My Biggest Failure

To Come So Far And Be So Close

Students progress at different rates. Some people pick up new movements with ease, while others have to work harder and put in more time to reach the same level of competence and fluidity. 

That said, the vast majority of students make steady progress over time when they show up and put in the effort. But occasionally we encounter a student who struggles to execute the simplest movements or grasp the most fundamental concepts.

These students are highly motivated. They want to learn. They want to make progress. They show up week after week and try as hard as they can. Unfortunately, sometimes they end up trying too hard. Their work ethic actually creates roadblocks to their progress.

One lady stands out in my memory. She was so nice, and she tried so hard. But she struggled simply because she wouldn't let herself relax and respond to the lead. She seemed to be convinced that she had to execute the steps and sequences actively. She wouldn't just relax and let the leader take her on a ride. 

I encouraged her constantly. I spent a lot of time with her in the class; I could see the other leaders becoming frustrated with her, and I didn't want her to feel their judgment. She felt badly enough already. I could see the disappointment and frustration in her face.

"Forget the step," I would tell her. 

"Just relax and move with me." 

"Go where the lead takes you." 

"Follow my shoulders."

"You have plenty of time. Just relax."

"Abandon the plan and just dance."

Eventually, after months of encouragement, my struggling student finally made a breakthrough. She finally relaxed and let herself respond to the lead. It was an amazing experience for both of us.

"You see?" I ask. "It's effortless."

"It is!" she replied enthusiastically.

You should have seen the look on her face. She was glowing. She did so well that evening that I asked her to dance with me for the closing demo of the class. Her transformation was amazing.

She came back the following week, and we shared several smooth, flowing dances together. She danced as though she was floating on a cloud. I was so happy for her.

The school closed for a couple of weeks during the holidays, and that closing was followed by a period of bad weather.I didn't see my student for while. When she returned a month or so later, she had reverted to her old habits. She struggled as though the breakthrough had never happened. 

I was confident that I could work with her and encourage her to get back on track. Unfortunately, for whatever reason, she returned only once more. I never saw her again after that.

I don't know what happened. Perhaps she grew weary of the frustration. Maybe someone criticized her. Maybe she simply decided that tango wasn't for her, that it was too challenging.

It broke my heart when I realized that she wasn't coming back. I wish that I could have inspired her to stick around for a little bit longer. She had her breakthrough, and it would have happened again with a bit more time and encouragement. 

But it wasn't to be. All of my encouragement and reassurance wasn't enough to inspire her to continue. It was my biggest failure as a teacher.

I always tried to understand each student's individual needs and provide them with personalized instruction. The students who stuck with me always made progress. I'm so proud to watch those students today. They dance beautifully.

But no one's breakthrough meant more to me than this one. This lady struggled so hard for so long. To watch her finally dance and flow in the moment. That was very, very special. I hope that she remembers those dances as fondly as I do.

Hers was a difficult journey. I sympathize if she just didn't want to work that hard anymore. But I hope that she'll give the tango another chance one day. Because I know that she can do it. 

¡Buena suerte amigos, y muchas gracias!

Daniel

Copyright © 2015 The Exploring Tango Blog

www.exploringtango.com

All Rights Reserved

   

Sloppy Tango 2 - The Waste of Haste

How Rushing Can Destroy Your Tango

"Take time for all things: great haste makes great waste." - Benjamin Franklin

Benjamin Franklin never saw a milonga, and that's too bad because he would have loved tango. He would have loved the boundless expressive and emotive qualities of the dance. He would have loved the geometry of the steps. He would have loved the passionate, brooding music. And, he so would have enjoyed sharing long, sultry nights in the embrace of lithe and capable women in Paris and his native Philadelphia.

Ah, Ben! What you missed, old friend!


Haste Makes Waste

As Franklin observed, bad things happen when we rush. Very bad things happen to our tango technique when we rush our movements. I'll explain why in a moment, but first a word of caution.

