OPEN MINDED PHILOSOPHY

PEOPLE ARE ALL DIFFERENT

ROBOTS

AN IMPORTANT TRUTH TO APPRECIATE IS THAT THE AIM OF LEARNING & TEACHING SHOULD NOT BE TO CREATE A CLASS OF ROBOTS, ALL WITH THE SAME FACTORY SETTINGS.

THE PROSPECT OF EVERY DANCER DANCING EXACTLY THE SAME WAY WOULD NOT BE AN APPEALING PROPOSITION, AS IT ROBS PEOPLE OF THEIR INHERENT INDIVIDUALITY.

VARIETY IS WHAT MAKES LIFE MOST INTERESTING AS IT SETS UP SOME AMAZING MIXTURES OF POSSIBILITIES.

PEOPLE ARE NOT ROBOTS, SO A ROBOTIC APPROACH TO LEARNING & TEACHING IS FUNDAMENTALLY FLAWED.

MORE THAN ONE WAY TO DO SOMETHING

IT WOULD BE ERRONEOUS TO BELIEVE THAT THERE IS ONLY ONE WAY TO DO SOMETHING OR ONLY ONE TECHNIQUE FOR EXECUTING A MOVEMENT.

NO TWO PEOPLE ARE EVER THE SAME.

PEOPLE MOVE DIFFERENTLY BECAUSE PEOPLE ARE ALL DIFFERENT SHAPES & SIZES.

MANY GREAT ATHLETES THROUGHOUT HISTORY TO THE PRESENT DAY HAVE MOVED IN VERY UNIQUE WAYS.

TO HAVE SHACKLED THEM TO ONLY CONVENTIONAL TECHNIQUE WOULD HAVE REMOVED WHAT IS MOST SPECIAL & THIS APPLIES NOT JUST TO GREAT ATHLETES BUT TO EVERYONE.

ADAPTING TECHNIQUE

TO DANCE SOCIALLY WITH A VARIETY OF DANCE PARTNERS RATHER THAN WITH ONLY ONE PARTNER BY DEFINITION MEANS ALL YOUR DANCE PARTNERS WILL BE OF DIFFERENT SHAPES, SIZES, LEVELS & ABILITIES.

THEREFORE, A TECHNIQUE THAT WORKS WELL FOR ONE PARTNER MAY WORK LESS WELL WITH ANOTHER PARTNER, SO IT WILL BE NECESSARY TO ADJUST & ADAPT TECHNIQUE IN THE MOMENT.

INDIVIDUAL STYLE

FINDING TECHNIQUE THAT BEST SUITS THE INDIVIDUAL IS WHAT CREATES INDIVIDUAL STYLE BY DISCOVERING OVER TIME WHAT WORKS BEST & DISCARDING WHAT DOES NOT WORK AS WELL.

WE ACTUALLY ALL ALREADY DO THIS IN OUR DAILY LIVES BY FINDING MICRO WAYS TO MAKE OUR LIVES EASIER & MORE EFFICIENT, SO BEING CREATIVE COMES VERY NATURALLY TO US.

FOUR TIMES OLYMPIC & EIGHT TIMES WORLD CHAMPION MICHAEL JOHNSON HAS A UNIQUE RUNNING STYLE

NOBODY ELSE STRETCHES & SLIDES ON A TENNIS COURT LIKE 20 TIMES GRAND SLAM CHAMPION NOVAK DJOKOVIC WHO HAS MOST WEEKS AS WORLD NO. 1

SOUTH AFRICAN RUNNER, ZOLA BUDD, WAS A WORLD RECORD HOLDER & WORLD CROSS COUNTRY CHAMPION WHO PREFERRED TO RUN HER RACES IN BEAR FEET

LIONEL MESSI HAS A TOTALLY UNIQUE WAY TO STRIKE THE BALL, SHIFTING HIS HIP TO THE RIGHT

RUDOLF NUREYEV BROUGHT A UNIQUE COMBINATION OF GRACE & DANGER TO THE WORLD OF BALLET DANCING AND WAS OFTEN COMPARED TO MOVING LIKE A PANTHER

LINDSEY VONN IS CONSIDERED THE BEST FEMALE SKIER OF ALL TIME ... HER SUCCESS IS BECAUSE SHE IS WILLING TO RISK EVERYTHING EVERY TIME, TO SKI RIGHT ON THE EDGE LIKE NOBODY ELSE.

CREATORS

BREAKING THE RULES

SO BY ALL MEANS LEARN EVERY TECHNIQUE POSSIBLE AS ONE NEEDS TO UNDERSTAND THE SYSTEM BEFORE ONE “BREAKS THE RULES“.

