Word of Advice for New Partnership

[guille_bdancer]

Hi everyone, I found a partner... yay!!! (my age this time) But considering this will be my first partner I was wondering if you guys cared to give me any advice on the partnership, coaching, etc.

 

[Kitty]

what level and style?


first thing - you two have to talk about commitment so that neither partner expects too much:
how much (approximately) you'd like to practice and how many lessons to take and how often to compete. Just so that you know the other person's preferences. Of course all of these might change later and probably will, so if you disagree on something here, give it time, you might agree on it later.

 

[alemana]

my rule with my partners is: we refrain from correcting each other. we ask the coach(es) to do that.

 

[wyllo]

Congratulations!! I'd sit down and have a long discussion about goals and how you plan to acheive those goals. Also, think about what you are willing to compromise on and what are deal breakers for you.

 

[Kitty]

one advice I also received for a new partnership that worked well for me:

don't get too bugged down in details in the beginning, get the routines and know the steps first, do run-throughs, even if certain things "don't feel right". You can fix it later.

sometimes when things "don't feel right" in a new partnership it is because you are not used to each other (height, shoulder width, arm length, diffferent ways to do certain steps, too light/too heavy leads) but these problems eliminate themselves later with experience of dancing together (and some coaching).
When I started with my current partner I thought it was very uncomfortable for all the above reasons, and cause I was used to dancing with someone else, but I remember when I started with my first partner it was same story, very uncomfortable in the beginning.

 

[guille_bdancer]

what level and style?

We'll be doing latin - Novice

 

[dTas]

one thing that i learned that really helped...

learn to ask... "what do you need from me to enable you to do that?"

don't try to tell her what to do as much as ask her what she needs from you in order for her to accomplish what you want her to do.

 

[mamboqueen]

And every now and then mention how she's the backbone of the partnership.

 

[alemana]

dtas, good one.

 

[guille_bdancer]

thank you guys... I'll keep everything in mind...

 

[liangjz]

And every now and then mention how she's the backbone of the partnership.

Good one. It's sometimes easy to get caught up in getting something to work that you wind up giving your partner the impression that your don't appreciate what she does.

I'd think it's important that your partner hears what you think she's doing well.

 

[DancePoet]

what level and style?

Interesting, and likely important question.

first thing - you two have to talk about commitment so that neither partner expects too much: how much (approximately) you'd like to practice and how many lessons to take and how often to compete. Just so that you know the other person's preferences. Of course all of these might change later and probably will, so if you disagree on something here, give it time, you might agree on it later.

Amount of lessons and practice are key areas needing review even before the partnership is agreed upon. A common short term goal is important, along with an understanding of what the longer term view is, if any. A review of eachother's current skills could make sense, too.

Agreement up front could be better then trying to agree later. That reminds me of couples who marry early on in their relationship when that first stage of romance is still fresh and fun. They don't pay attention to the differences and then get into trouble further down the line.

 

[DancePoet]

my rule with my partners is: we refrain from correcting each other. we ask the coach(es) to do that.

My last partner and I had caring, compassionate, considerate, and co-operative communication skills which can make it easier for working out issues.

 

[DancePoet]

one advice I also received for a new partnership that worked well for me:

don't get too bugged down in details in the beginning, get the routines and know the steps first, do run-throughs, even if certain things "don't feel right". You can fix it later.

sometimes when things "don't feel right" in a new partnership it is because you are not used to each other (height, shoulder width, arm length, diffferent ways to do certain steps, too light/too heavy leads) but these problems eliminate themselves later with experience of dancing together (and some coaching).
When I started with my current partner I thought it was very uncomfortable for all the above reasons, and cause I was used to dancing with someone else, but I remember when I started with my first partner it was same story, very uncomfortable in the beginning.

This could be helpful to keep in mind, thank you!

 

[DancePoet]

one thing that i learned that really helped...

learn to ask... "what do you need from me to enable you to do that?"

don't try to tell her what to do as much as ask her what she needs from you in order for her to accomplish what you want her to do.

Outstanding way to look at resolving issues! :notworth: