John's pointers

I watched his student ride (and jump), then I rode him just for a bit to feel how he was doing.
I love the lower frame and the impulsion and moving in front of the leg. That's what Shannon and Mike have had me working on, but to feel what it is supposed to feel like - wow. I hope that I don't ruin this and we can keep it up. It felt great.
We worked on bending him to the inside (on the LEFT) and planning the inside bend ahead of the "periscope" zone, then I actually, counterintuitively, loosen my hands (just straighten my elbows a tiny bit) and ride him forward off the leg through the spook zone. I also do a bit of a side pass - pushing him out into the spooky place. This worked incredibly well, but was really hard for me to do. Willig is bracing himself on my hand, and I'm also doing all the thinking for him, which will not do me any good out on a cross country course down the road.
Then when we went RIGHT (his easy bend side), I held my right hand steady and then did the squeezing him into the bend using my left hand. This was funky but also worked.
So the big tip was the arm straightening to loosen the reins and ride him forward off the leg.
Also, John was a lot more easy going about him being spooky or scared. He was just like "eh, ok" and then made him work harder towards the spook, so it was less work for Willig once he figured out it didn't serve him any purpose.
John pointed out that there's a big difference between, in my words, being frustrated and beating your head against the wall every time you ride, and making slow but steady progress. He thinks Willig can make progress, but I've been viewing it as a head-beating since he's nowhere near where I originally expected him to be. So, again, it depends on what I want. I took away the message that with a lot of time, a lot of lessons, and some training, Willig might turn out alright - but I will almost certainly be a better rider for it. But Willig should not have been sold as an amateur horse.
I really enjoyed the quick lesson from him. I felt like he did a great job explaining everything, and it feels like he keyed in on what I've been working on with Shannon and Mike, only he was able to do it faster and better. I think lessons with him, down the road, would be really great. Of course, he's got different preferences than Mike, and I can see how Shannon's lessons with him affect her style a bit. It was really educational.