The Wandering Monkey

On Wednesday I moved my stuff into the new apartment.  It is very nice, centrally located.  I feel better already.  There is no garbage on the street, and there is even a security guard at the gate and front door.  Not that I ever felt any need for security when I was living in my last place.  I'll say this for China, you don't feel at all uncomfortable walking around even at night in pretty much any part of the city.

Today we did a dance show for a corporate group, Nokia, coming from Singapore and other cities.  Unfortunately, the main guys, CEO and CFO, did not attend, though they were scheduled to do so.  The group we had was really great.  They were all very enthusiastic and learned very fast.  We gave them a little demonstration then had a big group lesson, about 30 people.  Many were from Nokia, many were from the media.

I still have to handle a couple of small hassles regarding the move out of the old place.  My old roommate left a good amount of stuff there.  Clothes, books, even some shoes.  To get the security deposit and leave things on good terms, I'm going there tonight (my last technical day of rent) and cleaning out the place.  Also the sink drain is plugged up and the batteries on all of the remote controls have run out of power.  It's just a small thing but I think it's a good idea to do everything I can think of.

 

In the swing dancing effort in general, I know I have been very conflicted and sometimes frustrated in my dealing with her, but I have learned some valuable lessons from my experiences so far.  In general, I have found the following to apply to me and my interactions:

1. Get to know people early.

When you meet a person, try hard to understand where they are coming from.  Take a look at their experiences, their social and economic status, and most of all their personality.  Especially try to figure out what their personality flaws, quirks, or other things which I would consider difficult to handle.  Find out where their boundaries are, and don't press them.  Accept them the way they are.  Go to them for advice and council only for those specific topics which they have knowledge and experience.  Find out where your philosophies do not agree, and avoid those points.  And avoid a person in general if you think the interraction will be unfavorable.

2. You can't do it alone.

This is one of my own character flaws.  I tend to want control over things which I am doing.  This can be good sometimes, but it also will limit you to working alone very often.  Everyone else will have different ideas.  It can be hard to listen to conflicting ideas. Especially so when the person has an arguing style which get under your skin.  But in order to be a part of something larger than yourself, you have to get over yourself. 

3. Organize.

Maybe the biggest problem I have had in student retention is that the classes have not followed an organized pattern.  But this has been a logistical challenge that anyone would have faced in my shoes.  Different people show up each time, and people show up inconsistently.  I never want to lose a new student, but in the effort for doing this some of our more experienced students have gotten frustrated and dropped out.

4. Keep your own private life.

Don't get too closesly involved with the people you have in your classes.  It's OK of course to get to know them and confide in certain people.  But always keep an outside circle of friends who do not overlap into the 'work' world.  You'll need it from time to time when you want a break.

5. Keep stable.

Don't get too excited or too upset about things which happen.  Granted, this does take away some of the joy of the effort.  But things will, can, and always do go wrong.  It's more imporant to keep a steady, stable effort than to have fantasticly shining moments.

6. Adapt to the culture.

Originally we tried to teach partner dancing.  This went alright, but the Chinese in general have a more difficult time with improvisation and self-expression in dancing.  I've found that the eight-count dance, Charleston, was much more easily learned than the 'simpler' six-count East Coast Swing.  The Charleston has a specific step on each of the eight counts and the rhytmn is steady.  It can be danced and practiced without a partner, while East Coast Swing cannot.  In addition to Charleston, the line dances have proven to be very successful.  It's just easier to jump into the unknown style when you have to just rely upon your own steps and not also learn how to dance with someone else.

7. You are flawed, too.

Just as you must accept the flaws in other people, you must realize you have a few glaring ones of your own.  Sometimes you don't even realize them.  Pay attention to other people's reactions.  If it is not good and they don't confront you on it, try to learn from it and modify yourself.  Most people don't tell you if you have a personality flaw.  With good reason.

8. Have a long-term plan.

In the beginning it was not possible to know what would happen.  I was spending most of my time just figuring out what was going on around me.  But I have developed an immediate goal -- getting 50 people who come more or less regularly.  And I've set a six-month period for getting that to happen.  Since I did that, whenever things have gone wrong (venues cancelling us, for instance), I have just thought about the long-term plan and realized that it still can be achieved.

And last...

9.  Accept that you may fail.

I know a lot of people would not agree with this philosophy.  But for me I'm too analytical and self-critical.  The worrying about failing was causing problems.  It was giving me too much stress, and when I am stressed and upset I really can't motivate people to have fun dancing, you know!

 

That's about it for now.  I've got a few things to handle tonight.  More later, hopefully written from my new apartment (which has an ADSL connection!)

 

Peace,

-J