I see a very common bad habit of beginner salsa leads. When they find a girl who's nice and wont mind practising with them, they'll "hold on" to the girl for the whole night.
There are many issues with this behaviour, .... which I shall not elaborate, but the main problem in context of learning to lead, is that the girl will get to be able to anticipate whatever you are trying and it will not give you a proper feedback of your true 'mastery' of the move anymore!
What I would advocate, is for every learner lead to find at least 5 practice partners.
Whenever the lead learns a new move, he should
1) Practice with one until it's smooth or until 15 minutes have passed (which ever is earlier)
2) Find the next partner, see if it's still smooth, if not, keep trying until it's smooth
3) Go to step 2
Once the move works well with all 5 partners, it's time to try it out on the dance floor with strangers.
Now, why don't we just go practice the moves with strangers?
There are multiple reasons, e.g.
1) When you practice with strangers, you are not sure of their level of following
2) When there is a mistake you can't be sure if it's you or them causing the problem
3) Most strangers wont give you (useful) feedback (because it's generally considered no polite to do so unless one is giving true compliments)
One other thing, how to pick practice partners? (good ones are hard to come by)
1) try to find those of a similar level (so that she wont get bored), e.g. classmates
2) try to find those who are keen to learn and knows how to give good/precise feedback (e.g. cant feel the lead, which part not smooth, where not comfortable, etc.)
3) try to find those who wont have pre-conceived notion of how things should be done and have an open mind. (this is VERY important)
4) try to find one who is an advance level follow. This would be the last one you try the new move on and her feedback would be the key to find any final issues. (e.g. instructor/performer, or just dance with your instructor)
Those are the criteria that I would look for. Really tough to find I dare say :P
It takes many many followers to train a good lead.....
Thursday 10 December 2009
Wednesday 9 December 2009
How to Apply Choreography in a Social Context
The benefits of choreography
Many people say that Salsa is a social dance and that the most beautiful aspect of Salsa can be seen on the social floor where the dancers play and dance their moves to the music, all in an impromptu fashion. I agree with that and I have seen some amazing dancing on the social floor. However, I feel that there are certain benefits to choreographing a dance that some people tend to overlook. In my opinion, choreography is important for beginners who are not seasoned dancers as it provides them with a good starting ground in their social dancing for the following reasons:
1) Easy to remember/recall steps while dancing
Many newbies to Salsa have very few moves to execute while dancing because their knowledge in dance is limited. Their variations are often interspersed with a lot of basic steps because they are thinking of the next move to execute. A simple choreography that is taught to them will allow them to constantly practice one variation after another, so that they can train their muscle memory to execute simple steps one after another on the dance floor without worrying about what the next step is.
Some people may think that this will make their dancing boring and repetitive as they constantly repeat the same things. However, I stress that this is for beginners and that doing repetitive steps again and again is better than doing many basic steps while worrying and ransacking your brain over what steps to execute next on the dance floor. Furthermore, the dancers can rearrange the sequence of steps after they are more familiar with the steps.
So beginners out there, put what you learn into a series or combo that you can easily remember. Don’t make it too long as that will be hard to remember. I suggest that you choreograph Combo 1 which comprises of variations A, B, C and D, Combo 2 which comprises of variations E, F, G and H, etc. That way, you also practice how to transit from one move to another!
2) Posture and other tiny details corrected – confidence in the steps obtained
A choreographed routine will ensure that you have executed the moves many times in that sequence. This will make sure that you familiarize yourself with the steps quickly as you repeat them many times. In addition, you will gain confidence in your dancing as you become more secure in your leading and following of the variations. If you have a teacher correcting you in your choreography, this is a plus point as a good teacher will not only correct your lead but also your posture, hands, expression and other tiny details to make you look good on the dance floor. It is easy for the teacher to correct you in such a scenario as you repeat the steps and he/she can check if you slouch in a particular step or if your hands are placed wrongly in a particular step. Once you are sure that you look good, you will get the confidence to dance and enjoy yourself.
3) Students who are less talented can learn about timing and rhythm and how to pose to a particular music through the choreography
A choreography to a particular music also helps students with problems in keeping the timing right while dancing as the fixed music will help them to familiarize themselves with at least one song. Once they learn to keep the count in the song, they can gradually learn to keep the count in other songs. The first song allows them to start ‘somewhere’ in learning about the Salsa beat.
A choreographed routine may also have pauses and different rhythms where the students are taught to pose or dance in response to the music. This teaches students how to play with the different musical styles of Salsa.
4) Finally you can piece them together like a jigsaw puzzle to mix and match moves
After learning the choreography, students who have become more comfortable with their routine can then choose to mix and match the variations or shines to vary their repertoire as they dance.
Many people say that Salsa is a social dance and that the most beautiful aspect of Salsa can be seen on the social floor where the dancers play and dance their moves to the music, all in an impromptu fashion. I agree with that and I have seen some amazing dancing on the social floor. However, I feel that there are certain benefits to choreographing a dance that some people tend to overlook. In my opinion, choreography is important for beginners who are not seasoned dancers as it provides them with a good starting ground in their social dancing for the following reasons:
1) Easy to remember/recall steps while dancing
Many newbies to Salsa have very few moves to execute while dancing because their knowledge in dance is limited. Their variations are often interspersed with a lot of basic steps because they are thinking of the next move to execute. A simple choreography that is taught to them will allow them to constantly practice one variation after another, so that they can train their muscle memory to execute simple steps one after another on the dance floor without worrying about what the next step is.
Some people may think that this will make their dancing boring and repetitive as they constantly repeat the same things. However, I stress that this is for beginners and that doing repetitive steps again and again is better than doing many basic steps while worrying and ransacking your brain over what steps to execute next on the dance floor. Furthermore, the dancers can rearrange the sequence of steps after they are more familiar with the steps.
So beginners out there, put what you learn into a series or combo that you can easily remember. Don’t make it too long as that will be hard to remember. I suggest that you choreograph Combo 1 which comprises of variations A, B, C and D, Combo 2 which comprises of variations E, F, G and H, etc. That way, you also practice how to transit from one move to another!
2) Posture and other tiny details corrected – confidence in the steps obtained
A choreographed routine will ensure that you have executed the moves many times in that sequence. This will make sure that you familiarize yourself with the steps quickly as you repeat them many times. In addition, you will gain confidence in your dancing as you become more secure in your leading and following of the variations. If you have a teacher correcting you in your choreography, this is a plus point as a good teacher will not only correct your lead but also your posture, hands, expression and other tiny details to make you look good on the dance floor. It is easy for the teacher to correct you in such a scenario as you repeat the steps and he/she can check if you slouch in a particular step or if your hands are placed wrongly in a particular step. Once you are sure that you look good, you will get the confidence to dance and enjoy yourself.
3) Students who are less talented can learn about timing and rhythm and how to pose to a particular music through the choreography
A choreography to a particular music also helps students with problems in keeping the timing right while dancing as the fixed music will help them to familiarize themselves with at least one song. Once they learn to keep the count in the song, they can gradually learn to keep the count in other songs. The first song allows them to start ‘somewhere’ in learning about the Salsa beat.
A choreographed routine may also have pauses and different rhythms where the students are taught to pose or dance in response to the music. This teaches students how to play with the different musical styles of Salsa.
4) Finally you can piece them together like a jigsaw puzzle to mix and match moves
After learning the choreography, students who have become more comfortable with their routine can then choose to mix and match the variations or shines to vary their repertoire as they dance.
"I Want to be a Good Dancer!" - 5 Steps to Dancing Success!
"I Want to be a Good Dancer!" - 5 Steps to Dancing Success!
1. Basics
A good Salsa dancer needs to have good fundamental techniques. In building a house, one needs a good foundation; likewise in dancing. The fundamental techniques can be divided into 2 categories: 1) partner techniques, and 2) non-partner techniques. The former simply describes proper lead and follow techniques while the latter consists of body and leg flexibility, and spinning techniques.
Lead and follow techniques are crucial in partner dances because the leader needs to know how to lead his partner properly and the follower needs to know how to respond to her partner’s cues. We can’t social dance properly, especially at the advanced level if we do not have the proper lead and follow techniques. That’s why we emphasize a lot on basic class in Actfa. Most people actually don’t realize the full importance of basic class (where they teach the fundamental lead and follow techniques) until they have been to an intermediate or advanced class where they find it hard to catch up in the class because they don’t have the proper techniques to execute the steps right…*
Besides learning how to lead and follow properly, we also need to have sound techniques in body isolation, flexibility and spinning.** This is vital if we want to look good when we dance. In Salsa, a dancer stands out if he styles well, spins well and is flexible. Body flexibility and isolation techniques are important for those shines and styling (e.g. body waves!) to look good. The more flexible our body is, the better it looks, as the body movements are bigger and more fluid. We also gain a better control over our movements when we master the techniques for isolation. Flexibility is necessary for dancers simply because it looks outstanding, and our legs and bodies move better and are not so stiff when we are flexible. Spin is crucial in Salsa as it is one of the main components in Salsa. Once we grasp the concepts of spinning, we can balance better and move faster. When this happens, we have a lot of time to style and look good because we are not rushing after the music or catching our balance. On top of that, our spins look sharper because they are faster and more precise.
2. Practice, practice, practice
Besides having a good foundation for dance, another golden rule is to practice. Repeating the variations or styling will enable us to be more familiar with the variations and styling. If we practice enough, we will commit the variations or styling into our subconscious so that we automatically execute the steps without consciously thinking of it. This is important in social dancing, where the movements are impromptu for the ladies. By training the steps into their subconscious, they will respond to the leader’s cue and execute the variations and styling automatically. This in time will train their sensitivity in responding to the lead. It is also crucial for the men as they can fluidly execute one variation after another only after they commit the steps into their subconscious. That way, they will not have to keep thinking of which step to do next when they dance with their partners.
3. But practice makes perfect, so find a good teacher
Although practice is important, we must also be careful not to practice the wrong steps. A teacher of mine once said, “Practice makes perfect. If you practice the wrong thing, you’ll perfect that”. So we all need to constantly check through a mirror or a video of our dancing to see if we are executing the steps the way we imagine it to be. More importantly, we need a good teacher or mentor who cares to teach us the right things and correct our mistakes. A good teacher will find out what we want, encourage us to pursue our goals and show us the shortest path to achieving it. He will plan our training for us so we don’t have to worry about what to learn, and prepare us both mentally and physically to attain our goal. A good teacher cares enough to scold and push us to achieve what we want, and more. Good teachers are hard to come by; great teachers are even rarer: cherish them.
4. It’s not the quantity but the quality of your variations/styling
Many people seem to want to learn one hundred complex variations, shines and styling, with the thought that if they know a lot of moves, they will be good dancers. It is true that many advanced dancers seem to know many moves and variations. However, I feel that it is more important to get the moves looking nice rather than knowing a lot of variations. Dancer A may know a lot of moves but the quality of his move may only be 2/10. Dancer B may know only a few moves but the standard of his moves are 8/10. Dancer A’s moves will look messy and average; any potential he may have as a dancer will not be obvious because he is like an uncut diamond – it looks like an ordinary rock on the outside. Dancer B may know limited moves, but he is clean and precise in his execution. Because of his cleanness and precision, he may stand out among other social dancers – he is like a small diamond, small but nevertheless sparkling! Of course, it is important to have both quality and quantity and the best way is probably to learn new steps gradually while perfecting those we know.
5. Be polite to others and you’ll always have people to dance with
A last but crucial point to being a good dancer is to build a good relationship with the people. Be polite to others: treat your partner with respect, respect other dancers’ space while dancing, thank your partner after dancing and guide her to the edge of the dance floor if you’re a guy. Most importantly, smile! It’s important to be on good terms with other dancers because you meet them frequently on the dance floor. Being on good terms will ensure that you’ll always have people to dance with!
* Actfa conducts Salsa Examinations certified by AUQE (www.auqe.com) which has 50 pointers in its Level 1 Basic Exam as guidelines for its students to develop the proper lead and follow techniques.
** Actfa holds Isolation & Body Conditioning classes twice a day to help its students to master their body isolations, flexibility and spinning techniques (www.actfa.com).
1. Basics
A good Salsa dancer needs to have good fundamental techniques. In building a house, one needs a good foundation; likewise in dancing. The fundamental techniques can be divided into 2 categories: 1) partner techniques, and 2) non-partner techniques. The former simply describes proper lead and follow techniques while the latter consists of body and leg flexibility, and spinning techniques.
