Do you keep going or quit?
I love teaching. I love teaching because I get to learn in the process.
This last week I taught hip hop at a wonderful dance studio called Canadian School of Ballet in Kelowna B.C.. I've had the pleasure of teaching at their intensive for the last couple years. The dancers I worked with made me so proud with how they showed up and worked hard every day.
Here is one story that I was most proud of....
One of the classes had an average age 9. When I walked in there Monday I asked who had taken Hip Hop before. Only two hands went up and one had only taken my class the year before. So think about it, these little ones are walking into a class with a new teacher and new style probably feeling quite vulnerable.
I broke down the warm up for them then we start the piece of choregraphy I planned for them for the week. During a water break one of the dancers asked if I could do the whole piece for them.
Of course ! So I did.
After I was done a lot of them either through body language or words expressed their feels of "oh my goodness how the heck am I going to learn that?"
I promised them I would get them there and not to worry.
After the first class they walked out of there with their heads spinning a bit.
Tuesday when they came in they looked pretty good. I always say let it sit for 24 hours...
BUT... this gets good.
On Wedensday after working on it for awhile I asked them, "Who didn't think they'd be able to pick up this choreography on Monday when I showed it to you?" Just about everyone raised their hand. Then I asked, "Who has surprised themselves with how well they're actually doing." They all raised thier hands.
It was such a powerful learning moment for us all.
I said, "Did you know you are capable of doing hard things?"
Aha!
So we said that out loud a few times.. "I am capable of doing hard things"
I couldn't have been more proud of this group of dancers.
We are all capable of hard things.
This next week I am holding my dance intensive called The L.A.X.
I'm so excited to sit down with each group at the beginning of everyday to talk to them and give them mindset tools to get through the challenging week ahead with positive self talk.
I know each and everyone of them is capable of acheiving hard things.