The friendship of our colleagues Silvie Sindelkova, Pavla Adamcikova and Marie Klikova from our Shared Service Center in Brno, Czech Republic, is really special. Some people claim to have rhythm, but with our trio, it really is the case. Let’s hear about their shared passion of swing dancing through which their friendship grew.
Note: Photos taken prior to the onset of the COVID-19 pandemic
The Lindy Hopper, the Secret Dancer and the Absolute Dance-Lover!
Pavla has been dancing for many years and was already a full ‘Lindy Hopper’ (swing dancer) when she joined PPG.
She is team leader for accounts payable in the Central and Eastern Europe (CEE) region, but when the opportunity to teach swing classes for fellow employees for a wellness activity came up, she couldn’t say no… That’s where she met Silvie, our senior general ledger (GL) accountant in the French team of the GL department.
Silvie, too, has always enjoyed dancing – although mostly in secret at home. But when she heard about Pavla’s classes, she jumped at the chance, even though she had never even heard of the Lindy Hop! Within two months, she had signed up to Swing Wings Brno – the same place Pavla attended.
I immediately fell in love with the music and movement.
Silvie
Meanwhile, then-university student, Marie, had been in love with dance since she was a kid. When her friends were getting married and wanted to dance the Lindy Hop at their wedding, they asked her to join their lessons at Swing Wings Brno. This is where she met Pavla.
As their friendship grew, when Marie graduated and was looking for a job a couple months later, Pavla suggested she tried PPG. Thanks to their encounter at Swing Wings, Marie is now our travel and expense team coordinator in Brno!
All about Fun, Community and Friends
Pavla insists there are no strict rules when it comes to whether steps are swing or not. Swing dancing is all about fun, community and friends. Plus, for Silvie, it’s a force that’s impossible to ignore:
When I hear swing music, my body just can’t stay still. The energy, musicality, playfulness.
Silvie
Note: Photos taken prior to the onset of the COVID-19 pandemic
What Marie loves most is the improvisation.
You do not know what your partner will come up with. And once you do, you can highjack it to create something else.
Marie
Swing Dancing Makes Better Team Players
Pavla has noticed that her dance community is not so different from her work one. Each is made up of very different types of people. At swing, they are all able to communicate through dance. Then, at work, they’re also all able to find solutions together.
Silvie has also seen an improvement in her communication skills and that she’s less shy. Something Marie has found particularly useful is that any ‘mistake’ made in swing is actually called a ‘variation’.
It has helped me stress less. I’m a better team player, more open minded, and more appreciative of the people around me.
Marie
Keep Swinging and Carry On
As with many activities, the community couldn’t meet for many months this year, so they organized Zoom meetings instead.
We discussed all sorts of things – from cooking to architecture. We even organized some Zoom dancing!
Silvie
The community was lucky to have some talented jazz musicians who set up “Swing House” and streamed live music via Facebook almost daily for dancers to dance at home. Something to really lift up their spirits!
Pavla dancing during Christmas party in 2018
Making Someone Happy Because You Dance
When Pavla and Marie danced for their colleagues in Brno at a Christmas party, they were very surprised by and grateful for the compliments they received.
It is not about prizes or competition. It’s about making somebody smile and feel happy just because you dance.
Marie
It’s clear that swing dancing brings great joy to Pavla, Marie and Silvie.
Being part of the Swing Wings Brno community is not just about dance, it is about bringing people together and creating life-long relationships – as it did with the three of us.
Pavla