General Riding Tips

Get with the feel of the horse to get the horse to feel you
Develop and maintain feel, timing, and balance
Practice patience and calmness
Build trust and respect while establishing leadership
Ask and release (the release of pressure is the horse's reward for attempting or completing a request from you.)
Learn the importance of using your legs to direct the horse
Have a clear mental picture of what you want the horse to do and present it to him in a way he can understand what he's supposed to do.
Think in terms of "help him do it" not "make him do it"
Don't try to do too much, too fast
Practice frequent stop and back sequences
Practice three speeds of walk, trot and canter (slow, medium, and fast)
Riding is controlling the direction and speed of the horse's feet.
If the horse becomes scared or excited, keep the feet moving in a controlled direction at a controlled speed.
Use hip disengagement to control horse bucking or bolting.
Be forgiving of lack of experience, but don't tolerate disrespectful behavior