Emotional Connection

As a professional instructor, I've focused most of my coaching on the necessary discipline of teaching my students to practice basics and body control, with a constant emphasis on technique and high intensity training on the physics of partnering.

In retrospect, I've come to recognize that emotional partnering skills are as essential as physics in creating a successful connection and chemistry. I've been observing the emotional dynamics between dance partners and how much that influences their progress. Falling in love with dance is one thing. Staying in love with it while training can be difficult at times. The experience runs counter-intuitive to the notion that dancing with someone should be effortless, comfortable and natural. In fact, the experience is more intense because of the more intimate nature of our chosen recreational pursuit and the expectations brought to the dance floor. Both verbal and non-verbal communication become amplified---after all, it does take "two to Tango!"

I find myself being ever more mindful while dancing and teaching, to the reactions and responses of my partners. To get the full experience of dancing with one another, we must surrender to becoming an open book, vulnerable with both goals and fears exposed. I encourage my students to practice not just executing near-perfect movement, but also to dedicate themselves to creating a safe emotional environment around the partnership, successfully striving to reach new milestones with authenticity and openness.

In a dance, there is you, your partner and the music. The rest of the world is just a blur.

ON MINDING MY “P’s”

Strive for Progress—not Perfection! This is my new motto.

I’ve never considered my students as clients. For a long time, however, I have over-emphasized trying to produce something very unlikely—perfection. Teaching is its own delicate form of dance, an intimate balancing act of inviting the student to learn while encouraging them to progress.  While I never want to spoon-feed information, stringing students along for more profit,  I recognize that the long-term value of providing what they are capable of absorbing is key to their success.  Like many things in my life, my teaching style is evolving as I experience a paradigm shift in how I interact with my students.

I have refined my instruction so that student dancers can be more genuine with me both in and outside of our student/teacher relationship. This has required me to develop a more relaxed and authentic bond with those taking instruction from me. The results were clearly demonstrated at the recent competition in late September. 

In just the Pro/Am competitions alone,  four of my attending students garnered 1^st place awards in 30 single dance heats between them in a variety of Country, Smooth, Rhythm and Standard dances—a remarkable accomplishment!

I've had the benefit of working for myself as a dance teacher for several years. I love that I’m not just some instructor randomly paired with a new student and instead sought out by students, who place their trust in me to guide them. As they progress towards their dance goals, I honor their trust with great responsibility and take my teaching more seriously than ever before. My job is to train them in developing their skills, while allowing them to simultaneously experience the joy of our common passion—another “p” word I now prefer to “perfection!”

Leadership is helping others succeed through influence! This is my personal mission statement.