08/26/2026
YOU’RE NOT EDUCATING THEM. YOU’RE ENTERTAINING YOUR SIDE.
We have trainers who spend all day talking about behaviour change. Reinforce what you want. Don’t create unnecessary conflict. Don’t rely on punishment. Build trust. Create safety. Make learning easier. Meet the learner where they are.
Great.
So why does all of that apparently disappear the second the learner is another trainer?
Because suddenly the strategy becomes mocking them, shaming them, calling them stupid, abusive, outdated or anti-science, and then acting confused when they don’t immediately become curious about your position.
How exactly is that supposed to work?
If your actual goal is to change minds, then your communication should make somebody more willing to listen. If your actual goal is education, then explain your position. Ask questions. Have uncomfortable conversations. Show your reasoning. Challenge ideas without turning the person into a villain. Give someone room to disagree with you without first requiring them to admit they’re a terrible human being.
That is what education looks like.
But if your post is basically, “I spent half my life feeling dumb. Then I discovered balanced trainers and realized there are people much dumber than me,” who exactly are you educating?
Certainly not the trainer you’re insulting.
You’re performing for the people who already agree with you. And if that’s the goal, fine. Just call it what it is.
It’s not outreach. It’s not education. It’s not changing the industry. It’s in-group entertainment.
And this is where the irony gets pretty hard to ignore.
Some of the same people insisting that punishment is an ineffective or unethical way to change dog behaviour seem incredibly comfortable using ridicule, social pressure, humiliation, exclusion and public shaming to try to change human behaviour.
Apparently punishment is useless right up until the subject is a trainer you don’t like.
Interesting.
And no, humans and dogs are not the same. That isn’t the point.
The point is that if your entire professional identity is built around understanding how behaviour changes, maybe you should be a little better at recognizing when your own behaviour is making change less likely.
People who feel attacked defend themselves. People who feel humiliated stop listening. People who are told they’re stupid rarely think, “You know what? Excellent point. Please teach me more.”
So maybe ask yourself one uncomfortable question:
Do you actually want the other side to learn, or do you want your own side to applaud?
Because those require very different behaviour from you.
If you want applause, keep mocking people.
If you want change, you might actually have to talk to them.
And for a profession so obsessed with behaviour change, I really shouldn’t have to explain that.