Category: Insight and Inspiration

Mariana Rodrigues is a Coryphée with DCD Partner Company Northern Ballet and a DCD REACH Ambassador:

“To all the dancers out there, I feel you.

We miss our daily routine, the high of performing, standing next to your mates at the barre, the freedom of moving through space without hitting the furniture…but we are doing our part by staying home. Being aware of the impact of this pandemic in people’s lives, I understand the bigger picture and take the time to connect to the world through a different lens. I stay at home and feel grateful for all the people out there working day and night to keep us safe. I feel for others that are sick and for their families. It is hard not to worry or be overcome with sadness sometimes. But I am grateful for the human capacity to adapt, and smile as I look through my feed and see our art form still alive and expressing itself in the form of online content, taking creative forms it never had before.

My personal journey is a little different since a month prior to lockdown I was still off injured with a metatarsal fracture. So in some way I already had gone through the sadness of not dancing and performing, but also of not being able to walk everywhere I wanted, because of being on crutches. The thing is, it’s not easy, and some days are going to be hard.

But as I started opening up to the experience I learned some really important things:

Take the stressful and not so nice aspects of our jobs away, and an opportunity comes to be reminded of the beautiful things in it. Since I have started exercising and doing barre again, I appreciate it so much more. I have realised that the main reason I enjoy dancing is because it makes me feel connected to my body, my whole being and also something greater than myself. So when my brain starts judging how much stiffer my arabesque looks, I shift my focus to how good it is to feel my whole body moving again.

I am also appreciating the gift of time. Time to discover who I am outside of dance and time to connect with other interests and passions. Being a creative person I struggled initially when I forced things to happen and decisions to be made. I must use this time to do a course! I must know exactly what my next career will be! I saw a pattern in the thoughts inside my head and remembered something I had learned in a coaching session. I was caught up in all the “musts” and was leaving the “wants” behind. With that in mind, I shifted my focus and started researching courses and careers without pressure. Even if it hasn’t lead anywhere concrete so far, I am now seeking new things without the extra pressure of having to make decisions right away and learning to be OK with not being sure of what I want to do yet.

Having had coaching sessions has helped me immensely and I really recommend them if you are choosing to navigate this territory, and feel like you need a bit of support. Every time I have come out of a session I have felt so much more connected with my passions and with who I am. I have also left equipped with resources and a clear action plan to support my goals. I am still working on what we discussed in my previous session, but once I am done, I will definitely be booking myself another one.

Lastly, I wanted to finish by saying that, if you are like me, you might just be feeling like you are not helping and contributing enough. Teaching a class, calling friends of family, checking on your neighbours, posting creative content for people to watch at home…all of those things bring positivity into people’s lives and we shouldn’t underestimate their effect.

So let’s keep giving, let’s keep moving, let’s keep connecting with ourselves and others and let’s keep learning.

A big virtual hug to you all.”

To find out how DCD can help support you, including Personal and Career Coaching which we are offering for free to all UK professional dancers over April May and June, click here.

There are many positives to creating space.

Creating space in our lives can allow us to think freely and energise us for whatever is to come. It can empower us to notice new things or to come back to our intentions – settling into ourselves and noticing our own voice. Creating space for you gives you time to reflect on where you are on your journey and perhaps your next steps.

Generating this time for ourselves can be difficult. It may seem unimportant and automatically fall to the bottom of the list as you respond to the needs of others. But creating space for you can lead to powerful moments.

All of DCD’s programmes offer the opportunity to create space for you in some way.

Through our one to one conversations or Coaching sessions you are allowing yourself time for you.

EVOLVE workshops also offer the opportunity to invest in yourself and perhaps find out something new.

As we start the beginning of a new year and a new decade, DCD invites you to create some space for yourself and connect with us through one of our national programmes, so that you may move forward positively, whatever that looks like for you.

Discover something new about yourself and click here to sign up for EVOLVE Edinburgh – 22 March 2020

Explore the positive changes you may want to make in your life or career – click here to register for Coaching.

A conversation with DCD can help you find clarity about your next step – click here to register for a confidential one to one conversation.

This Autumn DCD are excited to be introducing a brand new feature to our EVOLVE workshops, practical sessions on how to identify your strengths and transferable skills.

A common term, a transferable skill is an ability or skill you have developed in one part of your career or life, that could be used in another part, whether that’s skills developed from parenting experience for example, or working as a performance artist.

A professional dance career results in hugely valuable skills, that can at times be taken for granted by dance artists.

Skills such as resilience, self-discipline, self-motivation and commitment are critical to success in any field of work, whether you are moving on from a performance career to work for an employer or to run your own business.

Most careers will need the attributes of hard work, willingness to learn and take feedback, an artistic eye or creativity, the art of collaboration etc.

These are skills dancers inherently possess. Where you might feel there are gaps in your skills set for a particular future career path, there are a myriad of ways you could potentially develop these while you’re still dancing – from volunteering on a team, to offering to coordinate a project to develop the skill of collaborating or project managing, for example.

