{"id":134,"date":"2026-09-01T18:16:38","date_gmt":"2026-09-01T18:16:38","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/mysticdance.com\/dlt\/?p=134"},"modified":"2026-09-08T03:01:59","modified_gmt":"2026-09-08T03:01:59","slug":"dance-leading-checklist","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/mysticdance.com\/dlt\/dance-leading-checklist\/","title":{"rendered":"Dance Leading Checklist"},"content":{"rendered":"<body>\n<div class=\"wp-block-file\"><a id=\"wp-block-file--media-7a860703-efa0-44ad-b67a-d8772449e1ae\" href=\"https:\/\/mysticdance.com\/dlt\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/09\/Dance-Leading-Check-List.docx\">Dance Leading Check List<\/a><a href=\"https:\/\/mysticdance.com\/dlt\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/09\/Dance-Leading-Check-List.docx\" class=\"wp-block-file__button wp-element-button\" download aria-describedby=\"wp-block-file--media-7a860703-efa0-44ad-b67a-d8772449e1ae\">Download<\/a><\/div>\n\n\n\n<figure class=\"wp-block-embed is-type-video is-provider-youtube wp-block-embed-youtube wp-embed-aspect-16-9 wp-has-aspect-ratio\"><div class=\"wp-block-embed__wrapper\">\n<iframe loading=\"lazy\" title=\"Dance Leading Checklist\" width=\"500\" height=\"281\" src=\"https:\/\/www.youtube.com\/embed\/Hk2zYJUheVU?feature=oembed\" frameborder=\"0\" allow=\"accelerometer; autoplay; clipboard-write; encrypted-media; gyroscope; picture-in-picture; web-share\" referrerpolicy=\"strict-origin-when-cross-origin\" allowfullscreen><\/iframe>\n<\/div><\/figure>\n\n\n\n<h1 class=\"wp-block-heading\">Dance Leading Check List<\/h1>\n\n\n\n<ol class=\"wp-block-list\">\n<li><strong>Why:<\/strong> Self Reflection<ol><li>Always keep your purpose in mind and look deeply to understand your motives.<\/li><\/ol><ol><li>Why do you want to lead? Are you committed to the work?<\/li><\/ol>\n<ol class=\"wp-block-list\">\n<li>Why do you pick particular chants? Is it about you, or is it about what will fit the session and the group.<\/li>\n<\/ol>\n<\/li>\n\n\n\n<li><strong>What:<\/strong> Your list of Dances<ol><li><strong>Words<\/strong>: Do you know the words correctly?<\/li><\/ol><ol><li><strong>Attunement<\/strong>: Have you explored the meanings\/intention\/goal of that particular version of the chant?<\/li><\/ol><ol><li><strong>Rhythm<\/strong>: What is the rhythm?? What key?<ol><li>Make sure the key is not too high or too low \u2013 A good guideline is to go no lower than G below middle C, and no higher than A.<\/li><\/ol><ol><li>Can you sing it comfortably? Will the high voices strain to reach high notes? Will the low voices bottom out? Will anyone be jumping octaves as they sing? If you\u2019re not sure, check this out with musicians or trusted singing friends before deciding on a key.<\/li><\/ol><\/li><\/ol><ol><li><strong>Musicianship<\/strong>: Are you playing a musical instrument? Have you practiced? It\u2019s good to practice playing your instrument singing and dancing the movements, and calling changes to the circle, all at the same time.<\/li><\/ol>\n<ol class=\"wp-block-list\">\n<li><strong>Musicians<\/strong>: If you have musicians, do you have supporting materials so they can best help you? This could be the printout of the DUP writeup. If you know the chords are you ready to communicate that with your musicians?<\/li>\n<\/ol>\n<\/li>\n\n\n\n<li><strong>Where:\u00a0<\/strong> The circle and the team<ol><li><strong>Local Circle:<\/strong> This is typically, one session, evening or weekends. Often on a regular date (like first Thursday).<\/li><\/ol><ol><li><strong>Your Own Retreat:<\/strong> If you are putting on your own retreat you have lots of work to do! I won\u2019t even start.<\/li><\/ol><ol><li><strong>Staff at Retreat:<\/strong> If you are staff at a retreat, you will have specific responsibilities. You\u2019ll know your role. Be prepared.<\/li><\/ol><ol><li><strong>Attending a Retreat:<\/strong> If you are attending someone else\u2019s retreat and hoping to lead it\u2019s a totally different matter. Be very prepared if you get a chance to lead.<ol><li><strong>Pro tip:<\/strong> Choose something simple and bulletproof that will fit in the overall session, rather than pulling out your favorite complicated dance.<\/li><\/ol><\/li><\/ol><ol><li><strong>Solo:<\/strong> If you are the only leader in a local circle, you will be in charge of all details. The more prepared you are, the easier it will be to grow your circle.<\/li><\/ol><ol><li><strong>Team:<\/strong> If you are working with a dance team you\u2019ll need to plan when to meet, and how you\u2019ll coordinate the dance session. Here are typical structures.<ol><li><strong>Dance Pole:<\/strong> Sometimes one leader is chosen to be the pole. They hold the container of the dance, set the order, usually start and stop the session (i.e. open the container for the session and close it.)<\/li><\/ol><ol><li><strong>Dance card:<\/strong> A dance can be planned with specificdances and their order decided beforehand.<\/li><\/ol><ol><li><strong>Leader Order:<\/strong> More experienced leaders can simply assign each leader a spot, and dances chosen on the fly.<\/li><\/ol><ol><li><strong>Just wing it:<\/strong> This can sometimes work with an experienced team (or if for some reason there was no time to plan). It can also lead to dead space while everyone chats about what to do next.<\/li><\/ol><\/li><\/ol><ol><li><strong>Time:<\/strong> How much time do you have? Ballpark calculation is that each dance takes 15 minutes. So, a 2-hour session could have 8 dances.<\/li><\/ol>\n<ol class=\"wp-block-list\">\n<li><strong>Logistics<\/strong>: Also important is the planning and coordinating: who rents the building, who sends out emails or advertisements, who has the key to unlock the building, who puts up the tent? How do people get fed and who cleans up.<\/li>\n<\/ol>\n<\/li>\n\n\n\n<li><strong>Leading the Dance<\/strong><ol><li><strong>Sing first:<\/strong> ALWAYS sing the chant first. This captures the dancer\u2019s attention and lets everyone know what\u2019s coming. It also brings the chant\/melody into the space as a vibrational container for everything you subsequently say\/teach AND it grounds and centers you, as the leader, in the energy of that chant.<\/li><\/ol><ol><li><strong>Really I mean it\u2026<\/strong> <strong>\u00a0<\/strong>Sing the chant first.<\/li><\/ol><ol><li><strong>Connect:<\/strong> Connect with the people around you, the dancers and the musicians. If the heart connection comes first, then it\u2019s easier to teach the song.