Orange County West Coast Swing Dance Club

After social dancing West Coast Swing for a period of time, some of us wonder whether to take that next step. We decide to get serious and take that path from social dancing into a whole new dimension, that of competing. We get excited and nervous at the same time. We wonder if we're talented enough or can get over our shyness. We take lots of private lessons and learn to undo some bad habits as well as learn new ones. We work very hard at practicing those new techniques we're unfamiliar with all for the sake of competing. We have a goal. The goal to win or place in competitions.

Placing in a competition is important but at what cost? When does one cross that line of a "serious" competitor for the fun of it and that of serious competitor at all costs? When you've created an unpleasant experience for yourself and those you dance with, that line has been crossed. The word "serious" is defined as "thought provoking," "earnest," and "important." Seriously competing can be a wonderful experience, but not when our actions are at the expense of others or ourselves to accomplish that goal.

It's important to keep things in perspective. After all, this is supposed to be a hobby and fun. Should you not place in a competition, there will always be another just around the corner. When walking off the dance floor after a competition, are you angry that you didn't have a better partner or are you thinking that you danced your very best and that is all you could have done this time? If your anger causes you to act out that anger, lose your composure, then you've lost your perspective. It's time to take a deep breath and seriously think about why you are competing.

We all start out as beginners and pay our dues as we move up in the ranks. Those who take that journey will always remember those who have been kind to us along the way and those who have not. Which one are you?

By Michele Geerhart