Rushing is an equal opportunity problem. I have seen experienced, skilled dancers at milongas make an absolute mockery of tango technique by rushing too quickly through steps. I'm sure that these people thought that their dancing was impressive, and in a way, it was: impressively hideous and brutally uncomfortable to watch.


The Four Stages Of A Movement

Every elemental movement (step, gancho, boleo, barrida, etc.) has four components.

1. Intention/Preparation - Preparing mentally and physically to move.

2. Initiation - The start of the movement.

3. Travel - The body of the movement where most of the distance is covered (if applicable).

4. Resolution - The conclusion of the movement where the dancers return to a neutral and (typically) balanced position.

If we take a forward step, we prepare to move, we initiate the movement, we move through space, and then we reach a point where we are balanced and our feet are collected.


Breakdown Of The Problem

Consider the Forward Ocho. You learned in your second or third Beginners' class and probably haven't thought much about since. The simplicity of the ocho sequence coupled with its dependence on pivots makes it susceptible to distortion by rushing.

The Forward Ocho sequence is a repeating pattern that consists of a forward step followed by a pivot. 

Note: The forward step of the ocho is very simple. It doesn't contain any sweeping, curling, or pivoting components or any boleo or planeo like adornments. It's just a simple forward cross step. (It's called a "Cross" step, because you're stepping across the line of your forward intention, but don't worry about that if you're unfamiliar with the term.)

As described above this simple forward step has four parts: intention, initiation, travel, and resolution.

What happens when we rush through an ocho? To be more precise, what happens if the leader begins to lead the pivot before the follower completes these four stages of her forward step?

It's simple. The follower is forced for pivot before her body is balanced on her axis. That result is that she is trying to pivot while she is leaning to the side. This is a difficult and uncomfortable movement to execute.


The Fix

The fix is simple. Don't lead the follower to pivot until she completes her forward step and arrives on her axis.

But, the difference is HUGE: a poised, controlled, flowing ocho versus a stumbling, tilting, uncomfortable off-balance mess.


Other Steps That Can Be Ruined by Rushing

The Molinete - The follower needs to have time to arrive on axis and bring her feet together cleanly before making her next movement, be it a pivot or a step.

Ganchos - Ganchos require proper timing and alignment. Either or both can be corrupted by rushing.

Boleos - Boleos are interrupted ochos, so the same off-axis problem applies. Also, the musical timing of the snap of the boleo movement will be off if either partner tries to rush the movement.

Paradas - The follower can trip if the parada is placed too early.

There are others, but you get the idea. 


Slow Down and Enjoy the Dance

Finish each movement completely and cleanly before moving on. When in doubt take more time rather than less. If you note stumbling in your dancing, check for situations where technique is being rushed.

Keep your technique clean. You'll be less sore and less tired at the end of the evening, your dancing will look better, and you'll have a lot more fun.

Until next time, keep what's important in mind.

¡Buena suerte amigos, y muchas gracias!

Daniel

Copyright © 2015 The Exploring Tango Blog

www.exploringtango.com

All Rights Reserved

   

Sloppy Tango 1 - Stumbling

Lacking Stability

I see the same mistakes year after year at milongas and practicas. It's difficult to watch, because in many cases these are simple problems that could have been corrected with awareness and a small amount of effort. 

I realize that most tangueros are social dancers who dance for fun. That's wonderful! I want them to HAVE fun. I want them to ENJOY their time on the dance floor regardless of their level of experience. I want them to walk out of the building at the end of the evening feeling confident and energized. 

When are you more likely to feel confident and energized? When you're dancing well and your technique is flowing smoothly? Or after an evening of struggle, discomfort, and disappointment? 


Opportunities For Avoidance

There are three ways to deal with a challenge: Quit, Avoid, or Improve. 

Some people quit. They decide that tango isn't worth the effort anymore, so they more on to other activities. It's sad when people give up on something that once promised so much joy and fulfillment.

