Laurie English

An inspiration for all of us:

Sydnie Christmas blows Judges away singing 'My Way' | Semi-Finals | BGT 2024 She hit all the right notes.Sydnie Christmas is back delivering another exceptional performance, this time covering the Frank Sinatra classic, 'My Way'.See m...

The connection between learning and remembering intrigues me. Finally solving this puzzle feels pretty darn good!

Just signed up for a year’s Masterclass membership. So excited to hear from passionate experts!

“But a superior architect may prove a poor carpenter...”

As soon as I read this quote by Dwight Swain (in his writing book), I imagined the Lead-Follow dynamic. This quote goes both ways in fact... a superior carpenter may prove to be a poor architect.

Sometimes the terms Lead and Follow seem too gender-based. This quote helps to re-envision these roles in terms of functions — Planner and Executor.

An “Executor” names the considerable skillset that’s required in the role of Follow more so than the passivity or lesser importance that is sometimes assumed/attributed to someone following in the dance partnership.

Which also explains why knowing how to lead does not translate into knowing how to follow AND, vice versa, knowing how to follow does not automatically enable you to lead.

I’ve found though that an unimaginable sense of wholeness is realized by learning both skills sets— those of the architect AND those the carpenter.

One of the biggest things I’ve taught myself this past year:

Don’t take on something new until you can handle what you’ve got.

I was guilty of overloading myself until I sat down and took a hard look at my own results and what I could see from others using this approach. My conclusion: this is a poor use of my time, money and energy.

I’ve since switched to quality over quantity and it’s made the world of difference for me. No more unlimited classes, hour upon hour of workshops and such.

The other side effect is that I don’t try level-jump. The basics of a dance are foundational for a reason. I’ve found that learning intermediate moves as a beginner is counterproductive to an easy and smooth mastery trajectory.

By doing these two things, focusing on smaller reproducible gains at my current level, I’ve noticed stronger more solid skill growth.

if you experience judgment, stress, and overwhelm when learning dances, perhaps my approach might help...

Sitting at the conference table at my youngest’s school, every single one of his teachers had left their classes and come to give testimony. I had attended just such a meeting a few years back for my older son too but this one touched me deeply. I could feel myself willing the tears to stay pooled behind my eyes.

These meetings take place to induct kids that score in the top 2% nationally into a special program.

For years now, I’ve been developing a system of accelerated learning and using my sons and myself as guinea pigs to find the antidote to what I suffered through as one of those “gifted” children myself.

When people/academics/schools think you’re “smart” or “naturally talented” the pressure and expectations skyrocket without any tethering to the foundational skills that matter. For me, these skills (study skills or how-your-mind-really-works skills) were not taught at my schools, neither public nor private nor Ivy League. Still today, I find that they are not being taught in my children’s schools either. Even my mother, a teacher, couldn’t help me when I struggled to keep up with the academic demands that were placed on me when I was 10 years old being shipped to a high school for advanced courses and then, yet again, my first year at Yale. I got by — the hard way.

I don’t recommend it.

I swore to myself that my kids would not hit those same walls that I was thrown into by those well-meaning teachers in a system stacked the wrong way against true mind-proven learning.

I now know, without question, that we are not taught how to use our minds the way they were designed to be used. It doesn’t take sleepless nights cramming for tests or the hours of pointless studying that are recommended by most. It also doesn’t require anxiety, or for some, shame, guilt and depression.

When the mind is used properly, it’s brilliance is breathtaking and powerful.

And so, that’s what shook my core as I heard teacher after teacher after teacher speak of my son’s love of learning, his absolute joy and curiosity for discovery... And to know that my kids are excelling with an unheard of ease makes my heart sing.

Now that my method/system is finally complete, I’m contemplating how I can help others who want to learn. I just started helping businesses using my system, but to know that kids are out there suffering needlessly...

We’ll see how this unfolds.

So interesting to read about this phenomenon that we see in dance described in another sport: “But most skiers remain intermediate forever.”

The author’s explanation for why —

1. “...they often don’t know where to go or what to do next...”
2. “But an equally important reason for this stagnation is that many skiers reach the intermediate plateau by a series of shortcuts.”
3. “But they totally neglect the development of a number of key skills that would have allowed such skiers to keep on progressing.”

This author’s insights/book helped me go from absolutely zero ski experience to black diamond skiing in 6 weeks in 2017.

2019 was such a phenomenal and fantastic year personally. I’m beyond excited for the magic of 2020 to unfurl itself.

Here’s to an amazing and powerful New Year!

https://thebestbrainpossible.com/dance-exercise-brain-mental-health/?utm_campaign=shareaholic&utm_medium=facebook&utm_source=socialnetwork

How Dancing Gives Your Brain and Mood a Big Boost - The Best Brain Possible Dancing, of any kind, combines physical exercise with the positive power of music and social engagement to yield major mental health and brain benefits.

The dancers I know love, love, love the Waltz. I’ve been avoiding it... until last week when I finally gave in.

Now, the analysis-with-drills time begins for me. I like to do this on my own because I can discover the natural connections in my own body in hours instead of in the years it would take in a class (if at all). Even after a few hours of study I’m super impressed with how the Waltz-form changes the body structure.

Kudos to leads with ultra-light frames and command of their cores. It’s like a deluxe package skill combo. I experienced it last night during a 2-step dance of all things.

Can’t stop revisiting what seems like one extended moment of time. As a follow, I felt like a bird, wings extended, soaring on thermals.

To focus on the inner work necessary to pull that off — what a gift.

This idea popped into my head. How learning our part in a social dance asks for self-awareness — the what, when, and how of what we do.

How dancing with another asks for binary-awareness — it includes the “with who.”

And then, spotlighting the most important player, the music, asks for meta-awareness — dancing for the why of what we do.

When we interweave ourselves, our partner, and the music — whole-awareness appears, and with it, the power to stretch time, merge minds, and experience all sorts of other wonderful magic.

Just a thought....