Today we’d like to introduce you to Jenny O’Brien.
Jenny, let’s start with your story. We’d love to hear how you got started and how the journey has been so far.
In 2012, I was sitting at my “desk job” and had an epiphany. So much of our life is spent working… and life goes by too fast to not enjoy our work.
I had been teaching dance for about 13 years and had a full-time job in marketing and communications. After my “9-5” day ended… I would teach dance in the evenings. My teaching job never felt like work to me. I spent years dreaming of feeling that way every day. I longed for it. I DREAMED of it. I just always felt it wasn’t possible. Mostly, the financial part of it. It is scary and overwhelming to start over… to leave a career with great benefits… and to risk your new venture not working out. It’s a risk many don’t take. And that many sacrifice their happiness over. I decided I wasn’t going to be that person anymore. A wave of encouragement and strength came over me all very quickly… something was telling me to do it. To chase my dream. It WILL happen and it WILL work.
I decided to leave my job and pursue my lifelong dream of owning a dance studio. I started small, as Dreams Dance Academy: The Traveling Dance Studio. I held my classes at fitness studios and community centers. I marketed and promoted my new business obsessivly, and told anyone who would listen about it. I held free classes at libraries, encouraged family and friends to tell THEIR friends. Every waking hour I spent making it happen. I will never forget my first day of classes. It was a Saturday and I had three classes I was offering at a fitness center. I had one child in two of the classes, and two in the other one. I could of cancelled them but I knew that everyone has to start somewhere and this was my somewhere. Well, it blew up from there! A few months later, I had my first recital at Christmas and I had about 60 students. One year after that first class with one student, I had grown so quickly that I had to obtain my own studio space. A true dream come true! It was a quaint cozy space with one dance room, and less than two years after that… I had outgrown that space! In 2015, I opened my absolute “Pinterest vision board” space. At 4,100 square feet with 3 dance rooms in the town I always dreamed of being in… we now have 350 students. I often pinch myself that this is truly my life.
I still sometimes can’t believe I actually had the courage to do it! Many people around me thought I was crazy leaving a career I had worked so hard for and I too thought I was crazy to not keep climbing that career’s ladder as I had been. They say it’s more about the journey than the destination. I have learned how true that is the last six years. I have learned more in the last few years than have my entire life. I also have realized how much those 10 years in the “corporate world” shaped me to be as successful as I am today. My journey has been scary, exciting, nerve wracking, fulfilling, full of mistakes and lessons… but most of all, it has helped me find my true passion and purpose. I am living proof that dreams DO come true. But not without patience, persistence, and consistency. It won’t always be easy, but it will always be worth it.
Overall, has it been relatively smooth? If not, what were some of the struggles along the way?
It has most definitely NOT been easy! In fact, I would say there were more struggles than triumphs along the way – especially in the beginning, There will always be. But, those are where your best lessons are learned in business ownership.
I would say in my field, the biggest struggle was that there are a plethora of dance studios and park districts in my area. I learned right away that I had to find what sets me apart… what makes my studio different… how I could stand out. For me, it was being more than “just a dance studio.” We do alot of giving back and community involvement. And a lot of smaller scale things just to make dancers feel good about themselves and motivate young girls to be strong, confident leaders. We offer our dancers opportunities to grow in many more ways than just their dance technique.
Dreams Dance Academy – what should we know? What do you guys do best? What sets you apart from the competition?
We offer dance classes for ages 2 through teen in ballet, tap, jazz, hip-hop, lyrical, contemporary, musical theater, and specialty classes such as flexibility and conditioning. Our studio sees 350 students through its doors each week, ranging from kids who take one class a week to those that are here for 10 hours a week.
We have two dance teams here – a Performance Troupe (community-based performances) and a Dance Company (competitive team). Our teams have Team building days, big sister/little sister programs, and are required to participate in giving back/volunteering initiatives.
What I am most proud of: Each month, we choose a give-back. They range from large national organizations such as the American Heart Association to smaller non-profits like the local homeless shelter.
What is “success” or “successful” for you?
Success means something different to everyone, and that is such a cool thing. Success to me is pretty simple. It’s having goals and successfully achieving them. There is nothing more gratifying to me than seeing my goals and dreams become a reality. Especially, knowing that less than 10 years ago, they were all dreams of mine that I assumed would never come true.
Contact Info:
- Address: 2460 West Main Street, Unit 111
St. Charles, IL 60175 - Website: www.dreamsdance.com
- Phone: 630.443.2181
- Email: jenny@dreamsdance.com
- Instagram: @dreamsdanceacademy
- Facebook: facebook.com/dreamsdanceacademy
- Other: https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCmzk3PDqkJgZmyGEO_Cj5Ig
Image Credit:
Sheena Jane Photography
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