“And when you get the choice to sit it out or dance, I hope you dance” is my favorite line from the song “I Hope You Dance” by Lee Ann Womack. The song “I Hope You Dance” is about perseverance which leads to the topic of this blog post. Two weeks ago, I had THE toughest week that I have had in the past two years professionally speaking. Part of the situation was due to mistakes that I made, and the other part was something beyond my control. I thought long and hard about the situation and I decided that I was going to dance!

I won’t go into details about what happened during this time as I don’t want this post to be heavy. Throughout this tough week, I asked myself some hard questions one of which was “is this for me?”. As I pondered the question over and over in my mind, I decided that I was not going to let a single situation dictate the outcome of career. The situation had already consumed my thoughts for the week and that was enough. I realized that I could only control how I responded to the situation, and believe me…this skill (yes skill) makes all the difference. Also, the phrase “easier said than done” was applied here as well as I literally wanted to quit.

I looked up the definition for perseverance from Merriam-Webster and it reads “continued effort to do or achieve something despite difficulties, failure, or opposition”. Continued effort, i.e. to persist, to carry on, push forward, follow through… you get the picture.

Perseverance is hard. As stated above, it is the effort to continue despite opposition. I have found a few tools that have helped me with perseverance in past situations and in my most recent situation.

1. Evaluate the situation and realize what you can control which will likely be how you respond to what is occurring. Never act when emotions are high. Take some time away to reflect and then respond accordingly. Responding might mean providing a rebuttal, saying nothing, or deciding to not quit. Don’t let a temporary situation cause you to make a major decision.
2. Surround yourself with people who genuinely care about you and want you to succeed. I normally handle things on my own, but during this time, I leaned on my friends for support.
3. Get up, show up, and DRESS UP!! I mean….this is a fashion blog so my passion for fashion had to at least make a cameo in this post. If you decide that you are going to continue, by all means look good while you are doing it. I’ve stated this before in my previous I Am A Superwoman post and I’ll state it again. When you look good, you feel good. This statement is so true. Feeling good about yourself will also keep your mind in the right space to keep pushing forward.

Next time, and there will be a next time “you get the choice to sit it out or dance“, DANCE! In the photo below, I am dancing in the street and I plan on continuing and perfecting my dance moves. BTW, the dress in the photo is still available at Free People.