A more common way to deal with challenges is to avoid acknowledging them or to avoids taking responsibility for their resolution. We might be tempted to blame others for out difficulties. 

"There are no good dancers around here. I have to go to Milonga X to find good people to dance with."

"I'm not coming back to this milonga. The people are rude, and the music is horrible."

"I stopped taking their classes. The material wasn't advanced enough for me."

 I hear comments like this quite frequently, and I'll bet that you have, too. 

Avoiders are prone to change teachers frequently, jump prematurely to higher level classes, or abandon a neighborhood milonga. None of these choices are inherently bad. But until the person takes responsibility for addressing their own developmental needs, improvement will come slowly and be largely coincidental.

Here's a hint. The quality of your dancing begins with YOU. You'll never outrun your weaknesses. Never. They'll follow you to your last day on Earth unless you face them and take corrective action. Avoidance won't get you to where you want to do.



It Begins With Awareness

Awareness is the first step toward improvement. Maybe by writing about the widespread issues that I'm seeing, I can inspire some folks to strive to change.


Stumbling Blocks

Awareness Exercise Número Uno - This is the single most common technical problem that I see at milongas. I see lots of followers stumbling from step to step instead of moving gracefully with confidence and clarity. Foot placement is hesitant and unsure, as if the follower isn't clear as to when and where to take the step. Movements are tentative and lack smoothness and expression. 

Sadly, this is a widespread problem. I see it everywhere I go. But why is this happening? What is the root cause, and how can it be addressed effectively?

I'm certain that every lady at the milonga walked into the salon smoothly and confidently. And I'm certain that they'll walk beautifully when they leave at the end of the evening. Why is it that they can't walk smoothly and confidently when they're dancing in the embrace of a gentleman?

To be fair, the gentleman might be contributing to the problem. Leaders knock followers off balance with some frequency. The leader's embrace might be interfering with her posture at a critical moment. Or the man's lower body might be too far forward, causing the follower to trip over his feet. The timing of his steps might be inconsistent with the timing of his lead.

But we can't always blame the leader, because it's not always his fault. Sometimes the followers fail to take care of their own stability. They rely too heavily on the embrace for support.



A Simple Test

Ladies, sometime when you have a chance to practice with a leader who's willing to work with you patiently, ask him to lead a short sequence of tango steps in three different levels of embrace. 

First, run through the sequence in the full embrace. 

Now, try the sequence again, but this time let go of each other on the closed side of the embrace. This means that he is not holding you with his right arm, and you are not holding him with your left arm or hand.

Are you still able to execute the steps? Is it more difficult to dance without the full support of the embrace? Do you find that your balance is challenged at one or more points within the sequence?

For the third try, separate a bit further. Now, your only contact point will be your right hand in the leader's left. Don't worry - you won't have to dance like this in a milonga - this is only an exercise. But in order to do the exercise successfully, you'll need to manage your own balance. Your legs will need to support you completely.

Can you do it?

Try the whole three-stage exercise again with a different step sequence. Start in the full embrace. Try it again without connection in the closed-side arms. Then, try it a third time with contact only in the open-side hands.

Ideally, a follower should be able to execute most tango sequences without relying on the leader's frame for balance. There are exceptions, of course, which cannot be done without support from the partner (volcadas, colgadas, lifts). But you should be able to do most steps smoothly and confidently while supported by your own balance.

Please remember that this is only an exercise. Dancing like this in a milonga is not recommended. The embrace is important, and we should use it to its fullest benefit while we're dancing.

But followers shouldn't depend on the embrace for stability. Stability begins with our own legs and hips even when we are dancing very close to our partner. In order to step confidently in response to the lead, the follower needs to feel stable within the structure of her own body.

¡Buena suerte amigos, y muchas gracias!

Daniel

Copyright © 2015 The Exploring Tango Blog

www.exploringtango.com

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Talent, Effort and Dedication

How Far Will They Take You?

