Many students experience moments of self-doubt not only in their lives but also in dance. As a result they start to set up walls and habits that they feel will help them not to fail or to feel afraid. It is always really hard to break bad habits and takes a lot of concentration to do so. It also takes willingness on the part of the student to open up and change the habit that they have put in place. Very often this leaves them feeling vulnerable and insecure but it is important to help them through this transition and get them to understand that they have the power to do the things that they feel are unreachable.

Let’s say I am working on a particular pirouette in class. I always have them do the exercise together in a couple of groups first depending on the size of the class and then I like to watch each student do the preparation and pirouette by themselves so that I can really analyze what is going on and find the best ways to help them. More often than not if I ask them to do anything more than a single pirouette they get a glazed look in their eyes, a tight mouth and they invariably stop breathing normally. Of course, I know right away that they are in a complete panic which will render them unable to do the simplest turn, never mind anything more complicated. Some students over think and over analyze every single part of the movement which in effect paralyzes them. All of these symptoms are the result of the dancer feeling very doubtful about their capabilities. So how do you fix this? From my way of looking at it there really is only one way to correct this fear and that is to try to change the mindset that is causing the dancer to doubt what they are totally capable of doing. First of all they need to lose the “I Can’t” mentality and start to think the “I Can” way. I do not ever allow any of my students to tell me they can’t do something because once they are thinking that way they really will not be able to do it. In the case of a pirouette I will start them with a preparation and a simple balance with the foot in passé or retire, encouraging them to hold the releve as long as possible. From there I work up to a single and as long as they are using their port de bras correctly, activating the core muscles and making sure that the supporting leg is completely pulled up, with a clean spot they will have no trouble with the single. Convincing them that they can do the double is just a matter of making them complete the movement. Even if they feel off balance I always insist that they come out of the pirouette and finish it. They may have fallen on the floor but they have to give me a finish. Often if they feel that things are not going so well they will just put their foot down and just walk out of it admitting the defeat and reinforcing their feelings of self doubt. I let them know that the technique of doing a pirouette has been developed over centuries and as long as you put your body in the right position it has a good chance of working but of course there are a number of factors that can give you a rocky ride! Perhaps they have a cold or are suffering from allergies. There could be thunderstorms in the area which can disturb your inner ear balance the key is to get them to think positively and to know that on their worst day they can make a double pirouette work. That is what is going to give them the self confidence and help them to overcome those awful feelings of self doubt. It really is about enabling them to have the control to make it work for them.

I have used pirouettes as my main example here but of course a dancer can have self doubt about a number of different things all stemming from their general insecurity about themselves. So often nowadays children are shielded from so much by parents who think they are helping their children but are in fact making them totally unable to develop their coping skills which is the one thing that is going to give them confidence. Dance training can help any student to become confident as long as they are always encouraged to think in a positive way. Some students will come up with a backpack full of excuses why they can’t do something. Once they can get that backpack off their backs and throw all of those excuses away a new world will open up to them. It will give them an open mind and the courage not to be afraid of failure. I always say to my students when they are showing me that they are afraid of a step or combination, “what is the worst that can happen? You fall on the floor in a heap and then you get back up again as quickly as possible”. At least I get a laugh out of them but it is true. It is all about being able to step outside of the box and our comfort zone and make something beautiful happen with our bodies and it is scary until you feel that you are in command. Just as I imagine a skeleton ride down a steep mountain is extremely scary until you have mastered the technique and feel in control. I am sure those winter Olympic athletes have many moments of complete terror before they get to the point where they are competing in the Olympics!

Once the dancer sees that they can do the pirouette or the leap or whatever it is that they are afraid of that wonderful feeling of confidence and almost serenity that comes over you makes all the self doubt and fear worth suffering through. By working with our dancers to develop their confidence and to erase their feelings of self doubt we are not only training better dancers but we are also helping to make more secure and better human beings.