A reflective look at what dance has taught me (aside from dancing).

     The idea for this post stemmed from another blog post written by Claire Issacs called: Just keep running. In this post she believed that her dance training had taught her to "never give up" and that had aided her into being able to run two marathons! Which led me onto thinking what had dance taught me. With the inspiration from Claire, I have compiled a list of the most important lessons I've learnt and also involved personal stories which have led me to grow. I believe all these aspects could be applied into many other jobs and professions. 

    This list is mainly written to all the dancers out there as a reminder that they're so much more than "just a dancer". Also to those who may be approaching the end of their career and insecure about what exactly they have to offer the world after dance. It's otherwise directed to all the ignorant people who get confused as to what ballerinas do: "Do you just spin on your toes all day?" I think not...

1. Discipline, military speaking.     

    Let’s start with the most obvious. The precision, respect and determination of classical ballet is comparable to military training. Preparing for a performance is like preparing for war: laying out all of your necessary equipment and costume in its best form, performing in a highly stressful environment, rising to the challenge, being creative and adaptable to the situation, following orders, working as a team, looking out for your co-soldiers/dancers, playing the role as given to your rank. All these attributes need to be conducted by a very high level of discipline in order to succeed. 

2. The importance of respecting health and maintenance of the body. 

    My body is my greatest tool, therefore my job relies on it to maintain its optimum physicality. I often get asked if I have to be careful about what I eat, as unfortunately ballet does have that link to eating disorders, and especially female bodies are required to be lean and slender. But I've found it's more important for me to feed my body with the correct food to keep my energy levels high, and to give my body the correct nutrients and minerals for the fastest recovery. Having to work so closely and intently with my body has taught me to not neglect any signs of discomfort, and treat my body with the upmost respect in order to execute the high skill level that dance requires. On this matter, I've recently listened to one podcast called SciDance, where the speaker, Matthew Wyon, states that "to do high skill you can't be working hard, in other words you can't have a high physical intensity and do high skill at the same time." What I took from this is that I need to adopt a certain kind of ease and control as to not push my body in ways that will hold me back.   

3. Mind, body and soul connection. 

    The three fundamentals of the human existence need to be fed equally to create the best results. It's not that one need be used without the other. With everything I execute I try to encompass my thought, physicality and spirituality in harmonious balance. That hasn't always been easy for me and  anyone who knows me will confirm I'm driven by my emotions. After dropping out of ballet school with a lot of frustration, I then carried that into my first job. I had to learn to take control of the times when it felt unfair, or when my emotions drove me towards a destructive feeling, which had a detrimental effect on my physical being. I used my brain to put matters above my heart, and learnt that everyone has to handle rejection which takes a "matter-of-fact" approach. I learnt to trust that whatever was happening and given to me would happen at the precise time when I was ready for it.  

4. The importance of routine. 

    Every day starts with ballet class. If I don't prepare all the things I need to do before class, it simply feels "off". Daily repetition is something which I've heard from many life coaches and spiritual guides. Finding your daily flow of necessities is there to give freedom to other splendours and ideas to flourish. 

5. The realisation of achieving in something great. 

    I often forget how making it as an artist who can actually sustain a living out of it is something quite remarkable. The possibility of achieving greatness in my field and gaining the respect and courage to aim high is not something just given to me in ballet, but in everything I hope to approach in life. 

6. Connecting with a global network. 

    Ballet has let me be part of a global community of artists. Ballet is a language which requires no understanding. Consequently, I now have friends from around the globe, from all walks of life following a similar goal. Thanks to social media we are more than ever connected in a way that we can share about our art, feel inspired, motivated and be united. 

7. Trust.

    I've had to learn to trust my partners and allow my whole self to be led and lifted. You start by learning to control your own body, then you must re-learn to let someone else control it. A physical trust starts with a mental one, and as far as I know you can't trust somebody else unless you trust yourself first. I've also had to trust my teachers and mentors, who've guided me. I've had times when I haven't always agreed with them, and I've nonetheless had to trust them to bring out the best in me. 

8. Dissipation of the ego.

    I think many of us can relate to having a childhood in dance where we excelled and were selected. We were told that we would make it, and it seemed that everything would be given to us on a plate. It doesn't take long to understand that it doesn't work like that. The childhood dreams get stolen, and yet the false expectations feed the ego. The ego requires taming when unrequited attention is given. Which leads on to my next point...

9. Working everyday on direct self improvement. 

    Our work requires constant self improvement. The way we can improve most in our job, is the work we do privately on ourselves. I know that Jordan Peterson is an advocate on "the only way we can better the world is by working on ourselves." The body does not hide anything and we must work constantly to understand and apply the best of us to get the best outcome. 

10. Perseverance to overcome fears and battles. 

    Leading back to why I made this post: the phrase "never give up". I've had times where I've felt entirely broken and given my power to people who have not at all deserved it, but something makes me come back every time stronger and wiser. I'm now thankful to all the people and situations who've brought the worst out in me in order for me to overcome and learn a different, better "me". 

    I am sure there are many other points and factors to learn from dance. It's quite endless. But those are the particular ones that stand out for me. It's easy to argue that I couldn't have made it as a ballerina without those attributes to begin with, but trust me, I've really had to evolve to fit dance. That's not to say that there are not numerous dancers who naturally have what it takes, but I believe learning 'how to be' only has made me more conscious and grateful about those given attributes. What have you learnt from dance? Are they different from my list? Do you think I left anything important out?

  Finally, I believe ballet has taught be true happiness, love and acceptance of myself.