A favorite one-liner: I used to just crastinate, but then I turned pro. If there were an Olympics for putting things off, I would have been a contender for most of my adult life.
Not anymore, though. I’m back in the ranks of ordinary. I do put things off, like getting that tiny chip in my windshield fixed before it turns into a full-fledged crack. But I pay bills on time. I may fail to wash the lettuce before it liquefies. But I do make appointments to have my teeth cleaned. (I once went six years between dental appointments.) I was death on houseplants. Always meant to water them, yet rarely did. Always meant to write another chapter on that novel I started but would go months between actual writing.
Something happened when I began dancing regularly. I practice Nia, a fusion of modern dance with martial arts and healing arts like yoga. I’ve written about it many times. It’s meant for dancers, not observers. Watching Nia is not like watching ballet or hip-hop. It’s all about how the dance makes the dancers feel.
Researchers have uncovered benefits to dance. Multiple mental processes require attention: moving in time to rhythm, learning and then remembering specific choreography, staying aware of other dancers. All of that helps develop neuroplasticity, the building of new neural pathways that keeps brains healthy. And then there’s the release of mood-managing chemical messengers. Dopamine supports memory and motivation. Endorphins deliver a kick of euphoria and reduce stress. Serotonin regulates mood and reduces worry. Dance gets them all circulating.
I don’t know of any research that specifically says a regular dance practice helps people get stuff done. But there are studies that show dance strengthens the executive function parts of the brain, which is where goal-setting, planning tasks, and controlling impulses reside.
It may help that I dance at a studio with positive messaging on the wall. Over the years, I’ve internalized that message of working for things I can’t stop thinking about.
I still have undone tasks, but they no longer linger months or years. And none of them are the kind where the delay costs me money or hurts others. I rarely kill houseplants through active neglect.
Why am I writing about this now? Well. My life is busy. I have a novel coming out in two weeks. There are many tasks associated with marketing and publicity that have made me procrastinate my dancing. It’s been two weeks since I was on the dance floor. And all those benefits of dance? I can physically and mentally feel their absence.
That’s a mistake I won’t make again. I can’t ever be too busy for dance.
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