Lead and follow techniques are crucial in partner dances because the leader needs to know how to lead his partner properly and the follower needs to know how to respond to her partner’s cues. We can’t social dance properly, especially at the advanced level if we do not have the proper lead and follow techniques. That’s why we emphasize a lot on basic class in Actfa. Most people actually don’t realize the full importance of basic class (where they teach the fundamental lead and follow techniques) until they have been to an intermediate or advanced class where they find it hard to catch up in the class because they don’t have the proper techniques to execute the steps right…*
Besides learning how to lead and follow properly, we also need to have sound techniques in body isolation, flexibility and spinning.** This is vital if we want to look good when we dance. In Salsa, a dancer stands out if he styles well, spins well and is flexible. Body flexibility and isolation techniques are important for those shines and styling (e.g. body waves!) to look good. The more flexible our body is, the better it looks, as the body movements are bigger and more fluid. We also gain a better control over our movements when we master the techniques for isolation. Flexibility is necessary for dancers simply because it looks outstanding, and our legs and bodies move better and are not so stiff when we are flexible. Spin is crucial in Salsa as it is one of the main components in Salsa. Once we grasp the concepts of spinning, we can balance better and move faster. When this happens, we have a lot of time to style and look good because we are not rushing after the music or catching our balance. On top of that, our spins look sharper because they are faster and more precise.
2. Practice, practice, practice
Besides having a good foundation for dance, another golden rule is to practice. Repeating the variations or styling will enable us to be more familiar with the variations and styling. If we practice enough, we will commit the variations or styling into our subconscious so that we automatically execute the steps without consciously thinking of it. This is important in social dancing, where the movements are impromptu for the ladies. By training the steps into their subconscious, they will respond to the leader’s cue and execute the variations and styling automatically. This in time will train their sensitivity in responding to the lead. It is also crucial for the men as they can fluidly execute one variation after another only after they commit the steps into their subconscious. That way, they will not have to keep thinking of which step to do next when they dance with their partners.
3. But practice makes perfect, so find a good teacher
Although practice is important, we must also be careful not to practice the wrong steps. A teacher of mine once said, “Practice makes perfect. If you practice the wrong thing, you’ll perfect that”. So we all need to constantly check through a mirror or a video of our dancing to see if we are executing the steps the way we imagine it to be. More importantly, we need a good teacher or mentor who cares to teach us the right things and correct our mistakes. A good teacher will find out what we want, encourage us to pursue our goals and show us the shortest path to achieving it. He will plan our training for us so we don’t have to worry about what to learn, and prepare us both mentally and physically to attain our goal. A good teacher cares enough to scold and push us to achieve what we want, and more. Good teachers are hard to come by; great teachers are even rarer: cherish them.
4. It’s not the quantity but the quality of your variations/styling
Many people seem to want to learn one hundred complex variations, shines and styling, with the thought that if they know a lot of moves, they will be good dancers. It is true that many advanced dancers seem to know many moves and variations. However, I feel that it is more important to get the moves looking nice rather than knowing a lot of variations. Dancer A may know a lot of moves but the quality of his move may only be 2/10. Dancer B may know only a few moves but the standard of his moves are 8/10. Dancer A’s moves will look messy and average; any potential he may have as a dancer will not be obvious because he is like an uncut diamond – it looks like an ordinary rock on the outside. Dancer B may know limited moves, but he is clean and precise in his execution. Because of his cleanness and precision, he may stand out among other social dancers – he is like a small diamond, small but nevertheless sparkling! Of course, it is important to have both quality and quantity and the best way is probably to learn new steps gradually while perfecting those we know.
5. Be polite to others and you’ll always have people to dance with
A last but crucial point to being a good dancer is to build a good relationship with the people. Be polite to others: treat your partner with respect, respect other dancers’ space while dancing, thank your partner after dancing and guide her to the edge of the dance floor if you’re a guy. Most importantly, smile! It’s important to be on good terms with other dancers because you meet them frequently on the dance floor. Being on good terms will ensure that you’ll always have people to dance with!
* Actfa conducts Salsa Examinations certified by AUQE (www.auqe.com) which has 50 pointers in its Level 1 Basic Exam as guidelines for its students to develop the proper lead and follow techniques.
** Actfa holds Isolation & Body Conditioning classes twice a day to help its students to master their body isolations, flexibility and spinning techniques (www.actfa.com).
Tuesday 8 December 2009
Obsession with new moves
A very common problem with new salsa leads, is the obsession to learn new moves.
Why do I call this a problem? Shouldn't they learn as much as possible?
Well, it's a good thing to improve one's vocabulary of moves.
BUT, and a VERY BIG BUT... what's the point of learning so many moves when you cant do ANY of them well?
I still remember during the early days of my salsa learning.... I was very concerned about being able to finish a song and not running out of moves.
Well.... that was until a famous dance instructor (female, follower) told me.... the follow couldn't be bothered if u repeat some stuff. They would be too busy showing off, kekeke.
Yah, ITS OK TO REPEAT YOUR MOVES!
In my opinion, leads should
1) learn a set of moves,
2) practice hard until they 'internalize' them. (i.e. muscle memory and can do with fast music)
3) After that, then add a new set
4) Go to step (2)
Many leads often skip the VERY IMPORTANT step (2) in their obsession with new moves.
Be patient... we have a whole life of dancing ahead. There are thousand and one moves to learn :) It's not possible to learn and remember all of them, kekeke.
In a social dance setting, it's better to lead simple moves well, rather than try too many complicated stuff and fail badly. (or worse, fail even at the simple stuff coz of lack of practice)
Just for illustration purposes. This youtube link is a BASIC RUEDA performance. It's one of my fav, because, only VERY basic and VERY simple moves are used and often repeated quite a number of times. Yet it still looks very nice! Why? Coz EVERYBODY in the circle can do all the moves really well. Simple moves FTW!
Why do I call this a problem? Shouldn't they learn as much as possible?
Well, it's a good thing to improve one's vocabulary of moves.
BUT, and a VERY BIG BUT... what's the point of learning so many moves when you cant do ANY of them well?
I still remember during the early days of my salsa learning.... I was very concerned about being able to finish a song and not running out of moves.
Well.... that was until a famous dance instructor (female, follower) told me.... the follow couldn't be bothered if u repeat some stuff. They would be too busy showing off, kekeke.
Yah, ITS OK TO REPEAT YOUR MOVES!
In my opinion, leads should
1) learn a set of moves,
2) practice hard until they 'internalize' them. (i.e. muscle memory and can do with fast music)
3) After that, then add a new set
4) Go to step (2)
Many leads often skip the VERY IMPORTANT step (2) in their obsession with new moves.
