Life Lessons Dance Has Taught Me
Hey there Dance Fam!
Seems I’m managing to keep up the one post a month routine which I am totally stoked about. Yipee! Anyhoo, for today’s post, I decided to share with you some of the lessons dance has taught me that translate to my everyday life. And without further ado, let’s get right to it.
1. Commitment
I’m not sure if you all know this but, dance, like most other things in life, requires a high level of commitment. It often involves long hours of rehearsing that end up culminating in just maybe three minutes on stage. It, therefore, requires a level of commitment because honestly speaking, sometimes you’re just tired and don’t want to dance but you simply have to push through it. Having already practiced this virtue through my dancing, I have found I am able to translate it seamlessly into my everyday commitments. From work to family and even relationships (both romantic and platonic). I’ve learned that things will not always be rosy, fun or easy, but if you stick with them (within reason of course), long enough, it will always truly be well worth it.
2. Confidence
This might be self-explanatory but damn has my dancing greatly contributed to my overall confidence. Being a dancer means you are in front of people a lot and they are constantly judging you. Is she fit enough? Is her routine creative enough? You name it. But because I’ve been dancing for so long now, I’ve managed to push past letting what other people think of me stop me from pursuing anything in my life, both dance and non-dance. Don’t get me wrong, I do still have my moments of insecurity like everybody else, but dance has taught me that if you consistently work at something, you will excel. And the more you excel, the more you start to believe in yourself.
3. Patience
This is one of those things I feel I will always be working on, although I truly have come a long way in. Patience is a virtue that for some simply does not come naturally. I am one of those people. I like to see results immediately. That’s not particularly rational or logical but hey, in my head it makes sense. I can, however, attest to the fact that dance has taught me a great deal about patience. From the long and sometimes brutal rehearsal hours to the highlight moments in my career being stretched out and never really certain. I have learned that progress only comes with time, and most times it is slow but sure progress. I am now able to catch myself when I am being unreasonably impatient in simple day to day life stuff, and I simply make myself take a chill pill.
4. Passion
If you’ve followed my dance journey for a while now, you know full well how passionate I am about dance. I mean I started out at the age of 6 with simple (at the time they really were not simple), liturgical dances. I then self-trained in Hip Hop and in 2011 I officially launched my dance career. So, in retrospect, I have been in the game for 9 years now. I know, almost a decade man! And the only way I have been able to stick with it all this while is because I am passionate about dance. You may not know this as I choose to only share my highs on social media but I have experienced a whole lot of lows in my dance journey. In fact, I like to say that my biggest heartbreaks have been from my dance journey. But still, somehow, I always find the strength to get back up and keep dancing. Because of PASSION!!!
I have learned to translate this energy to other aspects of my life as I have seen the results passion can reward me with. Don’t get me wrong, it’s not possible to be passionate about everything. But bear with me because what I mean is simply being passionate about your life. Not being a spectator in your own life but actively partaking in it. Actively, intentionally and purposefully pursuing the life you desire, from financial freedom to a healthy lifestyle to your dream job or home. Be passionate, you will yield results!
5. Time
This by far has been the greatest lesson in my dance journey; TIME!!! Timing is everything in dance, even missing a few counts could literally alter an entire routine. Dance has taught me how precious time is and to use it well. I’ve learned to respect my time and other people’s time. I’ve learned to show up on time for work, interviews, coffee dates with friends, flights, literally everything in my life. And yes, every once in awhile, I will run late but I have made it a point to always be conscious of time. This has improved my overall productivity as I am able to allocate tasks accordingly without overstretching myself but at the same time ensuring I am as productive as possible.
I am one of those people that has a daily ‘to-do’ list thanks to Google Keep! I am able to schedule everything I need to take care of for the week and this has proved to be the most effective way for me to achieve all my goals. I highly recommend this to anyone feeling overwhelmed or like they’re not doing enough and that time is slipping away. Jot down everything you wish to accomplish for the week, month, year and then break it down to daily achievable tasks and watch yourself make time work for you!
That’s all for now. Dance has definitely taught me many other life lessons but I felt the above five were the most impactful in my life and I wanted to share them with you. I would love to hear what life lessons different things in your life have taught you. From that difficult job, to travel to friendships. Whatever it is, I would love to hear all about it so do leave a comment below.
As always, until next time,
Love & Light,
The Dancing Biochemist.