Occasionally, someone compliments me by remarking that I am a talented photographer. I accept comments like this graciously and enthusiastically - it's always nice when someone appreciates my work. But I realize that talent isn't what made me a photographer.  

For most of my life, I was a casual snap-shooter. I took bad photographs for decades. When I look back over my albums from those years, I don't see much evidence of talent shining through. 

After seeing some awe-inspiring photo exhibits, I came to realize that cameras could do a lot more than I thought. There was more to photography than the faded, poorly composed rubbish that I was picking up regularly at my neighborhood drugstore.

Eventually, I dedicated myself to becoming a serious photographer. I felt a burning desire to make photos like the ones that had impressed me in those shows. I dedicated time to learning everything that I could about cameras and the photographic process. But even as I was learning and developing skills, I still made lots of bad photos.

Talent didn't make me a photographer. Work and honest self-evaluation were the most critical factors in my development. I took lots of photos, rated my progress, devised new approaches, and went out and shot some more. Over and over and over again. Over time, I learned a lot and improved my skills in the process.


The Diamond Under The Mountain

I have met people with a real talent for photography, people who have impressed me with a natural gift for composition or a sense for finding fascinating subjects. Some of these folks have impressive portfolios. Some have modest portfolios that show untapped promise. And some are casual snap-shooters who upload mostly unimpressive photos to social media on occasion. 

All of these people have talent, but only some of them have achieved impressive results. The difference is in the effort and determination that they have committed toward achieving those results.

Talent is potential. Exceptional talent will let someone achieve more in the same amount of time or with the same amount of effort. But without effort, that talent will remain unfulfilled. Talent is a diamond buried under a mountain. You'll have to dig deep before you can access its full value.


Limitations

A lack of talent does enforce some limitations. Most people will never compete in a professional sporting event or sing on stage at a famous opera house. The people who make it to that level all have extraordinary talent. But talent didn't put them on the stage or the playing field. Top performers typically dedicate countless hours toward developing and maximizing their talent. 

A person with average talent can achieve impressive results by committing themselves to hard work and a plan for making the best of the abilities that they have. Maybe they won't discover a diamond under their personal mountain, but they'll find other beautiful and valuable assets. In many cases, their lives will be more fulfilling for having put in the effort.


A Weakness Exposed

I have been blessed with some degree of talent, and I am thankful for all that those talents have enabled me to achieve. But there are plenty of areas in my life where I lack talent to an embarrassingly painful degreed.

A lack of scholastic talent emerged as a critical weakness when I went to college (university, for international readers). It wasn't just that I struggled to get good grades. I plunged into a downward spiral that led to some of the most difficult and disappointing years of my life.  

I read very slowly. It takes me three to six weeks to read an average-sized novel. I know people who can finish the same book in an evening or two. 

That might not sound like a big problem, but it became a serious disadvantage when I started studying at the university level. I struggled to complete assignments, I fell desperately behind semester after semester, and my grades were horrible. Not just bad - horrible! I was frustrated, exhausted, depressed, ashamed, and I felt utterly hopeless. I feared that I would never earn a degree, and I had no idea what I could do to reverse the damage.

With each new semester, I resolved to do better, to study harder, but I still struggled. In fact, things got worse. Much worse.

Finally, after it seemed that all hope of ever getting through college was lost, I had a breakthrough. I resolved to do whatever it took to earn good grades and complete my degree. 

I scheduled as many hours of study time as I could find available each week, and I wouldn't let these periods be skipped or interrupted. I found the quietest places on campus and spent hours there every day (effectively hiding) in order to avoid distraction. In my notebooks, I paraphrased every paragraph that I read as I was reading it. I imagined myself standing before a classroom full of students, explaining the material. I needed to understand every concept and every detail in order to avoid looking like a fool.

I didn't gain any scholastic talent overnight. The Learning Fairy didn't cast a magic spell on me. My reading pace was still ponderously slow. 

