I think we’ve all said it about a million times already – “no one was prepared for this pandemic”. It’s something our country hasn’t seen in quite some time. And while it has been a time of physical, mental, and emotional challenges for everyone in different ways, I find myself constantly trying to figure out what lessons have been learned and what good has come out of the COVID-19 pandemic.
Though the list may not seem long, there have been blessings that have come out of living through this time and it is more important now, more than ever, to focus on the positives. What can we take out of this and bring with us into 2021?
3 Valuable Lessons Learned During COVID-19
1. We can adapt to drastic changes
Whether you thought the COVID-19 effects would be short-lived or long term, I think we all experienced many surprises throughout the last 7 months. A lot of businesses were shut down, schools moved to a remote style of learning, and parents were trying to juggle working from home and helping their children learn under the same roof. Needless to say, most people experienced that overwhelming feeling.
Before this pandemic, I never thought as a business owner that I would experience being forced to close my doors for an extended period of time and be away from all of our happy, fun dancers. It was probably one of the hardest moments of my career. As you can imagine the moment I was able to open the doors back to these beautiful little people, I felt a great sense of normalcy again.
Well, as it turns out, “normal” still isn’t the normal we knew pre-COVID-19. We have a very new normal that keeps us compliant and safe, while also keeping the facility clean. But, we wouldn’t have it any other way – we are back in the studio with those cute little faces in-person and via Zoom every week!
2. Dancers are resilient people
At the beginning of the pandemic, me and my staff took our program from 100% in-person to 100% virtual. It wasn’t something we were too familiar with but we knew we needed to do this to bring some sort of normalcy to our dancers (and their parents) during this time.
As the shutdown continued to be extended, we kept pushing forward with our new virtual normal and saw all of you out there adapting as well. Our dancers looked forward to their virtual classes and became zoom experts. We saw a type of support from families that we had never experienced before.
At the end of it all, each one of us learned a new routine and figured out how to rise to the occasion. At a time where it was so easy to feel knocked down and give up, we all stuck together and kept the art of dance alive!
3. We have seen a new confidence in our children
With the restrictions from the pandemic, we’ve not been able to have parents, siblings, or other family members inside of our studio. Keeping the number of people in the building under the maximum allotment is one of our many important focuses right now.
Now, it’s completely normal for children to cling to their parents or want their parents to walk them into class. I, myself, experienced this a lot when my daughter was young. She was a momma’s girl so she didn’t want to be away from me. However, I continued to take her to secure, safe, and fun places. She started focusing and enjoying her time with other people that could teach her tons of fun things. I knew then that it is so important to use your village to create confident and happy children.
We’ve had great success with dancers coming to the check-in table, getting their temperature taken, getting their armband, and proceeding to their class. I’ve noticed that dancers kiss their mom’s and dad’s goodbye at the door with a confidence that I’ve never seen before in children at such a young age. And the excitement they have leaving class to tell mom and dad all that they learned is amplified more than what I have seen in the past.
Is your child interested in joining our dance program? We have many options for different age groups. Check out our schedule and register today!
There are going to be challenges in life along the way. The important thing is that we find the positive in adversity and we teach our children that they can adapt and persevere with confidence. Moving our focus away from the negative is a great way to set an example for those little ones watching!