So what are YOUR transferable skills? At DCD’s EVOLVE workshop, we will take you through exercises to help you identify these for yourself, practically enabling you to highlight these skills on a CV or in job interviews in the future.

Register now! thedcd.org.uk/evolve

Last Autumn, I had the honour of giving the alumna speech at the University of Lincoln graduation ceremony.

I never thought I would have the privilege of addressing those accomplished graduates sitting before me, as I sat myself 10 years ago, when I graduated with my BA (Hons) in Drama.

In fact, there are many things I couldn’t have imagined!

I never could have imagined the excitement of moving to London and learning arts administration at Freshwater Theatre Company; then later, working in arts and mental health at Squeaky Gate; and now supporting professional dancers move into their post-performance careers at DCD. I never thought I would become a trustee of Moving Assembly Project; or that I would become a certified personal and career development coach and start my own business supporting people from all walks of life to achieve their potential.

And here is what all those experiences have taught me:

The scope of what you can do with your skills is exceptionally broad.

When I left university, I didn’t have a solid plan or goal in place, other than a determination to move to London and establish a career in the arts. And yet I have done things that I never thought I could and have worked in roles that I never even knew existed.

An Arts degree and working in the arts equips us with unique skills including imagination, creative thinking and courage. Not everyone possesses this, so make the most of it.

I have learned the importance of taking the time to get to know yourself really well – what motivates you and excites you as an individual. I have worked one-to-one with around 700 people, and no two of them are the same. They all have entirely unique stories to tell. I believe in the value of not comparing myself to anyone else, being true to myself.

And finally, to always follow my heart. To seek and take opportunities to grow. To be brave and embrace the challenges. To remember to celebrate my successes. And most of all, to do what makes me happy.

When I was at school, my father told me: you are at work a long time, so do something that you love. I have always and continue to make my career decisions based on this advice, and I’d encourage you to do the same.

You can watch my speech by clicking here.

Actress turned writer and entrepreneur Felicia Ricci gave a TED Talk (watch it here), speaking about being ‘racked with doubt’ when making the decision to move away from her professional and lifelong dream of acting.

When dancers come to talk to DCD about what direction their lives will take after a professional performance career, they so often express the same anxiety and doubts – they can be unsure of the next step, whether it will be a success, whether it is the right move.

I myself am currently going through a significant life change – a major lifestyle choice I decided to make that affects my career, my family, my home. It fills me with excitement as well as doubt.

Whatever the major shifts we make in our lives, nothing ever really prepares us for the unexpected challenges that go along with those changes, despite the best laid plans.

That’s part of the thrill and also part of what can hold us back from taking that first step in making the change we want to make in our lives.

What if after making this change, I change my mind? What will everyone think? Will I have failed?

These are natural thoughts, and it is important to give them space and acknowledge them.

So that first idea of career change wasn’t THE one after all – that’s OK (it often isn’t). You changed your mind, after really putting your all into it – that’s fine.

We try new things. We succeed. We fail. We grow.

More often than not it will not be easy and there will be many surprises (both good and less so) along the way, as I have personally found. What is important is to be open to new experiences, to try new things, to give yourself the time you need to adapt to the changes in your life and career.

Change is scary, but try to take that first step. If it seems daunting, DCD’s coaching support for dancers can help you find a way to put your ideas into action.

DCD is here at any stage and any time to help support professional dancers through that journey.

Find out more about coaching here or email dancers@thedcd.org.uk to register for our forthcoming EVOLVE workshops – a full day workshop for professional dancers exploring life after a dance career.

New Year’s resolutions…they are a waste of time and I don’t make them! Why? “Resolutions” made at a time when social pressure and an arbitrary date in the diary dictate that we “should” decide things, are doomed from the start. A controversial viewpoint, you may think? Well, let’s start with the facts:

• Around 43% of people make New Year’s resolutions.
• Of those, close to 4 in 10 have broken them by the end of January, while a further third only keep them up for six months.[1]

I have a theory as to why. First, New Year’s resolutions are made using our conscious mind—the logical front brain part—which, like a captain of a ship, sets the direction for the crew. I’ll come back to the crew in a moment.

Secondly, most of the time New Year’s resolutions are not actually goals. How many of us set New Year’s resolutions like, “I’ll go to the gym three times a week,” or “I’ll give up smoking” or “I’ll create a better work-life balance”? These are not goals.

Why not? A goal is an outcome, not the thing or action you do to get the outcome.  Sometimes the actions themselves may not excite us, but a great goal should! So ask yourself why do you want to go to the gym three times a week? What will stopping smoking really do for you? Getting the right higher level goal can be a powerful motivator and push you through the actions you’ll need to take in order to succeed.

In the example—“I’ll create a better work-life balance”—what does a “better work-life balance” mean, specifically? To increase your chances of success, goals need to be S.M.A.R.T. (Specific, Measurable, Achievable, Realistic, and Time-bound) and positively stated (i.e. what you want, rather than what you don’t). They also need to have action plans that will help you achieve them. To increase your chances of success, you need to have the right number of goals—enough to excite you and few enough that you can channel your energy into each one you’ve set.

