Sometimes a full blown catastrophe is easier to fix.
It's those subtle, hard to detect, slow leaks that can blend in with your day to day activity that are truly dangerous. The problems so minuscule that silently withdraw the momentum you could have had, without you even realizing it.
When it comes to dance lessons, these subtle problems could be costing you progress, and over time - your hobby.
Now hear this: Learning to dance takes muscle memory. You know, it's like a habit. Habits take repetition, and building muscles takes repetition, and that repetition needs more than 45 minutes a week to sink in.
Compare this with:
Pure and simply - you learn faster when you take your lessons faster. The same way that novels become less confusing the faster you read them, and relations
Nothing is less effective than a lack of communication. Whether it's retail or restaurants, ballroom or latin dancing - when communication goes down, speculation goes up.
Compare this with: The Doctor
Hopefully, you're not intentionally cryptic or ambiguous with your doctor - especially if you're in a lot of pain. The clearer, and more descriptive, you are with your ailments, the easier the doctor can help put you on a path to a specific remedy.
Dancing is no different.
Your dance teacher is your dance doctor, and anything that is confusing, uncomfortable, or bothersome should be addressed right away.
As important as private lessons are to your dance development, group classes are a perfect complement. While some hesitate due to the perception that group classes will be intimidating, the reality is that groups help to keep the information fresh, improve your balance, and can unlock new perspective with input by different instructors.
Compare this with: The Driving Range
While one on one instruction is important in the quest to have a decent golf game, every coach will still implore their students to get repetition at the driving range. This is where the student can put the instruction into practice to refine their game, and stay sharp for their next lesson.
Nothing can let the air out of the fun of dance lessons quite like the constant fix. Found predominantly in amateur couples, constant adjustments and criticism can sap many dancers of any reserves of confidence. Social Dance advice can come in many forms, but the best solution is to focus on the words of your teachers.
Compare this with: Driver's Training
There's a certain amount of trust, and patience, that Driver's training professionals exhibit on a regular basis. Their goal is simple - create a capable, and confident, driver. If they were to stop the car, critique, and condemn driving mistakes, few people would leave the experience with the requisite skills.
In dancing, we need to recognize that mistakes will always happen, but critiques don't always need to.
What if your favorite dance was stopping you from learning faster? Yes, sometimes we get so consumed by a certain dance, or style of dance, that our focus narrows, and we see any other dance as a threat to the favorite's development.
Nothing could be further from the truth.
Compare this with: Cooking
Let's say you have learned how to cook, and eat, your favorite food. Let's say it's chicken Parmesan. So for each and every dinner party, out comes your trusty standby recipe.
Do your dinner guests complain? No. Do they start referring to you as "[Your name] Parmesan"? Yes. Will learning to cook something else make you hate your favorite meal, or make you un-learn everything you've learned about the recipe? Absolutely not.
Variety in your dancing is meant to strengthen your dance ability, not hinder it. Just like learning general education in school isn't a ploy to make you ditch your major, learning a variety of dances gives your favorite dances a better foundation.
A mosquito tracks you down, and spends the rest of the night buzzing past your ear. The sound is annoying, but the disease it carries can be devastating.
These 5 things, by themselves, aren't devastating, but without adjustments they can be. They are the silent assassins. The subtle ache that has the potential to turn into something more. Recognizing them for their negative potential is the key to your positive dance lesson progress.
If you enjoyed this article, we would love to include you in our list of subscribers. One click and you'll receive one email, once a week, with all of our best dance-related content.
Walking in to your first appointment at Arthur Murray may feel like a barrier, but it's not. We believe that so much that we offer your first private appointment free. Then you can see for yourself why our company slogan is "Walk in, Dance out."