Lobby Chat!

Without people in the lobby, there is not as much lobby chat. It’s one of my favorite things at Jibe and, if you are over 13, a staff member or have been with us a while, you might hear me say, “Is that lobby appropriate?”. The lobby is a shared space. I encourage everyone to be mindful of who is there and what topics of conversation are appropriate for this audience.

I also love that the lobby is an eavesdropper’s paradise. I love when a parent realizes they have a question that they haven’t asked yet, hear another person ask and slowly lean into the conversation. This is 100% appropriate and encouraged! It’s like a giant dinner table where everyone is invited into all conversations.

With the lobby currently closed, many people (myself included) are missing the lobby chat. I am happy to report that many people are still asking questions and sharing stories via email, phone and sometimes even parking lot parties. I’m proud of our community and happy to see this continue.

Although I wish we could all enjoy the discussion in every email, phone call and of course the parking lot parties, there is one conversation that I think we all need to be a part of.

The question:

“Why are you even having a show if we can’t be on stage?”

The answer:

1. It’s what we do. Many students look forward to the team building and the fast paced choreography that is put together in 10 weeks. For some, this will be their 20th show. We do not want to take away another thing from our students.

2. We don’t just “check our likes.” Do we really dance just so someone can tell us good job? Is that the ultimate goal? Heck NO! We dance because it fills us up. We perform to share our love and accomplishments. The cheers are appreciated, but not needed to create an important experience. In this age of social media, I really think it’s important that we teach our students the skill of positive self talk. Our self worth is not measured by how many likes, comments, shares or “woo-hoos!” we get while “on stage.”

3. Our instructors thrive at showtime. As instructors we are creative people, and creating routines with themed music at different levels is challenging. We like this challenge. We like being creative and sharing our art with students. We like teaching them the skills of teamwork, timing, and self-discipline.

4. Having purpose and setting goals is so important. We know that during 2020, we have all had a change in our daily lives. These changes are affecting us all in different ways. The social and emotional development of our students is always a priority for us. Low self esteem is known to increase the risks of unhealthy relationships, inability to stand up for one-self, lack of persistence, inability to cope with mistakes and unwillingness to try new things. So, how do we raise self-esteem? Funny you should ask. Here are the top 5 ways to increase self-esteem from kidshealth.org:

   • make progress toward a goal

• learn new things

• make friends and get along

• learn skills — music, sports, art, cooking, tech skills

• practice favorite activities

Here are the top 5 reasons why we do a show:

• Make progress toward a goal

• Learn new routines.

• Learn to work together with new friends

• Increase skills with dance, music and timing.

• Share the love of dance.

Coincidence? Not really. Our mission statement is:

At Jibe Studios, we believe in creating an environment where dancers can increase responsibility, character and skill through family, friends and fun!

Increasing responsibility doesn’t come from the hot lights and cheers from the audience. It comes from the hours in the dance room. So, although we LOVE to perform on the big stage and share our love for dance with all our family members at once, this year we will offer an experience to help develop the life skills they will need to succeed in a new way. As parents, I know we LOVE to celebrate our children with the “woo-hoos!” and being their biggest cheerleaders. This year, we will cheer our students on behind the scenes and celebrate their final accomplishment while teaching them that they are resilient enough to adapt to all of life’s curveballs and strong enough to make the best out of any situation. Whether on stage or behind the camera, these are skills you don’t want your child to miss!