And here’s the fundamental, pivotal thing about setting successful goals: They need to be powerful and motivating enough that you are driven to overcome any obstacles that crop up on the way. Bob Proctor, international coach and motivational speaker, said, “Set a goal to achieve something that is so big, so exhilarating that it excites you and scares you at the same time. It must be a goal that is so appealing, so much in line with your spiritual core, that you can’t get it out of your mind. If you don’t get chills when you set a goal, you’re not setting big enough goals.”

His point about the spiritual core is critical—remember the captain and crew analogy?  Think of the crew as your spiritual core, your unconscious system. It needs to pull in the same direction as the captain for the boat to arrive at its destination. If the goal isn’t congruent with your core, the crew won’t work with you to achieve it.

The New Year’s resolutions that you set at five to midnight, or in the haze of the morning after the night before, will have been made without a genuine plan to achieve them and probably won’t be very compelling. Can you imagine a world class company like Microsoft or Apple setting goals on 31^st December that they haven’t thought about and made a plan to achieve? That would just be another name for wishful thinking! Successful companies have to align their global resources to achieve their goals, and so do you, using the full resources of your mind and body.

But, it is good to set goals—the right ones. Research shows that people who clearly set goals or make resolutions are ten times more likely to achieve them than those who don’t explicitly make them.[2]

So, how can you check that the goals you’re setting are important enough? There are four great questions you can ask yourself, and it’s worth taking the time to go through all four, writing down your answers:

1. What will happen if you do achieve this goal?
2. What will happen if you don’t achieve this goal?
3. What won’t happen if you do achieve this goal?
4. What won’t happen if you don’t achieve this goal?

These questions will help you to map out the consequences of achieving or not achieving your goal, and with that knowledge you will get a sense of motivation and importance. If at the end of the exercise you’re not highly motivated to achieve your goal—it may be the wrong goal to set and you probably won’t take the required actions. Very quickly you could be beating yourself up for not doing something you were never fully aligned to do!

Having said all of that, this time of year is a good time for clearing and making room for new seeds to grow. It’s nature’s rest time—the leaves are gone, the fields lie empty, many animals hibernate—and in nature’s cycle, it’s an essential phase before new growth can come. For we humans, it’s a great time to do the “maintenance jobs” we have in our lives—the clearing out, the repairs, the “down time” we need to give us the energy for the growth phase. That could be physically clearing out the junk we’ve accumulated, finishing outstanding jobs, or maybe letting go of emotional baggage that’s been weighing us down. By clearing this stuff out, we make room for newness; we clear the soil for planting. We give ourselves a chance to grow even more vigorously towards our goals.

Nature works in a cycle of rest, rebirth, blooming, shedding and rest again. What makes us any different? How can you make room for growth in your life? What earth do you need to clear? And what seeds do you want to plant?

I’d encourage you to think beyond the coming year too. Some seeds take longer to grow than others and bring richer fruit and rewards that make the wait worthwhile. If we only focus on what we can harvest this year, we’ll be missing out.

What do you want to plant this year that will bring you fruit and reward in the years to come? Which areas of your life do you want to blossom more in the future? Whether it’s your career, relationships, personal development, hobbies or health, consider what it is you actually want and how you’ll know when you’ve got it. Take a few minutes to dream about achieving it—what you’ll see, hear, feel and say to yourself in that moment. Mental rehearsal is a powerful tool in motivating yourself. And flexing the mental muscles is a great way to get the captain and crew working well together.

Have I just talked myself into setting New Year’s resolutions after all?  Not quite, but I have paused for a moment to think about how I’m going to prepare the ground for success this year and beyond, and what seeds I’m going to select based on the flowers and fruit I really want to enjoy at the end of the growth season. And I know that choosing the right ones is critical to my commitment to take action and to increasing the possibility of fully achieving them.

So, good luck with choosing your resolutions, and enjoy the fruit of your labours when it comes!

Checklist for Setting & Achieving Successful Goals:

• Choose the right ones and the right number to motivate you
• Use the 4 powerful questions to help you decide
• Imagine achieving them and align the captain and the crew towards the goal
• Create your action plan
• Identify potential obstacles and make a plan to overcome them
• Identify the resources that could help you—that might include a coach to help keep you motivated and on track
• Keep taking action
• Enjoy and reward yourself for your success!

“We must always change, renew, rejuvenate ourselves; otherwise we harden.”   Johann Von Goeth, 1749 – 1832.  German poet and writer.

[1] Source: The Telegraph, 20^th December 2008

[2] Source:  Auld Lang Syne: Success predictors, change processes, and self-reported outcomes of New Year’s resolvers and nonresolvers, by John C. Norcross, Marci S. Mrykalo, Matthew D. Blagys, University of Scranton. Journal of Clinical Psychology, Volume 58, Issue 4 (2002).