Meet Payal Parida

Alright – so today we’ve got the honor of introducing you to Payal Parida. We think you’ll enjoy our conversation, we’ve shared it below.

Alright, so we’re so thrilled to have Payal with us today – welcome and maybe we can jump right into it with a question about one of your qualities that we most admire. How did you develop your work ethic? Where do you think you get it from?

I was brought up by two immigrant parents.

A simple, but deep rooted answer stated above – My father moved to the U.S at the age of 18 from India. He completed his bachelors and masters in electrical and mechanical engineering from NJIT. After working multiple different jobs he eventually built his own business, Sparks Complete Car Care, from the ground up. My mother moved to the U.S from India at the age of 23 after marrying my father. As the youngest daughter from a military household she was the only one to leave India and come to a different country not knowing anyone. She got her certification in Montessori training and went from being a teacher assistant to a head teacher at Aurora Montessori within 10 years of hard work and effort.

My parents took a huge leap of faith coming to this country with a dream and made that dream a reality. I grew up with parents that always encouraged me to put my best foot forward in everything that I do. I never take “no” for an answer because I continuously witnessed the two people that made me who I am today do so.

Work ethic isn’t something I just learned, it’s something that I believe is in my blood.

Thanks, so before we move on maybe you can share a bit more about yourself?

My name is Payal Parida, pronounced like “pile”. I am a 23 almost 24 year old professional dancer, choreographer and teacher who moved to LA from the Chicago suburbs. Prior to moving to LA I graduated the University of Michigan with a BFA in Dance, Certification in Sales and Minor in Entrepreneurship. After working in Digital Recruitment going to Account Management in Corporate America for about 6 months I invested the money I made in order to take my dance career to the next level. I moved to LA mid July of 2024 and have been freelancing in my craft ever since. Along with my dance career, I am also involved in marketing, communication and administration for multiple dance companies. For dance, I am a principle dancer for Blue13 Dance Company, I teach for competitive dance conventions and studios, such as Activate Your Artistry and Nexus Dance Convention and for studios all around LA. As for my business endeavors, I work in Communications, Marketing and Programming for Blue13 Dance Company, I also work in Administration for a studio in Pasadena, Elements Dance Space. I also have tapped into the world of content creation, currently I am working on a partnership with Fuego Sneakers, shoes designed specifically for dancers. I started the year in Orlando, Florida teaching Bollywood at dance convention, Activate Your Artistry. Afterwards I flew to NYC to perform with Blue13 at APAP365. I just wrapped my first music video as a dancer the past weekend and I have multiple performances coming up, including The Making Showcase with Cynosure, Choreographers Carnival, “Bollywood is Gay” at the LGBT Center with Blue13 and much more!

Looking back, what do you think were the three qualities, skills, or areas of knowledge that were most impactful in your journey? What advice do you have for folks who are early in their journey in terms of how they can best develop or improve on these?

Persistence, Hard Work and Work-Life Balance

Persistence – Within the dance field, getting “no” more than a “yes” is the reality. Without persistence and the hunger to keep going no matter how many time you get turned down is crucial to survive in this cut throat environment. Thought it’s tough and can be dis-encouraging to deal with rejection, us artists have to find the will to keep going because once we get a “yes” it’s one of the must fulfilling and rewarding feelings. This isn’t to say that our only goal is to get a “yes” and validation within our craft, but to not feel defeated when someone doesn’t see our value or worth as an artist. I always use the power of rejection to propel me forward rather than push me down and it’s vital to keep that growth mindset to persist forward.

Hard Work – This career is not for the weak. We must hustle in order to be able to get to where we want to go. I always go by the saying by pro surfer, Bethany Hamilton, “I don’t need easy. I just need possible”. I have always prided myself on my work ethic. I truly believe when you put in the effort the results will eventually show. It may not be immediate, but it always has its way of revealing itself one way or another. Don’t give up. Just keep going and hustling cause it always pays off. Just be patient with getting the results because most of the time it’s not immediate and takes time! So be kind to yourself, give yourself a break when need be, but always keep working towards your goals. Don’t lose the work ethic because it carries not only into our professional career, but in our day to day lives as well.

Work-Life Balance – I am still working on this skill, but having a balance between work and living life is crucial or you will burn out! Of course, put your heart and soul into your career ambitions, but also give the same amount of heart and soul into your days off, reset time, family and friends etc. Don’t forget to actually live your life besides just focusing on your passions! Work hard and play hard is a great motto to follow and I’ve been trying to implement it more and more.

What do you do when you feel overwhelmed? Any advice or strategies?

Here is my go-to list because I feel this A LOT at times, especially as someone who struggles with GAD (generalized anxiety disorder)

– Meditate/deep breathing exercises
– Journal
– Coloring books
– Watching my favorite movies
– Cooking
– Taking a walk in an area that feels peaceful to me (hiking trail, beach etc)
– Making a To-Do list and only highlighting those that need to be completed immediately
– Cleaning
– Spending time with family and friends

Contact Info:

Image Credits

Tejas Mahabaleshwarkar
Kirk Donaldson
Jeanne Mam-Luft

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