You struck gold when you resolved to learn how to dance (we call that a Megaresolution). But there are some resolutions that ballroom dancers should refine, adjust, or permanently delete forever.
5 Ballroom Dance Resolutions You Should Quit Making
1. Win the Next Dance Competition
There's nothing wrong with wanting to win, but this is the perfect example of tuning out the details in favor of a desired result. The best dancers approach a dance competition like a round of golf - you are only competing against yourself, and the course.
In dancing, you're competing against yourself. The conditions? How about your own fear, doubt, adrenaline, and the music that's playing.
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To improve this resolution, it's important that you take inventory of your dancing as a whole, rather than just focus on a single result. Here are some questions to ask yourself:
Which dance is your most mentally challenging?
Which dance is your most physically challenging?
Which technique breaks down the soonest?
Take the answers to these questions and this will help you construct a much more fine tuned and specific goal. From there, make it a process:
"I want to dance 60 seconds of my Jive routine without fainting"
"I want to get through the the entire party without blanking out on my timing"
"I will do a victory dance if I can still see my Cuban Motion when I watch myself on video".
Now you've got a specific, action-based, process oriented resolution. Any awards that result from this improved effort are now just a nice added bonus.
2. I Want to Dance Like [Insert Champion Level Dancer Name Here]
Making Dance Compairsons to others can be one of the worst habits to derail your dance progress. There are plenty of people that can, and should, inspire you, but ultimately, you're the one wearing the dance shoes.
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I'm going to take more coaching lessons with [insert awesome person here].
We all know that the goal is to make your dancing better, and the last time we checked, taking a lesson is much more effective than watching someone from afar. Sure, it may stimulate your brain, but it can stall your improvement.
A coaching lesson, on the other hand, will train your mind and body. You could even schedule the lesson with someone you admire, someone that inspires you, and they can help work to make that style your own.
Then, while you're busy working on your leg action, who knows? Maybe someone will be admiring your moves - even if it's just you looking in the mirror.
3. I'm Going To Go To a Dance Competition
Do we believe you want to do this? Sure. Does a resolution make it any more real? For maybe a week, or a minute. Are there some better alternatives? Yes.
Saying it and doing it are two different ends of the spectrum, and sorry, but even saying it on New Year's Eve doesn't count for extra. It's all lip service until you decide to do something about it.
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Schedule it.
Even if it's in 2018, put it on the calendar. That's the crazy thing with calendars and technology these days - you're not limited to a 12 month time frame. Setting your dance competition calendar is a light commitment, but it an attainable first step that is a great upgrade for your resolution efforts.
Not sure if you can pull it off? Schedule it anyway. At the very least, you'll be taking a step further in this resolution cycle than the people that just talk about it. Not to mention it will give you and your boss plenty of lead time with your vacation request.
4. I Want [Insert someone's name here] to Ask Me To Dance
If you're using the name "Antonio Banderas" in the bracketed space, we want you to know that we are pulling for you - and please, take a video and share it with us. But aside from that, and a few others, this resolution should be ditched for a better alternative.
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How about, "I'm going to ask more people to dance."
If you're a follower, this isn't the classic ask/be asked dynamic you may be waiting for, but it sure beats waiting around for someone to ask you. No one, leaders included, is offended by a follower asking for a dance - provided that you do so with good manners and have some dance etiquette.
5. I'm Going to Be a Better Dance Partner
In every romantic comedy, there's always a guy that gets dumped only to say "but I can change!" Saying you're going to be a better dance partner is a nice gesture, but it's about as memorable as a movie that goes straight to video. Know what lasts longer? Behavior.
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Get specific, pick one thing, and stick to it.
Maybe you suck when it comes to accountability:
"If you would just lead me better"
"If you hadn't forgotten that choreography..."
"well... my timing in Mambo was correct"
Improvements that you can make on your side of the dance frame can ensure that your dance partnership lasts beyond the upcoming year. So take that on. Whether it's arriving on time, or being more open minded to arm styling - pick one thing that you can adjust, and make the adjustment - even if that means Mambo timing is a resolution for 2018.
What to Look For in a Dance Resolution
Imagine a stack of invitations to your next birthday party. You've hand written each name and address (you're old school like that), and you have them stacked on your desk.
If you don't stamp them and mail them - you're going to have one lonely birthday party.
A stack of invitations is like a stack of New Year's resolutions - they are all just good intentions until you take action.
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Great Resolutions involve an action.
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Great Resolutions include a process.
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Great Resolutions revolve around things that you can control.
Instead of resolving to get better at your Mambo timing, schedule an extra lesson per week with that teacher in your studio that loves teaching Mambo (there's always one).
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So instead of resolving to write that great American Novel about two ballroom dancers who are secretly vampires - resolve to write for 30 minutes a night.
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Instead of resolving to quit dancing the next time you get a bad result, why not resolve to go to more competitions to improve your confidence.
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... and while you're at it, resolve to stop making threatening remarks about your dance hobby because even you know they aren't true.
Final Thought
New Year's is a time of reflection on the year that's gone by, and motivation to tackle new things in the year to come. So no matter which of these resolutions you may have made in the past, don't forget that it may not have been that long ago that you were resolving to take dance lessons.
All of this is just a bonus.
Happy New Year.
