What did I learn?

I learned an incredible amount while at the Parelli Center for the Fast Tack! We had classroom time, demos, group riding, coaching sessions and more! With almost everything we did, I felt like I was almost struggling at first. Not to do the task itself, because I knew we could do most of the things the coaches asked of us, especially at home where there are less distractions. I felt as though there was not much of a connection between Savannah and myself.
It was frustrating for me because we have such a strong connection but something was lacking, some very important needed to advance with Savannah. Most of the horses in the class seemed predominately Left Brain and fairly confident. They did not worry about things and constantly let their mind wander. Savannah on the other hand is not like any of the other horses.
Even though she is innately a Left Brain horse (with learned Right Brain behaviors) she is a big worry wort. She (we) let her mind wander off into thinking "what if that person's carrot stick hits me, what if something comes out of the woods and attacks me, that barrel might eat me, that horse is going to attack me, etc". Why was I letting her mind wander off? Why was I not constantly trying to keep her attention on me? Shouldn't I be more interesting than what's going on over there? Umm hello! Yes I should! This is where we were lacking in our journey towards advancing, another reason why showing had previously gone down the drain with Savannah. I had NO mental connection! She was not thinking about me, but rather thinking about scary things. I had to do something about this! It was hard to try and complete certain tasks, especially in group riding because how can I possibly ask something of her when she is not even listening to me. So on we went into this new world. Whenever we were doing something, even just walking from her pen to the playground, I kept her mind busy. For example on our way to the playground I had her sideways from zone 5, then disengage, then back up, then more sideways, then disengage, then back up, then trot, and so on and so on. I became more particular with her and more effective with my phases, which meant having a more effective phase 4. Suddenly on the ground I was actually something Savannah thought about. Instead of worrying about things around her, she was paying attention to me and learning her responsibilities.
Undersaddle I took her ideas and used them. She wanted to go so we cantered cloverleafs in the honeycomb until she blew. Then we'd stop, back up, trot, walk, stop, canter, stop, sideways, etc. Getting my phases more effective while riding was also extremely helpful. Working on indirect rein with no reins to improve our circles, and indirect with no reins. Everything started to come together. Savannah was listening to ME, doing what I asked, and now was able to learn. Since she has such a busy mind, I must be busier. Now that we're home she is like a completely different horse. I hardly have to use my reins because she is actually listening to my body. She is much more confident and relaxed, and so am I!