But by refining my approach to studying in a way that compensated for my weaknesses, I went from being an academic embarrassment to getting A's in three-fourths of my classes. I completed my degree, and I went on to have a long, successful career in a field where continuous learning is demanded.

Those speedy readers obviously have more talent than I do in this area. I doubt that I could ever survive in law school or medical school - which is just fine, because they would never accept me anyway. But I was able to find a way to overcome my academic weaknesses. The dedication and effort required were significant, but it did prove to be possible. 

Desire and commitment and hard work can move anyone forward toward any dream. If you have talent, you'll be able to go a little farther, but you're still going to have to work hard to get there. If you don't have a lot of talent, you can still do many of the things that you dream of doing. 

Never let a perceived lack of talent discourage you. Maybe you don't lack talent at all; you might need to try something different in order to develop your unique potential. Keep working at it. Keep trying new approaches. Good things are waiting for you. There are diamonds hiding under the mountain, but it will take work to find them.

¡Buena suerte amigos, y muchas gracias!

Daniel

Copyright © 2015 The Exploring Tango Blog

www.exploringtango.com

All Rights Reserved

   

   

Why Feedback In Class Is A Big Deal

A Perspective On Teaching Styles

Some years ago, I signed up for a bunch of tango classes at a respected school in my area. They had a program where you could pay one price and take as many classes as you'd like. It seemed like a good deal. I was eager to work hard and learn as much as I could.

I knew some of the teachers from previous classes, but some were unfamiliar to me. It turns out that one of them was very well known in the tango world. I didn't realize this when I signed up. I had been dancing for two or three years, but there was still a lot that I didn't know about the scene. 

This particular teacher - we'll call her Miss Big Deal - attracted a lot of students to her classes. Space in the room was tight but not unmanageable.

The classes followed the standard "one sequence per week" format, where the students spend an hour learning a single, moderately intricate series of movements that are meant to be performed together. The teacher explains the sequence in chunks starting at the beginning. The unspoken objective is to get through the entire sequence by the end of the class and hopefully pick up some technical tips along the way.

This isn't my favorite format for learning - for a whole host of reason that I'll save for another blog post - but it's very common. In my experience, most classes by most teachers follow this format. As a student, you deal with it and try to learn and remember as much as you can.


A Non-Learning Experience

After years of classes, I find it fairly easy to learn a new step sequence. The teacher instructs the class to do A-B-C, so I do A-B-C. They ask us to add D-E-F, so I do. Unless one of the steps in the sequence presents a technical challenge, or unless it goes poorly with multiple partners, I tend not to ask many questions. I figure that the teacher needs to spend their time with the students who are struggling.

That said, I do appreciate when a teacher passes on an occasional tip or insight. Technique can always be improved. Ideally, the teacher will notice something that I'm doing incorrectly or ineffectively and mention or demonstrate how I might go about improving it. Even in a fairly large class, it's possible to pass on a bit of feedback to each student.

Miss Big Deal didn't offer much advice. She made no attempt to wander through the class offering suggestions to individual students.

Miss Big did spend time with couples who asked her for help directly - typically those who were having a hard time learning the sequence. I applauded her for spending time with them, but she didn't share any information from those discussions. There was no follow up announcement to clarify for the entire class a point that one or two students had raised.

On two occasions, I was able to get Miss Deal's attention. I asked her to help me understand why something wasn't working. She would motion for us to execute the sequence, watch silently for a few seconds, and then walk away without making a comment. The expression on her face was one of utter disinterest.


Seeking Answers

I probably shouldn't have wasted my time in that class, but since it was part of a package deal, I kept at it for five months. During that time I received no feedback from this teacher, none whatsoever. No feedback was offered spontaneously. No feedback was given when I asked for it. 

I might have tried to ask a few more times, but there was a constant frenzy for her attention in class, particularly from a handful of people who seemed to require explanations for everything. I wondered how they managed to arrive at the school on time without her explicit direction.

