NEWS FLASH!!!!... ConfiDANCE is officially a new word in the JSD Dictionary
The reason I chose 'ConfiDANCE' as the title for the next 'JSD empowering life changing event' taking place this month is because it has come to my serious attention that if we do not find it in ourselves to let go, loosen up, shake it up, lighten up and have a laugh; we might soon drop dead of boredom, bitterness or just plain old feeling crap. Something as simple as bopping about to music, calling a pal on the phone, or even better, meeting that pal in person, cycling your bike, walking around the block, even just for 5 or 10 minutes can give you such a jolt of a positive high that you immediately feel an instant confidence boost, an energy kick and your worries will kind of disappear....
There are so many reasons in the world today which could make us feel full of fear & anxiety. In fact, we could end up quite depressed if we kept fixated on the current state of affairs worldwide. The truth is that the more we focus our attention on problems and worries, the worse we are going to feel about everything. If we continue to latch on to negative bad news, we could end up behaving like frightened scared mice, lose our faith, our self esteem and slowly withdraw from society altogether and eventually just wither away.....how awful does that sound???!!!!! VERY!!!! so you get two choices in life, so very beautifully said by Morgan Freeman in the classic movie 'Shawshank Redemption' ..... "you either get busy living or get busy dying". This line from the movie is just so brilliant....what do YOU want to do, huh?!!!!
So back to the word ConfiDANCE, and as you know, the real word in the dictionary is of course Confidence. Our confidence in life will often be knocked, but it is how we bounce back from set backs and adversities is when we experience real growth. It is by overcoming challenges, the ups & downs in life that will help us develop a true strength of character which increases our self esteem and which will also allow us to become a more compassionate, kind, caring and positive person. This is why, from time to time, it is so important to step out of our every day hum drum routines and go do something a bit scary & as well as doing something nice for ourselves!
It is so easy to avoid stepping out of our comfort zone but when we do, that is when the magic happens and true living begins. We often say 'no' to trying something new or daring to change it up because not only are we often stuck in our ways and old habits, we also get caught up and wary of what other people might think of us when we make changes, or god forbid, we might make a mistake, the fact of the matter is the only way you learn anything is by making mistakes...
'YOU CAN ONLY GO FORWARD BY MAKING MISTAKES' Alexander McQueen
Over the years, I have seen unbelievable growth in people before my very own eyes in the dance studio. I have witnessed shy, awkward people with little or no co ordination become 'brilliant'. Not only does the music & dance steps energise us and gives us an endorphin high, dance also helps us to let go all our inhibitions and form strong social bonds with other people which can make us feel connected. As soon as you feel progress, you feel happier, your self esteem increases and all of a sudden you want to keep at it, you become hooked and you keep coming back for more....it is the unbelievable joy you discover in yourself that keeps you wanting to come back for more. The beauty about Dance is that you can enjoy at any point in your life no matter what your ability. This is why it is so important to find any activity that is challenging & FUN, I am just talking about ConfiDANCE here!!
Many of these 'shy' introverted people I met in dance class over the years went on to actually become professional dancers or open up studios or they found enough confidence in themselves to excel in the work place or go after their dream job or take a chance at something new! It is for all these reasons, that I wish to name the next event 'ConfiDANCE'!!!
DO MORE OF THE STUFF THAT MAKES YOU FEEL HAPPY
Unfortunately modern living has left us feeling disconnected to our bodies because we spend so much time sitting down and hooked to technology. It is so important to 'unplug' and schedule times to work on the laptop. If you discipline yourself to work on finishing a task that needs to be done without any distractions, you will find yourself managing the time you spend on your laptop in a much more efficient way. This will then leave you with that precious extra time in the day just for you to fit in your favourite pastimes such as cooking, painting, playing sport, hanging out with a pal, walking, biking, yoga, dancing etc!
TRY ONE NEW THING A MONTH OUT OF YOUR COMFORT ZONE....
In the month of January, I climbed to the top of the Empire State Building in NYC to overcome my fear of heights. This month, I want to go for a snow boarding lesson up in kilternan, I have NEVER tried this before because it looks so difficult!!
What one thing are you going to try out of your comfort zone during the month of February? I love knowing that every time we try something new, our confidence increases so lets JUST DO IT!!
We are delighted to announce that Dr Edward kelly (Founder of the third act) and Sonya Lennon (Designer, broadcaster, start up tech founder) are the special guest speakers at 'ConfiDANCE' taking place in the Dean Hotel on Wednesday 22nd February at 6.30pm.
