When Things Don't Go The Way You Hoped...
Dear Dancer,
If you have questions or concerns, first, write them down… wait 2 days to ponder. Reflect on company week and/or this summer and see if you can answer your own question or concern. Put yourself in the teacher role.
If you still don’t have an answer, reach out to all 3 of us in a group text or email.
Our goal as coaches is to build strong dancers from the inside-out. (emotionally, mentally, and physically)
If you feel you need some additional thoughts on handling discouragement or just don't understand your journey, then please keep reading. I have put together some thoughts on the matter.
But ultimately know this:
What you do next matters more than what just happened.
Your breakthrough often comes after your greatest season of perseverance.
And
Your current disappointment is only one chapter of your story—not the ending.
If you have questions or concerns, first, write them down… wait 2 days to ponder. Reflect on company week and/or this summer and see if you can answer your own question or concern. Put yourself in the teacher role.
If you still don’t have an answer, reach out to all 3 of us in a group text or email.
Our goal as coaches is to build strong dancers from the inside-out. (emotionally, mentally, and physically)
If you feel you need some additional thoughts on handling discouragement or just don't understand your journey, then please keep reading. I have put together some thoughts on the matter.
But ultimately know this:
What you do next matters more than what just happened.
Your breakthrough often comes after your greatest season of perseverance.
And
Your current disappointment is only one chapter of your story—not the ending.
Stories about Growth
1. The Bamboo Tree. There is a story about the Chinese bamboo tree. After it is planted, the gardener waters and cares for it every day. For years, nothing seems to happen above the ground. It looks like all the work is wasted.
But beneath the surface, the bamboo is developing an enormous root system. Then, when the roots are ready, it shoots up dramatically in a very short time.
The bamboo didn't grow overnight. It grew underground first.
Application:
"In dance, your roots are built through corrections, repetition, discipline, and perseverance. Sometimes it feels like you're not improving because your growth isn't visible yet. But if you stay faithful to the process, one day everyone else will see what has been growing all along."
2. Pruning the Rose Bush. Every spring, a gardener cuts back a rose bush. To someone who doesn't understand gardening, it almost looks cruel. The bush is smaller, barer, and has lost many healthy branches.
But the gardener isn't harming the plant—he's preparing it to produce even more beautiful blooms.
Application:
"Corrections, setbacks, and even disappointments can feel like being pruned. But sometimes God and our teachers remove what is comfortable so we can become stronger and more beautiful than we could have without the pruning."
This connects beautifully with John 15:2:
"Every branch that beareth fruit, he purgeth it, that it may bring forth more fruit."
3. The Eagle Learning to Fly. An eagle doesn't learn to fly by staying safely in the nest. Eventually, the parent nudges it out.
For a moment, it feels like falling.
Only then do its wings discover what they were created to do.
Application:
"Growth often feels like falling before it feels like flying."
4. The Sculptor. When a sculptor creates a masterpiece, he doesn't add more and more stone.
He chips pieces away.
To the stone, every strike of the hammer would seem destructive.
To the sculptor, every strike reveals the masterpiece hidden inside.
Application:
"Corrections don't mean you're failing. They mean someone can already see the dancer you're becoming."
5. Climbing a Mountain. The higher you climb, the steeper the trail becomes. There are moments when the path even dips downhill before turning upward again.
If you judged your progress only by the last few steps, you might think you were going the wrong way.
But the experienced climber knows the entire trail is leading upward.
Application:
"Growth isn't measured by today's difficulty but by the direction you're heading."
Sometimes growth feels like taking a step backward. You receive more corrections, you don't get the part you hoped for, or class suddenly feels harder than it used to. Those moments aren't signs that you're failing—they're often signs that you're being prepared for something greater.
A gardener prunes the healthiest branches so they can produce even more fruit. A sculptor chips away at solid stone to reveal a masterpiece. A bamboo tree spends years growing roots before anyone sees it rise.
Don't quit while you're growing your roots.
Stay teachable. Stay humble. Trust the process. The dancers who reach the greatest heights are rarely the ones who never struggled—they are the ones who kept showing up, accepted correction, and continued climbing even when no one else could see the progress.
Your breakthrough often comes after your greatest season of perseverance.
When a teacher gives more corrections, it often means they see greater potential—not less. That can become a powerful part of the culture you're building at Inspired Dance.
