calm presence for both them and the horse. But um I've seen a lot of
00:16:17
Speaker
different approaches with this, with these riders. It's either like me where they're really excited to get on the horse and you don't even have a healthy dose of fear or yeah understandable reticence. And the therapists are really the heroes there where they get, um, get the kids on um,
00:16:36
Speaker
gently lead them through the process of getting comfortable. I worked with ah one young man who has been riding now more than two years. And when he first started, he would unfortunately be so upset the entire time he was on the horse for about 30 straight minutes.
00:16:52
Speaker
And now today, he loves to trot. He begs to to trot with the horse. And we call him a little cowboy because he's such ah a great rider. All it takes is time and patience and and great support around you. But is he riding Western style or European style?
00:17:12
Speaker
That's a good question. They ride with bareback pads most of the time. But i I started calling him that because he wears these really cute cowboy boots.
00:17:22
Speaker
What is a bareback pack? A bareback pad is almost like saddle pad that you put on the horse that just gives a little bit of space and support between the horse and the rider.
00:17:35
Speaker
But it's not like a full saddle? No, correct. It has a little handle at the top so the rider can grab it and feel a little bit more secure and comfortable. You see, when I've been on a horse, there is a sense that you you can feel the horse move, obviously, and you can sense how the horse is feeling ah by the messages that you get through the reins and, well, through your backside, really. You can sense how the horse is feeling and what the horse is likely to do.
00:18:05
Speaker
And that's with a full sort of saddle. So with that bare back pad, the rider is going to feel an awful lot of the movement of the horse.
00:18:15
Speaker
That's exactly accurate.
Rider-Horse Communication
00:18:17
Speaker
So what is the advantage of, I'm asking you technical questions and we're supposed to talk about your volunteering, but what is the advantage of a bareback pad over a saddle in this situation?
00:18:29
Speaker
Right. Oh, I should really leave this to the experts or have done more homework on my end, but there's there's something about the movement and the cadence of the horse that that translates to the body of of the person riding. And there's something about that that's supportive or helps amplify the therapy.
00:18:49
Speaker
In addition to all of the all of the general ah beautiful things about riding a horse, it's inherently calming for for most people. i know I say that and I have friends who are utterly terrified of horses, so it's not calming for all Horses are so attuned to your state. They can hear your heartbeat from four feet away.
00:19:13
Speaker
When you're nervous, they get nervous. When you're sad, they can feel that. So there's something that almost forces you to be present in your body and and really just go with the flow and and meet them on their level. That is so true. And I have experienced that. A friend of mine was learning how to be a horse whisperer.
00:19:39
Speaker
We helped them through, came along to be the guinea pigs for their training in the horse therapy with people. I was asked to do it with someone else who I didn't know. So i said, yes, because I'm fascinated by this whole approach.
00:19:52
Speaker
We were in a field with a group of horses and there's something nice about being in a field with a group of horses, but they were all ignoring me. And this field was on a hill. okay This person, equine therapist, said me, what sort of day have you had?
00:20:05
Speaker
And I said, well, it can only get better. I'm an HR person. I've had to deal with of those really irritating HR sort of issues. And they said, oh, how are you going to deal with that? I'm going to rise above it.
00:20:17
Speaker
Well, why don't we walk to the top of the hill then and rise above it? Okay, we're going to walk to the top of the hill. Literally and figuratively. We got to the top of the hill.
00:20:28
Speaker
I looked behind me and all of this, there must have been seven or eight horses in this field. Every single one of them had followed me to the top of the hill. who What was happened is that these horses, whilst you were down at the bottom of the hill, you had a negative sort of mindset.
00:20:45
Speaker
When you made the conscious decision to change your mindset and move to the top of the hill, they recognized that and they followed you because they recognized positive energy.
00:20:55
Speaker
Wow. Wow. that's That speaks to me, yes. Yeah, i think I don't know if there's science behind this. Something bigger than science. I believe it is true that these these horses are hyper emotionally intelligent when it comes to dealing with human beings. And they know the difference between being nervous because you're scared of something and nervous because you want to do the right thing.
Kate's Growth & Volunteer Riding
00:21:25
Speaker
yeah Yes, yes. I try my best to drag my friends, family and my son along to the barn whenever I can.
00:21:35
Speaker
When I tell them that my blood pressure just drops. the second i get onto the property, they get it when they when they arrive there.
00:21:46
Speaker
There's this fascinating juxtaposition to, ah you know hark back to your talk about work and the stressors of HR and the comparisons with public relations. It's a fast paced business. It's so human behavior based.
00:22:01
Speaker
I often find my shoulders cringed. creeping up to my ears in stress. And obviously owning my own businesses is different when I worked at big PR agencies, but there's this beautiful juxtaposition of just arriving at a stable at a farm and just having to inherently calm your nervous system you because you have no other choice. It's the environment.
00:22:27
Speaker
It's the horses. It's a beautiful, beautiful thing. And I totally agree with you. It's calming to be around animals. It's calming to be around a dog or a cat when what they want to do is just like sit on you. You don't really have any choice, but you will by just stroking a dog or a cat find your blood pressure is dropping because it's relaxing to do.
