It can be fascinating to observe people dance. You can easily spot those who have their minds occupied - you can almost see the neurons firing above their heads.
But can the brain really multitask while you dance? Good question. Even if it can, it comes at a cost - when the mind is busy, the body cannot feel.
The Brain
On most nights, "thinking dancers" are the vast majority of the crowd. But once in a while, you spot a rare couple floating across the dancefloor. They may not be the most technical of dancers, yet they soak all the colours into themselves, making everything around them appear grey. They let go of the brain, let the body feel, and share that passion and love.
So what happens to the other couples? Their mind is blocking the body from feeling. You see them deliberating about what moves, steps, or styling to do next, brooding about song structure or upcoming breaks, worrying about impressing their partner, videographer, or anyone watching the dance, posing for photos, or wondering who to invite for the next song. Some of them are completely lost in thought about what to do next.
Sometimes, we do not know what to do because we let the brain tell our bodies what to do. That is where the need for patterns, styling and other technical stuff in salsa comes from. We genuinely believe we need all that first, before we can dance with our own flavour. If that were true, the salsa world would be full of unique, flavourful dancers, and we can probably agree it is not.
Instant Gratification
Much of our hunger for moves comes from instant gratification. Some years ago, to watch a programme or a movie, you would take a newspaper, look up when it was on, and wait patiently for it. Now, you simply go on Netflix and binge the whole season. You order something on Amazon, and it arrives the next day.
This type of instant gratification has transferred to salsa too. Students arrive at the class expecting to learn a cool pattern or a styling move straight away, and teachers conform, because they do not want to lose business. In the long run, this eats away at a dancer's individuality.
Teaching
A good instructor can teach choreography to random people from the street and make it look good, because following a set pattern is just moving in time to the music. True expression comes from within - from what I will call "the soul". It does not come from the mind, but in a thinking society, that is a hard sell.
I would love to see a teacher spend half the class on nothing but the basic step, and the other half teaching the students to relax, listen to the music, and move however their bodies want to move. Do that for a month or two, with no moves, no patterns and no partner. My guess is the students would grow much faster and find their individuality early on, because they would simply be following the beat and moving the way it makes them feel. Sadly, the more likely outcome is a class that shrinks fast, because the students are the ones craving instant gratification and rapid development.
Mind and ego need something to feel good about, yearning for a dopamine hit. That something happens to be moves and shines, and the thought of achievement through more and more complicated moves. However, while the ego rules, telling someone that true fulfilment comes from within is almost pointless. We have been taught over and over that there is a chronological way of learning salsa, and we follow it without question.
Flavour and Individuality
It is quite a phenomenon that dancers start searching for their own style and flavour only once they get comfortable and content with themselves. This does not happen because they are technically advanced and know their stuff. It happens because their soul is telling them to look for their inner dancer. While we are taught to do all sorts of things, our souls have been waiting to be let loose. So when we finally have the steps and moves down, we end up back at the beginning, saying to ourselves - "My body just wants to feel and play with the music, but I do not know how."
This is ultimately why great musicians and top dancers are idolised and lifted to Olympus - because of their passion. The same tools they use to dance - brain and body - come second to what their soul tells them to do. Mastery of technique comes from experience. True greatness comes from that something inside you. Look at the best people in any area of life, and they all share a passion for what they do. Plenty of us can get technically good, but who is willing to go beyond technique? What is going to set you apart from the person next to you, and from the rest? Do you want to be a mini version of your idol or teacher? While we are busy following patterns, the great ones are busy feeling their souls and then using that technique to make these moves look and feel a hundred times better.
As an experiment, let your inner dancer take over at the next social, and may your soul paint the dancefloor with the truest of colours.
However, just because there is a way, it does not mean that it is the way for everyone. Some minds are hard to switch off even when you know what is going on, and need some self-reflection to find their own channel for that energy.
And that is why I drink...
Joke.
Or is it?
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