Leadership story: Lessons of a lost horse when finding its way home

One day, a horse with no identifying marks wandered into a farmyard. It stood there, calm and unbothered, as the farmer and his young son examined it. The horse had no saddle, no brand, and no clue as to where it had come from. The farmer scratched his head, wondering what to do, but his son stepped forward with a determined look in his eyes. “I’ll take responsibility for returning the horse to its owner,” the boy assured his father. With that, he climbed onto the horse’s back, gently urged it towards the road, and loosened the reins, allowing the horse to move freely. Instead of trying to steer or control it, he let the horse choose its own direction, trusting that it would find its way home. As they traveled, the boy paid close attention, making sure the horse didn’t wander too far off course. If it stopped to graze, he gently encouraged it forward. If it meandered toward the fields, he guided it back onto the road. But other than these small corrections, he simply sat still and let the horse take the lead. Mile after mile, the horse moved with quiet confidence, as if it knew exactly where it was going. The boy remained patient, watching the landscape change as they passed farms, orchards, and winding country paths. He didn’t rush the horse or second-guess its choices. He simply kept it on the path and trusted the journey. After a long ride, the horse finally turned into a familiar-looking farm. It walked past the gate and toward the barn, where a man stepped forward, his face lighting up with surprise. “How did you know to bring it here?” the man asked, his voice filled with curiosity. “Hey, how did you even know it was our horse?” The boy smiled and responded with simple wisdom. He hadn’t known. He had trusted the horse. All he had done was keep it on the road.