Treat her like a lady: Three Types of Leaders on the Dance Floor
Do you love to go out social dancing at your favorite Country bar or Latin dance club here in Phoenix? So do I! What makes dancing that much more exciting is finding a leader that makes us feel beautiful, elegant and sexy, right girls?? It’s so true! Alright guys, it’s time to have a serious chat about how you are treating your lady on the dance floor. Without fail, I deal with one of these three types of leaders, and I can speak for every woman when I say, we only want to experience one. It’s really disheartening when a woman goes out to have a fun night out Country, Swing or Latin dancing and gets hit with one of these leaders instead. It ruins our excitement and makes dancing not only uncomfortable, but sometimes even painful. Let me explain further…
The Unaware Leader: The first type of leader is unaware of their partner. What do I mean by this? I mean this leader knows their steps but is absolutely clueless to the woman in their grasp. I want to applaud this leader, for know his steps! However, I want to scold him for not being more aware of how is actions are affecting his partner. It is his job to make the dance smooth and keep his partner safe. What happens when a leader is unaware? Let me tell you from personal experience what has happened, and I’ll warn you it is not pretty. I have been dipped by an unaware leader, and as a result was kicked with a boot (in my jaw might I add) by the couple next me. I have also been dropped by a leader, and then hit my head on a railing on the way down. Both were extremely painful experiences, and made me very skeptical about going out dancing again. It made me a nervous follower, unsure of my ability to trust the people who asked me to dance. No leader should cause this to happen to a follower, so I beg all leaders out there, please be aware of your partner and know how your actions affect her. Don’t be the one to blame for injures caused while a woman is under your care.
The Assertive Leader: The second type of leader is the assertive leader. This person is often too focused on showing off his moves that he becomes forceful. You can often find this type of guy out Country dancing here in AZ. What starts off as a fun ride quickly begins to make the follower feel like a ragdoll being tossed about. This also results in your follower tensing up and resisting your lead because you scare them! They have zero control and can’t get their bearings long enough to prep for the next move, as they are being whipped about so fast. This is terrifying, and again has the ability to lead to disaster. You are leading a follower, but she is volunteering that access to you. Be gentle and respectful with it, or you won’t get the luxury again.
The Graceful Leader: Ah, the third type. He is the graceful leader. He takes care of his partner and leads her with finesse. He has style and confidence, and he leads his follower around the floor protecting her from harm. Realizing she is being vulnerable by accepting his lead, and being mindful about how his movements affect her. This type of lead is not weak. He is strong and steady, and this type of lead is the lead every follower longs for.
Gentlemen, treat her like a lady, and if you don’t know how, let us teach you. At Dance FX Studios in the Phoenix East Valley, we are here six days out of the week; willing and ready to show you how to sweep her off her feet and keep her out of harm’s way.
Whether you are with a partner or not, begin with Dance FX Studios’ New Student Offer, one hour-long private dance lesson, to get healthy habits from us right from the start. With private dance lessons for beginners, you will learn to be that graceful leader that every woman adores.
