Episodes

I'm hearing coaches and studio owners tell me every day how commitment levels are different and how dancers don't seem as committed as they used to. Then you add the need to have leadership on our teams, either formal or not, and if most of your...

It's really challenging to teach resilience and confidence and motivation if the team culture is awful. Maybe you've been a part of some incredible cultures as a dancer, or maybe you've been part of some really bad ones. Either way, culture is the...

While I'm on a mission to create happier, more successful dancers through positive mental skills, I'm also someone who loves to be inspired by dancers who are living their dreams and are also honest about the hard work it takes to get there. My guests...

One of the most accessible mental skills that makes a real impact on your growth as a dancer is goal setting, but I've seen goal setting fail when it's not done well. While a method like SMART goals can be commonly used, I have a better way. This new...

This short episode is the DANCER BONUS to Episode 160: The Achievement Mindset Speaking directly to the dancers out there, Dr. Chelsea shares the importance of setting goals for yourself, why it matters so much, and the good things than can...

Goal setting isn't just about saying something you want to achieve, writing it on a sticky note, and then going for it. That's why a lot of goal setting falls apart. We mean well and we set some big goal, and then somehow it never happens. How you...

At the end of every dance season, there comes a time to say goodbye. Every year, as both a teacher and a coach, I watch young men and women I've grown close to graduate and move on to the next phase of their life. Whether it's at banquets or...

Any dancer dreaming of a professional career is most likely working hard in the studio and honing their skills to be the strongest dancer they can be, but in the professional dance world, talent is only 20% of the equation. There are a lot of other...

Do you have much experience with dance outside of your own culture? Since it's International Dance Day, I want to take today's episode to focus on dance as a source of heritage and identity and how it can truly connect us across our different...

Dancers, this one is directly for you! You can be a mentally healthy dancer who is ALSO mentally tough. Here's the difference between mental toughness and mental health and how you can build your mental toughness. Learn more at:

Do you feel like it's getting harder and harder to challenge your dancers and hold them to a high standard without hurting their feelings or being seen as a mean coach? When I talk to dance educators, many of them express this internal conflict where...

Before you dive too fast into next season, do you stop and ask your dancers to reflect on the past season and share their candid thoughts with you? Though I know sometimes at the end of the season it's easy to go straight into next season, hopefully...

Do you teach dancers under ten years old? Can you teach dancers that little about mental toughness, or is it better to wait? I'm often asked if mental skills training is appropriate for young dancers taking level one classes or in the mini competitive...

In the dance world, summer isn’t just the time for intensives and summer camps, it’s also a time for a whole lot of planning. If you're someone like me who loves a good planner, someone who color codes everything, and someone who enjoys mapping...

This episode is an incredible story of resilience and how one woman went from leaving an abusive home at 14 to creating a life for herself as a performer and business owner. Our guest today, Josephine Lancuba, is an award-winning performing arts...

Dancers, have ever wished you felt more confident? Dance teachers, have you ever felt like you’ve tried everything to help your dancers believe in themselves, yet it's falling on deaf ears? The truth is, as dancers and humans, we can’t just sit...

Do you wish you had dancers who pushed themselves in class and held themselves accountable? This seems to be a common challenge for a lot of dance teachers: we wish our dancers would embrace a challenging class with a positive attitude and enjoy the...

Do you find yourself getting crazy busy during competition season? You’re burning the candle at both ends only to crash hard and probably get sick as soon as it's over? If you're a passionate dance teacher, you've probably pushed yourself too hard....

Have you heard of grit? Even if you haven’t, I bet you've seen it or you've felt it. Grit is the mental skill that could be the difference between getting that challenging turn section or staying stuck at your current level. This episode is for the...

When you're trying to motivate your dancers using positive coaching, you might focus on celebrating the small wins, cheering them on, praising every step of growth along the way. That all sounds good, but let's talk about the flipside: could too much...

If you’re a part of the dance world, you probably saw the University of Minnesota's jazz dance routine at UDA Nationals with the passion and technique and the now viral turn section. But how do they pull off two incredible routines year after year?...

Real talk: are you too hard on yourself? When you leave a competition, do you start thinking about the next event as soon as this one is over? Are you a little too self-critical and don't allow yourself any moment to just enjoy the present? If...

Summary: Do you ever look at another dance team you admire and think, “They must be so locked in. Every single practice they're probably making progress and getting better every day”? I guarantee that a team you admired at that event didn't just...

Summary: Disappointment is something we all have to go through, but we don't actually talk about how. We're just supposed to get over it and keep pushing forward. So how exactly do you deal with disappointment and continue pushing forward? In...