I’m not sending my dancer to convention expecting her to nail every combo, stand in the front, or leave with a scholarship. What I want is harder to measure—and honestly, a lot more useful.

We know competition season is coming. We also know Black Friday is coming. So why aren't those two calendars talking to each other? That's the idea behind 5, 6, 7, and Shop!—my new way of looking ahead at dance expenses and deciding when it actually makes sense to shop.