<\/li><\/ol><ol><li><strong>Teach the Words:<\/strong> And get everyone singing. Help everyone get the pronunciations and meanings.<ol><li>This can be done by calling the next line [LOUDLY] as people sing along, or if there is not space in the melody to do that, you can stop and teach it. Ask, \u201cDoes anyone need to go over it again?\u201d or \u201cAre we good?\u201d before moving on. Don\u2019t skimp here; take enough time that most of the people get it \u2013 but if the words are simple (\u201cAmen alleluia\u201d or \u201cAllah\u201d) don\u2019t belabor it.<\/li><\/ol><ol><li><strong>Chattering:<\/strong> Pay attention to the sort of thing that makes people start chattering. If the words seem complicated you can say something like, \u201cDon\u2019t worry, the movements will help you learn the words.\u201d<\/li><\/ol><\/li><\/ol><ol><li><strong>Teach the Movements:<\/strong> It\u2019s very helpful to have planned this out beforehand. Trying to wing it can be uncomfortable for everyone.<\/li><\/ol><ol><li><strong>The Attunement:<\/strong> You may have given an attunement while teaching the words. But it might be good to give an extra attunement before starting the dance. (Did I mention that you shoulda started by singing the song, which means you didn\u2019t start with the attunement?)<ol><li><strong>PLEASE!!!<\/strong> Think all the details of your attunement beforehand and then <em>shorten, shorten, shorten,<\/em> until you can be interesting and brief.<\/li><\/ol><\/li><\/ol><ol><li><strong>The Dance:<\/strong> Start the dance watching carefully for confusion.<ol><li>CALL the directions the first few times, if need be.<\/li><\/ol><ol><li>It\u2019s perfectly okay to stop the dance and start over if you need to.But unless the Dance immediately falls apart (people just standing there looking confused, or partners getting lost, or the circle trying to go in three directions at once), give it a couple of rounds to see if it falls into place.<\/li><\/ol><ol><li>Trust your dancers. They will help each other.<\/li><\/ol><\/li><\/ol><ol><li><strong>Dynamics:<\/strong> Changing voices, volume and tempo are good ways to keep the dance interesting.<\/li><\/ol><ol><li><strong>Changes:<\/strong> It\u2019s critical to call for changes <em>before<\/em> the end of the phrase. Listen carefully to the song as everyone is singing. Where is the space where you can be heard?<ol><li>If you wait too long people will already be singing the next phrase before they can respond to your change.<\/li><\/ol><\/li><\/ol><ol><li><strong>High\/Low:<\/strong> Calling for high and low voices really changes the dynamics, it also gives the people not singing a chance to listen and rest.<ol><li><strong>Call your bit first:<\/strong> If youare a \u2018high-voice\u2019 call for high voices first. If you are a \u2018low-voice\u2019, call for the low voices first. This is so the dancers can feel comfortable singing along with you. It puts people on the spot to suddenly be singing by themselves if they don\u2019t know the words.<\/li><\/ol><ol><li><strong>Low Voices:<\/strong> The dances are usually predominately high voices. If you only have one or two low-voices in the circle it\u2019s most kind to not put the poor guys on the spot. In that case, don\u2019t call for voices.<\/li><\/ol><ol><li><strong>Don\u2019t overdo it:<\/strong> Please don\u2019t make it overly complicated by switching the voices over and over, unless that really adds to the dance.<\/li><\/ol><ol><li>If you call for voices it\u2019s usually good to bring back everyone before you call \u201con the breath\u201d so that the full tone of the music reverberates in the silence.<\/li><\/ol><ol><li>Try to vary the dynamics throughout a full session. Don\u2019t always go: high voices, low voices, everyone, on the breath.<\/li><\/ol><\/li><\/ol><ol><li><strong>Energy:<\/strong> The best way to change the energy during a dance is to either embody it or follow it. Sometimes things will go quiet on their own, sometimes it will go exuberant on its own.<ol><li><strong>Energy:<\/strong> It\u2019s best not to say things like, \u201cWith more feeling.\u201d Or \u201cWith more love.\u201dFollow the feelings and it will get there. It\u2019s best not to, name an energy, push it or fight it; let the circle\u2019s wisdom decide. One exception might be if you KNOW a Dance is supposed to be quiet and introspective and the party-animals in the circle want to rev it up.<\/li><\/ol><ol><li><strong>Faster\/Slower:<\/strong> On the other hand, it\u2019s perfectly legitimate to say Faster or Slower, as that is a very efficient way to change tempo. Sometimes you can embody tempo, sometimes you can use your words. Look at your musicians as you lead\u2026 hopefully they are looking at you!<\/li><\/ol><ol><li><strong>Disasters:<\/strong> Sometimes partners get hopelessly lost in a dance.It\u2019s okay to stop the dance, re-partner and start again. Often it\u2019s good to give the people in the circle enough time to work it out. It can actually be fun.<\/li><\/ol><\/li><\/ol><ol><li><strong>Ending Options:<\/strong><ol><li><strong>Say it:<\/strong> You can call out, \u201cLast time.\u201d<\/li><\/ol><ol><li><strong>Slow down:<\/strong> just slow down as you get near the end.<\/li><\/ol><ol><li><strong>Bring people in close before the end:<\/strong> Sometimes is nice to sing the song again in close where everyone can hear.<\/li><\/ol><ol><li><strong>Sudden stop:<\/strong> A sudden stop is tricky\u2026 make sure all your musicians are watching you. And believe it or not, at this point most of the circle is watching you too, so give a clear cue, and it might really work well.<\/li><\/ol><\/li><\/ol>\n<ol class=\"wp-block-list\">\n<li><strong>Closing:<\/strong><ol><li><strong>Silence:<\/strong> Very often a silence at the end of a dance brings the dance deeper.Hold the silence as long as feels comfortable to you. A count of one-two-three-DONE is probably not long enough.<\/li><\/ol><ol><li><strong>Like a symphony:<\/strong> if you have a number of dances that will work together as a symphonic movement the ending silence on the first dances can be short, working up until the final dance goes deepest of all and holds a long silence.<\/li><\/ol>\n<ol class=\"wp-block-list\">\n<li><strong>Sealing phrase:<\/strong> Seal the song with the appropriate ending: Amen, Amin, etc.\n<ol class=\"wp-block-list\">\n<li>Know what the appropriate seal is before you step in to lead that Dance!