Fear, Doubt, and the Mastery of Both

Master your fear, and gain confidence through Ballroom Dance Lessons

There are many different people with many different reasons to begin taking Ballroom Dance Lessons. The initial decision to undertake something like social dancing can be a little intimidating. After all, social dancing is a social grace, requiring some degree of confidence and personality. Which brings us to our first motivating factor for taking dance lessons: building confidence.

"Courage is resistance to fear, mastery of fear, not the absence of fear." - Mark Twain

For a variety of reasons, some people feel they lack enough confidence in social settings to initiate conversations, introduce themselves to new people or, especially, ask someone to dance. While asking someone to dance or introducing themselves might not seem like a big deal to some, for others it can be quite challenging due to a seemingly insurmountable mountain of self-doubt and fear. Once someone begins to take ballroom dance lessons, establishing some self-confidence is often the first phase of learning. Through the introduction of basic and easy steps, the basic dance hold, and relating these to music and basic rhythm, we can begin building a solid foundation for gaining confidence while in social settings of all types.

It isn't always the need to build self-confidence driving people to take dance lessons. For a variety of other reasons, couples come to us seeking to build a better relationship with their spouse or significant other. Perhaps it's because the kids have moved out of the house and they're going through a little bit of empty-nest syndrome. For our single and recently divorced parents, the need to be social and interact with others is strong, and they might feel the need to build that confidence in themselves again. We hear from parents all the time about how their kids have gone on to college or their respective careers, and now without the daily grind of tending to the kids' needs, there is a sense of emptiness in the house and their daily lives. Taking up ballroom dance lessons is a perfect environment for couples, and singles alike, to get close to someone else or one another, establish a regular social engagement or "date night," and re-learn how to work together toward a common goal.

Ballroom dancing presents an opportunity to gain social confidence, both individually and as a partner.

The same holds true for our younger couples on their way to getting married. Likely, there are no children yet, they're still building their educations...their careers, and have yet to truly learn what it's like to be married and share in the joys and struggles which are certain to come. Building a foundation of team-work and partnering is essential to the success of any relationship, particularly marriage. Ballroom dance lessons can build a sense of trust in one another early-on in a budding relationship, ensuring each individual learns to be accountable and responsible for their role on the dance floor. If that doesn't perfectly translate to life, then I don't know what does!

The relationship is only as strong as the individuals within it. How many of us have been in relationships in which you were the strength...the weakness? Until we grow into our own capacity for strength and accountability, all while accepting and nurturing that of another, we are setting ourselves up for relationship failure. This holds true in marriage, business, friendships, and the dance floor. When we each bring our own strength & accountability to the table, the power of the union is much stronger and can weather any storm. While this can be translated nicely to a dance partnership, we mustn't forget these lessons for our daily lives as human beings.

So let me be clear, ladies and gentlemen. We aren't just teaching dance lessons here. We're healing and helping people to master fear and self-doubt. We're helping couples and individuals to live better lives.