Team Bonding Pays Off

"First comes the sweat. Then comes the beauty if you're very lucky and have said your prayers."

- George Balanchine

Team bonding is a vital fundamental for a whole team to prosper. Group dancers are together for an immense amount of hours several nights a week, week after week, and because dance is an all year round sport it is uncommon to find dancer’s never getting break from one another. I look at this to be both a positive and negative experience, for the most part positive although with that many hours it can become difficult. Effort from the whole entire group and their background support make the efforts to be either negative or positive. An easy solution to either outcome can come from team bonding.

With so many hours spent together it can be easy to grow tired of those you are working with. Personalities can clash, ideas are thrown, and mistakes will be made. It is life in a whole new scenario. Completely taken inside the dance room. Team members should always remain courteous to one another, to their teachers, parents and general spectators. Dance can bring about a lot of pressure to any dancer at any given age. The environment should remain positive and constructive. I believe that harsh overwhelming comments don’t further a dancer as far as demonstrating weaknesses and approaching on a positive element way to fix the errors. Of course not everything can be happy and go lucky, but the point should not have to get to an emotional breakdown. Strides need to be taken and always showing improvement.

With these tiring hours being taken in a studio, sometimes relationships formed in the studio leak out or vice versa, for this I believe it to be necessary for dancers, parents and teachers alike to both take breaks and make room for outside group activities. Being with the same people over and over, repeatedly can detriment even the strongest, long lasting relationships. Take personal time and give time to others who don’t necessarily always get that time, such as grandparents, friend of school, even treating yourself. On the other hand time with your team should also be spent outside of the studio, doing normal people activities. Go bowling, to a trampoline park, paint pottery, go out for dinner, to the beach, DIY something fun. Easy light activity where everyone is involved and talent and skill doesn’t matter. Team bonding is so important in keeping strong relationships with all your team mates. It will not only increase strength within your team’s social aspect, but on the dance floor as well you will grow closer. That quality time can be transforming in the long scheme of things.

~Julia Brewer