A little case of PMS (Pointe of Major Stress)?

THE DOCTOR IS IN!

So...maybe it's time to re-think your teaching methods when you reach a 'pointe' of no return...when it seems that NO ONE is getting high on their releve any more and very few are 'down' with their plie...you repeat yourself 'til you're blue in the face and all you get is a blue face...when you secretly wish your barre was a bar! Then suddenly you snap back into reality when you step over the line and do something you regret. PMS?

Setting:
Wednesday night - 13-year olds' beginner pointe class. Very late in the season. More importantly, even closer to your recital date! You are at a breaking point with all the stress in your life...poor you, poor you. This particular group of girls just does NOT 'get it'! Your gentle. constructive corrections have gone unnoticed and certainly unfulfilled for 6 months and now you just cannot take it any more!

Situation:
Correction after correction...on and on for the last 6 months and 25 minutes. Here we go! You stop and turn abruptly to face the class, form the shape of a pistol with your hand (aimed directly at each one of them), and boldly announce, "I can't take this any more! Next week I'm bringing a gun and when you don't correct your mistakes I'm going to shoot you in the knees!" Before you could stop yourself you have blurted out something entirely inappropriate and, well, potentially incriminating for a highly possible lawsuit! At the same moment you suddenly realize that Mrs. Smith, the one 'corporate' mom in her business suit who visits your school about 3 times a year to check on her daughter's progress is standing in the doorway staring at you expressionless. The deafening silence throughout the studio is painful as your thoughts turn into, "I am SO out of business. I am SO not getting out of this one. I am SO over..." Calmly now you finish your class with as much dignity as you can and wait for that mom to call you out. To your surprise she says nothing and takes her child home. This is even worse! Each day for the next week you are waiting in fear for that confrontation wondering how you will ever defend your outburst. Well, it's now Wednesday again and , whew, no sign of the corporate mom but her daughter is in class. As you begin class your secretary steps in to say, "Mrs. Smith is waiting for you in your office. She want's to speak with you before class." Oh, great! Here we go! So you drag yourself into your office to face the music. "Mrs. Smith, first let me tell you how incredibly sorry I am for saying and doing what I did last week. There is absolutely no excuse. I just..." "Stop right there," Mr's Smith interrupts as she reaches into her purse, " I just have one thing to say." She pulls a water pistol from her purse and hands it to you saying, " Aim for the bangs. I hate those bangs!"
Well, although her daughter came home with wet hair, no one was really hurt in the process. WHEW! This could have been a disaster!

TODAY'S PRESCRIPTION:
When you feel PMS settling in DON'T pull out the big guns! You just may not have a parent that is an opportunist like Mrs. Smith in your studio. Instead, evaluate your class, their level of dance and commitment, their attitude toward you and your program. Expect more from every student but not more than they are willing to give. Otherwise you will lose in the end. A positive attitude will bring you more 'bang' for your buck!