Musings from NDEO in Miami

I am nestled into my Hyatt Regency bed (quite comfortable) and thinking it is a good time to check in and share a little about how I got here.

It all boils down to dancers with brains.

And, starting tomorrow I will be conferencing with about 400 of them at the National Dance Educators Organization Conference.  Trust me. . . people who can kick overhead and quote learning theory are intimidating!  This annual event is a chance for dance teachers to come together and share what is working in the field, what is not working, what needs attention and what needs to be forgotten.

The National Dance Educator's Organization is a a large and vibrant community of dance educators from across the country (and beyond), serving the needs of dance education and supporting best practices in the field. This year's conference is on "The Art and Craft of Teaching."

But, this post actually isn't about the wonderful aspects of NDEO. If you are interested in the organization, you should look it up and become a member (plus, if you live in California, you become an automatic member of the CDEA-- of which I am cool enough to be called co-president).

The real reason for this post is . . . Twitter.  Huh? Schwat?  Whatchu talkin' bout?

Tonight I had the pleasure of training two of the smartest, most beautiful, most embodied women I know in the art of microblogging.  And, I realized that they are representative of so many of the dance educators of today.  Yes, I have my working group of dance-twitter-peeps, but as a whole, dance organizations are not so hip to the social media trends.  In other words, our branding and buzz making pretty much sucks.  Over the course of the next few days, information will be flung in heaps across panels, workshops, paper presentations and dance floors. The participants will be saturated from the diversity of ideas being tossed around the hallways, in elevators, over coffee and on the sidewalks.

But, who else will know?  Well, at the rate we are sharing on twitter, about 3 people.

So, I am calling dance educators to the twitter campaign. Tweet and twitter about all the ideas you encounter, ask the questions, share the answers, retreet and favorite until your heart's content!  We need to let the world know how much energy there is in this building. How we see a brighter future for generations through moving, feeling, experiencing, learning, knowing, and embodying.

Other fields have figured this out. They have learned how to create the buzz surrounding what they do and love. We need to give an in road to dance today and social media is the best possible way we can get the word out and reach as many people as possible.  It feels good to be a part of something that is alive with energy of a group that is rich with life and ideas.  Twitter is just one platform for us to create that buzz potential, to create a world that anyone who loves dance can find a home, find kinship and find support.  This is our chance to move the experience we have at the conference beyond the walls of this building and into the world at large.

So, go forth, download the app, set up an account, or revive the one you created and forgot about!  Tweet your love of dance!

. . . and don't forget to hashtag #NDEO2013

and I promise I will follow back @bethmegill

Beth

Dance World: We have a problem.

Attention all dancers, choreographers, dance critics, dance students, dance teachers, dance theorists, dance analysts, dance lovers, movers and shakers: We have a problem. 

We are imploding in on ourselves. 

Here's how I figure it: I am a tenured, well educated, deeply passionate, and superbly interested dance artist.  But, I often feel like I have NO idea what is going on the dance world. And, I feel like my sharing with the dance world is like someone screaming into a pillow in a sound proof room. I often feel like my social media posts are less like ripple creating pebbles thrown into a pond of potential and more like a pebble being thrown into the Grand Canyon never to be seen again. 

It's a problem!  

But here is the secret, dancers... Social media only works if people drive it. There is nothing magical about social media. You can't just start a twitter account and expect to get thousands of followers. Social media doesn't do that... We do that. But, the magic of social media is that when it reaches a tipping point, it does seem to perpetuate itself. A few comments from a large body of participants makes for a lot of sharing. But, if the social media engine is being driven by just a few people it can't go very far or very fast. 

I love dance because I love the feeling of lying on the ground, sensing the dance floor beneath me and the weight of my skin covering my bones. This is the experience of dance. The phenomena of dance as an act, a state, a way of life. But the world has grown and ideas are worth sharing. We all feel the need to connect with artists of like mind.  We all want to be inspired and to feel empowered by the solidarity of dance as a shared entity. But in order to feel this, we need to share. And we need to listen. 

