Even after all the years that I have been a line dance instructor, I am still amazed that some people mistakenly think that they can “learn everything” in one or two lessons. In addition, they believe that they should be able to remember as many steps and dances as someone who has been line dancing for many years! They put far too much pressure on themselves and, unfortunately, some stop attending class because they don’t see immediate results.
As I previously wrote in my February article here, titled “Learning a New Language,” line dancing has many different combinations of steps, each with their own name. So for a person who is new to line dance, it may cause unnecessary anxiety to think all the steps can be learned and mastered in a few lessons. Add in the fact that you will learn a different dance to every song, and a new line dancer quickly realizes that among skills like rhythm and memory, what it takes to become an accomplished line dancer is commitment.
Everyone in today’s world leads a busy life, from family to work to a myriad of other responsibilities. When you decide to take a line dance lesson, you should commit to attend every possible class. There is an adjustment period that is different for everyone; some people take several months before they feel confident. During that time frame, you will hopefully form new friendships with others in the class and each lesson becomes more fun than the previous one.
Some people only like to line dance when they are in class; others like to practice in the privacy of their homes. Some of the social butterflies seek out either a DJ or band a different night of the week to run-through the dances they have learned. No matter what you prefer, the main goal is to decide what you feel most comfortable doing, and, you guessed it, commit to it!
Recently, I had two different dancers from one of my classes exhibit their level of commitment: the first story is about a lady who has been line dancing for many years, taking several classes a week, she practices at home and her mind is sharp. She was going on vacation, and asked me to email her the dances that I taught when she was away so she could “keep up on what she was missing.” The second story involves a lady who line dances more for the social aspect; however, she is always determined to master a new dance and remember as many as she can. She recently had surgery and was walking with the help of crutches, but that didn’t stop her from coming to class only 4 days later to sit and watch so she didn’t miss anything!
Dori Yez teaches Country Line Dancing on Mondays at Rolling Mills Bar in Girard, Ohio and Thursdays at My Brother’s Place in Mercer, PA. For more information, check out the clubs Facebook pages.
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