Ready to rise…

Staying on the top of your feet in life & business.

Our ballet teacher said this to us the other night. She was talking about physically staying on the top of our feet, and less in our heels, so we could be ‘always ready to rise…’ But let’s steal it for our businesses, creative projects and life in general, don’t you think?

It’s such a perfect illustration of our creative pursuits, because staying on the top of your feet (as in the balls of your feet, the toes) is unsteady stuff, unless you have amazing balance. And you don’t just “have” amazing balance. You work for it. You build it into your body, slowly, over time. 

It takes strength and a trained stability to be able to rise and stay up there (and make it look effortless and lovely while you’re at it)…

#goalz #feeeeet #readytorise

…Even as you shake and feel unsteady. And, yes, there is risk and fear. Equal parts, probably. With every rise, every reach beyond where we’re comfortable now, as we keep practicing, keep putting our work out there, we build that stability and balance in.

If I’m honest, for me right now, staying on ‘the top of my feet’ in business, regularly makes my heart do that ‘woosh’ thing. There are opportunities and goals that make me feel both giddy, joy-filled and unsteady. Even in ballet. Like exams. (Which, next year if I’m like, hey I think I’ll prep for exams, can you just be like, no.) But, that’s not because these opportunities are bad (they’re wonderful), but because they’re new, and uncomfortable. I keep thinking all the goals and dreams I have for my life are at a higher level than where I am now, right?

So I need to rise to reach them.

The work and training and ‘rising’ can get tiring and often we don’t see the results for a long time. But we stay on the top of our business feet or our creative feet as best we can.

And, please note how dead my canvas shoes are in fig 1? They take a bashing because it’s really hard work, and I practice a lot. I probably should buy shoes more often, but the point is, we don’t just suddenly ‘get there’ it takes time and work to be up where we want to be.

Anyway. I just can’t get those words out of my head, so I wanted to share them in case you found them encouraging too. Here’s to staying on the top of our feet, ready to rise. (And we’ll catch each other if we fall over a bit, yes?)