The dance world is full of amazing projects, performances and events. But unless we have an effective platform to share these experiences and their documentation, the efforts can be easily overlooked, forgotten, or subsumed by the rest of the non-dance media that pours into our inboxes everyday.  There are platforms out there, BUT we as the members of the dance world have to use it, have to promote it, have to take the time to document and post so the dance world is fertilized by the greatness that already exists within it.  

How you can help the dance world through social media: Pick your Platform

Twitter: is for word people. I like calling it micro blogging. 140 characters to get to the heart of the point and share a link to more info. Can you have in depth conversations in 140 characters? No. But, you can link to articles and discussion forums and blogs that do. And, you might surprise yourself by what you can express in such few characters. 

Facebook: is used most for friends, family, and promotion of events. It combines text, image and video. Then isn't it the best if it does it all?  Well... FB tends to be used for personal communication more than professional communication, so your audience is subject to both aspects if your life (if you choose to use it this way). It can be confusing and things can be lost in the shuffle of people posting images of their tasty dinners. 

Vine: is a video app in which you share 6 second videos that are looped. What vine figure out it that most anything is funny when it is looped endlessly in 6 sec increments. Vine is not about words, it is about catching and sharing a moment. This could be interesting for dance, but so far I haven't connected with a "dance scene" on Vine.

Linked in: a place for your résumé. However, I recently learned that it is searchable by Google (unlike some other social media sites). Which can be great for branding and getting your business identity more exposure. 

Google+: is kinda like FB, except you get to put people in categories so that you can communicate with your colleagues differently that your family or friends. It also has great tools for conference chatting (Google Hangouts), community forums for groups or clubs with access to google drives as well.  Can you tell if is my new favorite thing?  (BTW join the DACCC* today!)

There are others and each has different perks, but the key is not what the program is as much as WHO is using it. When you connect with people on Social Media in a meaningful way, that platform gains more importance in your life, and you are likely to keep using it. But, if you don't use it, you are not going to get anything out of it. People need to share their ideas, questions and comments in order for the machine to work at all. And, everyone has something to share. But, also we need to share beyond our immediate circles!

So, today I challenge you to choose your platform of choice and post your answer to one or more of the following dance related question:

What topic about dance has been on your mind? What questions surround this topic? What are you current experiences with it? What have you learned? What new understanding have you gained?  

Keep your post short and to the point. Share with your colleagues. Then, and most importantly, find and respond to two posts (outside of your immediate circle) and share them with your own community. What did you like/ dislike about them?  Start the discussion.

Notice whether this process gave you a deeper understanding of your topic/question?  Did you learn something new in the process?  

Of course you did!  This is the power of sharing. 

Go on! Post!
Beth

*DACCC- Dance Association for California Community Colleges

Are you vain?

I am. 

And, it’s ridiculous because I try soooo hard NOT to care.  And, yet, I do. I DO!

Granted, I don’t care enough about my appearance to put on make up in the morning or use product or electrical devices to achieve a “hair do,” but I still want it.  And, I get jealous. That’s right! I said it!  I get jealous!

And, chances are you do, too.

Maybe not all the time, but at least every once in a while, right? . . . (I squinch up my eyes . . . please say yes. . . :-/ )

The truth is, I lead a pretty darn amazing life.  With a lot of great, wonderful, fantastic elements to it! And yet, I find myself getting all caught up in a tizzy over someone’s provocative Instagram post, or latest Facebook profile pic or ostentatious Tweet that they had the “best day in the world!”

The thing is, life is life, and last time I checked. . .

It’s not all bright and shiny!

At least my life isn’t, but somehow I feel at times like I am in a competition to impress the world with the best, tone-enhanced, square image possible (that will ultimately be forgotten tomorrow. Or, rather, in the next 5 minutes. )

It’s not all the time.  I often feel genuine excitement and joy in others’ beauty and for others achievements. But, then I turn around and feel like sh*t (I mean crap).  Sh*t!

I am worried, not because I might not have the most beautiful “selfie” but because I have been played.  I keep being played. A puppet in this world of social media.  And, the puppeteer is my own self doubt.  And, I know I am not alone.

