Today’s task:
Find a way to express yourself
“Grief is just love that can’t be expressed the way you want it to be”
This was a standout quote that gave me chills as it landed in my inbox this morning from a new friend and colleague, Inga Haugen. She is doing some incredible research and community-based work around breadfruit in Haiti, and recently lost a dear family member.
It’s a good reminder of the varied emotions that we feel as humans, and the limited number of words we use to describe our emotions. I believe that this was a big takeaway I had from both Dare to Lead, which I listened to a little over half of through an audiobook, and The Body Keeps the Score, which I recently finished reading.
I made a note to myself while working today: “10-year vision: Teaching latin dance classes”
This was inspired by Joel Brown’s interview on the Mindvalley Podcast many moons ago, when he describes his process for developing a 10-year vision. I’ve listened to this podcast episode so many times I’ve lost count at this point.
Joel takes listeners through this process of imagining your life 10 years in the future and who you want to be, and then identifying what would need to happen in order to make that your reality in 6 months. It’s brilliant. And I never get tired of asking myself this question – what would it look like to be that person TODAY instead of waiting until…that thing that will serve as the litmus test for “I’ve reached the end point! Now I can relax and enjoy myself.” This is how I feel about retirement. It’s ridiculous that we set up our employment systems in a way that positions people to delay their freedom and happiness until after they’ve turned 65.
One of the ways that I love to express myself is through dance. And maybe express myself isn’t the right word. I just love it. Dancing brings me so much joy, even if I’m failing to get the moves down the entire time, for structured dances. Zumba is awesome. Dance parties in my kitchen and living room are the best, especially as a break to the mental work I expend on a screen for most of the day.
But dance…dance requires another level of mental attention and physical awareness. It’s being conscious of how your body moves in harmony with someone else’s. Trust, on a level most people don’t experience. Dance requires a certain level of surrender, a willingness to get it wrong, to try again, and to laugh it off.
I remember when going to tango with the Lawrence Tango Group on Mondays in high school with my good friend T.J., I always went home with my cheeks hurting because I had such a hard time not smiling the whole time. I still feel that way about any kind of dance.
The last few years I’ve visited Costa Rica, dance has been a uniting theme of my experiences. I have been drawn to the rhythmic differences between bachata, cumbia, merengue, and salsa, slowly but surely learning the steps of each of them, and enjoying some more than others.
As I was working today, listening to latin reggaeton, I just wanted to get up out of my chair and dance across the floor of the library. Unfortunately, my earbuds were connected by cord to my laptop, so I didn’t quite have that option, but the other piece that held me back was the fear of what others would think if they saw me dancing and singing.
This is a fear that I am working to overcome, and relates to this goal of teaching latin dance classes within the next 10 years. The reason that I put ‘teach’ as opposed to ‘master’, is that in teaching something to someone else, you necessarily have to possess a certain level of mastery.
I got asked the other day if I wanted to teach yoga classes at a local gym. And of course, I said ‘sure, as long as you’re not required to be certified’, knowing that my practice is deep and consistent enough for me to feel that I could hold a solid class. Doing so would also give me a chance to test the waters of what I already plan on doing anyways in the future.
In the same way, teaching latin dance would allow me to share my love for something with others.
So what would it take for me to make this 10-year vision happen in 6 months?
- Dance more often and with people who are REALLY good
- Take some kind of teacher course in dance
- Participate in a dance competition?!
- Get a dance partner who is willing to go on the journey with me, potentially someone who is also interested in teaching, or who already teaches
- Identify places where there may be a shortage of teachers that would be willing to host me
I think it’s important to be explicit about the connection between this task and your financial fitness/abundance. I recognize that in some of these more recent posts, many of the tasks have been a little less obvious. The aspiration that I have for anyone going through this challenge is to recognize that financial abundance comes to those who love what they do, enjoy life in the present, and appreciate what they have. Finding a way to express yourself creatively, I believe, is one of the ways that people may fall into finding this bridge between joy and financial portals.
I didn’t mention the possibility earlier that teaching classes is something I could charge for. I could create online courses showing the basic steps of dance. There’s all kinds of possibilities..hosting dance classes at my farm, for example?!
What about you? What’s one thing that you’d like to work towards in 10 years? Could that look like a form of expression? What are 3-5 things that you could do in the next 6 months to make it a reality?
P.S. – I have made zero progress on my digital portfolio…BUT I recorded an interview for my podcast today and will be recording another interview next week! I’d consider that a win, even though it’s not 100% in the direction I was planning. I seem to be getting very side-tracked with meeting new people, using the sauna and ice bath daily, watching the sun set, and not really having a desire to look at my screen outside of my regular work hours…I’d say that’s ALSO a win. Balance, people, balance. 🙂
Today’s Resources to Keep You Inspired:
