Ending on the Beat

It’s sort of odd to have an epiphany while watching television. It’s downright embarrassing to have an epiphany watch “Dancing with the Stars,” but that’s what happened to me tonight.

It’s really quite simple: the trick is to end on the beat.

Here’s what happened: the couples practiced a dance but got their actual music 45 minutes before the time they had to perform their dance. Somehow, each couple pretty much got up there and nailed their dance. There were two things that struck me most about how the evening ended up.

First, the amateurs were forced to let go of their regular attachment to a specific song and allow their dancing instincts to take over. They had to let the steps the had learned flex and fit into the music being played. It was pretty cool to watch “flow” at work: bring present in the moment allowed the dancers to sublime into the rhythm of the music.

Second, every dance ended on the beat. True, some performances were better than others and some endings tighter on the last beat, but the overall effect was the same. Regardless of skill set, the dancers, pros and amateurs alike, did what they had to do in order ton hit their mark and finish on time. It was impressive.

So, the epiphany: we almost always know our steps but our lack of confidence can keep us from realizing and fulfilling our potential. We know the steps. We can adjust to the music and hut our marks. We can flow with the rhythm and match our footwork to the tempo. And, most importantly, we can be flexible, adjusting our dance to end on the last note.

I think the measure that has the most meaning is ending on the beat.