Now, I just look at someone’s picture and I think. That isn’t REAL.  Because, it is not real.  It is not the matter of this real world; it is a series of pixels in a likeness that has been enhanced, and filtered, and contrasted, and angled to suit the desires of its owner.  This is not real life. Because, life is not all bright and shiny.  I am not all bright and shiny. And, probably you don’t feel bright and shiny all the time either. 

But, what does this mean?  What do I do? Deliberately put unattractive pictures of myself up (complete with double chin and greasy hair) or should I post only the sh*ttiest occurrances of the day?  Do I delete my accounts all together?  Do I get psychological counseling until it doesn’t bother me?  Will it ever not bother me? 

I have written before about Twitter for Mindfulness.  And, I see the value in making connections and sharing ideas online. I also see the marketing potential for my dance company. All good thing, but I currently feel an acute awareness to how it is not good. Not healthy. Not the direction I want to be going.

This article in the Huffington Post asks “Is social mediaturning us into teenagers?” and I say:

“YES!”

“I am the equivalent of a teenage fool!”

And, I am ashamed and terrified. 

I have been reading an excellent book by Rick Hanson called Buddha’sBrain, in which I learned just how important it is to cultivate the positive channels in the brain through contemplative practices. What I found most interesting so far (and I’m only half way through!) is the idea that we need to sit with positive emotions and not breeze through them in order to rebuild and refine the neural connections for positive emotions and positive behaviors.  By taking the time to soak in the positive, we are able to help build the neural pathways that allow us to relax and generally feel better more easily.  But this takes time and practice.    Hence zazen (Zen seated meditation) everyday!

So, I have been making an effort to notice and soak in the good moments of life.  And, they are good, but in general things are general never as good or as bad as we think they are.  So, taking a walk is wonderful.  But, when I see a picture of people at the top of the mountain on their hike, I think: “That must be AMAZING!!!”  But, in fact it was probably just good.  Wonderfully good, but just real life good. 

I don’t want to lose my life choosing which Instagram filter makes my pictures look the most exciting.  And, I certainly don’t want to compete with those people who choose to use their time that way.  It’s not real.  It’s virtual. It’s a screen.  It’s a glorified likeness.

It’s not all bad, and I am not renouncing it.  I just want to be honest. To see it as it is.  And, to let simple reality be enough. 

Not so amazing, Not the over-the-top, with the perfect lo-fi filter and immediate status update type of amazing.

Just real life good.

For the record, here is a pretty real picture of me.  Sweaty, awkward, poor lighting, crummy composition, ill fitting outfit.. . . You name it. It's  real.  And, it was a good day. 

Twitter for Mindfulness

Perhaps you have read or heard about Mindfulness. If you have read any of the more popular Buddhists texts by Thich Naht Hanh or Pema Chodren, then you have certainly encountered the idea even if it was called something else.  Likewise, if you practice yoga and have ever performed pranayama (breath control/meditation) or seated meditation then you have practiced being mindful. 

But, the practice of mindfulness in daily life amidst work drama, family crisis, personal health issues and the rest of life's curves balls takes practice and discipline.  I would like to present an unexpected mindfulness tool I recently discovered: Twitter.

Yes, I was one of those people who "didn't get Twitter" and scoffed at the ridiculousness of "saying something in 140 characters or less."  I only got my Twitter account (@BethMegill) a couple months ago because I was feeling desperate with my dance company, and knew I needed to try something new to broaden Megill & Company's (MeCo) exposure.  So, I created a Twitter account in my name.  No hiding behind anything, no ulterior motives. Everyone would know who I was, and I had to be ok with that. 

I didn't really post anything until about two months ago. I didn't know about RT (retweets) or hashtags (which I always knew as a pound sign). The, I drew the line and made a decision: I will tweet despite all my concerns and misgivings about it. I have to at least TRY it.  At first, it felt weird to post what I was thinking, what I was doing, and what I saw at any given moment, but it gradually became part of my day, and I found that you can say a lot in 140 characters. And, sometimes it is just a pointer to more info which is often very useful/entertaining/interesting. 

