Asking Katrina Jo what she does is like opening up a music box and then watching the ballerina effortlessly twirl, again and again; pure delight and effortless grace. “I’m first a dancer, I’ve been dancing since I was 3 years old, trained in all areas; ballet, tap, hip-hop, jazz, all of that. I danced at the collegiate level and then unto the professional team level with the NFL San Diego Chargers and then also made the NBA Clippers cheerleaders squad and began dancing on both teams.” Yes you may have guessed it; Katrina Jo is a dancer and an excellent one at that.

As a dancer with star quality, Katrina Jo has shared the stage with artists such as Rihanna, Mariah Carey, Missy Elliott, T.I., and Ludacris. These were all experiences that she has had in a widely varied career and she has done even more still.  Katrina Jo is not just a professional dancer and choreographer, she is also a businesswoman. She has a dance company which is called Glam Girls LA. As though that wasn’t impressive enough, she has also done entertainment marketing for Louis Vuitton Moet Hennessey (LVMH) and has been running Reebok’s entertainment department on the West Coast for the last 3 years.

M-Lifestyle seeks to inspire our readership and Katrina Jo is the perfect example of an inspiration. From her numerous achievements and her relentless dedication to her craft and mentoring/passing on her knowledge unto others, she is certainly someone worth learning from. So we asked her the M-Lifestyle million dollar question- what would you say inspires you? Katrina Jo’s response is once again of star quality: “My mom is a huge inspiration; she was actually a dancer as well growing up. Her work ethic has taught me a lot; she was a single parent so she raised me by herself and taught me how to be an independent woman and not to lose sight of your goal and to stay focused and work really hard. She’s been the biggest inspiration in my life.”

You might be reading this and wondering to yourself, how is she able to do so many different things? Katrina Jo’s background in dance taught her dedication as well as discipline and this has helped her to  maintain excellence in different endeavors. “Being a dancer you have to learn more than one style of dancing at one time, when I was on professional teams I was the captain, a Pro-bowl nominee and choreographer.” Although she has many talents, Katrina Jo only has one passion; “dance is my number one passion and so I’m just thankful to be able to add that on to all the other things that I do.”

Katrina Jo has undeniably achieved a lot in her career, but perhaps her proudest achievement is starting her on dance company- Glam Girls. “Glam Girls was more of something I did for fun and then I turned it into a profession and I’m really passionate about it, it is kind of like directing my own dance team. I have a roster of about 30 women and I have to keep track of promotions and outfits and all of that so it kind of all blends in together.”

A lesson for all M-Lifestyle readers is to learn how to develop your own brand and understand the importance of having something that sets you apart from the crowd. Katrina Jo explains: “I would say for Glam Girls, my slogan is “bringing you the glamorous life”; there are tons of promotional model companies and dancers in the industry, the key is to bring that extra class.” Katrina’s personal branding is about being sophisticated, classy but fun. “Whether it’s a photo shoot or blog post or a dance piece so things seem really organic and so people can see me through all of my work.”

Nothing of worth is freely given and there are challenges that Katrina Jo has had to overcome in order to attain her current level of success. As a woman working in the entertainment industry as a performer, model and entertainer; there are a lot of stereotypes and there aren’t always opportunities available. Katrina ensures that she does not lose her identity by making sure that she stays true to her brand. “The biggest obstacle for me has definitely been ensuring that I always stay business like even when others aren’t doing so and are being unprofessional in their approach.”

Katrina Jo’s advice to M-Lifestyle’s readers is to sit and write down the things that you want to do and stick to it. “Don’t get discouraged, everything takes time. If you’re trying to accomplish a goal, just don’t lost sight of that.”

If you would like to learn more about Katrina Jo and what she does, her website is www.katrinajo.com. She has a blog where she posts about things she does, events that she attends.

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