Be patient... we have a whole life of dancing ahead. There are thousand and one moves to learn :) It's not possible to learn and remember all of them, kekeke.
In a social dance setting, it's better to lead simple moves well, rather than try too many complicated stuff and fail badly. (or worse, fail even at the simple stuff coz of lack of practice)
Just for illustration purposes. This youtube link is a BASIC RUEDA performance. It's one of my fav, because, only VERY basic and VERY simple moves are used and often repeated quite a number of times. Yet it still looks very nice! Why? Coz EVERYBODY in the circle can do all the moves really well. Simple moves FTW!
Monday 9 November 2009
Stuck - Plateaus
During the course of learning how to dance salsa, you will often encounter times when you feel like you are stuck.
No matter how you try, there doesn't seem to be any progress, and worse... there may be some back sliding. And as a result, you don't feel like dancing as much anymore.
This is a very common phenomenon. (not just for salsa)
What can we do what we face such a situation?
The easiest thing to do, is to talk to your teacher. A good teacher is like a sporting coach. He can help you plan your training, find your trouble spots, help solve problems, etc.
A 3rd party will have a much easier time helping you find the reason why you get stuck.
You teacher should be in a good position to advice on areas that you can work on and quickly get some progress. You'll be surprised how simple things can elude you sometimes :)
So it's important to get a good teacher. It will make your learning journey a lot fast and more enjoyable.
No matter how you try, there doesn't seem to be any progress, and worse... there may be some back sliding. And as a result, you don't feel like dancing as much anymore.
This is a very common phenomenon. (not just for salsa)
What can we do what we face such a situation?
The easiest thing to do, is to talk to your teacher. A good teacher is like a sporting coach. He can help you plan your training, find your trouble spots, help solve problems, etc.
A 3rd party will have a much easier time helping you find the reason why you get stuck.
You teacher should be in a good position to advice on areas that you can work on and quickly get some progress. You'll be surprised how simple things can elude you sometimes :)
So it's important to get a good teacher. It will make your learning journey a lot fast and more enjoyable.
Wednesday 28 October 2009
Show off buddies
How many times have you gone to a foreign place, wanted to dance, summoned lots of courage to ask the best dancer you see there, only to get rejected?
Let's face it, many top dancers are Divas :) That is one of the reasons why they look good. Many only want to dance with good dancers.
I found that my chances of getting good response when asking people to dance significantly increase when I visit such places with appropriate 'show off partners'.
These so called 'show off partners' are my regular dance buddies. When the dance floor opens, we quickly go out there and show that we can dance :)
LOL, if you do it right, sometimes you don't even have to ask people for a dance. They'll come and ask you!
Let's face it, many top dancers are Divas :) That is one of the reasons why they look good. Many only want to dance with good dancers.
I found that my chances of getting good response when asking people to dance significantly increase when I visit such places with appropriate 'show off partners'.
These so called 'show off partners' are my regular dance buddies. When the dance floor opens, we quickly go out there and show that we can dance :)
LOL, if you do it right, sometimes you don't even have to ask people for a dance. They'll come and ask you!
Order in Chaos, finding the good amongst the confusion
SO many techniques. Everybody tells u different things. Who to listen to?
I'm quite sure many who just started learning salsa will encounter the above scenario.
My answer?
There is never a really 'wrong' technique,... nor the ONLY right 'technique/way'.
Most of the time, it's just what's most effective and works best for you.
What works on one, may not work on another.
The key is being versatile, and open minded.
With such a mindset, we can improve a lot faster than those who insist on doing things his/her way, or by only one particular way.
When someone teaches you a technique, don't just learn the technique. Find out WHY does he do it that way. By doing so, you can understand it better, and adapt the technique to what you've already learnt.
When I 1st started learning salsa, I found that girls who learn from different teachers reacted differently to my lead. Thus I went about trying to find out how their teachers taught their leads. Thats was my attempt at trying to be able to lead girls who learn from different teachers.
Later I realized, that wasn't really necessary. I found a buddy and we took turns being the follow. Doing so made me understand how it feels like to be lead. With this new perspective in mind, I start to understand how my actions as a lead can affect the follow.
Firm lead, soft lead, too much or too little force, etc. etc. produces different results in different situations.
On a crowded dance floor, obviously we cannot use too much force and need to watch our space.
BUT on a stage, we need to go BIG, *SHOW* more force (while not really using that much force) in order to make the moves fit the stage and look nicer.
The above example alone shows that there is no ONE way to skin the cat.
Key is...
1) Be OPEN MINDED (do not reject anything outright from the start)
2) Be versatile
3) Understand thoroughly what is being taught in order to internalize it.
4) Adapt what you've learnt to make it work for you (while keeping those that did't work in mind, u'll never know, one day they might come in useful)
Oh... this post is not meant for NEW salsa dancers. For new salsa leads, in most cases, if you try to learn too much, you'll suffer from information overload. In my opinion, it's best to focus on building up the foundation 1st before trying to learn 'too much' :)
Lastly, given the many different ways to achieve the same objective (e.g. how to do a CBLT), it's important NOT to say somebody else's method is WRONG. What works for you might not work for them!! We must always respect others.
I'm quite sure many who just started learning salsa will encounter the above scenario.
My answer?
There is never a really 'wrong' technique,... nor the ONLY right 'technique/way'.
Most of the time, it's just what's most effective and works best for you.
What works on one, may not work on another.
The key is being versatile, and open minded.
With such a mindset, we can improve a lot faster than those who insist on doing things his/her way, or by only one particular way.
When someone teaches you a technique, don't just learn the technique. Find out WHY does he do it that way. By doing so, you can understand it better, and adapt the technique to what you've already learnt.
When I 1st started learning salsa, I found that girls who learn from different teachers reacted differently to my lead. Thus I went about trying to find out how their teachers taught their leads. Thats was my attempt at trying to be able to lead girls who learn from different teachers.
Later I realized, that wasn't really necessary. I found a buddy and we took turns being the follow. Doing so made me understand how it feels like to be lead. With this new perspective in mind, I start to understand how my actions as a lead can affect the follow.
Firm lead, soft lead, too much or too little force, etc. etc. produces different results in different situations.
On a crowded dance floor, obviously we cannot use too much force and need to watch our space.
BUT on a stage, we need to go BIG, *SHOW* more force (while not really using that much force) in order to make the moves fit the stage and look nicer.
The above example alone shows that there is no ONE way to skin the cat.
Key is...