<\/li>\n<\/ol>\n<\/li>\n<\/ol>\n<\/li>\n<\/ol>\n<\/li>\n<\/ol>\n\n\n\n<h2 class=\"wp-block-heading\">Transcript of Video meeting<\/h2>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">Okay. Cool. Hello, everybody.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">Sky isn\u2019t making it this time. She is at a retreat up in Canada. So, um, I started putting together this dance-leading checklist. I thought we could just go over it.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">Has everybody seen it? Let me put a link to the website where I have it. Message everybody.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">And what\u2019s funny about it, I don\u2019t know how well we\u2019re going to get through this thing, because I thought it was going to be this little tiny checklist, and then it just grew and grew and grew. And then Sky added a whole bunch of stuff to it, and more than likely we\u2019ll change it again. It doesn\u2019t seem to get any shorter as we do this.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">So why don\u2019t we just kind of go through it? Is everybody seeing it?<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\"><strong>Participant:<\/strong> Yeah, I\u2019m looking at it.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\"><strong>Zareen:<\/strong> You\u2019re looking at it. Okay. Let\u2019s go through every little section, just kind of briefly, one by one, and see what people have to add to it or change.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">So, of course, we start out with, like, why? Why are we even doing this?<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">This is kind of just a really good practice for each of us to do before we stand up and start leading. I find that it makes me less nervous when I have kind of a firm why of why I\u2019m getting up to lead a dance.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">The things I put in the list were: have your purpose in mind and always check your motives. Why do you want to lead? How committed are you to doing this? And then, why are you picking these particular chants that you\u2019re going to be doing in the dance that you\u2019re getting ready to lead?<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">Is it about you, or is it what will fit the session in the group?<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">Does anybody have anything to add to that?<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\"><strong>Participant:<\/strong> It seems elementary for where we are in the Sedona group. We\u2019re getting together all through the month and choosing the theme, choosing who\u2019s going to lead what dance. We\u2019re prepared to go into rehearsal an hour before the dance.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">And it seemed like I really related to the person who was talking before, where she said that that whole part is organized. Do you have new dance leaders coming up?<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\"><strong>Zareen:<\/strong> No.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\"><strong>Participant:<\/strong> And do you have people that just show up to lead? Like, say someone comes to your circle and they\u2019re a dance leader from somewhere else. Does that\u2014<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\"><strong>Zareen:<\/strong> Unless we\u2019ve requested them to be there.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\"><strong>Participant:<\/strong> Yeah, yeah.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\"><strong>Zareen:<\/strong> So what we\u2019re trying to really gear this for is new dance leaders, because it\u2019s dance leader training, and to help us, as more experienced dance leaders, kind of think about the needs of new leaders as well. Like, how do we bring them up, and what advice do we give them?<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\"><strong>Participant:<\/strong> Right. You know, I think that I\u2019m going to go over your written materials, and if that situation arises for us in bringing new leaders in, I can come back to this, and the recordings will be there.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">But I don\u2019t think that this is necessarily for me because I\u2019ve been\u2014I learned from a long time ago, in 1990, from Neil Douglas-Klotz in Santa Fe, and have been doing the dances for, let\u2019s say, 10, 20\u2014say 30 years or so.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">So I appreciate what you\u2019re doing very much, and I see that you\u2019re coming from an attitude of love and consideration and caring for all who are there.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\"><strong>Zareen:<\/strong> And we\u2019re really committed to bringing new dance leaders in.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\"><strong>Participant:<\/strong> Yeah.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\"><strong>Zareen:<\/strong> Are there young people?<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\"><strong>Participant:<\/strong> Oh, yeah. Oh, yeah.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\"><strong>Another participant:<\/strong> And older people, too. And there\u2019s a lot of people who are in circles that are starting to decline and diminish, who\u2019ve been a dance leader\u2014who\u2019ve been a dancer for a really long time\u2014and are stepping up into the dance-leading role.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\"><strong>Zareen:<\/strong> Yeah. So that\u2019s really that. So thanks, Kate, because that really kind of helps focus, right, the exact intention that we have for doing that.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\"><strong>Kate:<\/strong> Yeah. Thank you. And I will be the grateful recipient of all you\u2019re doing.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\"><strong>Zareen:<\/strong> Okay.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\"><strong>Kate:<\/strong> Okay. Thank you.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\"><strong>Zareen:<\/strong> I\u2019m like, God bless you. Bye.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\"><strong>Kate:<\/strong> Okay.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\"><strong>Zareen:<\/strong> Anybody else? Are we moving on?<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">Okay, number two.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\"><strong>Participant:<\/strong> What? Add to it?