But, the best and most unexpected benefit of Twitter has nothing to do with my initial motives at all. I discovered that in making Twitter a part of my day, I was making reflection part of my day.  Twitter was helping me become more mindful! 

I find that Twitter helps me to put things into perspective as I find myself in sticky situations or frustrating states of mind.  In deciding what to post, I have to make a decision about what I want to say. And, in deciding what I want to say, I have to make a decision about what is important to say.  And, in order to decide what is important to say I have to decide what is import (period!).

This has become an excellent practice of mindfulness. I often wonder what I will tweet next.  "Is this important?" "Is this interesting?"  "Is this worth sharing?" I realized that these questions were not for any of my "followers" but for myself. Through this reflection, I am really asking: "What is important to me?" "Is what I am doing interesting and worth doing?"  "Am I making decisions that I am proud of and will feel comfortable sharing with others?"  Twitter makes me accountable to myself.  It helps me lead the life I want to live by reminding me to stay true to my beliefs and values.

I find that I have been more relaxed, more productive, more playful, more joy filled, and more interested in general. I see the world as more real because I have my eyes opened.  Of course I am excited when someone responds to a tweet (just as I am when you respond with a comment to this blog). It is exciting to think that something I have shared has given someone else joy or a moment for pause and reflection, but ultimately I tweet for myself and what the practice gives me on a daily basis. 

We shall see how long this trend lasts, perhaps it is just a phase that will come and go as so many things do.  But for now, I am grateful and appreciative of how this program (that I bad mouthed and snickered at for so long) has actually deepened my practices.  Thank you Twitter. And, special thanks to those who follow and share in my practice. You are my sangha. 

Trying out that Twitter thing. . .

It's true. I now have a twitter account and plan to use it. And I am certainly having mixed emotions about it all. One thing I do know is that this social networking stuff is hard work! Time consuming and mentally taxing if nothing else. And, I have the feeling it is harder at the beginning before it becomes a more self perpetuating mechanism. It is like having time for your friends. When you move to a new place you have all the time in the world but no friends to hang out with. But, once you get embedded in a group of friends, then your hanging out perpetuates itself and if anything you don't have enough time to see everyone you want to see.

But, I have to believe that this work will be worth it. My dance company Megill & Company takes my breath away. The dancers are unbelievably beautiful, passionate, easy to work with, funny. . . the list goes on. Bottom line is they need to be seen. They deserve to be seen and enjoyed. The more I see what is happening in the dance world the more I see that we fill a particular niche. Dance theater. Not quite Bill T. Jones. But in concept not too far. We enjoy being playful, making commentary, challenging the line between entertainment and art but working on the other end of the spectrum from the entertainment industry. We tell stories through movement (and sometimes words). Those who have seen us seem to like us. At least that is what I have heard so far.

So, I need to make the effort. Twitter here I am. Subject to your madness and hash tags (also known as a pound sign by the way for the rest of us who are not up to date on the twitter lingo). I want to get the word out, because the work is being made; it is coming together, and before we know it, we will need an audience. Someone to listen to our stories and see us give away our hearts in movement.

Dance, like ensemble music, is a communal phenomenon. It was born out of people coming together and sharing; it thrives under those conditions. Dancing can't be written down in a journal or book to be discovered posthumously. A choreographer can't lock herself up in her room to make dance after dance without any one knowing. Such dances would be lost to the world. Even a video of the dance would be a shadow of its real effect and power.

Dance is a living art and a performance art that is still largely passed down orally, an oral tradition that needs to be seen and experienced in the flesh. Where you can feel the music from the speakers, hear the breath of the dancers, hear the sound of their skin on the floor, and see the beads of sweat that even HD can't fully capture the way it really is.

So, now I tweet. At least I aspire to tweet. And if you would like to follow then I will know that all this Social Networking madness does have a purpose and will pay off in the end when Megill & Company gets to thank its audience with a bow.

twitter: BethMegill
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