We recently connected with John Welker and have shared our conversation below.
John, we’re thrilled to have you sharing your thoughts and lessons with our community. So, for folks who are at a stage in their life or career where they are trying to be more resilient, can you share where you get your resilience from?
Good question! I think it’s a combination of competitiveness, inborn stubbornness, and love for the people around me and what I do. First and foremost a big shout out to my family of overachievers, their excellence definitely fueled my competitive nature to be recognized for my own successes. My mom, she was tough with a smile and encouraged all of us to do our best without excuses. She and I had some great battles around the dinner table, whereas I refused to eat certain foods off my plate. Everyone would be long gone, their dinner done, and I’d have to sit there until my dinner was finished. But no, I refused to eat and would sit there alone for hours until she excused me, only to be served the same uneaten dinner for breakfast! I’ve also been blessed with so many talented teachers who took interest and great care in my development and knew when to push me and when to encourage me. Not much has changed now, I’m surrounded by really smart talented people who inspire and challenge me daily – my fellow Terminators in dance and the arts!
Appreciate the insights and wisdom. Before we dig deeper and ask you about the skills that matter and more, maybe you can tell our readers about yourself?
Growing up, my journey in ballet and dance began when my sister encouraged me to try it out at 10 years old. Before I knew it, I was hooked and hungry to be good at it. After long hours in the studio and years training, I became a professional ballet dancer at 17. I danced many years, primarily with Atlanta Ballet and also had the opportunity to be a principal guest artist across the U.S. and internationally. During this time, I didn’t shy away from extra opportunities and responsibilities – I served as a union delegate for American Guild of Musical Artists and negotiated many dance contracts and also served on their national member relations committee, began and founded a contemporary dance company that operated in the summer months, and got a bachelor’s degree in dance.
Today, my professional start in co-founding Terminus Modern Ballet Theatre and serving as artistic and executive director began with the confidence of four fellow accomplished dancers from Atlanta Ballet who encouraged me to start a new company with them. At the time I had already committed myself to an MBA business program, but they quickly convinced me in believing we could create something very special and unique in the dance world – a company that honors its classical ballet roots yet moves the needle forward with new works that centers around contemporary storytelling and collaboration. Eight years into this entrepreneurial start up, we’re thriving, and not only have enjoyed great success as a dance company but also have a school that’s generating incredible professional level talent. Beyond this, what motivates me daily is the extraordinary people I work with, and the great work they do to inspire our audiences and students. In essence, I see my main responsibility is to ensure opportunities exist in line with what they are so passionate about.
I’m excited about our future and expanding our presence beyond Atlanta through touring and an upcoming digital partnership that can bring our artistic programming into households across the country. Stay tuned!
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?
Honestly, to start a nonprofit dance company and believe from day one you can pay yourself a livable wage is naïve and risky. When starting Terminus, we had a lot of faith and courage to do what we did, not to mention putting in very hard work over time. To get through those first years we kept going because we had each other to lean on, and bunch of people who supported us along the way. Knowing and appreciating this, has been the most impactful part of my journey.
Based on my personal journey, the best advice I can lend to anyone looking to create a startup is to say that time and relationships are your two most valuable assets. Time, in the sense that its omnipresent so you need to use it to your advantage, be realistic, and stay patient. Relationships are the fuel of gaining stability and feeling that you’re doing impactful work. And the beauty of being in the arts is that these collaborative relationships can create great works of art!
Money is important, but inevitably it ebbs and flows, so it needs to be put to work in the right places at the right time. Lastly, I would say recognize feeling uncomfortable as a gift of growth, so long as you adapt after setbacks and learn along the way you’re making progress.
What is the number one obstacle or challenge you are currently facing and what are you doing to try to resolve or overcome this challenge?
My biggest current challenge is balancing growth with limited capacity. I don’t want Terminus losing out on future opportunity because we aren’t able to get the necessary things done. We are at a phase when I need to bring on folks who can add value and create efficiencies without negatively impacting our collaborative and supportive culture.
Contact Info:
- Website: https://www.terminusmbt.com/
- Instagram: @terminusmbt
- Facebook: @terminusmbt
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