1) Be OPEN MINDED (do not reject anything outright from the start)
2) Be versatile
3) Understand thoroughly what is being taught in order to internalize it.
4) Adapt what you've learnt to make it work for you (while keeping those that did't work in mind, u'll never know, one day they might come in useful)
Oh... this post is not meant for NEW salsa dancers. For new salsa leads, in most cases, if you try to learn too much, you'll suffer from information overload. In my opinion, it's best to focus on building up the foundation 1st before trying to learn 'too much' :)
Lastly, given the many different ways to achieve the same objective (e.g. how to do a CBLT), it's important NOT to say somebody else's method is WRONG. What works for you might not work for them!! We must always respect others.
Dont reinvent the wheel
Many ambitious beginner learner leads wants to immediately go develop their own style.
Well, they can do it, but IMO, it's not the most 'effort efficient' way to go about doing it.
Just like what we always say, 'Dont reinvent the wheel', it applies to salsa as well!
With Youtube, it's very easy to find the kind of style that you like (and more important SUIT you).
From there COPY and... once you've mastered the copied moves, ADAPT them to suit you.
Once you've built enough of a vocabulary of styles, you will be more equiped to come out with a unique style of you own.
It's always easier to follow a trail than be the trail breaker, that's why team biking and migratory birds all draft behind a lead .... with the whole team taking turns to be the lead.
The concept is similar, save your energy by following and copying, and when u're reached the pointe, it's time for youself to take the lead.
Talking about copying, it's important to find a right 'model'. Tall 'long' people should not find 'stout' models and vice versa. It's kind of obvious but ... LOL.
Well, they can do it, but IMO, it's not the most 'effort efficient' way to go about doing it.
Just like what we always say, 'Dont reinvent the wheel', it applies to salsa as well!
With Youtube, it's very easy to find the kind of style that you like (and more important SUIT you).
From there COPY and... once you've mastered the copied moves, ADAPT them to suit you.
Once you've built enough of a vocabulary of styles, you will be more equiped to come out with a unique style of you own.
It's always easier to follow a trail than be the trail breaker, that's why team biking and migratory birds all draft behind a lead .... with the whole team taking turns to be the lead.
The concept is similar, save your energy by following and copying, and when u're reached the pointe, it's time for youself to take the lead.
Talking about copying, it's important to find a right 'model'. Tall 'long' people should not find 'stout' models and vice versa. It's kind of obvious but ... LOL.
Learn from watching
When we are not dancing, we are often standing by the side watching...
When we are watching a couple dance.... sometimes we'll think.. "VERY NICE AH"... but have you ever asked yourself, how come nice? What made them look good? Can I do the same?
Conversely,.. wazan, this couple, so ugly, ever wondered WHY?? How come ugly? Have I ever done the same thing (wah, so I ever looked just as ugly?)
Being able to identify what looks good, etc. is the 1st step to be able to learn just from watching.
I spent many hours watching people dance. Good couples beside newbies, etc. Comparing the difference, trying to identify what made the difference.
It takes a bit of research but, it's definitely time well spent. Ask your teacher here if you have doubts. A lot of things.... same move, but some subtle points made them look totally different.
I've tried to convey such points during my intermediate classes and some of the students who have been consistently attending them to repeat the class are starting to grasp them :)
When we are watching a couple dance.... sometimes we'll think.. "VERY NICE AH"... but have you ever asked yourself, how come nice? What made them look good? Can I do the same?
Conversely,.. wazan, this couple, so ugly, ever wondered WHY?? How come ugly? Have I ever done the same thing (wah, so I ever looked just as ugly?)
Being able to identify what looks good, etc. is the 1st step to be able to learn just from watching.
I spent many hours watching people dance. Good couples beside newbies, etc. Comparing the difference, trying to identify what made the difference.
It takes a bit of research but, it's definitely time well spent. Ask your teacher here if you have doubts. A lot of things.... same move, but some subtle points made them look totally different.
I've tried to convey such points during my intermediate classes and some of the students who have been consistently attending them to repeat the class are starting to grasp them :)
Tuesday 27 October 2009
Dance Floor Etiquette
There are lots and lots of things to say here,... I don't think I can cover all in one post, but... will try to put in as much as I can in as little words as I can :)
1) Grooming - Fresh breath (mints), Fresh smell (perfume, deodourants, etc.), fresh clothes (versus wet with sweat) definitely helps A LOT. Towels and fans (those chinese/japanese types) are very useful
2) Hoarding - Don't keep dancing with ONE partner. Or keep asking the same person to dance. It's a very common problem with beginner guys..... they tend to stick to one girl if she was nice enough to help him practice, etc. Salsa scene convention is... usually at most 2 dance before they go look for new partners :)
3) Rejection - If for some reason u need to reject an invitation (using whatever excuse, e.g. tired, don't like the song, etc.), do your best NOT to accept another one during the same song. Otherwise it would look really rude and bad on the guy who was rejected. Just wait for the next song.
4) Space control - Find your own line/space. Do NOT invade other people's space. I know it's difficult for beginner to control space usage, but TRY your best. If the floor is too crowded, ... WAIT for the next song and grab your space quickly. There are idiots out there who won't respect your space. If you meet such people, please do not use your girl as a mine sweeping tool. Take care of her, and use your back to guard your space.
Err, there's lots more... I'll add when I remember :P
1) Grooming - Fresh breath (mints), Fresh smell (perfume, deodourants, etc.), fresh clothes (versus wet with sweat) definitely helps A LOT. Towels and fans (those chinese/japanese types) are very useful
2) Hoarding - Don't keep dancing with ONE partner. Or keep asking the same person to dance. It's a very common problem with beginner guys..... they tend to stick to one girl if she was nice enough to help him practice, etc. Salsa scene convention is... usually at most 2 dance before they go look for new partners :)
3) Rejection - If for some reason u need to reject an invitation (using whatever excuse, e.g. tired, don't like the song, etc.), do your best NOT to accept another one during the same song. Otherwise it would look really rude and bad on the guy who was rejected. Just wait for the next song.
4) Space control - Find your own line/space. Do NOT invade other people's space. I know it's difficult for beginner to control space usage, but TRY your best. If the floor is too crowded, ... WAIT for the next song and grab your space quickly. There are idiots out there who won't respect your space. If you meet such people, please do not use your girl as a mine sweeping tool. Take care of her, and use your back to guard your space.
Err, there's lots more... I'll add when I remember :P
Never blame the other party
A lousy dancer will often blame the other side when things go 'wrong' (or didn't go the way he wanted).
