I have yet to meet a dancer who didn't want to become a better dancer.
Beginners dream of moving with the ease and fluidity of a more experienced dancer. Intermediate students take workshops in anticipation of their next hard-won breakthrough. Professionals and advanced amateurs develop their technique continually, always striving to do new things in new ways.
There's no level where dancers stop feeling the desire to improve. We shall never reach some magical place where there's nothing new left to try, no technique left to master, no creative idea left unexpressed.
Avoiding Disappointment
¡Buena suerte, amigos, y muchas gracias!
The desire to improve if firmly ingrained within each of us. Improvement feels wonderful. Breakthroughs are very satisfying when they arrive. But don't come often. How should we feel when it seems that we're not making progress?
Avoiding Disappointment
We should feel happy. Every day. In every way. If you can dance at all, appreciate it consciously and conspicuously. You weren't always able to do what you can do today. Enjoy the fact that you have come this far. Because any level of skill that you have, you have earned.
What's the alternative? Constant disappointment? A perpetual nagging feeling that you don't measure up to some arbitrary ideal of social expectation? That's not much fun. And it's not much fun to dance with someone who feels stressed out about their perceived lack of progress.
Why did you sign up for dance lessons in the first place? To enjoy yourself? Or to feel badly because you can't do every possible thing that you would like to do right now?
The Improvement Trap
Don't look for improvement. Instead, understand how it works. Breakthroughs are like surprise gifts. We can't see them coming. We notice them only after they have arrived.
Feel free to look back over your past breakthroughs. Appreciate all of the effort that went into achieving anything that you can do today that once seemed more challenging. You should feel a tremendous sense of satisfaction for all that you have accomplished regardless of your level of experience. Because in dance - as in anything else worth doing well - no quantum of improvement comes easily.
Don't worry about your next breakthrough. It will arrive when you have put in the required amount of work and when you have gained a certain level of understanding. Obsessing over "the next level" will diminish the your appreciation for what you have accomplished already.
Frustration and Impatience
Prolonged disappointment can lead to frustration and impatience. Neither will help you to improve, and their effects can be counterproductive.
Frustration increases stress levels. People who experience frustration can end up feeling irritable and unhappy. If dancing is causing unhappiness, then why the **** are you doing it? Think about it. Does that make any sense at all?
You're supposed to be enjoying your dance life, not dreading it. Reevaluate how you feel about your progress. Dancing without a sense of genuine enjoyment is pointless. Don't let future aspirations drive you to despair.
Impatience, the other unfortunate cousin of disappointment, can inspire foolish and impulsive choices. An impatient student might be tempted to give up on a good teacher or a solid curriculum if they feel that they're not making enough progress. This often delays their progress even further.
Keep working, keep studying, and keep practicing. If you have enjoyed improvement in the past, rest assured that more is on its way. Just keep yourself on a sensible trajectory, and avoid disappointment by viewing your progress in context.
Above all, enjoy being where you are at all times. Your journey will have many steps. Learn to appreciate each one as it comes to pass.
¡Buena suerte, amigos, y muchas gracias!
Daniel
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