There are a few careers that are standard dreams for children and youths. Some people even carry these iconic ambitions into adulthood and actually pursue them on a professional level. We typically refer to these individuals as delusional. After all, there’s only one President of the United States at any given time, and how many musicians actually become rock stars, or how many actors actually become movie stars? Unfortunately, the percentages are extremely small. The number of talented athletes who ever make it into professional sports is another excellent example.And while that’s somewhat disappointing to all the young hopefuls, it’s also part of the reason, or at least reflective of the reason that these careers are such common youthful ambitions and childhood dreams. Meanwhile, there are numerous other exciting and ambitious possibilities that also entice children’s fantasies and many of these frequently lead to actual professional careers. Money Mutual commercials demonstrate how accessible emergency finances can be, and many times these have been applied to guitar, dance lesson and football uniform purchases. Where there is a dream, there is a short term loan provider.
Becoming a dancer is one of these common dreams. It is also one that has a much different reality orientation that what is drummed up in the heads of so many five-year-olds awkwardly shuffling off in their first tap shoes or proudly making their way on point in their ruffled tutus. Of course those young dreams center on the performance itself, onstage and in front of millions of adoring fans. They also save mental space for the dozens of roses constantly being thrust into their arms and the magnificent celebrity status they see projected before them. These are such stuff as dreams are made of. Torn ligaments, shoulder injuries, blisters and poverty are the stuff of reality. The best anyone can really hope for is to find a life somewhere in-between. And of course for others, finding a life, any life, that is, any life outside of dance is the best option. So, what do you do if you spend your childhood and early youth in dance classes and recital performances? You reach a point where you have to decide on a lonely life of instability and regular injury or whether a place in an annual production of the Nutcracker, with the local community group, will fulfill your passions. And if you decide on the poor lonely and painful route, you’ll need lots of commitment, sacrifice and hard work. And a little financial advice from Montel Williams might benefit you as well.
