The Official Publication of the  Tucson Swing Dance Club	January 2003, Volume 21.0 www.tsdc.net

Newcomers, what's the best way to learn to do West Coast Swing? By dancing, dancing and more dancing. And especially by dancing with a partner who's a little more advanced than you are. How do you make that happen? Ask someone to dance. When you first come to the Club, it's really scary to think about asking anyone to dance. You think to yourself, "I don't know what I'm doing. She or he certainly won't want to dance with me." Dump the negative self-talk. I encourage you to get out there and dance. Even if you ask one new person each night, it's a start. And you'll find as you work on your dancing, more and more people will ask you to dance. If you look around the room, many of the advanced men rarely ask women to dance. It's often the women asking the men and that's really OK. As a new or novice dancer, it's really acceptable to ask anyone to dance ONCE during an evening. That way, you're not a burden - one dance is fine. And if you get turned down, which does happen on occasion, don't take it personally - maybe you caught someone at a bad moment, or they're taking a break or whatever. Shake it off, move on and ask someone else. 

Intermediate And Advanced Dancers, please pay attention to the newcomers - do you remember how it felt when you started out? It can really make someone's evening when they are asked to dance by someone they look up to. As a novice dancer, if you want feedback or pointers from your more advanced partner, ask them. They'll be happy to provide it when asked, but won't necessarily volunteer the information unsolicited. Then, you have something to work with and can incorporate it into your dancing in the future. Choose one aspect of dancing and practice it throughout the evening. Don't try to improve everything at once. You'll just get confused and frustrated and that's not useful. Dancing at the Club is great. So come for the lessons and stay for the dancing. If you want to dance even more, check out other places to do West Coast on other nights. My dancing improved a lot when I started dancing more than once a week. Most importantly, remember to smile and HAVE FUN!