<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\"><strong>Zareen:<\/strong> Oh, yes. Yeah, yeah, yeah. Do you have about the why? Why are we doing this?<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\"><strong>Participant:<\/strong> I missed what you had said. Are you looking for our descriptions about that or our experience of that?<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\"><strong>Zareen:<\/strong> Yeah, and to look at my checklist here. I\u2019m hoping to turn this into something useful for people.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">So in the checklist, I just always said, always keep your purpose in mind, and really that\u2019s kind of useful for us experienced people as well, right? And then why? Why do you want to lead or learn to lead, and how committed are you to this?<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\"><strong>Participant:<\/strong> Yeah, I have it in front of me. I\u2019m asking, when you read it, are you asking us if there\u2019s anything more to add to the list, or our experience of the why?<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\"><strong>Zareen:<\/strong> Oh, I\u2019m asking\u2014I don\u2019t know what I\u2019m asking. I didn\u2019t think of it.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\"><strong>Participant:<\/strong> I think both.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\"><strong>Zareen:<\/strong> Both of those things. Yeah.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\"><strong>Participant:<\/strong> Or maybe, is this useful to having this list at all?<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\"><strong>Zareen:<\/strong> Okay.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\"><strong>Participant:<\/strong> Well, I can answer all three, if I can put short input. I think it\u2019s a great ABC question. All of them are great. And it\u2019s very in-depth, because what does that even mean? Are you committed to the work? That in itself is huge.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\"><strong>Zareen:<\/strong> That, yes.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\"><strong>Participant:<\/strong> Why you want to lead? I think it\u2019s really important to ask ourselves why we\u2019re doing anything we do at any point in time. I think it\u2019s a really good question to start with.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">Why do you pick a particular chant? Well, maybe because I feel really connected to that. I personally feel really connected to that dance. So it is a\u2014<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\"><strong>Zareen:<\/strong> Right.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\"><strong>Participant:<\/strong> And it\u2019s not because, \u201cOh, I learned that here with this person,\u201d and now it has none of that. It\u2019s just, this is my\u2014I have a connection, and it\u2019s where I can lead beautifully and well.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\"><strong>Zareen:<\/strong> Right, right.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">And, you know, that is kind of a little slanted towards the experience that Sky and I have in bringing new people into our retreats. So many times someone will step in, you know, and as we go through this list, you\u2019ll see I try to distinguish between the difference of doing your own regular, you know, monthly practice at home, or going to someone else\u2019s retreat, or putting on your own retreat.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">So you step in and you\u2019re a new dance leader. We have lots of people who step in and just want to do their favorite dance that\u2019s really speaking to them, rather than thinking about the whole continuity of the particular session that they\u2019re stepping into.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">So I think we\u2019re really emphasizing that in this list. Does that kind of make sense?<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\"><strong>Participant:<\/strong> Zareen, I can\u2019t hear you.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\"><strong>Participant:<\/strong> In that regard, if there is someone stepping in and there\u2019s not been time to meet together and know what the purpose of the theme is, how would they know what\u2019s going to fit?<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\"><strong>Zareen:<\/strong> So our next lesson is going to be, \u201cHow do you put a dance session together?\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">And one of the ways you can do it\u2014one of the skills we can have\u2014is learning how to popcorn. So what you do is you kind of pay attention to what happened before.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">And there\u2019s been so many times where I\u2019ve had a particular dance planned, and then something happens before my time so that I have to completely change what I just did. But that\u2019s a lot to ask a brand-new dance leader to do.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">You know, and I\u2019ve also been in situations where we have a brand-new dance leader coming in, and so all the experienced dance leaders focus their intention to create a perfect container for this new person, so that what they\u2019re doing is going to land.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">So no matter what they do, it will fit. You know? And so that the cohesive whole happens, and that person gets a really positive experience in learning to lead, too.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">So all those things are important.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">What then? This kind of leads to this: what your list of dances that you\u2019re bringing\u2014what is it you\u2019re bringing?<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">Do you know the words? Have you really thought through your attunement?<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">And then just some really specific things that we see go wrong.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">Do you know what the rhythm of the dance is? Do you know what key it needs to be in so that it\u2019s not too high and not too low?<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">And we could have a whole session just on that, because women\u2019s voices, high voices, have very different needs that don\u2019t necessarily fit on the scale.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">Well, can you sing it comfortably?