Salsa: Why are students afraid to approach their instructors for a dance?

Naturally this occurs especially in students of a beginner's level. There can be many reasons as to why students are afraid to approach their instructors for a dance and these can be mainly attributed to be psychological in nature. Evidently many students belonging to this category in discussion have limited moves, patterns and skills sufficient to complete a song, much less impress upon their partners. Hence the vulnerability of appearing as a ‘bad’ and/or ‘boring’ dancer may be branded on them, which may have a lasting stigma on their careful journey of becoming a proficient Salsa dancer. This is also particularly apparent for beginning Male and/or Leader students who have to initiate turn patterns for the dance. The lack of experience and skills are a major hurdle to even initiate a dance with anybody to say the least. Albeit the advantages of receiving CONSTRUCTIVE suggestions and pointers after dancing with an experienced instructor, the possibility of being harshly criticised, being ‘marked’ and/or stigmatised by ending the dance after a single bar of the song will always be a fleeting thought amidst the minds of many beginner dancers. Finally, the reserved culture we grew up in proves to be a significant impediment to approaching someone for a dance. To initiate a dance with an instructor is like going out on a blind date wearing nothing but your underwear – you feel utterly naked. To be in physical contact with a beautiful and ‘hot’ instructor is like you’re looking to kill yourself quickly in her good books and on the salsa scene. You just wouldn’t want to diminish your chances……not too quickly at least. Fact is there are many more psychological factors that affect the students’ initiation of approaching their instructors for a dance, but it is really this culmination of factors that intensifies their fears of ‘losing face’ and ‘looking stupid’.

Overcoming these fears requires a great deal of bravado, exposure, an understanding to these fears, and best of all a close support group of fellow dancers urging each other on. To be well exposed to the salsa scene will allow students to prepare themselves as to what to expect when initiating dances (mainly rejection), as well as to familiarise oneself to the environment so as to develop a certain amount of comfort level required to jump that first hurdle. To be able to understand the fears that restricts their unwillingness to approach instructors for a dance will do well to allow students to logically rationalize that their fears are gratuitous and will stymie their growth of becoming a proficient dancer. Having a close support group of fellow students attending dance outings together can be remarkably invaluable to the learning experience of many. By lending support and sharing experiences, students can build up their courage of initiating a dance in a quicker and more pleasant way.
And then again you may also use this group in a more ingenious manner of having the loser of a bet to dance with the instructor. Whatever works right?
Finally, if all of the above suggestions fail, having two glasses of wine (or whatever is your poison) within a short period of time will certainly aid in the process of loosening up and acquiring gusto.

Having being led out of the dance floor in less than one bar of Salsa music, I guess I speak for many in terms of why students are afraid to approach instructors to dance. Still I must put up a disclaimer that these are all my personal opinion and may or may not reflect entirely to everyone.