Disappointment Is Not a Dead End. What you do next matters more than what just happened.
Disappointment is something every successful dancer experiences. Not getting the role you wanted, struggling with a skill, receiving corrections, or watching someone else succeed can all hurt. But disappointment doesn't define your future—it reveals your character.
When things don't go the way you hoped, you have a choice. You can become discouraged, or you can become determined.
Sometimes the "no" you receive today is preparing you for a bigger "yes" tomorrow. The dancers who grow the most aren't always the most naturally talented—they're the ones who keep showing up, keep learning, and keep trusting the process even when the results aren't immediate.
Don't let disappointment convince you to quit. Let it teach you patience, resilience, humility, and perseverance. Those qualities will take you much farther than talent alone ever could.
Remember: Your current disappointment is only one chapter of your story—not the ending.
But beneath the surface, the bamboo is developing an enormous root system. Then, when the roots are ready, it shoots up dramatically in a very short time.
The bamboo didn't grow overnight. It grew underground first.
Application:
"In dance, your roots are built through corrections, repetition, discipline, and perseverance. Sometimes it feels like you're not improving because your growth isn't visible yet. But if you stay faithful to the process, one day everyone else will see what has been growing all along."
2. Pruning the Rose Bush. Every spring, a gardener cuts back a rose bush. To someone who doesn't understand gardening, it almost looks cruel. The bush is smaller, barer, and has lost many healthy branches.
But the gardener isn't harming the plant—he's preparing it to produce even more beautiful blooms.
Application:
"Corrections, setbacks, and even disappointments can feel like being pruned. But sometimes God and our teachers remove what is comfortable so we can become stronger and more beautiful than we could have without the pruning."
This connects beautifully with John 15:2:
"Every branch that beareth fruit, he purgeth it, that it may bring forth more fruit."
3. The Eagle Learning to Fly. An eagle doesn't learn to fly by staying safely in the nest. Eventually, the parent nudges it out.
For a moment, it feels like falling.
Only then do its wings discover what they were created to do.
Application:
"Growth often feels like falling before it feels like flying."
4. The Sculptor. When a sculptor creates a masterpiece, he doesn't add more and more stone.
He chips pieces away.
To the stone, every strike of the hammer would seem destructive.
To the sculptor, every strike reveals the masterpiece hidden inside.
Application:
"Corrections don't mean you're failing. They mean someone can already see the dancer you're becoming."
5. Climbing a Mountain. The higher you climb, the steeper the trail becomes. There are moments when the path even dips downhill before turning upward again.
If you judged your progress only by the last few steps, you might think you were going the wrong way.
But the experienced climber knows the entire trail is leading upward.
Application:
"Growth isn't measured by today's difficulty but by the direction you're heading."
Sometimes growth feels like taking a step backward. You receive more corrections, you don't get the part you hoped for, or class suddenly feels harder than it used to. Those moments aren't signs that you're failing—they're often signs that you're being prepared for something greater.
A gardener prunes the healthiest branches so they can produce even more fruit. A sculptor chips away at solid stone to reveal a masterpiece. A bamboo tree spends years growing roots before anyone sees it rise.
Don't quit while you're growing your roots.
Stay teachable. Stay humble. Trust the process. The dancers who reach the greatest heights are rarely the ones who never struggled—they are the ones who kept showing up, accepted correction, and continued climbing even when no one else could see the progress.
Your breakthrough often comes after your greatest season of perseverance.
When a teacher gives more corrections, it often means they see greater potential—not less. That can become a powerful part of the culture you're building at Inspired Dance.
Disappointment Is Not a Dead End. What you do next matters more than what just happened.
Disappointment is something every successful dancer experiences. Not getting the role you wanted, struggling with a skill, receiving corrections, or watching someone else succeed can all hurt. But disappointment doesn't define your future—it reveals your character.
When things don't go the way you hoped, you have a choice. You can become discouraged, or you can become determined.
Sometimes the "no" you receive today is preparing you for a bigger "yes" tomorrow. The dancers who grow the most aren't always the most naturally talented—they're the ones who keep showing up, keep learning, and keep trusting the process even when the results aren't immediate.
Don't let disappointment convince you to quit. Let it teach you patience, resilience, humility, and perseverance. Those qualities will take you much farther than talent alone ever could.
Remember: Your current disappointment is only one chapter of your story—not the ending.