00:22:48
Speaker
And if you're on a farm, I totally agree with you. It's a very relaxing experience. And it's physical too. I think we yeah so often think of Rest and recreation as sitting or being passive. I've always been a very active individual growing up dancing and horseback riding. And I probably get no less than 10,000 steps in ah when I'm at the barn between chores and cleaning and walking around walking.
00:23:16
Speaker
with the riders. And that in and of itself is an inherently healthy thing to do for your body, not just getting the physical activities, but it boosts your endorphins.
00:23:28
Speaker
It's, it helps with your longevity. That in and of itself is a wonderful thing. I tell you, I feel very selfish. Here I am giving of my time to Ridgebury when really I feel like I'm the one who benefits.
00:23:42
Speaker
Right. So what does the future look like for your volunteering there? What's what's likely to happen next? i hope to volunteer until they kick me out. I started volunteering with them, i want to say in 2023.
00:23:56
Speaker
It's been an evolution of re-acclimating the world of of everything equine. So when I first met with them, i hadn't ridden a horse in gosh,
00:24:09
Speaker
10 years. So I was really rusty, even just being around the horses. i was having a hard time remembering certain things on ah what side to put the tack on Over time with my weekly visits, I've gotten back to a place, you know, they say it's like riding a bike in it. And it really is aside from, you know, now that I'm older and I don't have the same muscle, you know, structure and strength that I did when I was 17 and riding.
00:24:36
Speaker
just Just getting more and more comfortable. was so blessed recently. i started riding one of the trainer's horses. And obviously ah I pay for that.
00:24:47
Speaker
From there, one of the trainers asked me if I'd like to do some volunteer riding to make sure the horses are getting their exercise and and getting ridden. That was just so such an honor to me to be asked to ride in a volunteer capacity in addition to lessons so that I can work on my equine skills, but also help work the horses out in in a volunteer capacity. it It signaled to me that she thought I was you know skilled and and comfortable enough to be able to to ride horses together.
00:25:21
Speaker
Yes, to to help their their mental and physical state. So that's, that's kind of my evolution of of and reentering the world, not feeling super comfortable or or recognizing my patterns and then getting back on and riding weekly.
Importance of Horse Exercise
00:25:35
Speaker
So I hope I get to to just keep riding. Great, great. Because the great thing is that their horses, or the skills of the horses, make them valuable beyond their sheer market value.
00:25:48
Speaker
Indeed. The exercising of the horse, the schooling of them, is physical exercise, but I also think it's part of their mental well-being as well. So true. You don't want to be stuck in ah stall or alone in a paddock all day long. there's As long as you are being smart and gentle and collaborative in your riding and training, I think it's a beautiful thing. It's like how we do...
00:26:15
Speaker
crossword puzzles to keep our brains sharp. Horses need, most horses need that interaction and the ability to to work. They do. They do. ah When you say the horses need to work, you're not working. I know I'm not getting paid for it In fact, I'm paying for it.
00:26:35
Speaker
but it's <unk> quite infused about what it is that you're doing and it sounds great. I know it is great.
Podcast Conclusion
00:26:43
Speaker
And it's a real privilege to talk to you about it as well. Thank you very much. I really do appreciate your time today, Kate. It's been fantastic. Likewise, Michael. Thank you for letting me talk about my passion. I have the biggest smile on my face and and shout out to Ridgebury Riders and Ridgefield, Connecticut. We'd love to have anyone visit if they're interested, but um I just am so appreciative of them for giving me the ability to spend my time there.
00:27:09
Speaker
That's great. Thank you very much. And if you are in the United Kingdom and interested in getting involved with equine therapy and doing the support type volunteering, which Kate does here in the United Kingdom, there is an organization called Riding for Disabled that has been going for a long, long time.
00:27:28
Speaker
People of my generation may remember the BBC television program called Blue Peter, who raised money to buy and train. a pony for riding for the disabled, which was called Rags.
00:27:41
Speaker
That's a little bit of history for you there. Thank you very much, Kate. I am Michael Millward, the Managing Director of Abbasida. In this episode of Rest and Recreation, I have been having a conversation with Kate Octavia Kent from kokpr.com.
00:27:59
Speaker
You can find out more information about both of us at abbasida.co.uk. There is a link in the description. If you are going to volunteer, it's important to make sure that you are healthy.
00:28:12
Speaker
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Speaker
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Speaker
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00:29:02
Speaker
There is a link and a discount code in the description. I am sure that you will have enjoyed listening to this episode of rest and recreation as much as Kate and I have enjoyed making it.
00:29:13
Speaker
So please give it a like and download it so you can listen anytime, anywhere. To make sure you don't miss out on future episodes, please subscribe. Remember, the aim of all the podcasts produced by Abbasida is not to tell you what to think, but we do hope to have made you think.
00:29:31
Speaker
Until the next episode of Rest and Recreation, thank you for listening and goodbye.