Is it Luck or is it Practice? 😉

Are some people just lucky or can anyone succeed in dance? 🍀

As you might imagine, I'm on Team "Anyone Can Learn To Be A Good Dancer".

To get started, it's helpful to have a guide - so definitely take a group class or some private lessons.

But one thing people overlook is how practice can help you to become a better dancer sooner.

And there's one type of practice that ballroom dancers often neglect - SOLO PRACTICE 💥

Students always say to me, "I can’t practice because I don’t have a partner". Not true.

We can, and should, practice moves solo so that we can dance them well when we do have a partner - whether that's at class, a dance party, or in life.

You can’t dance (well) with a partner until you’ve mastered your moves solo.

Imagine a musician saying, "I can't practice my violin until I get together with the orchestra." They wouldn't last long.

The other musicians expect you to know your part and to practice at home so that they don't have to wait on you to figure things out during group rehearsals.

Because ballroom dancing is a team effort, success depends on each partner knowing their part so they can contribute equally to the team.

Side note for Followers: At the beginning, you actually can get away with not knowing your part and relying on the leader to push, pull, and drag you around the dance floor.

If you do, you'll be oblivious that you're making your partner work extra hard to compensate for your lack of effort, and you'll say that you that enjoy dancing with "strong" leaders.

While it's not a pleasant experience for Leaders, for simple moves, they can make things work - even if you don't know your part.

But as the moves get more complex, you won't be able to rely on your partner to cover for you.

So it's best to get in the habit of knowing your steps right from the start.

Plus, it's not really fair to ask your partner to know their steps AND your steps while you just show up and expect them to lead you flawlessly.

That's not how partnership works on the dance floor.

Leaders love when a Follower is easy to guide around the dance floor. You could be that person 🥰

Whatever your role on the dance floor, practicing your moves solo can really help things go smoothly when you dance with a partner.

So if you haven't already, take a few minutes and practice on your own.

Every partner you will ever dance with says thank you in advance 🙏🏻

Stay tuned and check out our other Blogs for more dance tips 💡