We recently connected with Katie Van Note and have shared our conversation below.
Katie, so great to have you with us and we want to jump right into a really important question. In recent years, it’s become so clear that we’re living through a time where so many folks are lacking self-confidence and self-esteem. So, we’d love to hear about your journey and how you developed your self-confidence and self-esteem.
As the owner and sole dance teacher at The First Dance Place, I developed my skill and confidence over many maaaany years of teaching. Both grew simultaneously – the more skill I had in dance instruction, the more confidence I had. It was a snowball effect.
The main way my confidence grew was through repetition AND having a quality mentor. The best teachers are taught by great teachers, and in my case – my teacher and mentor, Cori, gave me wings to fly. Cori was the former owner of The First Dance Place, who (after a couple years as her employee), sold me her business. What Cori taught me was her specific wedding dance curriculum; her coaching style and partner dance technique; she taught me how to navigate different personality types; and she taught me how to run many back-end business tasks – which developed me more as a business owner.
Paired with the thorough dance teacher training I received, I also started out teaching for the company with a full roster of clients. I was teaching anywhere from 10-15 lessons per week which only grew over time. Because of this, I honed my craft very quickly. The sheer number of people I was interacting with and teaching helped me develop my voice and confidence as a dance teacher much faster than if I was teaching only a few lessons per week.
Self esteem is something I think I will always be working on… at least until I’m an old lady who doesn’t care what people think anymore. But my confidence and belief in my ability as a dance teacher and business owner is only growing!
Great, so let’s take a few minutes and cover your story. What should folks know about you and what you do?
Hi!
I’m Katie, the owner of The First Dance Place – San Diego’s top wedding dance studio!
When teaching, my goal is to impact people by leaving them with the experience that dance is fun and accessible to them – that they are capable of learning movement and styles of partner dancing and it doesn’t have to be stressful or scary! I want people to walk away from dance lessons feeling excited to come back, ready to practice their moves out in the real world, and supported & encouraged along the way.
I love getting to coach people who are nervous or apprehensive about dancing and watch them transform into confident dancers. I meet so many people who feel that they can’t dance – (two left feet, no rhythm, you name it!) – so it is really rewarding when they start to enjoy themselves and even start to see partner dancing as a fun activity they can do outside of lessons! Just because you didn’t grow up taking dance classes doesn’t mean it’s off-limits to you! Dancing is such a great way to connect with your partner, meet new people, and generally just have more fun in life, and I want everyone to get to experience it!
I am so excited to welcome all the new couples getting ready for their wedding! Whether you want a fully choreographed routine with wow-the-crowd moments or you just want to feel confident with a slow dance and some easy-to-learn moves – I got you!
There is so much advice out there about all the different skills and qualities folks need to develop in order to succeed in today’s highly competitive environment and often it can feel overwhelming. So, if we had to break it down to just the three that matter most, which three skills or qualities would you focus on?
I feel like skills and knowledge are gained along the way. Everyone has their own bag of skills that they bring to the table, so, instead, developing certain qualities can be more impactful to someone’s success in business than anything.
In my opinion, the top three qualities that will lead to success in business are:
1. Determination – at the center of it all, you have to be determined to make a business happen. You have to be willing to jump through the hoops, do the hard things, and push yourself to make your business real and sustaining. It does not fall in your lap, you gotta work for it. Having your “whys” are also helpful to keep you motivated and moving forward.
2. Patience – I’ve struggled a lot with this one. You don’t get to snap your fingers and get what you want in business. Business owners are faced with a lot of obstacles and barriers. Sometimes it’s in the form of regulations and laws, sometimes it’s in the form of starting capital and investment or even trainings and degrees. It can take a little while to realize the vision you have for yourself and your business – this is where maintaining forward momentum and eyes on the prize (aka determination) are your best friends.
3. Energy – At least some aspects of your business must give you energy. Whether you’re in the healing profession and you get to work with people to relieve stress and anxiety, or you love making food and are rewarded seeing people enjoy your delicious homemade bites – whatever you put work into must also fill your cup to some extent or else you risk becoming drained and burnt out.
Alright, so before we go we want to ask you to take a moment to reflect and share what you think you would do if you somehow knew you only had a decade of life left?
The challenge I am currently facing is how to scale my business online.
I teach couples and students in our San Diego studio at the moment. I absolutely love what I do and don’t want to change a thing about my in-person lessons. The only thing I want to increase is passive income through virtual/online offerings.
I figure – if other people are doing it, so can I!
I am excited (and a little daunted) by the opportunity to create a course that can help newly engaged couples learn the basics for their first dance! Stay tuned…
Contact Info:
- Website: https://www.thefirstdanceplace.com/
- Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/firstdanceplace/
- Youtube: https://www.youtube.com/@thefirstdanceplace-bestdan8469
Image Credits
@Perruciphoto @lindsaymariephoto @thejustinjay @davidjosue
