We’re counting down to January 1st with great ideas for your studio and teaching practice in the new year. Check back each day for a new tip!

Be positive in your communications. “If you’re not excited, no one else will be—especially when you’re making changes,” says Danie Beck, former owner of Dance Unlimited in Miami, who shared that one of her biggest challenges was when she instituted a recital fee. She explained to parents why this fee would allow her to expedite ordering for recital DVDs, T-shirts, photos—that it would result in a positive experience.

“It worked because of how I came across,” she says. “You have to tell them it’s the best thing since chopped liver. If you say, ‘Well, you know, I’m not really sure about this, but we’re going to try it,’ then it’s already lost. That’s why we’re in this business—we’re part actors, as well. You might be dying inside—I was many a time—but I stood up and said, ‘This is fabulous,’ while thinking, ‘I hope this works.’ But it did work, because I let my parents know it was going to.”

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