We’ve recently been through a lot as a dance studio with participating in the gruelling competition season as well as competing at the UDO world championships. The final stretch for the year is upon us as we go begin an intensive training season and working towards the Dance Sport Club League Nationals in Cape Town at the end of October. Due to all the unexpected changes, there has been need for a regrouping of sorts - which has lead us to have much-needed conversations around certain subjects and topics that often get overlooked.
We’ve had meaningful conversations around:
Grit: Stick to what you’ve committed to and follow through on your goals and aspirations. The tough times will come but you can’t circumnavigate them, you have to build your resolve and work through them.
Related to relationships & friendships: Although we want to believe that they will last forever, people change and relationships get affected. We often teach kindness and respect and even endevour to apply this in every circumstance.
Communication: Although we express ourselves through body language, verbal or written communication is needed. Ensure that you communicate clearly and as often as possible. Have the hard conversations.
Commitments / persistence / resilience: Stick to your word. Follow through and change things only if absolutely necessary. This shows character. You have to build it.
Forgiveness & dealing with conflict: You must forgive yourself and others constantly. Offence cannot be given - only taken; so try to look at things from other perspectives. Conflict does not have to be the consequence of confrontation. Challenge things and disagree - without being disagreeable.
Bravery & Truth: Speak your mind AND the truth. Admit when you’re wrong or have fallen short. This is the way to do better next time in order to move forward.
Dealing with changes: and inevitable fact of life is that this is constant and our dancers have shown that they are able to whether changes through quite mortal circumstances and come out stronger on the other end. Whether it’s choreography, techniques or even dance teachers; our community has built together and support each other with tremendous success.
Unique Experiences: Dance Culture Studios, unlike the vast majority of studios, has a male studio owner. Coupled with a female head dance coach, the brings about a perspective and experience that, in my experience and opinion, provides a balanced approach to developing the child as well as the Dancer. Males have a different effect and results in lessons being learned in a more direct way.
Commitment is not trivial. It is not something that you can, on a whim - or out of emotion - decide that it’s no longer serving you. As with everything, there are exceptions. At the studio we tried to teach, through practising it, that when we give our word, we follow through. We might not always get it right, but that intention is our modus operandi.
See you on the dance floor.
Quintus
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