Hi, it's Jen Landis and this is the GIRLBRAVE podcast. I am talking with Stasha and we recorded this a few months ago before Covid-19 hit and everything was canceled. So I imagine some of the dance recitals and stuff that she had going on might not have happened, but I still love her advice on what she does to keep herself organized and her thoughts about being nervous. 

All right. Stasha, you ready? 

Yeah. 

Okay. Alright. Stasha, what grade are you in and how old are you? 

I'm in fifth grade and I'm nine years old. Sorry, I'm 10. Ha, ha. 

I have a 10 year old daughter who's also in fifth grade. So I know where you're at and you are a dancer. How old were you when you started dancing? 

So I started dancing when I was two years old, but when I actually started to get into dancing, I was six or seven. 

What got you into dancing? 

My sister danced a lot when she was little, so I wanted to do the same, so that's why I started dancing. 

Do you guys dance at the same studio? 

Yes. Mia has different class schedules, but we dance at the same studio. 

What performances do you have coming up? 

Well, I get to perform in the Nutcracker with Mia and I also get to compete this February. 

That sounds fun. How many variations will you be in? 

So I'll only be competing in one because it's my first year. 

Do you have to be a certain age to start competing? 

Yeah, I think you asked to be nine. 

Nice. Yeah. So this'll be your first time, tell me about that. Is it nerve wracking? Are you excited? What kind of feelings are going through your head? 

It's really nerve wracking, but also really exciting because you get to compete against different people and it's really exciting to see all the different judges and stuff. 

Yeah, I bet. So if you're starting to perform and to compete and you have nerves, what kind of self-talk or what do you tell yourself to get over those nerves?

I just kind of tell myself that it's not really worth it to be nervous because if you're always nervous then it's not, then you won't really have so much excitement. It's not even fun anymore if you're always nervous. 

I love that. I really love that. I'm going to use that. I once heard that nervousness and excitement are almost the same feelings. It just depends on how you think about it, which is pretty cool. 

Is it stressful at all to juggle dancing and school and friends and other extracurricular activities? 

There's a lot going on because I have dance right after school and usually my teacher gives us homework that's due the next day. So it's hard to balance out all the homework and dancing. 

So how do you do that? 

I tell my teacher usually and then I also write down when I'm doing so that I can finish my homework on time. Also I do my homework at ballet sometimes to get it done faster. 

Yeah, just really take advantage of the time that you have. Okay. I love this question. Do you have a quote that you tell yourself or a saying that inspires you? 

So sometimes I tell myself just to focus.Staying focus is good. 

What about, what do you do when you need to stay happy, when you're starting to feel overwhelmed? 

I like to just plan everything that I'm doing, so balance everything out so that I know when I can do things and then I, and so that I know when I'm doing them.