Coaching and Lindy Hop: Learning is fun!

I am currently taking Lindy Hop classes in Tokyo. Lindy Hop is danced to Swing Music and is extremely fun and cool and I have taken lessons on and off in different locations: Germany, Spain, Uruguay and now with Yamada-sensei in Japan. The differences in teaching and learning are very interesting to me as a coach educator.

Some lessons are very relaxed, the teacher demonstrates a dance move, the students try to copy it (more or less successfully), there is a lot of music and laughter. The whole process is enjoyable and helps students want to learn more. There is very little criticism or feedback for individual students, just some general remarks. The results are so-so. Some students pick up the dance very quickly and start looking good instantly – others not so much.

Other lessons are much “stricter”. The teacher explains the moves and what to pay attention to, for example how to keep your middle line straight. They watch you move, stop you when you are making a mistake, give you detailed feedback and practice the move until you have got it.

In English, we say: “The devil is in the details” – in Japanese it is “神は細部に宿る” “God is in the details” and as much as these sayings mean the same thing, there is a palpable difference 😊. Both learning approaches have their advantages and disadvantages. In the “relaxed” mode, you are having fun and stay motivated. If you only want to participate in a few “Hops”, you will learn everything you need to know. In the “strict” mode, you can develop true mastery and feel proud of what you are doing.

If you want to learn how to coach, I suggest moving from the relaxed learning mode to the stricter learning mode and back. Especially at the beginning, trust your natural abilities to move in conversations. Don’t overcomplicate your life by focusing on theory or learning by heart questions. The Solution Focused Model is perfect for having a few guideposts and then just getting on with it while having fun and being useful to clients.

As you are progressing, you will want to move to the “stricter” form of learning: record your sessions, work with a mentor, think about your coaching moves and the impact they had with your client. Develop alternative responses and enlarge your repertoire. This way of learning is not as “fun” as the relaxed mode but can be very rewarding.

The main thing here is to switch gears when you are hitting the “dance floor”, i.e. starting to coach a client. At that moment, your preparation stops, and you are just present to your partner, to the music, to your client. You start having fun while you are coaching or dancing.

If you want to dance and coach together, why not join one of our free coaching meetups and exchanges?

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