There is a lot to unpack when it comes to perfectionism in dance. Each dancer or instructor has their own ideas about perfectionism, and whether or not it’s beneficial to dancers. Some argue that perfectionism is helpful because it pushes dancers to their highest potential… but when you really look at it, is the idea that everything has to be perfect really helping us, or hurting us? Here is a piece of my story, and why I believe every dancer needs to let go of perfectionism.
From the time I was thirteen until I was seventeen, I danced in a professional ballet school with its own ballet company. By the time I was sixteen, I was in the pre-professional program, and was dancing six days a week. During the Summer intensive was when I was at my busiest. I woke up at 5:30am, took two buses to the ballet school, danced until 4pm, then took two buses home. I wouldn’t get home until 6:30 every evening, and I did this nearly every day for that Summer. I was experiencing perfectionism in many forms: through trying to become the best dancer in the room, trying to control my weight, and being too hard on myself instead of enjoying the process.
There was one day during the Summer intensive I’ll never forget. In ballet class that morning, we had a guest artist come in for a masterclass. To this day I can’t recall his name or where he was from, but I remember the energy of the class vividly and how calm I felt. Then he said something I’ll never forget, as we were doing our plié combination: “Don’t try to be perfect, and don’t try to be the best dancer in the room. Have a good time, and feel the music.” This statement was so simple, but I had never heard that perspective from a teacher before, and that’s why it was so memorable.
Eight years later, I still hear the guest artist’s voice in my head, whenever I’m teaching my students. When I notice my students slipping into perfection mode, I give them this gentle reminder: perfectionism creates a discontentment with ourselves, because we’re constantly striving to be someone else or to fit into an impossible ideal. The problem is, these ideals are most often unattainable, and constantly striving for something that’s unattainable leads people to quit, when in reality they’re doing wonderful. This can come in the form of negative self talk, comparison to other dancers, and impatience with the process of growth. There is one thing that I believe will help to pull anyone out of perfectionism, and into self acceptance: positive reinforcement.
Positive reinforcement is such a powerful tool we can use, and it can go one of two ways. The first way comes from outside sources, whether it be the teacher, choreographer, or peers. For example, if the teacher guides their students in a loving and understanding way, the student will overcome so many of their setbacks quicker than ever before. The second way is even more powerful, because it comes from ourselves. When we give themselves credit, recognize our accomplishments, and see our infinite potential to be the best we can be, our growth will accelerate. This pulls us away from feeling the need to be perfect, and sets us up to become the best version of ourselves.
The times I notice the most improvement with my dancers, is when I use positive reinforcement to coach them. It creates a healthy, high energy environment where people are having fun and feeling great about themselves. This in turn creates an even higher frequency in the class, and notable improvement begins to take place. Gone are the days of criticizing dancers for not looking a certain way or dancing a certain way, and gone are the days of perfectionism. We’re beginning an era of empowering our students to be the strongest, healthiest, and happiest individuals they can possibly be, and in turn, are creating better dancers than ever before.