BUT THEN ANALYSE, PLAY WITH & ADAPT THE CONVENTIONAL TECHNIQUE TO TAYLOR-MAKE CUSTOMIZED, INDIVIDUAL TECHNIQUE THAT ENHANCES THE ORTHODOX.

THE ONLY TRUE TEST FOR A DANCE MOVE IS WHETHER OR NOT IT WORKS ON THE DANCE FLOOR, THAT IT CAN BE LEAD & FOLLOWED.

BE OPEN, BE COURAGEOUS & BE CREATIVE

IT IS IMPORTANT TO REMEMBER THAT THE CREATORS OF ANY NEW DANCE MOVE OR STYLING, & WE CAN ALL BE CREATORS, ARE DRAWING INSPIRATION FROM OTHER DANCES & OTHER FORMS OF MOVEMENT TO FIND A FRESH FORM OF EXPRESSION TO REFLECT THE MUSIC.

THE DANCER SHOULD BE FOREVER MINDFUL OF THE DANGERS & LIMITATIONS OF LIVING IN A CLOSED-OFF BUBBLE OF TECHNIQUE & STYLE.

BECOMING TRAPPED IN A DOGMATIC CLOSED-OFF APPROACH AS A WAY TO PRESERVE A SELF-IMAGE PARADIGM IS ULTIMATELY BOTH DELUSIONAL & LIMITING.

IT REPRESENTS GIVING IN TO AN INSECURE EGO, WHICH IS SIMULTANEOUSLY FEARFUL OF BEING CHALLENGED & CHALLENGING ONESELF.

THIS RISK APPLIES MOST TO THOSE WHO HAVE BEEN DANCING LONGEST SO THE BEST COUNTER-STRATEGY IS TO START OUT AS ONE INTENDS TO CONTINUE, BY ALWAYS BEING OPEN TO NEW LEARNING.

PUSHING THE BOUNDARIES

BECOMING OVERLY ENSLAVED TO A RELATIVELY NARROW INTERPRETATION OF RULES & CONVENTIONS IS THE VERY ANTITHESIS OF CREATIVITY BECAUSE FEAR & COMPLACENCY CONDEMNS A DANCER, ATHLETE, THINKER OR ANYONE TO LIVING LIFE IN A SAFE-BET COMFORT ZONE CENTERED AROUND PROTECTING A FRAGILE EGO.

THE MOST CREATIVE PEOPLE ARE ALWAYS THOSE WILLING TO PUSH THE BOUNDARIES OF WHAT IS POSSIBLE BY EXPERIMENTING USING TRIAL & ERROR.

INSPIRATIONAL

THE ARTS & LITERATURE PROVIDE A MYRIAD OF INSPIRATION FOR ADAPTING TECHNIQUE:-

SURREALIST PAINTER, PABLO PICASSO BROKE TRADITIONAL RULES OF PERSPECTIVE , PROPORTION & DEPTH TO CREATE HIS MASTERPIECES.

ERNEST HEMINGWAY IS WIDELY ACCLAIMED AS THE GREATEST ENGLISH-SPEAKING WRITER OF THE 20TH CENTURY.

HIS MINIMALISTIC STYLE USING DECLARATIVE STATEMENTS REINVENTED WRITING TECHNIQUES CREATING PROSE THAT WAS STRIPPED-DOWN YET WONDERFULLY RHYTHMIC.

IMPRESSIONIST PAINTERS LIKE CLAUDE MONET USED IRREGULAR BRUSHSTROKES TO CAPTURE THE MOMENT. FELLOW IMPRESSIONIST PAUL GAUGUIN IS RECOGNISED FOR HIS EXPERIMENTAL USE OF COLOUR.

MODERNIST POET, T.S. ELIOT, WIDELY CONSIDERED TO BE THE GREATEST ENGLISH-SPEAKING POET OF THE 20th CENTURY, EMPLOYED NEW STREAM OF CONSCIOUSNESS TECHNIQUES.

CONCLUSION

THERE IS NEVER EVER ONLY ONE WAY TO DO SOMETHING.

RATHER TECHNIQUE SHOULD BE SEEN AS A TOOL BOX CONTAINING MANY TOOLS.

EVEN A TRUE MASTER OF AN ART FORM NEEDS TO REMAIN REFLECTIVE & HUMBLY CONTINUE THEIR LEARNING.

THIS IS THE PATH TO STAYING RELEVANT RATHER THAN BEING WHOLLY DEFINED BY THE PAST.

CHANGE & EVOLUTION ARE THE ONLY CONSTANTS IN THE UNIVERSE, SO THE TRUEST PATH IS TO BE OPEN, TO BE COURAGEOUS & TO BE CREATIVE.