This quote about problems may seem paradoxical. But it is some of the best advice for us as dance studio owners and teachers. You might think that a successful season is one in which there are no difficult people to deal with or upset students and parents. Maybe you are always hoping for smooth sailing and then get incredibly disappointed by the fact that this is an impossible notion. 

Here are three ways you can transform your relationships to problems, call it drama, chaos, whatever! The goal is for you to embrace every problem as an opportunity to grow.

#1. Accept that not everyone is going to like you

I am first to admit this has been one of the hardest truths of life and business to learn. But the fact is, when you are playing big and having success there will always be critics, naysayers, haters, or doubters. More importantly, when you are running a successful business with fundamental policies and procedures you cannot make everyone happy, nor can you go back in time and fix it for everyone. 

Whether it is the parents that think they could set better choreography on your dance teams to the student who should have been picked for the solo to the complaints over the recital ticket prices or choice of costumes. Your customers and just about everyone will have an opinion about everything and you can count on it! Don't let this stop you from moving forward with enthusiasm.

#2. Be the positive police for your studio culture

Studio culture doesn't happen. It is created. It takes work and vigilance. Be the enforcer of positivity! Even when you want to tell someone how you really feel or let them know that they have no clue what it takes to run this business… take deep breaths! 

Go out there in your waiting rooms and on social media and thank and reward the positive behaviors you want to foster. Focus in on the many who make your studio great. It's easy to get caught up in managing the 'unhappy' people that you don't spend anytime with the ones who love what you're doing.

It is important, and healthy for your mind, to take time everyday to read at least one positive email or speak with a happy parent or ask a teacher to share with you what is going great in their classes. Focus on the positive; it will give you strength to work through the challenges.

#3. It's not what happens to you, but how you react to it that matters

Running a dance studio isn't easy. It takes something. Strength of spirit. Courage to work through situations that seem impossible. Willingness to face reality and assess situations with maturity. These are just a few of the ways to get up every day and run your dance studio - or said another way - problem solve.

You cannot control others behavior or reactions, but you definitely can choose yours. As Epictetus said so long ago, "It's not what happens to you, but how you react to it that matters." People will be attracted to your studio because of the experience you create for them. 

Great news, the problem isn't that you have problems! It's actually a gift and blessing that you have problems to solve. You are putting something at stake. You stand for something. You're creating art. There are people's lives you are impacting. Don't let the drama or pettiness or fear from other people stop you from being your best.  

Keep doing your beautiful, generous, inspiring work! Thank you for all that you do for dance. 

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What kind of feelings do you get when you enter your office and sit down at your desk? Do you feel stressed? Worried? Cranky or impatient? Overwhelmed? While these feelings could be caused by your work, they could also be caused by the way you have your office arranged. Often, just simple changes in your office layout or decor can improve the way you feel, and that can lead to improved productivity. Here are a few tips to making your office workspace more enjoyable: Arrange your desk so you have a 'commanding position' in the room (where you can view most of the room, especially the entry door, while seated at your desk) Remove all clutter from your line of sight Arrange your computer monitor so there is not a bright window behind the monitor Create 'ambiance' by adding plants and favorite mementos Use a fan to create 'white noise' to mask outside noises Find and fix the one thing that aggravates you the most in your office Just a few minor changes like these can often make all the difference in how you feel while in your workspace.

The email was marked 'urgent' and included the following frantic message: "My web site has disappeared! Can you Help?" The site owner was losing money. His site was no longer available. I did a little checking and quickly discovered the web site owner had let the domain name expire. The domain name registrar had sent the required domain name renewal notices, but because the site owner had changed his email address, he never received the notices. When the domain name expired, the web site was no longer available. Fortunately, no one else had registered the newly expired domain name, and the site owner was able to get it back. But it doesn't always work out that way. Lesson learned: Make sure to periodically review and update your contact info (especially your email address) at your domain name registrar. Else, you risk missing an important domain expiration notice and possibly losing your domain name.]]>