Ready to compete?

[ShyDancer]

How do you know when you are ready to start competeing?

Aside from wether or not you have a partner willing to compete,

Do you go by how long you have been dancing? 1yr, 2yrs, 5yrs?
Do you go by how well your teachers and peers say you are, or if they tell you they think you are ready for it?

I was asked today wether I was going to compete soon, my immediate answer was a resounding No!
But then she asked why not, my basics are quite sharp and well excecuted and I could at the least compete in the individual beginner section.

I have no desire to compete yet but the questions got me thinking how all you competitors decided to enter your first comps and why?

Anyone want to share?

[Laura]

I started taking ballroom dance lessons because I wanted to be a competitor. So for me it was a question of "how soon can I get ready for my first competition?" Nine months later I entered my first Bronze syllabus competition. That was a little over six years ago.

I say if you have any interest try it once. You'll either love it and be hooked, or will not love it and never do it again. You really don't have anything to lose either way!

[Chris Stratton]

Two months, which due to the time of year was actually a few weeks more than typical around here.

At pretty much any level from initial minimum competence to world class, there's a competition event somewhere that would be a good fit. In Boston, there's a lot of coverage of the lower 2/3 of that range within reasonable driving distance, so people often start early. But it depends on what's available where you are, what it costs, when it's held, what you want to do...

[Warren J. Dew]

Heh. I started competing when an instructor nudged me into it. I thought the idea of doing ballroom, a cooperative social activity, competitively was crazy, but she told me it was about measuring one's own progress, not about trying to beat others. Well, maybe it's supposed to be....

"Ready to compete" is a myth. Depending on your personality, you are either always ready, or never ready.

[Laura]

I'm never ready, but I do it anyway! :D

[DanceAm]

I started at a studio that really pushed to buy comp packages. I could never justify the expense. Then my wife and I started checking the internet and found out about USABDA. Then Ann Smith from the Atlanta chapter told us about their regional coming up.

We were not ready, though our teacher said we were. I suggest either going to a comp and looking at the bronze or newcomer levels, either to compete or to watch.

But I agree that comps shouldn't be about winning, but don't be surprised if you find how serious some people get.

I think dancing is fun, if you want to compete just for fun it is up to you. At the lower levels, it should be mostly fun. But for me competing is thrilling. It is taking a chance to show your best stuff. The more you practice and the more you compete, the more chances you take, the more thrilling it gets. Getting your butt kicked at one comp or at one level but coming back and placing high or even winning the next time, that's a thrill.

That is why so many dancers keep competing, it is that thrill they are looking for. Competing more and more, going up the levels, it is a feeling you just got to have again. And the thrill gets more intense over time until it just overwhelms you and you can't seem to move any higher or win against certain people. So you make a decision to try harder or give up. But if you decide to keep trying and it gets better, the thrill is even greater because you pushed yourself further.

But putting that kind of pressure on yourself for an activity that doesn't mean that much, that is why some of us are considered obsessive. That is why they think we are crazy, they think we have more dollars than sense.

I don't care what they say or what they think. I don't feel I am living unless I am striving for something and dance is something that challenges me in body and mind. I was in the military, the "Be all you can be" attitude. But this is better, it is be more than I ever thought I could be.

[Laura]

DanceAm, that was the best description of I've read of what it's like to be an adult hobbyist competitor (as opposed to someone who is on a pre-professional track)!

We do it for the thrill. Some people ride roller coasters, some sky dive, some run marathons, some play softball, some play in garage bands, some are perpetual students, some are.... Well, you get it. A lot of people enjoy/need to have something in their life that gives them a sense of achievement and a thrill. The very lucky have that in their jobs (my husband is one of these people). The rest of us find it and enjoy it where we may. It takes all kinds to make the world go 'round, and if everyone did the same thing it would be very boring.

[cl5814]

Well said, Laura.

[Adwiz]

Competition suits some personality types more than others. To succeed as a competitor, you have to be comfortable performing in front of crowds, you have to have more than a typical level of self-confidence, you have to be exceptionally detail-oriented, you have to genuinely like people, and you have to be humble enough to handle defeat gracefully. Most of all, you have to love the thrill of competing. Someone who doesn't have that burning desire to excel in a group setting will likely be "always the bridesmaid, never the bride" if you will.

It's not for everyone. I'm fortunate that my background as an amateur actor and public speaker prepared me for some of these challenges, and I started ballroom with a distinct desire to compete.

I know some social dancers who are, in many respects, better than a lot of competitive dancers. They are relaxed and in it purely for the enjoyment of dancing, with no additional objectives to worry about. That's just as honorable and exciting, and worth every bit as much to the sport as those who compete. Some want the extra challenge and some say, "why go through all that"?

We need both groups. After all, if everyone competed, who would be our audience? I relish the fact that my audience is made up of people who aren't tearing apart every technical detail of my movements and just enjoying what they see. I don't think anyone should feel they must have a reason for not competing.