<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">Very important, especially if you\u2019re going to follow the guideline to step in and just sing it. Is it too high for you, or is it too low?<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">And I\u2019m sure you guys have all noticed that you show up in the morning, say it\u2019s going to be a morning dance, and your voice is really low. But by the time it comes for you to lead your dance, it really needs to be higher.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">Has anybody experienced that?<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\"><strong>Participant:<\/strong> Because you warmed up.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\"><strong>Zareen:<\/strong> So can you sing it comfortably?<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">And it\u2019s always really good to know the musicianship that goes along with it. Like, if you\u2019re playing a guitar, you can really be in charge. And have you practiced? And, you know, exactly how have you practiced with your guitar?<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">But if you have other musicians, have you given them what they need?<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">And before we started, Carmen gave a really good example of her circle. The musicians always practice beforehand, which is, of course, the ideal.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">So, anybody have anything on this? Exactly what with your dances?<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">Okay, now into the practical: where?<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">So, are you doing a local dance circle? Are you doing your own retreat? Are you a staff person at a retreat? Or are you just attending a retreat and hoping to get to lead?<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">So those are very different places where you can be leading dances.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">And I want to emphasize: anybody can start a circle. And anybody can start a retreat, too. I think we kind of think that only the big guys can do that, but it\u2019s not true.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">And a local circle\u2014local circles are the backbone of the Dances of Universal Peace. Because without local circles, people just really wouldn\u2019t know.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">How many people here do a local circle?<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">Oh, okay. Good. Good.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">So the needs of a local circle are very much different from the needs of a retreat. Because, first of all, you\u2019re going to basically just do one dance session per day for your local circle.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">In a retreat, there\u2019ll be several days, and so you actually work on starting the retreat and then building the energy and then bringing it to the close at the end, days later.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">You do that whole thing in, what, two hours, when it\u2019s a local circle.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">So that\u2019s two really different skills: to know how to lead in a local circle and know how to lead in a retreat.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">Or there\u2019s one other thing that can happen. You can lead in somebody else\u2019s thing, like Songa Fest, or you could be asked as a dance leader to come just lead a few dances at some other things, like a gathering down in the park or something like that.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">Has anybody ever done that?<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\"><strong>Participant:<\/strong> Yeah.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\"><strong>Zareen:<\/strong> Or maybe, like, in a school, come lead a few dances in a school. That\u2019s a totally different where. I probably won\u2019t add it to my list because my list\u2019s too big.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">Oh, and so, more where: are you the only dance leader in your local circle, or do you have other people?<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">Right? Those are totally different considerations.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">And if you\u2019re working with a team, how are you going to organize it?<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">And I think we\u2019re going to have our whole next Zoom meeting be talking about this: how to put a dance session together. And so we\u2019ll be talking about doing it solo or with a team.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">Who all does it solo?<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">Ah, okay.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">Who does it in a team?<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">Okay. And I would assume everybody that does it in a team might occasionally end up in a situation where you\u2019re doing it solo, right?<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\"><strong>Participants:<\/strong> Yeah. Yeah.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\"><strong>Zareen:<\/strong> So, anybody have anything to add to that?<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">What\u2019s the difference between solo and in a team?<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">You know, yeah, yeah, go. Just unmute and go and talk.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\"><strong>Participant:<\/strong> In my experience\u2014yes. Do you hear me?<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\"><strong>Zareen:<\/strong> Yes, I hear you.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\"><strong>Participant:<\/strong> Okay. Hello. I\u2019m from Belgium.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\"><strong>Zareen:<\/strong> Oh, hello. Hello.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\"><strong>Participant:<\/strong> In my experience, if you lead alone, you hold everything in your own hands, and for me personally, that gives me some peace of mind.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">I don\u2019t play any instrument myself. I have two musicians who accompany me, so that\u2019s really nice, but I\u2019m the only dance leader, so I\u2019m really in charge.