Danielle Cote

This was originally posted on August 12, 2025.

12 years ago, I was in Spartanburg, South Carolina with an amazing group of women for our Pure Barre Training Team Orientation. We were brought onboard to lead trainings out of the new East Coast Training Center to support the continued expansion of Pure Barre.

Looking back, I learned so much about myself, but even more about other people. I uncovered the kind of leader and teacher that I wanted to be, and possibly more important, what I did not want to be. I discovered that learning how to do something is one thing, but teaching someone else how to do it, particularly in a group setting with varying experiences and learning styles, is far different.

Having the opportunity to be a part of Pure Barre in this way, motivated and inspired me to eventually make the shift from it being a part-time job to centering my career around it. The past (almost) two years, have looked quite different than my time as a (Master) Teacher Trainer and the various roles I held on the Pure Barre team in a full time capacity. However, I’m incredibly grateful for each chapter in all my varying seasons of life.

And while it’s been quite a few years since I’ve led a Teacher Training, the impact that time has had on me will continue to shape me indefinitely.

These days, my one regularly scheduled class that I teach, is often one of the best parts of my week. It’s been fourteen years since I went to my own Teacher Training in Vail, CO, and I still get nervous, I’m still learning and still inspired beyond measure by the people that continue to show up.

While I’ve lost touch with many of the amazing people that I had the privilege to connect with over the years, I’ve stayed in touch with a lot of trainees, Teachers and former co-workers, and have made lifelong friends that are stuck with me forever. Through all of the change and transition, I’ve continued to focus on the big picture of *hopefully* cultivating spaces for people where they not only feel seen, valued and heard, but also that they belong. That coupled with combining my passion of once again *hopefully* positively impacting the lives of other people through my work continues to be my driving force.