Whether you are in the Pilates studio or coaching a school dance team, teaching is so much more than yelling, “Point your toes!” For over a decade, Dr. Chelsea Pierotti has leveraged her experience as a professional dancer and high-performance coach, along with her PhD in sports psychology, to help dance educators make a more meaningful impact in the lives of their students. As a speaker, workshop teacher, and podcast host, Chelsea’s mission is to create happier, more successful dancers through positive mental skills. In today’s episode, she shares effective coaching strategies rooted in sports psychology. Chelsea emphasises the importance of setting clear expectations, creating a space that fosters both mental and physical safety, practicing mindfulness to combat perfectionism, reframing what it means to succeed as a dancer, and much more. For a practical coaching guide that aims to transform the dance world for the better, be sure to tune in today!

Key Points From This Episode:

• Insight into the work Chelsea does with dancers and dance educators.
• Advice for creating a positive, constructive, high-performance learning environment.
• Why failure, friction, and discomfort are an expected (and necessary) part of the process.
• A practical and compassionate guide for building mental toughness and resilience.
• Suggestions to help you cultivate mental and physical safety for your students.
• The important role of embracing vulnerability and modelling emotional regulation.
• How to be mindful of who your students are as human beings, not just dancers.
• Helpful feedback tools to enhance performance without amplifying perfectionism.
• Reframing the definition of what it means to be a successful dancer.
• Why questions to encourage reluctant students who are “just getting by.”
• Tips for fostering a sense of autonomy, progress, and connection for your students.
• What it means to “control the controllables,” whether you're a student or a teacher.

Links Mentioned in Today’s Episode:

Dr. Chelsea Pierotti: chelseapierotti.com

Dr. Chelsea Pierotti on Instagram: @dr.chelsea.pierotti

Passion For Dance Podcast: chelseapierotti.com/podcast

Free Ebook – 100 Pilates Class Themes: performance-fit-online.com/100-pilates-class-themes

Free Ebook – Top Teaching Tips: performance-fit-online.com/top-teaching-tips

Free Creativity Masterclass: mailchi.mp/pilates-studio-nuernberg/creativity-masterclass

Train the Trainers: pilates-studio-nuernberg.com/train-the-trainers

Connect with Us: [email protected] 

Performance Fit Pilates: pilates-studio-nuernberg.com 

Performance Fit Pilates on Instagram: @performance_fit_pilates

Performance Fit Pilates on YouTube: @PerformanceFitPilates 

Hannah Teutscher on LinkedIn: linkedin.com/in/hannah-teutscher