I was very fortunate to receive my degree from the Chancellor of Durham University, Dame Margot Fonteyn de Arias., " prima ballerina assoluta". She sat with a straight back on the edge of her chair, her head high, and then floated to her feet, moving forward to present each of us with our scroll and to shake our hands. She was poised, elegant and graceful. This can be learnt. I will quote from "The Elegant Lady";
"The right posture is a delicate balance of a straight back which is properly aligned with the head, with your chin neither too low nor too high. Your feet are somewhat apart, your stomach held in, shoulders back and down, arms to the side. This posture is formed by training, exercise and maintained by habit"
How can you learn poise? By taking good old fashioned deportment lessons( contact veronica@morethangoodmanners.com for more information) , pilates classes, ballet and ballroom dancing lessons. Your muscles need to be retrained, it will feel an effort to begin with to hold your shoulders back and your head up, but it will become easier. It is fascinating that your posture is also a reflection of your state of mind, if you are suffering from stress you will tend to hunch your shoulders, yet if we arrange ourselves physically in a positive manner as above then this will improve your mental attitude.
Not only is deportment an attitude of physical poise but also mental poise, a balance of self confidence, positive attitude, well dressed appearance, graceful movements and of course good manners.
As an aside I have taken up ballet again, after a 30 year gap, after my lesson I just glow with happiness, and I think how lucky I was to shake the hand of Dame Margot Fonteyn de Arias.
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