We had the good fortune of connecting with Sabrina Reyes and we’ve shared our conversation below.

Hi Sabrina, is there something that you feel is most responsible for your success?
A slogan, that people often use to describe my personality is: Never give up! It’s true, I can identify myself a lot with this slogan.

It’s already a challenge to start something new (like your own business), and a most people never ever start. But the real flex for me is to not give up! There will be so many challenges and tough times, things you never did before, or things you don’t know…and this is where a lot of people who actually started also give up.

Really important to me is to have a very strong “WHY”. A strong “why” will always be more powerfull than all your fears!

Let’s talk shop? Tell us more about your career, what can you share with our community?
My dancelabel NYDS – New York Dance Studio, Switzerland started as a hobby. I just started teaching, because I loved dance and teaching and I combined two of my passions. And here is already a very important lesson: Start because you love what you do, not because you want to earn money with it. Along the way I realized, that this is the only right way to approach something you want to do for business, because during tough times, money won’t be enough recompensation to overcome the challenges, only love and passion are able to survive the thunderstorms!

Money in the dance industry: After working with love and dedication, money started flowing naturally towards me and my business. And yes: There is still this thought spooking around in the head of so many artists, that they are not allowed to get recompensated with a good salary, because they love what they do! This is one of the biggest mistakes most artist do. Imagine how beautiful it would be, if more people would do what they love? How happy the world could be? How much more quality you would have in life?

As well a big learning for me was: It’s so important to have values for your business. I’ve choosen the values for my dance label very spontaneously: Passion / Courage / Discipline. Only after executing as a dance coach, I realized how much sense there lied in my values:
Passion: A dancer needs passion. Without passion nothing will happen, but…
Courage: …she/he needs as well to have courage, to try new things, new steps, new ways. Courage to dance in front of an audience, courage to explore yourself and connect with your essence and go out of your comfort zone…and last but not least…
Discipline: All dancers need discipline. Discipline to train, discipline to stand up when you fall, discipline to reach your personal goals.
And the best thing about those values? They are not only valuable for dancers, but for life! If you follow these values in your life, you can reach your goals and realize your dreams!

My business and NYDS are special because of the following facts:
– We have values, and we live them
– Everyone is welcome. If you like dancing, and you are dedicated to learn and grow, NYDS is open for you!
– I combine 3 styles in one class: My classes are called “Streetstyle” and they combine Hip Hop, Dancehall and Afrobeats
– We are a family. We stick together in the good and the bad (aka Covid or my accident)
– We have the “no-concurrence” rule, and we stick to it. I pick up each student where he is, and support them to climb to the next level
– My classes are level based, not aged based like they usually are in Switzerland
– My classes are held in German, French and English

Any places to eat or things to do that you can share with our readers? If they have a friend visiting town, what are some spots they could take them to?
My heart beats for my home country Switzerland, as well for the big apple: New York City! This is why my dance label also got his name from.

Switzerland stands to me for: Home, forest and green fields, swimming in the lake, having barbecue at the lakeside and chill with friends, but also during witner season snowboarding in the mountains and having a delicious fondue or raclett 🙂 For me there are so many places in Switzerland, where you can have fun or calm down: You choose!

New York City: My second home. NYC stands for pulsating energy, 24/7, arts and opportunities everywhere. For me it’s pure freedom and amazing inspiration. I love to eat breakfast at 11pm or sitting at a harbour and watching the sunset/sunrise. I love bagels and the huge variety of cultures and languages. I love to speak English and Spanish along the day and taking a dance class at 9pm (which is absolutely impossible in Switzerland) 🙂

The Shoutout series is all about recognizing that our success and where we are in life is at least somewhat thanks to the efforts, support, mentorship, love and encouragement of others. So is there someone that you want to dedicate your shoutout to?
I would like to give a shoutout to all the people who didn’t support me, as I wished, because they made me become stronger and even more convinced, that I can do it.

For sure a huge shoutout to all the people who did support me, like my students, my friends and some great mentors along the way.

Website: www.dancerbrina.com

Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/dancer_brina/

Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/profile.php?id=100050724978099

Youtube: https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCNGyMC4X7bVcE9Soo5geeSA

Other: Linktree: https://linktr.ee/dancerbrina

Image Credits
Photographer: AtElectra (Instagram @atelectra)

Nominate Someone: ShoutoutArizona is built on recommendations and shoutouts from the community; it’s how we uncover hidden gems, so if you or someone you know deserves recognition please let us know here.