Yeah, this is my thinking face. I always look this fabulous when I am deep in thought.
So even before I found out I was losing my awesome teacher, I was feeling a little frustrated about dance. Not about dancing itself, but about feeling like I had hit a plateau and there was no change in sight. There were small technique victories, but I didn't feel like I was going anywhere. I had recently fallen into a funk and was slacking off on ballet class, home practice, and costuming.
There were two ways I could have gone: I could have taken this sudden change as an excuse to quit dance (or at least take a hiatus), or I could double down. Since I am not a quitter by nature, I am doubling down.
What exactly does that mean? It means that in 2014, I am going to treat dancing like a full-time job. Now obviously, I am not going to dance 8 hours a day, because I am not a teenager anymore and I also didn't start dancing as a kid, so I really just don't have the physical conditioning to even try that. But I am going to spend 3-4 hours a day dancing and working out, and then the rest of my 8 hour work day will be spent on costuming, research, web presence and other things related to my dance.
Jolie's a smart cookie, and she told me to think of 2014 as my cocoon. Instead of stressing about the future (or even about the present), I am going to focus fully on my own development. At the end of the year, I can see how far I've gone and decide what to do next.
The next month and a half is going to be all about getting ready to take that big step. I have to get things in my house in order so that I can easily stay on top of the cleaning while working full-time. I need to decide what I'll be doing for my training. I need to set a schedule for myself. I need to pick out some costuming projects to work on and make sure I have all the supplies I need. I need to have at least one more private lesson with Jolie to get her feedback on things to work on for the first couple months of 2014. I need to organize my calender for 2014 to make sure I'm not double-booked (I've already committed to a lot of workshops and events). And I need to coordinate with my husband to make sure that our schedules mesh well enough that we get to see each other every now and then.
I'm nervous and excited! I'll post more about my plans as I iron them out.
Sometimes it's just hard to see how much progress you've made. Watch a video from each year you've been dancing--you've come so far! <3
ReplyDeleteAw, thanks Rosey! :) I know I've made a lot of progress in the last couple of years, it's just that I've felt "stuck" in that I wasn't going anywhere with those new skills.
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