When most people hear the words academics they think about Math or English, but to me it means my life. Not only does it mean my life, but my passion to keep on living. My academics have never been the same as any normal young women going to school, and I don`t have the normal means to keep myself studying for good grades. My life has been centered around Ballet since I was four years old, and now a normal day at school means staring at myself in the mirror for six hours every day. My grades are determined by how my body looks, and what roles I get in the next Ballet. The question is how do I keep myself studying the art form of Ballet, and how do I keep pushing myself until I can`t push anymore? After many life experiences I know my answers to keep on studying are motivation, happiness, and to never stop learning.
If someone were to ask me my techniques in continuing to study Ballet four years ago I would have said the strive for perfection. Today, I have a different answer. I continue to study, so I can make that little girl in the mirror happy. The little four-year-old girl who only wanted to put on a pink tutu, and bounce around the studio. She is the one who keeps me in the studio learning every day, and putting myself through endless hours of pain. When I stop studying it is because I am unmotivated, and it feels like I am getting nowhere.
The key to this problem is to remind myself of how I got motivated in the first place. I think about that little girl in the mirror, and how I owe it to her to make her happy. She didn`t just put all those years of hard work just to throw them away in the end. She is the reason I wake up at 5 a.m. every day, the reason why I left home at 12 years old to study professional Ballet, and the reason why I will never give up. Yes, I strive for perfection by studying, but the truth is no one is perfect.
I will never reach my goal of being the best that I can be if I am not happy. Studying Ballet is hard, and the only way to keep myself going is to stay motivated. No matter how many times a bad grade, a person, or even myself pushes me to the ground I have to get back up. I have to tell myself that I haven`t won all of these battles to just lose from this one. I have to go to the studio, watch a Ballet, and most importantly I have to keep on learning. How can I keep on studying Ballet if I am not willing to learn? Once I stop learning that`s where it all ends.
Motivation, happiness, and the eagerness to keep on learning are my keys to keep myself studying Ballet. Once I give up on that innocent little girl in the mirror all is lost. Studying is the key to success in any part of life. If a student isn`t willing to study, then they aren`t cut out for it. A teacher can`t just feed information to a student, and expect them to retain it. It`s up to the student to get up, and finish what they started.
