How does Schiller's idea of doing less and being more apply to building the bond?

Warwick Schiller's concept of doing less and being more is one of his most frequently articulated principles, and it has specific application to relationship-building that distinguishes his approach from trainers who measure progress primarily through exercises completed and behaviors achieved. Doing less refers to reducing the number of asks, exercises, direction changes, and demands in a session — creating more space for the horse to process, to offer voluntary responses, and to simply be near the handler without the constant pressure of training. Schiller's observation is that many handlers are in constant training mode around their horses — every interaction is an opportunity to reinforce something, correct something, or achieve something. Horses with these handlers may be technically well-schooled but show no particular preference for the handler's company and no particular relaxation in the handler's presence. Being more refers to the quality of the handler's presence — the emotional regulation, the attentiveness, the genuine interest in the horse's experience — that makes the handler worth being near. A handler who is calm, curious, and genuinely present is qualitatively different to be around than a handler who is physically present but mentally somewhere else, or who is present but always in task mode. Schiller recommends specific practices for cultivating the being-more quality: putting away the phone during horse time, making deliberate eye contact with the horse and noticing its expression, breathing slowly and consciously when around the horse rather than holding breath or breathing shallowly, and setting aside specific time that is explicitly not for training but for simply being with the horse. The paradox he identifies is that handlers who invest in this kind of quality time — doing less, being more — often find that their formal training sessions become more productive, not less. A horse that is genuinely bonded to its handler is more attentive in training, more willing to try, and more trusting when asked to do something new or difficult. The relationship investment pays dividends in training that cannot be achieved by training alone.