Letter to My Teenage Self

You have big dreams and you can’t wait to leave home to pursue them, but please remember you have time. There is no need to rush.

Your impatience gives you tunnel-vision, causing you to see only the world’s idea of success. Remember to take time to discover what success means to you–it may surprise you. Your idea of success will grow and expand as you get older, and that is a good thing, because it means that you have finally pulled back the curtain.

Remember to play. You have a knack for getting in your own way, which you disguise as “working hard.” All that grinding and hustling will lead you to achieve your dreams, sure. But there is an easier path–one that is calling for you to smile, laugh and have fun along the way. It asks you to remember that dance is meant to be fun. It is an expression of your deepest desires, emotions and experiences. There is no competition, so please stop acting like there is some imaginary finish line that you’ll reach that will suddenly allow you to feel successful and worthy.

Your worth isn’t linked to your accomplishments. You are worthy simply because you exist, and no success or achievement in the world will change that. Stop chasing dreams that society programmed you to believe are your own just to prove that you are worthy. It is an endless and futile cycle, because as soon as you achieve one goal you will already look for the next thing, and the next.

Remember why you started dance. It wasn’t because you wanted to be the best. You started because you watched your older sister taking ballet class and you wanted to join in. Your feet tapped along to the music from the piano and you felt this deep, compelling urge to run into that studio and twirl.

You loved everything about the dance studio. It was that vast, spacious and inviting place where you could be anyone or anything you wanted to be. It gave you all the personality traits you love about yourself today–discipline, tenacity, generosity and creativity.

There is no such thing as perfect, so please stop wasting your time trying. Focus your energy on the progress you are making day after day and know that it is enough to take you where you want to go.

Please stop worrying and doubting yourself. Believe that you are good enough to be in any class, audition, or company. One day you will perform on some of the biggest stages in the world, for thousands of audiences, and you will still wonder if you are good enough.

You see, it is never about reaching a destination, my love. We are always a work in progress, and that should be celebrated every day.