From the Feet Up

I started ballroom dancing a few months ago and have really been enjoying it. And I have started to find that the more I enjoy my life outside of work, the more I can enjoy my life inside of work as well. But it has also taught me quite a few other lessons as well.

When you watch an amazing ballroom dancer, the typical watcher would look at their face, the way they move together, their lines and the pretty dresses. One thing that they typically would not pay attention to is their feet. But what’s funny is the more I dance, the more I work on my feet.

I have spent hours trying to perfect not only where and when I place my foot but exactly how it is placed. Even as a professional, that is where dancers spend a lot of their time in practice, even though it is one of the least noticed parts of their dancing. Why?

Because it doesn’t matter how pretty the line is or how nice the dress is if the dancer doesn’t have their basics down, they are not going to look right; they are not going to move right; and they are not going to be the best dancers.

Business is this way too. Becoming an expert at work is not usually about what others see. It is more about what they don’t see. For top people in business, much more time is spent behind the scenes on the basics than in full view of everyone. Maybe this is why not everyone is at the top of his or her game.

I know that sometimes it is difficult for me to focus on where my feet go and how I place them when all I want is for someone to see the pretty lines. The behind the scenes part of becoming an expert is what goes unnoticed.

Do you have the will to put in the work to get your feet right? Even though it is likely that no one but you will ever know the work you put in to get there?