"Life is like dancing. If we have a big floor, many people will dance. Some will get angry when the rhythm changes. But life is changing all the time"
About this Quote
That’s the subtext: we narrate our preferences as principles. When the tempo changes, the angry dancer can claim the problem is the DJ, the crowd, the “new” culture. Ruiz implies the real discomfort is interior. You can’t keep dancing without surrendering the fantasy that your timing is the timing. The line “life is changing all the time” lands like a gentle rebuke, but it’s also a permission slip: you’re allowed to miss steps, to look awkward, to learn again.
Context matters here. Ruiz’s work (often adjacent to Toltec-inspired self-help) aims to translate spiritual practice into everyday behavior, and dance is a deliberately non-academic image: embodied, communal, impossible to “win.” The intent is less to romanticize change than to normalize it, while quietly diagnosing a modern pathology: we treat stability as a moral right, then weaponize our frustration when reality refuses to keep a steady beat.
Quote Details
| Topic | Embrace Change |
|---|---|
| Source | Help us find the source |
| Cite |
Citation Formats
APA Style (7th ed.)
Ruiz, Miguel Angel. (2026, January 15). Life is like dancing. If we have a big floor, many people will dance. Some will get angry when the rhythm changes. But life is changing all the time. FixQuotes. https://fixquotes.com/quotes/life-is-like-dancing-if-we-have-a-big-floor-many-169047/
Chicago Style
Ruiz, Miguel Angel. "Life is like dancing. If we have a big floor, many people will dance. Some will get angry when the rhythm changes. But life is changing all the time." FixQuotes. January 15, 2026. https://fixquotes.com/quotes/life-is-like-dancing-if-we-have-a-big-floor-many-169047/.
MLA Style (9th ed.)
"Life is like dancing. If we have a big floor, many people will dance. Some will get angry when the rhythm changes. But life is changing all the time." FixQuotes, 15 Jan. 2026, https://fixquotes.com/quotes/life-is-like-dancing-if-we-have-a-big-floor-many-169047/. Accessed 17 Feb. 2026.











