Bad Bad Professionals - Shame on You!

I was recently researching professional dancers in a city that I visit often so that I can continue my dancing while there for extended periods as I sometimes have to be. I was shocked to see bios for two professionals at their own studio, that not only exaggerated the extent of their competitive experience but was all out right lies. So much as that, the female professional is claiming to have been a Blackpool Professional Rising Star Semi-finalist, when this has never been the case. The male of the "partnership" further claims to be a US Rhythm Champion, which also is not very close to the truth.

My regular teachers have both been Blackpool Professional Rising Star Finalists and I feel that it is so offensive for other professionals to behave in this manner, as it completely diminishes all of the efforts made by dancers who actually do reach these impressive heights in competitive dancing.

What's even more shocking is that these two professionals' achievements are not so bad. They should just be honest instead of pretending that they are something that they're not. Plus, there's not many high-level competitors in (city in question), so I doubt that it matters very much to their clients, as the quality of their teaching should probably be the emphasis.

Don't even get me started on who their "visiting" coaches are - as I know about 4 or 5 on the list and these visiting coaches have never heard of these two "professionals" nor ever been to or invited to their studio.

Okay... rant over. Anyone else have similar problems?

Heh, professionals at my studios konw better than that, since I can quote off their wins/placements as well or better than they can.

Definitely disappointing though, both for dishonesty, and just a bit of shame it seems. Sounds like they're not really happy with their own accomplishments, which according to you, are pretty good in themselves. That's the worst part to my mind. Not business wise, but in feeling bad for them. You are who you are, be proud of it, and don't pretend to be someone else.

Larinda McRaven said:

You say they lie, they say they tell the truth.... How are we supposed to know which one is correct? If you can compare their page with the alleged lies... against the competition results that DON'T show their names... then you would have proof. UNtil then what have you got?

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I'd just like to add from my non-dancing experiences, even with a link to the site and a link to the comp results, we have a question, IMO -- best to ask the people/confirm before publicly stating something. (I seem to remember a funny story on DF of an am, dancing pro-am, was listed on some official site as a pro, so it was reflecting the pro had broken off his pro-pro partnership, when it was all very clearly pro-am. In this situation it was rectified, if I recall, within a day -- the point being, mistakes can happen on both sides.) There are so many possibilities here of innocent explanations and as someone who has had to investigate a lot of situations through the course of my job, what appears to be on the surface, is not always the case once it is really reviewed and the facts are clear. And I always feel for the people when, months/years later I still hear "Well, don't you remember they..." when I know that wasn't the truth in the end.

I have taken the liberty of editing the specific city as I don't think we need to inadvertantly identify anyone...

I want to also simply state that while I too have seen folks who enhance their credentials...I want to make certain that we are not pointing a finger in an identifiable direction when parties concerned are not able to speak for themselves....while that practice is unfortunate, like you, smart consumers will be able to verify those claims....welcome to DF and congratulations on having such good instructors in your regular dance life...good luck also finding something comparable where you are visiting

CANI said:

I'd just like to add from my non-dancing experiences, even with a link to the site and a link to the comp results, we have a question, IMO -- best to ask the people/confirm before publicly stating something. (I seem to remember a funny story on DF of an am, dancing pro-am, was listed on some official site as a pro, so it was reflecting the pro had broken off his pro-pro partnership, when it was all very clearly pro-am. In this situation it was rectified, if I recall, within a day -- the point being, mistakes can happen on both sides.) There are so many possibilities here of innocent explanations and as someone who has had to investigate a lot of situations through the course of my job, what appears to be on the surface, is not always the case once it is really reviewed and the facts are clear. And I always feel for the people when, months/years later I still hear "Well, don't you remember they..." when I know that wasn't the truth in the end.

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I think the same way as CANI. It is unfair to state someone is a liar before the full research is done.
Also, as the ballroom world is another society and you would never know that what you hear or what you see is 100% correct. There will be always people who try to cheat and lie.

f said:

I want to also simply state that while I too have seen folks who enhance their credentials...I want to make certain that we are not pointing a finger in an identifiable direction when parties concerned are not able to speak for themselves....while that practice is unfortunate, like you, smart consumers will be able to verify those claims....welcome to DF and congratulations on having such good instructors in your regular dance life...good luck also finding something comparable where you are visiting

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thanks! i'm usually a danceforums spectator but felt i should see how usual this practice was of professionals exaggerating their "claims to fame" and if it even matters to us, students. i think i'll just rent studio space at available studios to practice while i'm there for the moment. it's just so boring sometimes!

That's called "inflatable resumes". People do it in all professions. Careful wording can turn a minor project into a highlight of your career and help you land the position you want.

For an example in dancing, over 15 years ago, we were in Vienna (Austria, not US) and went to a dinner/dance there which had a group class on something before it. I don't even remember what dance it was. So if I were to write my dance resume for some reason, could I state that I studied dancing in Europe, too?

EnchantedElla said:

thanks! i'm usually a danceforums spectator but felt i should see how usual this practice was of professionals exaggerating their "claims to fame" and if it even matters to us, students. i think i'll just rent studio space at available studios to practice while i'm there for the moment. it's just so boring sometimes!

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glad you have you on and sharing...maybe rental space is best if pickings are thin and you have trust issues with your best choice...I do think we all have some tendencies to use verbiage that casts ourselves in our best light...ie... dedicated site moderator with over 40 K posts...vs...person with great capacity for procrastination and not much else going on in her life

CANI said:

( In this situation it was rectified, if I recall, within a day -- the point being, mistakes can happen on both sides.)

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heh, yes... within a couple hours.

one thing else to keep in mind is that titles can be phrased in a way that are technically true, tho they may leave out certain factual bits that reveal the highly narrow scope they truly refer to.

for example, it could be said that i hold the title for North American Dancesport Open Standard Champion for 2008. if i were ever to put that on a website, tho, people in this community woulod start keeling over with laughter at the ludicrousness of it... it's a pro-am title at a weenie event where only 3 couples competed.

i take those posted titles with multiple grains of salt. as with all things... buyer beware. but who can blame a pro for wanting to squeeze whatever they've got however they can to get an edge? meh... it's marketing.

right..same here...lolz

Would it be offensive to the professionals in question if I asked them directly when they won these titles?

It's one thing to add some flair to an accomplishment that you've had, but I think it's just wrong to state that you've been in the final of the largest competition in the world. It's a major accomplishment that not many dancers get to experience.

It's so nice to be able to compare dance-experiences on this forum. Lots of good advice.

no...I would ask...and they will probably be happy to elaborate which will probably clear the whole thing up

Surely nobody minds being asked, from time to time, to relate a brief story about a great personal achievement: "What was that like?"

DL said:

Surely nobody minds being asked, from time to time, to relate a brief story about a great personal achievement: "What was that like?"

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great way to look at it and to frame a questions without sounding "mad"

one should never put on the mantle of self-righteousness unless one is prepared to have it knocked off by the sword of humility...