The Importance of Continuing Education at TDM

Each year we hold workshop intensives for Dailey Method studio owners, teachers and trainees. We just completed a series in San Francisco last weekend, and I am currently in Chicago along with Kerry Corcoran, our Berkeley/Lamorinda owner and brilliant in-house anatomy expert, teaching a series for our Mid-Western locations.

Because The Dailey Method is a practice, it evolves along with us as we continually deepen our understanding about the body and the science behind alignment and movement. We offer these intensives about 10 times a year as a way for us to provide necessary training and information to our new teachers and continuing education to our existing teachers and studio owners.  It’s hard not to be inspired by a room full of thigh dancing fun and our barre boys showing off their moves!

Every time we do one of these intensive weekends I am once again reminded of the importance of one of our TDM Core Values  “always be a student.” I walk away from every single workshop series not only with a sense of joy for all the amazing people that care about this method as much as I do, but also with newfound information and a deeper understanding and awareness of all things Dailey related. I truly learn something at every single workshop that I teach or attend! (Yes, I do attend workshops when I’m not the primary teacher.) Whether it’s is a new way to cue something, or how to look at something from a different perspective, there is always something to be gained from stepping into the role of the student.

I believe this is true not only for being a student and teacher at The Dailey Method, but in general. If you take a moment to listen more carefully to how your kids explain something or how they came up with an idea, it might allow you find a new sense of creativity. If you ask an expert a question about their area of expertise, you may learn something new that you can then share with others. If you take a plunge and do something outside of your comfort zone, you will certainly learn something new and be better for it, even if it is not the thing you expected to learn!

I will continually strive to be student inside and outside of the studio with the hope that it will allow me to be a better teacher, mother, wife and friend. I actually have a very exciting continuing education intensive in my future - but I’ll save that for later! There is so much to learn out there, and I hope to take in all that I can!

-- Jill