What's your EI (Experiential Investment)? Mine is dancing :D

March 2017



(Source: Google)

I didn't realize how much I was propounding experiential spending theories (left, right and center it turns out) until one of my colleagues asked me the other day, "So what is the new experience you have been investing time on recently?". And my answer was 'dancing :D'. This is not the first time that I have enthusiastically undertaken such endeavors - during school I learnt Kuchipudi, and while in Chennai and Hyderabad, I attended courses in hip hop. Albeit this time around, I was keen on pursing a structured training routine, and hence enrolled in a Kathak dance academy. 

As I had already learnt a different classical form, I was asked to attend classes for an initial period of three months - the reason being that learning and unlearning a classical dance form can be quite difficult as the years progress. I acquiesced, but to be honest I couldn't envisage how something I had learnt 20 years ago could be a roadblock. Imagine my astonishment when the first class I attended last week resulted in a flood of memories of the dance classes I attended in childhood - involuntarily my movements reflected Kuchipudi and not Kathak! One of the obvious differences is posture - in Kuchipudi, a classical dance from South India, we bend the knees whereas Kathak, a classical dance from North India is a straight dance form. Understanding and exploring the similarities and differences has been informative as well as fascinating.  

(Source: Google; author's file photo)

So why do you need to invest in one such experience? One compelling reason is its a great stress buster. To me, dance is not about memorizing steps 1 through 8, but a beautiful way of expressing feelings. Mia Michlel's wonderful quote resonates with me "If you dance with your heart, your body will follow". Though I talk more about dance, this extends to any and all forms of art - music, painting et al. 

Does this mean that if that you are passionate about your job, you do not really need to invest in any such experience because you are already doing what you love right? Absolutely not. Irrespective of whether you love the work that you do or you are following your passion, there are sustenance factors that come into play - financial, societal et al. When I talk about experiential investment, I am talking about investing time and effort exclusively on thyself - embarking on an experience chosen with one's interest and happiness as top priority. Each and everyone of us owe thyself one such truly liberating EI. 

So what's your experiential investment?

(Source: Google)