Work like you don’t need money,
Love like you’ve never been hurt,
And dance like no one’s watching.
-Author unknown
I’m sure all of you, at one time or another has come across this quote. I first read this quote about 10 years ago when I first started my business and absolutely fell in love with it. I remember reading it for the first time and I literally got goose bumps, it resonated so completely with me, it was as if it was written especially for me.
Some of you may have felt the same way when you read it for the first time.
The last line “dance like no one’s watching” is really what I found most compelling about this quote. Not because I have no rhythm and only dance when no one is watching…the truth is I don’t have much rhythm at all and well, I dance anyways. I didn’t take it quite so literal. It had a much deeper meaning to me…one of insecurities and outward appearances particularly in my business life.
As I mentioned I had first read this as I was beginning my business and I was truly at that awkward, “had no clue” what I was doing stage. I was very insecure and quite honestly afraid of making a complete ass of myself. And what I mean by that is failing and hence looking dumber than a stump.
At times I was so preoccupied with the question of “What if I fail? How will I look then?” that I didn’t take the time to ask the question “What if I succeed?” This is where I should have been focussing!
Believe it or not, this quote was a real turning point for me. It triggered something so profound that it inspired me to build my business without worrying so much about what I would look like if I failed. I built my business as if no one was watching…which in turn removed the whole “failing” equation and my concern about how that would look.
The truth was it wasn’t so much that other’s weren’t watching, it was simply my mindset had shifted and I really didn’t care. I stopped focusing on what it would be like if I failed and focussed on what it was going to be like when I succeeded. It was a pretty life changing moment for me.
I still look to this quote every day; in fact it hangs on my office wall as a constant reminder (which I need every now and then)… to dance like no one’s watching.
So what about you…are you dancing like no one’s watching?
March 25th, 2009 at 7:04 am
Michelle, this was so inspiring to read first thing in the morning! I too found that this one statement, “dance like no one’s watching”, resonated with me in the very same way when I first read it and continue to read it. It’s among the quotes I have on my office wall too.
I have a new idea a minute (yep – SOS, shiny object syndrom!) and in carrying out some of these that really hit home for me, I have the odd great success. For others, they produce less than stellar results (read: bomb). If I didn’t “dance like no one’s watching”, I wouldn’t try and would never know the satisfaction of my ideas coming to fruition. So, “dance like no one’s watching” and enjoy that feeling of success!
March 26th, 2009 at 10:42 am
Oh my gosh my friend, too funny, you writing about this. Last weekend I was cleaning my office and came across a framed copy of this quote you had given me so many years ago. I remember when you gave it to me thinking “Wow if I can live my life like that, it would be fantastic!”
It’s still a source of inspiration for me and I continue to work, love and dance. At least I have rhythm though so I don’t mind dancing in public.
April 17th, 2009 at 6:39 am
I like to also sing like there’s no one listening
Poor people listening…