It usually comes a few sessions in. A client watches their dog respond to a cue, walk calmly beside us, or settle more quickly than they expected. Then they pause, smile, and say something like: “Wait… are you training me right now?”

Spend time around toddlers and you start to notice something strange. Parents everywhere are seemingly speaking in the exact same way: “Come on…”; “Do you want to put your shoes on?”; “Should we go brush our teeth?”; “Let’s gooo.”

There’s a moment that happens at playgrounds everywhere. A toddler finds something interesting — a truck, a shovel, a bucket. They pick it up. They start exploring it. Another child walks over. And almost immediately, the parent steps in: “I think the other child wants to play too. You should share.”