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">And I find it easier when I just know and can prepare myself and do the whole setting than when I have to do some parts.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">Like, for example, on a Sufi day, there are some meditations and then dance or something like that. I find it more complicated that way because then I would certainly have to jump in.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">Well, if you\u2019re on your own, you can totally make the atmosphere and, you know, bring how you want it. And then suddenly it\u2019s like, yeah, now you\u2014<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">It\u2019s going to be a very big difference.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">I practice in the Netherlands. The training, the density training, and then all the training\u2014all the dance leaders have to do one by one. So you just take over from somebody else. You don\u2019t make the atmosphere yourself.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">So for me, it\u2019s harder to do that than if I do it on my own.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\"><strong>Zareen:<\/strong> Right. Right. Yeah, I really hear you, and I agree that, I mean, there\u2019s really\u2014when you can just do it all on your own, you have it all planned and you can really focus.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">But when you\u2019re working with a really experienced team that knows how to do that together, it can be just as\u2014yeah, it can be just\u2014<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\"><strong>Participant:<\/strong> I can imagine that.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\"><strong>Zareen:<\/strong> Uh-huh. It can be just as cohesive.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">Are you planning on working on bringing new leaders in and training new leaders to join your circle?<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\"><strong>Participant:<\/strong> Just training myself. Step by step.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\"><strong>Zareen:<\/strong> Okay. Good.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">Well, you\u2019ll find that everything you learn for yourself is what you then turn around and teach other people. And so it can be really disruptive for a new person to step in. And it can also be really beautifully surprising what can happen, too.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">So, Amy, did you have something?<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\"><strong>Amy:<\/strong> Well, really, I love to collaborate, but we have to practice ahead of time, and we need to have the lineups. I like it when it\u2019s organized. I don\u2019t like it just people popping in, and I think that\u2019s unfair to musicians and everybody else.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">I do enjoy\u2014I think it lightens the load of having to retain and play for me for six dances or seven dances.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">And I just, I like that process also, but, you know, do what needs to be done.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\"><strong>Zareen:<\/strong> Yeah. Yeah. Sometimes working with a team is very relaxing because they do something, and then you come in and you take it from there, and then they take it from you, and that can be really nice.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\"><strong>Amy:<\/strong> Yeah, but the people who are supportive of each other, and you kind of have a philosophical agreement of how you want it.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\"><strong>Zareen:<\/strong> Mm-hmm.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">So when you are\u2014so here\u2019s my next thing on the list, too.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">So when you are working with a team, there\u2019s different ways you can do it. You can have one person who\u2019s the poll, and they just decide, \u201cYou\u2019re going to do this. You\u2019re going to do that.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">You know, or actually, the poll can do it all sorts of different ways.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">You can actually have a dance card.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">And that sounds like that\u2019s what you like to do, Amy, where everyone knows what they\u2019re going to lead and they practice it beforehand, and it goes in order, and then you just get together and you\u2014<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\"><strong>Amy:<\/strong> Right. It\u2019s still fluid because we\u2019re coming into a circle that we might not know. If we have a lot of people who have some mobility issues, or if we don\u2019t have\u2014sometimes it\u2019s going to be a very small circle, so maybe what you do about partner dances, so you need to be able to\u2014<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">Sometimes you never know.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\"><strong>Zareen:<\/strong> Yeah. Sometimes something just doesn\u2019t fit, so it\u2019s good to have something else in your pocket.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">I think it\u2019s a hard balance between planning it, but then also having some fluidity in the circle, because you want to be able to respond to the now, you know?<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\"><strong>Participant:<\/strong> Right.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\"><strong>Zareen:<\/strong> It\u2019s probably very few of us that have such large, well-established circles that we don\u2019t ever get any surprises.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\"><strong>Participant:<\/strong> Right. Right.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\"><strong>Zareen:<\/strong> So a dance card works really well that way, you know, especially if you know the people that you\u2019re working with.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">Another way you can do it, though, is you can just say, \u201cThis is the order we\u2019re going to go in. You know, it\u2019s going to be Mary, then it\u2019s going to be Joe, then it\u2019s going to be Bob.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">And then each person just knows where they\u2019re going to be in the circle, and then they each decide what dance they think will fit there.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">Well, you want to try to set your\u2014so I don\u2019t want to do five aerobic dances in a row. I mean, I think you need to have some kind of a pacing so that\u2014<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\"><strong>Participant:<\/strong> Yes, you need to have a real\u2014Arabic dances\u2014<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\"><strong>Zareen:<\/strong> I mean, I think people need to plan to present a variety and have a presentation that is cohesive and fit, but also works. I mean, has to work for the whole circle.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">I think a real experienced team can do it.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\"><strong>Participant:<\/strong> Yeah. Yeah, an experienced team would know.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\"><strong>Zareen:<\/strong> So, you know, I\u2019m given the spot right after you, and you just do this killer aerobic dance. I\u2019m not going to come in and try to do a killer aerobic dance right after that. I\u2019m going to change what it is to fit.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">Which is interesting, because by the time you get to the end, you have no idea\u2014you had no idea at the beginning where you were going to end up, right? Because everybody has to change as they go along.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">Sometimes it can be very, very beautiful that way. Sometimes it can be a complete disaster as well.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\"><strong>Participant:<\/strong> I think I like it more planned, although we know that the next dance\u2014so that the next person\u2014so that everyone sets up for the next person. You know, I think that\u2019s really important to think about, too, because some people really, really like the planning and some people really like fluidity.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\"><strong>Zareen:<\/strong> Yeah. Like if you took Bernie Hudeman and you tried to stick him into just totally planning, you\u2019d hear about it afterwards.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">So actually, I think\u2014so me, I go around and I lead at all sorts of different situations. And so I try to be comfortable with all these different ways to do it.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">And then, so I have\u2014one of my ways you can do work with other people is just wing it.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">And that can be really good. Like, there\u2019s so many times, like, you show up and you have no idea who\u2019s going to show up. I mean, I do so many things where we\u2019re still just such new circles that we just don\u2019t know.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">And some Betty will show up from Oregon or something like that, you know, and we want to include them in, but we all show up late. Or somebody shows up late and so we have to just wing it.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">And that can work.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">As good as popcorn.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">But the thing you\u2019ve got to really make sure doesn\u2019t happen is that there\u2019s a big silence while people are going, \u201cWell, who\u2019s going to go next?\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">Does anybody have something? You know, that\u2019s awful.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">So just winging it can work. But, boy, really pay attention to the experience that your dancers are having, because it can just turn into talking, talking, talking, and all the energy gets dispersed.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\"><strong>Rockman:<\/strong> One of the things I\u2019ve used when there\u2019s that kind of empty space while we\u2019re preparing is to suggest to the circle, you know, \u201cSo we\u2019re going to take a couple minutes here while we\u2019re doing this.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">While you continue holding hands, give them a little practice. Do, do on your breath from the dance we just finished, on the breath. Inhale this, exhale that, or some other thing for them to do to stay attuned so that when the next leader comes in, it\u2019s not just chaos of people having chatted.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\"><strong>Zareen:<\/strong> And be aware ahead of time. Also, you know, there\u2019s always the situation where you do a couple of dances and then everybody needs to go get a drink or go to the bathroom or something like that, too.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\"><strong>Participant:<\/strong> Right.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\"><strong>Zareen:<\/strong> And so you have to try to get them to come back.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">So I do kind of that same thing, Rockman, where you want to keep the people that are staying engaged while the other people go and come back.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\"><strong>Participant:<\/strong> Yes.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\"><strong>Carmen:<\/strong> There is also a hybrid option here.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\"><strong>Zareen:<\/strong> Yes.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\"><strong>Carmen:<\/strong> That incorporates some of the options here. Like, for example, you can have a dance card, but somebody can wing it.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\"><strong>Zareen:<\/strong> Ah, yes.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\"><strong>Carmen:<\/strong> Like, you could have\u2014and I\u2019ve been in circles like that.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">But Bernie could do that. Bernie can be the person that wings it, and others want\u2014like, there\u2019s a dance card and there\u2019s a sequence, and this leader is going to do this dance, this leader is going to do that, and Bernie\u2019s going to do this one, and maybe two dances later Bernie\u2019s going to do that other one.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">But then everybody\u2019s really tired by the time that Bernie\u2019s going to do his second dance, and he can sense that, and he\u2019s done\u2014it\u2019s a high-energy\u2014and he says, \u201cNope, I\u2019m going to do this other one.