Writer and dancer Sarah Jukes wrote a blog post titled 6 Reasons Why Ballet Dancers Make Awesome Employees. (I would include all styles of dancers in the "awesome employee" group.) The characteristics she describes that make us assets to the work force are teachable, flexible (intellectually as well as physically,) quick to learn, prepared, hardworking, and team-oriented.
This got me thinking about the traits we develop as dancers that serve us well in other areas of life. While there are many, a primary one has to be discipline, in all its facets. We know how to structure our lives in terms of time management, keeping healthy (which keeps focus and performance consistently at a higher level than otherwise,) and being resilient.
ABT principal Hee Seo once tweeted a great definition of being a professional: Doing what you love, even on days you don't want to be doing it. This might sound a little negative at first glance, but it's profoundly mature. We might as well admit it -- there are days when even our most beloved activity is daunting and we want to stay in bed, or go do something more frivolous. While anyone can have off days from time to time, dancers bring deep reserves of discipline to bear and do their jobs. And we can keep the drama to a minimum while doing it. This translates beautifully to any other work environment in which employees have to be able to respond to criticism, missed promotions or any other day-to-day glitch, efficiently and without disrupting workflow -- their own or their co-workers'.
In dance classes, we learn how to do difficult things by constantly practicing them and intelligently evaluating our performance. Knowing from experience that this kind of hard work makes us more accomplished might sound obvious, but outside the dance studio progress isn't always so straightforward. That can be discouraging. A work ethic founded on the practice of self-improvement at least partially for its own sake (you know you're learning and doing better, even if your boss or casting director passes you over,) will always help you. It enables us to find reward in our own actions without depending on the validation of others. People do notice and it pays off in the long game. The ability to apply yourself to getting better at any job without a ton of guidance or hand holding will get you through all kinds of professional challenges, in a dance company or any other kind.
By Tamara Johnson
