How Dance Can Influence Your Career - Part 2

In the first article of this series, we discussed how dance can be a pathway towards a future career and explored the experiences of four successful former dancers. Using skills developed in dance classes—including musical, improvisation, and creative thinking skills—these women were able to continue on to rewarding, professional careers in the arts.

Today we want to explore the life, learning, and career skills dance can impart on young students even further. Below, we’ve taken a look at three experiences from three former dancers who used tools and knowledge developed on the dance floor to navigate career fields beyond the world of performance arts.

Real estate agent. For Amanda Hankes, a serious toe injury turned out to be a blessing in disguise. The injury may have put an end to her career as a dancer for the New York City Ballet, but it kick-started her career in real estate. Amanda had always been interested in real estate, and she soon realized that the skills she had learned from her 20 years of dancing—including commitment, focus, time management, and presentational skills—suited her well in the real estate industry. Though Amanda’s experience in real estate was minimal, the impressive skillset she developed through dance was enough to win her a job with a top real estate firm.

Krav Maga coach. Long before she took her first Krav Maga class, Christine Knight was an acrobatic dancer for Streb/Ringside—now STREB Extreme Action Company. When she began studying Krav Maga—a hand-to-hand self-defense technique—Christine was able to excel thanks to the strength, technique, and acrobatic skills she’d learned through years of dance. Today, she works as a Krav Maga instructor, using her talents to help other women learn how to defend themselves.

Museum director. Muriel Maffre developed an interest in museums while dancing for the San Francisco ballet. When the company toured in different cities, Muriel would take the opportunity to visit local museums. After retiring from the SFB, Muriel enrolled in the John F. Kennedy University’s museum studies master’s program. She was named executive director of the Museum of Performance + Design in San Francisco after graduating. Muriel attributes the opportunity to her background in performance and urges young students to pursue their love of dance regardless of their career aspirations, maintaining “whatever ethic you put in your work as a dancer, whatever creativity, level of precision and detail, determination, multitasking, positive thinking, projection, vision, all these you can transfer.”

From discipline, focus, and commitment, to creativity and self-investment, the skills developed through dance training may serve your young dancer in whatever career she pursues. Take a cue from these three amazing women, and encourage your little one to follow her love of dance. Whatever your youngster’s future holds, dance training can help her get there.

Interested in learning more about taking dance classes? It’s not too late to sign up for the fall semester at Gallery of Dance in Freehold, NJ.