Holly
Cornish coastal mover: Waves of wellness through creative dance
"Make happen has been incredible to say the least!"
Holly left behind her background in dance, fitness and performance when she moved solo to Cornwall 7 years ago. Accessibility for adults to dance was virtually non-existent in her new home, and while balancing work and uni she lost touch with her passion. Unfortunately, she then injured her spine and feet in a car accident and lost all hope of ever dancing again, which led her to develop depression, a battle she fought for years.
Last year Holly had a realization that she needed to focus back on dance and fitness instructing to give herself a sense of purpose and fulfillment. So she quit her job and launched her business, shortly after which she stumbled upon the Make Happen course. It sounded so exciting and almost like it was made for her, how could she say no?
Since then Holly's business has blossomed and she has become the happiest she has ever been! She runs successful weekly classes for her local community and does her best to inspire people of all ages to get moving.
1. What is your endeavour / what are you up to currently, can you tell us a bit about it?
I encourage adults to look after their mental health and physical fitness through creative movement. I currently offer dance and yoga based wellness classes to my local community, as well as special workshops where people can get involved in a range of different movement practices and discover new styles of exercise and self care. I also have my first ever wellness retreat planned out and ready to run in September of 2024!
2. How has the Make Happen course influenced your creative practise?
Make happen has been incredible to say the least! The community of staff and students feels like a family, I know I can always be myself with them, ask for advice, make mistakes and talk through my ideas.
Since starting the MA I have been able to really find my niche and target market, my weekly class attendance has doubled in size and is still growing. This has been a massive step towards financial stability in an industry that is known to be competitive and unstable.
The course has also helped me get more comfortable with putting myself first and prioritizing my business endeavour, while finding a happy balance of time for myself and my family.
I am getting better at taking creative risks and exploring avenues of creative movement that I previously would not have been brave enough to.
3. What's the biggest achievement so far since starting the Make Happen programme?
I am really proud that I've established a regular teaching schedule full of classes throughout the week and that it's making me money only 6 months in! I'm also super proud of my website, which I created entirely by myself and has gotten me a lot of professional recognition locally. The website has brought attention to my skills and I was actually asked to work with a couple to choreography the first dance for their wedding, which has been an honour.
4. What's your origin story and how did it lead you to where you are today with your endeavour?
I started dancing at age 3 and have always loved moving to music, this developed into an interest in choreography at age 14 that lead me to start thinking about teaching. I got some experience teaching for Northamptonshire Music and Performing Arts Trust and then began to establish my own classes elsewhere. By the time I turned 18 I had posted numerous dance videos of my students on YouTube, some gaining over 14000 views. While this made me extremely happy, I knew I wanted to move long distance and set myself up for a life in Cornwall, which sadly meant the end of my Northampton based classes.
So I did it, I moved to Cornwall and started fresh, but I ended up being swept with the motions of life and fell into a career as a chef in order to pay my bills; while I simultaneously studied at University. I was barely finding time for myself and dance as it was, but then I injured my spine and feet in a car accident and I thought I would never dance again. This, along with other parts of life, caused me to slip in to a depression that I then battled for years.
It was only truly at the age of 24 when I told myself enough is enough. I knew I was capable of so much more and I realised then that I needed to focus back on dance and fitness instructing to give myself a sense of purpose and fulfilment. I quit my job, took some time off for myself and then launched my business, North Cornwall Dance and Fitness. Initially I offered kids classes because that's what I thought I knew how to do from before. These became mildly popular but I was not making a living and I knew I needed help. It was at that point I was advertised the Make Happen MA and I just knew it was meant for me and my business endeavour.
I jumped on a call with Tom and Olly and met a few others who were interested too and immediately the energy I had been looking for was there, re-filling my cup, allowing me to pour more of myself into my passion. I proceeded with my application to join the MA and can honestly say it was one of the most important and powerful decisions I have ever made. From that moment on I have continued to grow professionally and as a person thanks to the team and my cohort at Make Happen. My mental health has never been better and since figuring out my niche and demographic I have made it my mission to help other adults with their mental health through creative practices, as this has been transformative for me.
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