Ballroom Dancing Lesson: How To Become A Great Leader On The Dance Floor
Becoming a great leader on the dance floor is a lofty goal with many rewards. It is also within the reach of anyone willing to pursue this elusive ability.
There are two key ingredients to becoming a great leader:
- Access
- Clarity
In this topic you will concentrate on the first key ingredient – “Connection”.
ACCESS
In order to lead someone, you must first establish a connection with that person. Without connection, any attempt to lead will feel abrupt and unsettling.
To connect with another person, you first need to be connected to yourself. The best way to develop your inner connection is by consciously focusing on your core area (one inch above the waist line to one inch below).
Your core zone connects your entire body and provides dynamic tension that adjusts to the speed and power of your movements. As you practice concentrating on your core area, you will feel your inner connection increase.
Make a connection within yourself before asking a partner to dance and when you touch their hands they will feel that connection and respond to it. They won’t know why, they will only know that for some reason they dance better when they dance with you. Your goal will be to connect from your core area to theirs; the hands and arms only help convey that intention.
A good exercise is to focus on the core area until you feel the arms and body are connected. Put your hands in front of you (as if you were holding a tray). Now, with your feet side by side (approximately shoulder-width apart), begin to transfer your weight from one leg to the other; make sure to transfer the weight that your arms and spine are connected and are part of the weight transfer.
Now try this exercise with your partner in front of you; your palms are facing up and your partner’s are facing down; connect hands at fingertips (her arms will provide some upward tension, and when done correctly, she will provide reciprocal downward tension that maintains connection to your fingertips).
Begin to move from one leg to the other making sure you are communicating the transfer of weight, not simply by moving your hands from side to side, but by keeping your body connected and transferring your weight with the spines of your entire body.
As you practice the exercise above, you will feel a connection to your partner as you move from one leg to the other. Since the hands move, she may think that the hands are leading the way; try now to disconnect the core and guide it with only her hands and you will notice that only her hands will follow yours and not her whole body.
The above exercise will do wonders for your connection with yourself and with your partner.
At first you will feel a little stiff when moving with your partner from one leg to the other; this, however, is fine. You will soon establish a solid connection that will make this action as natural as breathing.
Connection is an elusive quality; And as a pilot before takeoff, it’s usually good practice to have a checklist of steps to help make sure we’re dancing connected.
- Focus on your core area to develop your inner connection.
- Establish a connection with your partner’s fingertips as soon as you touch their hand, lifting your arms up slightly. Your goal is to connect from your core to your core.
- Make sure you stay connected with your partner as you get into the dance position by keeping the lift up.
- Both of you should lean slightly forward towards each other to maintain connection as you move.
- Once you start dancing, you’ll alternate between leading and following your partner’s movement to ensure you maintain an ongoing connection.
Becoming a good leader is not something that is learned, it is something that is continually improved. Work on your connection and you’ll be on your way to becoming a great leader and a very popular dance partner.
Next number “Clarity”, the second key ingredient you need to become a great leader on the dance floor.