Undeterred, I went to the front desk one day and asked whether I could schedule a private lesson with Miss Biggie. They informed me that Miss Deal's private lessons were booked solid for months in advance and that cancellations were rare. I couldn't even BUY feedback from this highly-regarded expert.


For The Record

The class was effectively a complete waste of my time. I forgot the sequences nearly as quickly as I learned them. There wasn't much discussion of technique as we memorized those soon to be forgotten steps. Occasionally, she would mention a mistake to avoid. Corrective feedback was of course, non-existent. I didn't even see her offering words of encouragement.

In all fairness to Miss Big Deal, however, I would like to mention a more positive experience. I took a weekend seminar with her a few months later. The information presented was well organized and helped me increase my understanding of tango significantly. I didn't receive any feedback, of course, but it was still a valuable educational experience. 


The Importance Of Giving Feedback

I give feedback to every one of my students in every single class.

Why? Because I care about their progress. Because I want them to become better dancers quickly and directly, not haphazardly. Because I want them to get some value for the time and money and effort that they have invested into their time with me.

I let each student know, in a gentle and supportive way, where their weaknesses are and where they'll need to focus their efforts in order to improve.

I try to catch students in the act of making a mistake, even if I have to ask them to repeat a movement a few times. I want them to understand the problem as it occurs in real time. 

I'll demonstrate the proper technique side by side with the way that they were doing it. I want the difference to be absolutely clear in their minds so they know WHAT they'll need to practice and WHY it's important.

Feedback is absolutely critical to the learning process. Why do people take classes for years and not make much progress? It's probably due to a lack of feedback. If you don't know what you're doing wrong, you're not going to fix it.

If you want to be happily mediocre for the rest of your life, don't bother to look at the details. Just keep doing what you've always done. But if you really want to improve, the quickest and most effective way is to address your weaknesses.

Feedback is a big deal. I'm not a big deal. I don't have private lessons booked solid for months in advance. But I know that I have helped every student who has walked into one of my classes with even a modest desire to improve to do so. I coached them, I encouraged them, and I helped them to become a better dancer than they were when they walked in the door that day. That might not be a big deal, but it's good enough for me.

¡Buena suerte amigos, y muchas gracias!

Daniel

Copyright © 2015 The Exploring Tango Blog

www.exploringtango.com

All Rights Reserved

   

Cultivate A Healthy Relationship With Your Mistakes

Lower Stress And Improve Your Progress

Mistakes can be embarrassing. We try to avoid mistakes, especially the ones that might cause public humiliation or damage to our person, our spirit, and our relationships with others. 

Not all mistakes are catastrophic, however. Some mistakes are stepping stones to growth and progress. If we try to avoid all mistakes, we hamper our ability to learn and take on new challenges.

Effective learning requires a healthy relationship with mistakes. Progress requires a healthy relationship with mistakes. Joyful living requires a healthy relationship with mistakes. 


Baby Steps

When toddlers learn to walk, they fall down frequently. Every fall could be considered a mistake. Luckily, toddlers don't associate mistakes with negative feelings. When they fall down, they get up and try again. 

Most children learn to walk without any coaching. The don't receive any instructions. No one gives them a walking demo or sends them to bipedal motion class. They just keep trying until they get it. 


The Opposite Of Progress

How do you compare to the learning toddler? When you make a mistake, do you get up and start again? Do you understand that your mistakes are a natural part of the leaning process? Or do you feel anxious or embarrassed when something that you try doesn't work? 

As we mature, we learn to associate mistakes with a whole range of negative emotions and experiences. People scold us or criticize us when we make mistakes. Over time, the healthy early-childhood relationship with mistakes is replaced by stigma and anxiety. 

We no longer interpret mistakes as a sign of ongoing progress, but rather as an indication of failure or ineptitude.


