As recital season is upon us in the dance world I thought I would reflect on the 15 years I danced. I learned more than just technique and dance moves in class, I learned life skills. Here are some of the lessons I still use today.

1. Practice Really Does Make Perfect

Ballet and most genres of dance look effortless but in reality, they take extreme dedication and concentration to master. After a while, the tricks you thought were impossible become second nature. Just like ballet, the skills you practice in daily life might seem hard in the beginning, but all that you need to do is practice. In my life, I really struggled with driving, but after years of practice, it has become something that is way easier! If you want to master it, practice it.

2. Everything Is Connected

When you dance, the placement of your body matters big time. If one finger is out of alignment, then you ruin the whole line in some cases. In our lives, different things can be connected that we do not even realize. It can be a dislocated disc in your back that can cause knee pain, or it can be an unhealthy relationship that could be causing added stress. If one thing is off, chances are other things are off because of that.

3. Be Flexible

Being flexible is not just a party trick, it also can be used as a way to live your life by. Plans change, situations can change in the matter of a second. Sometimes you need to be flexible in all aspects of life, not just the barre.

4. Be Present

Missing a dance class not only meant that you were behind on choreography, but it also means that you get to spend less time with your dance friends. Also when you go to class and you really are out of it people can actually get hurt. In life sometimes you need to just forget about the surrounding situations and just focus on the stuff you need to do.

5. It Is Okay To Make Mistakes

Making mistakes is a part of life, in order to learn things sometimes you need to fail first. In dance sometimes you will have to mess up on a trick, leap, or turn over a 1000 times to get it right once. Every time you fall you learn something that you can learn from.

6. Dance Like There Is No Tomorrow

In certain situations in life, you need to always remember that you need to work as if it's your last day to ever work, just like in dance you need to leave it all on the dance floor. When I got injured I never realized that it would be my last time for a while not dancing. Dance like it could be your last time on stage, and live like it could be your last day here. Life is uncertain, so go all out.

7. Respect

When I was dancing I learned so much respect for my teachers. That respect now is there for all people of authority that I meet. Some people I might not agree with, but they still have been given authority for a reason

8. There Are People Better Than You

During dance, I learned that some people were just better than me and I learned to be okay with that. However, at the same time, I worked so hard that I was indispensable. It should be the same with work and school, some people might be smarter, or just better, but work hard to make yourself indispensable.

9. Breath Through It

Sometimes the hardest things look easiest when you take a breath before you begin, like a giant leap, or a really difficult turn. Just like in life how sometimes you need to breathe through the hardest tasks.

10. Believe In Yourself

Believe in yourself and you can achieve anything. When you believe in yourself it is proven that you can do things that you never knew you could do. One time I was really struggling with a certain turn combination. After 2 years of struggling with it, I nailed it and still can do it to this day. Because I believed that I could, I did.

11. Friends Really Help You

When I was in dance the best part about it was my friends. I had so many awesome friends that would help catch me up on choreography when I missed class, help me stretch, teach me how to sew my pointe shoes, and even bedazzle my costumes. In life, the key to success is not what you know, its who you know. Friends help you stay grounded and see the whole picture.

12. Actions Speak Louder Than Words

One thing that I learned in dance is that actions speak more than words. I could tell a whole story by just using my face and dancing, just like I can show people who I am and what kind of person I am without even saying a word. Actions show others more than you think.

13. Do Not Worry About The Size

When I was dancing I was a size 6, but my costumes were ALWAYS sized large, and it really really messed with me for a time. But I realized that every place makes their sizes different, meaning that I could be a size 6 in one store, but a size 12 in others. It doesn't matter the number on the tag, it matters how you feel in the clothes. So what if it is a 2X, as long as it is how you like it, it's okay.

14. Sometimes When You Feel Resistance You Need to Push

Stretching was by far my least favorite part of dance. I hated the pain that can with being flexible, and I hated pushing through stretches to be able to gain flexibility. I learned that in life some of best things you will ever have will bring resistance, but when you fight through joy is on the other side.

15. Do it anyway

Some days I would not want to wake up at 5 AM to stretch, or I would not want to dance until 9:30 p.m., then have to go home to do homework. My best choice was dancing for as long I as I could. It brought my extreme joy, taught me how to work hard, provided me with an emotional outlet, and even changed my perspective on how so many things. Even though I did not always want to, I did it anyways and I have no regrets.