It's a common problem. It's easy to other people's mistake and not our own.
In my opinion, a REAL good lead, should be able to compensate for the follower's 'mistakes'.
On a social dance floor, it is NOT polite to be teaching (unless she is your student). If we try a move and it doesn't work, we should not blame the other party, or try to teach her what to do.
We should go and think... WHY didn't it work? WHAT can I do to compensate? HOW to execute it better next time?
By doing so, we'll gradually know our move so well, it can work on 'almost' any follower. Of course, this does not apply to certain advance moves which require the follower to be of a certain level. But that's another topic (ladder of moves).
So remember, what something doesn't work,
We are the lead. We have the 'initiative' and the control. It's easier for us to make changes than to depend having a good follow to dance with u every time :)
It's a common problem. It's easy to other people's mistake and not our own.
In my opinion, a REAL good lead, should be able to compensate for the follower's 'mistakes'.
On a social dance floor, it is NOT polite to be teaching (unless she is your student). If we try a move and it doesn't work, we should not blame the other party, or try to teach her what to do.
We should go and think... WHY didn't it work? WHAT can I do to compensate? HOW to execute it better next time?
By doing so, we'll gradually know our move so well, it can work on 'almost' any follower. Of course, this does not apply to certain advance moves which require the follower to be of a certain level. But that's another topic (ladder of moves).
So remember, what something doesn't work,
- do not be in too big a hurry to blame the other party.
- Evaluate the situation.
- Check if it's really beyond her level.
- Check if there is something you can do to improve it.
- Check if you're the one who failed to give the right cues on time.
- Check if there are ways to do it better such that she doesn't need to know the move and can react 'correctly' according to what u want.
We are the lead. We have the 'initiative' and the control. It's easier for us to make changes than to depend having a good follow to dance with u every time :)
Remembering the moves - Use modern technology
Many of the more hardworking beginner salsa leads will try to take notes of the moves they've learnt, only to realized a few months later that they can't really decipher what they wrote.
It's difficult to translate action into words.
With Digicams and harddisk storage being so cheap these days, it's definitely more efficient to use modern technology for such purposes.
Get a digicam, with a tripod and you can video yourselves with the new moves you've just learnt! Then you can review it anytime you want later.
Alternatively, these days we can use our phone's cameras since they are so powerful already! Then get a classmate to video you immediately after the class while knowledge is still fresh :)
One Side effect of doing this is that, u'll see how 'ugly' u look when dancing :P
If you take it positively, it should spur you to correct yourselves.
For me, I've chronicled my own progress with such videos. It's a good way to measure how far u've gone and the results of your hardwork!
It's difficult to translate action into words.
With Digicams and harddisk storage being so cheap these days, it's definitely more efficient to use modern technology for such purposes.
Get a digicam, with a tripod and you can video yourselves with the new moves you've just learnt! Then you can review it anytime you want later.
Alternatively, these days we can use our phone's cameras since they are so powerful already! Then get a classmate to video you immediately after the class while knowledge is still fresh :)
One Side effect of doing this is that, u'll see how 'ugly' u look when dancing :P
If you take it positively, it should spur you to correct yourselves.
For me, I've chronicled my own progress with such videos. It's a good way to measure how far u've gone and the results of your hardwork!
Pacing the dance - Music
It's important to learn to dance to the music.
BASIC musicality involved simple pacing of the dance.
Part which are not so intense, do simply moves... parts which are 'high', whack some awesome looking stuff.
Don't just execute one pattern after another or jam the whole dance with advance moves.
The girls will hate it.
Build up slowly, give the girls lots of room to breath and prepare.
When the appropriate time comes (according to music), throw in your big moves, then slow down again for her to rest. Give her time to shine (if she likes to shine), etc.
In this way, your followers will be able to enjoy the dance a lot more rather than straight through whacking from start to end (of coz there are exceptions who loves to be whacked :P)
BASIC musicality involved simple pacing of the dance.
Part which are not so intense, do simply moves... parts which are 'high', whack some awesome looking stuff.
Don't just execute one pattern after another or jam the whole dance with advance moves.
The girls will hate it.
Build up slowly, give the girls lots of room to breath and prepare.
When the appropriate time comes (according to music), throw in your big moves, then slow down again for her to rest. Give her time to shine (if she likes to shine), etc.
In this way, your followers will be able to enjoy the dance a lot more rather than straight through whacking from start to end (of coz there are exceptions who loves to be whacked :P)
She looks good --> you'll look good
I am by nature a rather shy person.
Thus I've developed a habit.... of focusing the 'audience' attention on my follow rather than myself.
*** If She looks good --> I'll look good too ***
Actually, it's not that simple, but you get the idea.
This mindset had a very significant impact on the way I dance and lead.
Because of this, I ended up becoming a lead that is able to compensate for the follow's mistakes, and one that can make the girls dance beyond their usual level.
Do remember, make your partner look good. While at the same time, hold your own posture and foundation (keep things clean) and you'll look nice on the dance floor.
This is definitely better than guys who fling the girls about trying to show off their patterns and result in making the dance look like a fight instead.
Thus I've developed a habit.... of focusing the 'audience' attention on my follow rather than myself.
*** If She looks good --> I'll look good too ***
Actually, it's not that simple, but you get the idea.
This mindset had a very significant impact on the way I dance and lead.
Because of this, I ended up becoming a lead that is able to compensate for the follow's mistakes, and one that can make the girls dance beyond their usual level.
Do remember, make your partner look good. While at the same time, hold your own posture and foundation (keep things clean) and you'll look nice on the dance floor.
This is definitely better than guys who fling the girls about trying to show off their patterns and result in making the dance look like a fight instead.
Ladder of Moves - Adapting to your follow
A very common symptom with beginner salsa leads... is the obsession to learn 'cool' moves (which tends to be very complicated).
This is understandable, as we'll be really fascinated by how nice it looks and want to increase our vocabulary of moves as much as possible.
What many fail to understand is, .... dance is not about complicated moves.... or one move after another.
It's about enjoying the music together with your partner.
In my opinion, one of the key motto that leads should adopt is --> "When she looks good, you'll look good too!"
There are many many factors to consider and take note of with regards to making your partner look good. Things like giving her space to style, time to catch breath, stability after spins, etc. etc.