Vicious Circles

It's easy to fall into a cycle of self-fulfilling anxiety. Fear of making a mistake can cause stress. Stress can interfere with our physical and mental processes. This interference in turn causes mistakes. 

How can we break the cycle? One strategy is to cultivate a healthy relationship with our mistakes. I'll explain with an example.


Two Friends, Two Attitudes

Bill and Bob have been asked by their teacher to perform in an upcoming student showcase. Bill and Bob are students at the same level, but they have different attitudes about mistakes. 

When Bill makes a mistake, it doesn't bother him. When he tries something at the milonga and it goes badly, Bill smiles at his partner and says, "Let me try that again! I'm still working that out." 

Bill's teacher encourages the class to view mistakes as learning opportunities. Bill has embraced this philosophy whole-heartedly. He realizes that he's not going to be able to do everything smoothly as he attempts more challenging material. The mistakes help him to identify his "problem areas." 

Bill discusses these problems with his teacher after class and asks for recommendations as to how he can improve in these areas. Bill dedicates practice time each week to the exercises that his teacher suggests. Sometimes he asks someone at the practice to take a video so he can identify where he needs to direct his efforts.


Bob, gets frustrated when he makes a mistake. It bothers him when he "messes up" at the milonga, partly because he wants to do things right, and partly because he feels that the people there are evaluating him.

There have been times when Bob has left a milonga feeling extremely disappointed with himself. That frustration stays with him for days.

Bob has the same teacher as Bill, and he's heard the same philosophy about mistakes. But Bob holds himself to a high standard. He tries really hard not to make any mistakes in class, because he feels badly when the teacher points out that he's done something incorrectly.

When Bob practices, he looks for partners who dance well. He doesn't enjoy practicing when things don't go smoothly, and he gets frustrated with partners who can't keep up with him. Bob doesn't like to watch himself on video. 


Progress Report

- Bill doesn't let himself worry about making mistakes. He's comfortable with the prospect of making mistakes in public, and he's determined to enjoy the experience no matter what happens.

- Bill has taken the initiative to identify and improve his weaknesses. This helps him to improve his overall technique as effectively as possible.

- Bill is going to feel some degree of performance anxiety on the day of the showcase, but it won't be strong enough to hinder his coordination and concentration. 


- Bob fears the possibility of making a mistake in front of the audience. He feels as though the audience will be judging him. He'll be very disappointed if he "messes up" during the performance.

- Bob doesn't spend time working on his weaknesses during his practice time, because he prefers practices that run smoothly end to end.

- Bob is probably going to be tense and anxious in the days and hours leading up to the event.


It's impossible to predict whether one friend will perform better than the other at the showcase. The final results will depend on a number of factors. 

But even if mistakes are made, Bill is probably going to have a more positive experience at the showcase, in his study of dance, and in life. I know which one I'd rather have sitting at my table.

¡Buena suerte amigos, y muchas gracias!

Daniel

Copyright © 2015 The Exploring Tango Blog

www.exploringtango.com

All Rights Reserved

   

Post 101

Exploring Tango - Vision and Expectations

This past December, Exploring Tango reached the hundred-post milestone. At the start of this new year, I thought that it might be interesting to look back at nearly three years of posts to see how they stack up against my original vision and expectations for the blog.


In The Beginning...

I had two main concerns initially. 

1. Would my insights and ideas be helpful and useful to the readers? 

2. Would I be able to come up with enough ideas to keep a blog going for the long term?

Luckily, I never came close to running out of ideas. My original list of nine topics was enough to get me started. Every time I finished a post, I had ideas for additional topics. Some of those topics were complex, so I needed to spread them across multiple posts (e.g. the Argentine Tango Best Practices series). 

When I speak with people about their tango experiences, I get even more ideas. During our conversations, I think of things that I want to express on the blog. The real danger isn't running short of ideas, but rather ensuring that I am prioritizing the best ones. And that I don't forget some good ones along the way.

