Why I Don't Teach

Photo by Santa Joe.

 

Maybe about once a month or so, I come across someone who thinks I should be teaching belly dance. I always smile and say something like "Oh, maybe some day, but not right now" which you think would be enough, but sometimes they come back with "Oh, why not?" or "You really should" or "I think you'd be great." So let me spell out a few reasons why I, and probably a lot of other dancers like me, do not teach yet.

 

1. Let's just get this out of the way. I am not as good of a dancer as you think I am! No, I'm not being excessively humble or tearing myself down. I think I am a good dancer, but I'm not yet a great dancer. More importantly, when you see me perform, you see the best of me. I only break out the moves that I am good at, the props that I am proficient with, the sort of music I'm comfortable with. You don't see all the elements of a well-rounded dance knowledge that I am still struggling with.

 

2. I am not even dancing professionally yet. This isn't to say that I think a teacher has to also be a professional performer. Maybe a teacher might have another job or family commitments that makes it hard for her to be out performing at night. But I think a teacher should be good enough that she (or he) could be performing professionally.

 

3. Knowing how to dance is not the same as knowing how to teach dance. I know how something works and feels in my body -- that doesn't mean that I know how it works and feels in your body. Or what might be making it not work in your body. Or how you can safely do that move if you have a knee injury. Before I teach belly dance, I want to make sure to get some formal training in anatomy and physiology, because I would hate to cause an injury to a student due to a lack of knowledge of body mechanics.

 

4. Tucson doesn't need yet another teacher offering beginning belly dance classes, and currently, that's all I'd be able to teach. There are other, more experienced, more qualified teachers already offering classes in my city, why would I compete with them?

 

5. Hanging your shingle as a teacher before you're ready can be really damaging to your reputation as a dancer. I don't want to overstep my bounds of where I am as a dancer and burn bridges with people who I might want to work with in the future. I'm in dance for the long haul and I want to foster good, healthy relationships rather than trying to shove myself into the void left by my own teacher moving away and making a quick buck or two before people realize that I'm in over my head.

 

So yes, I do appreciate the vote of confidence and I'm glad that I put forth an image of being professional, skilled, and knowledgeable but no, I am not ready to teach. Yet. Talk to me again in a couple more years! 

What lies ahead?

I couldn't resist posting this silly image! After spending my teenage and early 20 years being relatively skinny, I have really embraced the curves that I developed in adulthood. I don't look quite as good as this vintage lady, though!

So here we are in 2013! To say that I'm excited is an understatement. I mean, after all, this is the year when I finally go to TRIBAL FEST and if all goes well, I'll also pop up to Vegas for a quick visit to the Intensive in September. I'm so happy to finally be able to travel to some of the larger belly dance events, and happy at the thought of all the long-distance friends I'll get to see, new-to-me teachers I'll study with, and oh yes, the shopping! I'm already saving up.

After spending the end of 2012 laying the groundwork for being a semi-professional soloist (setting up a website, ordering business cards, investing in some nicer costumes), I am ready to start seeking a few paying gigs here and there.

This is also the year when I will finally sit down with my sewing machine and learn what is what, and start sewing some costumes! I am already signed up for a costuming workshop with Dusty Paik of Snake Church. It was one of my must-haves for Tribal Fest. If my initial forays into costume construction go well, I may even look into taking some college classes on fashion design and garment construction. We'll see.

I'm really looking forward to classes and troupe practice starting back up at the new studio. It sounds like we'll be getting some new troupe members, and we're working on a new choreography, and there are so many gigs coming up in January alone... I LOVE being part of Fire & Gold Bellydance! We're always working on something awesome.

I feel like 2013 is going to be the best year yet for me as a dancer, which is saying something because 2012 was pretty amazing, too. I've made so many new dance friends, progressed so much in my skills, and had some wonderful performance opportunities. 2012 gave me so much to work with to make the future even brighter.

(This was going to be a post about goals for the new year, but then I got hyper on tea and glurged, so I guess tomorrow will be goals. Happy New Year!)