This entry will talk about one of them -> Adapting to your follow (level of dance skill)
When I 1st dance with a girl, I will start with very simple moves to 'test' what's her level and her current physical state. (even a good follower can be tired and not be able to dance to her peak capability)
Gradually, I'll increase the 'difficulty' of those moves until I can sense that she's at her limit to follow those moves.
When I find that particular point, I'll just stay there or maybe go 'lower' a bit so that we can both enjoy the dance.
By doing this, we can avoid the situation where a the lead tries stuff and follow cant react properly. This often results in frustration and sometimes unpleasant 'accidents'.
The main objective though, is that the follow can react and dance to her best and thus making her look good.
If this is achieved, I'm quite sure u'll have new happy dance partner after that 1st dance :)
Now, to be able to do the above, leads need to develop what some of us call a "Ladder of Moves".
That would be something like this:
1) Very basic stuff - CBL, Simpel Turns, CBLT (can be used with complete beginners)
2) Intermediate stuff - Basic Copa, 2 handed Titanics, Al Pollo, etc. (can be used with novice follows)
....
....
X) Bastard moves that tricks the follow and changes her direction/momentum like crazy (dont try unless u know that follow well)
It is quite important for leads to master the earlier levels instead of skipping them and zooming to the complicated stuff.
In my opinion, the earlier moves are the important ones, it's where both lead and follow can show off their styling. In a 3 minutes dance, I'll typically use 80% of the song doing basic and intermediate moves, and only do about 3 or at most 5 complicated stuff.
So advice to leads... develop your own ladder. And make sure u can lead all the earlier steps of the ladder extremely well. Coz those will be the ones u use most.
This is understandable, as we'll be really fascinated by how nice it looks and want to increase our vocabulary of moves as much as possible.
What many fail to understand is, .... dance is not about complicated moves.... or one move after another.
It's about enjoying the music together with your partner.
In my opinion, one of the key motto that leads should adopt is --> "When she looks good, you'll look good too!"
There are many many factors to consider and take note of with regards to making your partner look good. Things like giving her space to style, time to catch breath, stability after spins, etc. etc.
This entry will talk about one of them -> Adapting to your follow (level of dance skill)
When I 1st dance with a girl, I will start with very simple moves to 'test' what's her level and her current physical state. (even a good follower can be tired and not be able to dance to her peak capability)
Gradually, I'll increase the 'difficulty' of those moves until I can sense that she's at her limit to follow those moves.
When I find that particular point, I'll just stay there or maybe go 'lower' a bit so that we can both enjoy the dance.
By doing this, we can avoid the situation where a the lead tries stuff and follow cant react properly. This often results in frustration and sometimes unpleasant 'accidents'.
The main objective though, is that the follow can react and dance to her best and thus making her look good.
If this is achieved, I'm quite sure u'll have new happy dance partner after that 1st dance :)
Now, to be able to do the above, leads need to develop what some of us call a "Ladder of Moves".
That would be something like this:
1) Very basic stuff - CBL, Simpel Turns, CBLT (can be used with complete beginners)
2) Intermediate stuff - Basic Copa, 2 handed Titanics, Al Pollo, etc. (can be used with novice follows)
....
....
X) Bastard moves that tricks the follow and changes her direction/momentum like crazy (dont try unless u know that follow well)
It is quite important for leads to master the earlier levels instead of skipping them and zooming to the complicated stuff.
In my opinion, the earlier moves are the important ones, it's where both lead and follow can show off their styling. In a 3 minutes dance, I'll typically use 80% of the song doing basic and intermediate moves, and only do about 3 or at most 5 complicated stuff.
So advice to leads... develop your own ladder. And make sure u can lead all the earlier steps of the ladder extremely well. Coz those will be the ones u use most.
Xen's System - why does it work (Basic Class!)
There was an international Salsa instructor who once said:
"Basic dancers go for intermediate class, intermediate dancers go for advance class, Advance dancer? They go back to do basic"
In Xen, we keep telling people. Go for basic class. Yes, even the advance dancers. But Why???
This is because, basic is the foundation. Only with a strong foundation can we build a powerful structure. Think of it as the piling work of a building. Once it's done and firm, the rest of the building can pop up very very quickly. Conversely, a building without proper foundation will topple in no time even if there is a small quake.
Now what's the point about repeating your basic when u already know them?
My answer is:
1) To get it into muscle memory
2) Only when it's muscle memory, can the lead focus on other things.
3) What other things? - Lead! Patterns! Styling! Environmental awareness! etc. So many things!
4) And... do be able to do it nicely, cleanly AT ALL TIMES.
As a lead, we need to do a lot.
We have to know our steps
We have to think of what pattern to use
We have to interpret the music
We have to LEAD our partners to do the patterns
We have to protect our partner (very often the dance floor can be as hostile as a battlefield)
If we still have to think of the basic steps, we will not be able to do all the other stuff!
Often my students ask me, how do I find time to think of what to do next?
I tell them my secret....... I do stuff from basic class (e.g. CBL, Simple Turn, CBLT) while thinking of the next move.
Your partner will be busy turning and styling to bother with what u are thinking. And since you are not on the spot doing nothing, people won't know that you are thinking. BUT, to be able to THINK while doing CBL, CBLT, etc. leading the girl and watching the dance floor.... u need to do be able to 'do it in your sleep'.
That is what repeating the basic class is for!!!! ---> Muscle memory
Having said all that.... there is a well known saying.. practice makes perfect. But you do not want to perfect the wrong thing! i.e. it's very important not to practice a mistake until u 'perfect it' to the extent it's impossible to correct.
This is another reason why we should attend class versus practicing on our own (some people like to do this). The instructor could help u spot problems.
Even if the instructor doesn't, there is one other key thing we need to do during class that will cater for this: --> THE MIRROR.
After doing the same old stuff so many times, we will sure get super bored. So what should we do? LOOK AT THE MIRROR!! Make sure we look good doing the same old stuff! Make sure we do it perfectly every time! Also look for mistakes, don't do it for the sake of doing.
Now the last part. In every class, we can always learn something. Especially precious are the newbies. When we see newcomers, we can learn from their mistakes by NOT making those mistakes. When we lead new girls, it's also a challenge/proof that u've learnt the move by being able to lead 1st time salsa dancers to do all the basic moves!
Lastly.... when we go social dancing, we will inevitably pick up lots of bad habits (dangling hands, lazy foot, etc.). Going back to basics is a sure way to clean up all the bad habits before they get too ingrained.
