Aug 17, 2021
This week on 5.6.7.EIGHT, Aleksandra interviews Betsy McBride, Co-founder and Director of Marketing at Rezonance Athletics — a sustainable athletic wear line that she started alongside her fiancé. In addition to her career as an entrepreneur, McBride is a performer with the American Ballet Theater (ABT). This incredible combination of careers has landed her on the cover of Pointe Magazine and has garnered her multiple dance-related accolades. In addition to all of this, McBride is a fully certified teacher through the ABT National Training Curriculum.
Betsy’s story is a story of resilience and grit. As if a full-time dance career wasn’t enough to keep her busy, Betsy decided to build a business from scratch and, now, spends her days shifting mindsets from dancer to entrepreneur. On the podcast, Betsy is honest about the highs and lows of entrepreneurship but speaks to her love of dance and motion as the foundation for both of her incredible careers.
Moving Quotes:
"The whole business-building process has been a learning experience. Every time we do something, we learn as we go."
"Learn as much as you can. Be as versatile as you can. Never put yourself in a box and say, 'I'm just doing classical ballet.' Because I don't think any classical ballet companies do that anymore."
"If you feel like you don't want to get complacent and you want to push yourself artistically and work with different people, it's important to push yourself to branch out."
Bullet Points (w/ timestamps) - Highlighting key topics discussed:
3:25: Betsy walks through her journey as a dancer and reflects on her first time dancing in person post-pandemic.
5:47: Betsy discusses any anxieties or hesitations during her move to New York City as a young dancer.
7:43: McBride shares some advice for dancers as they transition from one company to another.
13:28: McBride shifts gears to her entrepreneurial endeavors and explains the birth of her sustainable apparel line.
17:56: Betsy reflects on the biggest challenges of her entrepreneurial journey thus far.
20:07: Betsy, who works as both a full time dancer and business owner, discusses the challenges of shifting mindsets from one job to the other.
22:22: Betsy speaks to trends that she is currently seeing inside of the dance world and discusses the value of versatility.
27:47: McBride shares some tips for any dancers as they prepare for auditions or performances.
29:16: McBride retells an on-stage failure and how she managed to overcome that mishap.
31:39: Betsy discusses what’s next for her, both personally and professionally, and shares some last bits of advice for listeners.
Bullet List of Resources –
Betsy McBride
Rezonance Athletics