A number of folks have given me wonderful feedback on the blog, both online and in person. They have tole me that they enjoy reading the articles and that they have come away with some useful ideas. A few readers told me that when they discovered the blog, they went back to the beginning and read through all of the posts. That's a pretty amazing compliment. I'm thrilled when someone reads the current post let alone several years worth.

The positive response to the blog has been amazing and humbling. I want these pages to be useful and helpful to the tango community. 


Objectives and Guidelines

I expressed my initial concerns above. I also established a list of guidelines that I try to follow as I plan and write each new article. 

1. Be Useful

I want Exploring Tango to be an asset and a resource for the tango community. I want it to provide insights in technique, creativity, musicality, and other tango topics. I want to offer clarity on topics that can cause confusion or frustration. I want readers to be inspired to try new things or to see traditional techniques in a new light.

2. Be Encouraging

Learning to dance is challenging. Improving over time is even more challenging. I want to offer a voice of encouragement. I want to lift people's spirits when they're feeling humbled by the challenge. I want to help them to understand why they're facing adversity and how to overcome those challenges in an effective manner.

3. Be Inspiring

I called my blog Exploring Tango because I wanted to focus on the possibilities of this uniquely creative medium. There are many reasons to love the Argentine tango. I have long been enamored with the creative and expressive freedom of tango. I hope to inspire others to explore and enjoy the creative potential of the dance.

4. Be Organized

As we learn to dance, we are exposed to a large amount of information. In my early years, I struggled to catalog everything that I was learning, filtering out the most important concepts and principles in hopes of having instant access to them as I was improvising. In my posts, as in my classes, I try to organize information in meaningful and accessible ways. I try to give the reader some benefit from the organizational systems that I needed to develop as I was learning. 

5. Be Open-Minded

Over the years, I have seen a lot of different ways to dance tango. I have seen a lot of different ways to teach tango. As a student, I struggled with apparent contradictions between teachers. One person would teach something that seemed to contradict what I had learned elsewhere. 

Over time, I learned to accept each approach on its own merits and appreciate the diversity of ideas that flow in the tango community. By studying a variety of techniques without judgment, I became a more capable dancer and teacher. I try to express this open-minded perspective in my writing, because I understand how confusing it can be when one is presented with an idea that goes against what we have come to accept as "the right way." 

6. Be Positive

I never criticize the way that people conduct themselves at the milonga.

I never criticize the way that people dance unless they are doing something that makes their partner uncomfortable or puts someone in the room in danger.

I never criticize the way that people ask each other to dance. (I can't believe the big deal that some people make over this utterly unimportant topic. It's ridiculous. If people are dancing and they're happy, what difference does it make how he invited her onto the floor? If you feel a need to disparage others simply because they don't employ some secret code of etiquette, you might want to take a look in a mirror and ask yourself why a false sense of superiority appeals to you.)

I never criticize the musical choices of DJs.

I never criticize any style of tango (salon, milonguero, nuevo, etc.). I word my comments so that they are neutral and applicable to dancers of all styles.

I never make dogmatic pronouncements about technique. ("It MUST be done this way!" See #5 above.) Comments of this nature come across as sophomoric and uninformed, not the image that I want to project. 

I never, ever, ever disparage the way that another teacher presents material of leads their classes. Occasionally, I hear someone recounting a classroom experience that sounds difficult to believe. However, if I wasn't in the room at the time, I don't know what that teacher was trying to accomplish in that moment. Perhaps they were attempting to correct a particular problem with a particular individual. Perhaps their comment wasn't meant to be taken as a general approach to learning tango. 

Unless I'm certain that the teacher's suggestion is likely to cause physical harm, I'm not going to comment one way or another. Contact that teacher if you need clarification. If is seems confusing to you, it's probably the result of incomplete communication. 


Well, that's the story of the first hundred posts. Anybody ready to double down? ;-)

¡Buena suerte amigos, y muchas gracias!

Daniel

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