This is why,... BASIC class is so important and Xen has it EVERYDAY. It's almost 'free' if you sign up for the super saver package.... , but sadly I see people attend 2 of 3 times and STOP, thinking they already know all the moves (why waste time??? LOL). So many of them rather SIT one side watch the class rather than join the class (even when they are already entitled to the class in their package). I wish I had the time to tell them what I wrote in this article.
I told quite a few people, I've attended 100 hours of basic before I seriously plunged into inter and advance moves (during the 100 hours, I do attend inter class as well). After this 100 hours (done in about 3 months), I could step the correct foot and identify the count in the music without thinking. This allowed me to focus on all the other stuff (like learning patterns, taking care of the follower, etc.) But... more often than not, I see doubts when they hear this :) They must be thinking.... really so siao meh, do the same old shit so many times, kekeke.
Another side benefit of such a system is.... even guys like me who are quite 'challenged' when it comes to physical coordination (commonly known as 2-left-feet type) can learn how to dance! What talented people take 1 week to learn, I might take a whole month, but this environment/system allowed me to do it at very low cost and with little discrimination. Yeah for the slow learners!!!
Now, nobody belief me when I tell them I'm a slow learner, lol. Coz they never see the days when I've 1st started! Still remember during ice skating days,.... what kids took 1 week to learn, I took 3 months, sigh. Spent so much $$$ on it. Luckily for me in salsa, the cost is so much lower. What I lacked in physical talent, I made up with sheer determination, as well as properly planning. I will attempt to share as much as possible with the rest of the entries in this blog.
"Basic dancers go for intermediate class, intermediate dancers go for advance class, Advance dancer? They go back to do basic"
In Xen, we keep telling people. Go for basic class. Yes, even the advance dancers. But Why???
This is because, basic is the foundation. Only with a strong foundation can we build a powerful structure. Think of it as the piling work of a building. Once it's done and firm, the rest of the building can pop up very very quickly. Conversely, a building without proper foundation will topple in no time even if there is a small quake.
Now what's the point about repeating your basic when u already know them?
My answer is:
1) To get it into muscle memory
2) Only when it's muscle memory, can the lead focus on other things.
3) What other things? - Lead! Patterns! Styling! Environmental awareness! etc. So many things!
4) And... do be able to do it nicely, cleanly AT ALL TIMES.
As a lead, we need to do a lot.
We have to know our steps
We have to think of what pattern to use
We have to interpret the music
We have to LEAD our partners to do the patterns
We have to protect our partner (very often the dance floor can be as hostile as a battlefield)
If we still have to think of the basic steps, we will not be able to do all the other stuff!
Often my students ask me, how do I find time to think of what to do next?
I tell them my secret....... I do stuff from basic class (e.g. CBL, Simple Turn, CBLT) while thinking of the next move.
Your partner will be busy turning and styling to bother with what u are thinking. And since you are not on the spot doing nothing, people won't know that you are thinking. BUT, to be able to THINK while doing CBL, CBLT, etc. leading the girl and watching the dance floor.... u need to do be able to 'do it in your sleep'.
That is what repeating the basic class is for!!!! ---> Muscle memory
Having said all that.... there is a well known saying.. practice makes perfect. But you do not want to perfect the wrong thing! i.e. it's very important not to practice a mistake until u 'perfect it' to the extent it's impossible to correct.
This is another reason why we should attend class versus practicing on our own (some people like to do this). The instructor could help u spot problems.
Even if the instructor doesn't, there is one other key thing we need to do during class that will cater for this: --> THE MIRROR.
After doing the same old stuff so many times, we will sure get super bored. So what should we do? LOOK AT THE MIRROR!! Make sure we look good doing the same old stuff! Make sure we do it perfectly every time! Also look for mistakes, don't do it for the sake of doing.
Now the last part. In every class, we can always learn something. Especially precious are the newbies. When we see newcomers, we can learn from their mistakes by NOT making those mistakes. When we lead new girls, it's also a challenge/proof that u've learnt the move by being able to lead 1st time salsa dancers to do all the basic moves!
Lastly.... when we go social dancing, we will inevitably pick up lots of bad habits (dangling hands, lazy foot, etc.). Going back to basics is a sure way to clean up all the bad habits before they get too ingrained.
This is why,... BASIC class is so important and Xen has it EVERYDAY. It's almost 'free' if you sign up for the super saver package.... , but sadly I see people attend 2 of 3 times and STOP, thinking they already know all the moves (why waste time??? LOL). So many of them rather SIT one side watch the class rather than join the class (even when they are already entitled to the class in their package). I wish I had the time to tell them what I wrote in this article.
I told quite a few people, I've attended 100 hours of basic before I seriously plunged into inter and advance moves (during the 100 hours, I do attend inter class as well). After this 100 hours (done in about 3 months), I could step the correct foot and identify the count in the music without thinking. This allowed me to focus on all the other stuff (like learning patterns, taking care of the follower, etc.) But... more often than not, I see doubts when they hear this :) They must be thinking.... really so siao meh, do the same old shit so many times, kekeke.
Another side benefit of such a system is.... even guys like me who are quite 'challenged' when it comes to physical coordination (commonly known as 2-left-feet type) can learn how to dance! What talented people take 1 week to learn, I might take a whole month, but this environment/system allowed me to do it at very low cost and with little discrimination. Yeah for the slow learners!!!
Now, nobody belief me when I tell them I'm a slow learner, lol. Coz they never see the days when I've 1st started! Still remember during ice skating days,.... what kids took 1 week to learn, I took 3 months, sigh. Spent so much $$$ on it. Luckily for me in salsa, the cost is so much lower. What I lacked in physical talent, I made up with sheer determination, as well as properly planning. I will attempt to share as much as possible with the rest of the entries in this blog.
Introduction
Why did I start this blog?
I realized, I've been telling my students a lot of things. Useful experience, lessons that I've learnt the hard way, etc.
All those stuff were never properly recorded. I did write some articles but I guess they were lost in some obscure corner now.
Hopefully with this blog, .... those information/tips can be put to better use.
(also, please pardon by broken English / Singlish.... I prefer to be 'informal' when writing, hopefully people can still understand what I'll be writing :P)
I realized, I've been telling my students a lot of things. Useful experience, lessons that I've learnt the hard way, etc.
All those stuff were never properly recorded. I did write some articles but I guess they were lost in some obscure corner now.
Hopefully with this blog, .... those information/tips can be put to better use.
(also, please pardon by broken English / Singlish.... I prefer to be 'informal' when writing, hopefully people can still understand what I'll be writing :P)
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