We recently connected with Mathilda Nassar and have shared our conversation below.
Mathilda, appreciate you joining us today. Let’s start with the story of your mission. What should we know?
From 2016-2018, I served in the U.S. Peace Corps in Ukraine. There were many things that I loved about the country but the long, brutal winter was not one of them. After barely surviving my first winter there, I decided I needed an activity that would keep me from feeling isolated and lonely. In October of 2017, I took my first pole class on a whim and fell in love immediately. From the first moment that my hand touched the pole, I felt an affinity and connection that I can only describe as magical. I equate this feeling to a witch or wizard finding their wand. I had been chasing magic, flight, and freedom for my whole life and I had finally found it.
Soma was born in my living room in 2019, but I didn’t know it at the time. I had just moved to South Bend, IN for graduate school with my now-husband and there were no pole studios in the area. This factor was almost a dealbreaker, even though I had received a full ride to pursue a global affairs master’s degree at a prestigious university. I missed the community that I had found through pole so I started giving private lessons on my home pole in my tiny, one-bedroom apartment. These weekly lessons paid for my groceries and saved me from being a completely broke grad student.
The Covid-19 pandemic made me rethink what I wanted out of my life. Pole made me happy and working in policy made me miserable. In my second year of graduate school, I made the hardest and best decision of my life: I opened Soma Pole Studio, South Bend’s first pole studio. As I struggled through the trials and tribulations of first-time business ownership, writing my MA thesis, and planning my wedding, I discovered qualities in myself that made me proud and ultimately continues to contribute to the success of my business. Persistence, dedication, creativity, time management, and money management are just a few of those qualities and skills that entrepreneurs need. Most importantly, I learned that I am capable of “doing hard things.”
The process of opening Soma inspired me to write my MA thesis on “dance as a way of knowing.” Pole as a movement practice has healed me in many ways and allowed me to establish presence in my body. When I dance, I am alive. That’s why I chose “Soma” as the name of my studio. Soma is a Greek word that means “the living, sentient body that feels.” The Soma is not simply the body, but it is the body that knows, thinks, and feels.
Dancing, and specifically for me, pole dancing, is a living and breathing resistance to systems of oppression. Growing up in Palestine, I feel and resist the Occupation through all aspects of my physical, mental, and spiritual body. The Occupation suffocates me and my people, but dancing makes the memories and the reality more bearable. It makes me feel that I am capable of being alive and whole despite the violence, colonization, and erasure. Thus, Soma is a space for people to encounter themselves, build power, and connect to others through pole dance.
Awesome – so before we get into the rest of our questions, can you briefly introduce yourself to our readers.
Soma is South Bend’s minority-owned premier pole dance studio where adults can learn pole dance and engage in movement practice. As the owner, I seek to build individual and community power through pole dance. I believe that pole dance is a “practice of knowing” – a transformative process of liberation through which we can know and access ourselves and the world more deeply.
Soma is a Greek word meaning “the living, sentient body that feels.” I chose this name for my studio as a symbol of the mind-body-spirit harmony that defines my practice. This may manifest differently for every person that walks through my doors. I celebrate the differences that contribute to this unique community.
I developed the curriculum at Soma with two objectives in mind: to teach the technical aspects of pole and to encourage a reflective practice in the process. Students will learn the athletic elements of pole in such a way that facilitates self-exploration and self-expression. Through this curriculum, I aim to help my students unearth their power.
What do you think helped you build your reputation within your market?
The best piece of advice I would give to aspiring or new business owners is to establish your values and stick to them. This has been the anchor that keeps me grounded in challenging situations.
My mentor (shoutout to Nia) drilled the importance of values from the very beginning. Without her guidance, I would have had a much harder time setting policies/boundaries and establishing my business culture. My values define everything that I do as a business owner and allow me to build rapport with my clients.
Do you have any insights you can share related to maintaining high team morale?
The single most important (and most difficult) aspect of owning my business is managing my staff. Being a pole dance instructor requires specialized knowledge, teaching and classroom management skills, spotting and safety experience, patience, communication, and so much more. My staff not only go above and beyond what’s expected, but they are also COOL people and I try to show them appreciation as much as I can.
A good leader knows that balance is key. There is a delicate line between being supportive and being a micromanager. I sometimes struggle with knowing where that line is. I know that I have made mistakes as a leader but I have learned from them and continue to strive for improvement.
Having a cohesive and happy team makes the world go around. There is nothing more important.
Contact Info:
- Website: www.somapolestudio.com
- Instagram: @somapolestudio
- Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/somapolestudio/
Image Credits
Hanah Klodzinski (Photography by Hanah)