Inside this episode of Work Hard. Be Nice., host Sheri Horvath sits down with Kelly McCarthy, founder of Ignite Dance Company, for a conversation about what it takes to keep building the same dream for 30 years and still be willing to change how you build it.

Kelly shares how dance became a safe place for her as a child and eventually inspired her to create that same sense of belonging for generations of students. What began as a love of dance grew into something much bigger. Kelly built a business around confidence, leadership, community, and giving kids a place where they can feel like they matter.

Sheri and Kelly talk about the standards Kelly refuses to compromise, even when those standards have cost her customers. They explore the seasons that nearly drained the joy out of the work, and what it looks like to rebuild by returning to the parts of the business that mattered from the beginning rather than chasing bigger.

They also dig into one of the biggest shifts for any longtime owner... learning that your way does not always have to be the only way.

Kelly shares how she has learned to trust her instructors, allow other people to lead from their strengths, step back from work she once carried herself, and recognize that a strong team does not have to care for the business exactly the way the founder does in order to care deeply about it.

The conversation also explores customer relationships, follow-up, community service, protecting the people you serve, and the complicated reality of sometimes having to choose what you believe is right over what a customer wants.

And when Sheri asks Kelly what she hopes people will someday say about what she built, her answer is:

“She believed in me.”

This is an honest conversation about longevity, leadership, rebuilding, holding your standards, trusting other people, and remembering that sometimes the most important thing a business builds is not the product or service at all - it is the people who walk away believing a little more in themselves.

Connect with Kelly here:

• Facebook: Ignite Dance Company
• Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/ignite.dance.company/
• Website: www.ignitedancers.com
• Email: ignite4dance@gmail.com

Connect with Sheri here:

• Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/OperatorsEdgeCo/
• Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/opsedgeco/
• Website: https://www.opsedgeco.com
• Email: edge@opsedgeco.com

Assessment promised at the end of the episode:

https://www.opsedgeco.com/assessment

Apply to become a guest:

https://www.opsedgeco.com/podcast

Music Credits: "Bottleneck" by Neon Beach