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">And he has the guitar, and he doesn\u2019t need anybody to follow him with the guitar, and he does whatever feels right for the moment.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">So some people can do the winging. Some people cannot. If you don\u2019t play guitar, you can\u2019t expect anybody will just follow you on the spot.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">So they could be hybrid versions of the options presented here, too.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\"><strong>Zareen:<\/strong> Yeah, very well said. I think Amy mentioned that a little bit, too, that sometimes, you know, she has her set session, and then sometimes something needs to change.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">Didn\u2019t you say that, Amy?<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\"><strong>Amy:<\/strong> Yeah. Yeah. You want to be open to\u2014yeah, the people seem tired. You\u2019re not\u2014you know, they\u2019ll want an energetic dance at the end, or to be able to adapt.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">And we have some people who have the mobility\u2014sometimes we\u2019ll sit down to learn the song, right, a couple of times, and then get up and do the movement so that we don\u2019t wear some of our people out.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">Especially if it\u2019s a song that\u2019s got a lot of words or something that requires a little bit of time. That\u2019s kind of an enjoyable part of the process also, that people aren\u2019t doing that.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">And we\u2019re dealing with this\u2014our community is significantly way over 70. You need to be 80.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\"><strong>Zareen:<\/strong> Yeah. I hate it when I have to just stand there for a really long time. I need to be moving.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\"><strong>Participant:<\/strong> Yeah.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\"><strong>Zareen:<\/strong> Let\u2019s see, Eliana. I said, hand is up.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\"><strong>Eliana:<\/strong> Hi.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\"><strong>Zareen:<\/strong> Yeah.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\"><strong>Eliana:<\/strong> So I just had this thought that maybe, even though you might have a song planned, maybe you should choose two songs\u2014like one that\u2019s up and one that\u2019s more mellow\u2014so that you have two songs in your head just in case.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">Like, instead of going, \u201cOh, no, now I\u2019ve got to scramble and figure out a song.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">Like, for me, because it would be harder for me because I don\u2019t know the songs, like, if I just had them written, or, you know, like, where you just were ready for two different songs. Does that make sense?<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\"><strong>Zareen:<\/strong> That totally makes sense.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">And you know, that brings up a thought that\u2014it\u2019s like I show up to places, you know, and everybody\u2019s leading, and I always think everybody is so much smarter than I am, that they all just know all these dances and they just do it.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">And so I remember\u2014so I\u2019m sitting in the circle with Sky and Bernie, right? She\u2019s going to watch this later and she\u2019ll know.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">So I\u2019m sitting in there, and I noticed they both have all these sheets of paper, and they\u2019re going through the sheets of paper, and I\u2019m like, \u201cWait. They have to practice, too. They don\u2019t just know everything.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\"><strong>Participant:<\/strong> Well, I just want to say, Zareen, how amazing you are, because I never\u2014I always feel like you\u2019re so ready and you just\u2014you\u2019re up and you just flow right into the song. You just start playing.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\"><strong>Zareen:<\/strong> Yeah, well, it\u2019s not true. I have an app on my phone that has all my songs in it. And so I can just pick it up so quick, and I\u2019m like, \u201cOh my God, what am I going to do? You know what I\u2019m doing? Oh, that\u2019ll work.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\"><strong>Participant:<\/strong> Well, what kind of app is that? What kind of app is that?<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\"><strong>Another participant:<\/strong> Right. Tell the app.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\"><strong>Zareen:<\/strong> It\u2019s an app. It\u2019s called\u2014I use one that\u2019s called Songbook.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\"><strong>Participant:<\/strong> And the Apple or Android?<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\"><strong>Zareen:<\/strong> It\u2019s everything. It\u2019s Apple, it\u2019s computer, it\u2019s Android. And what\u2019s really cool is it can sync. So Wayne and I have the same thing.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">And so I can put together a playlist and then I can sync it with him, and all he has to do is\u2014<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\"><strong>Participant:<\/strong> Say the name one more time.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\"><strong>Zareen:<\/strong> He\u2019s going to go, though. Okay, so, Songbook. Songbook.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\"><strong>Participant:<\/strong> Yeah, I\u2019m good at that.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\"><strong>Zareen:<\/strong> Yeah. Let me show you.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">So, let me go get\u2014so you can see, maybe, there\u2019s all the various kinds of dances that I do inside Songbook, and like, here\u2019s all my playlists.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">And so I can click on a playlist, and so here\u2019s\u2014here\u2019s all my dances that are just ready to go that I\u2019ve practiced.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\"><strong>Participant:<\/strong> But you\u2019ve recorded it auditory into that?<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\"><strong>Zareen:<\/strong> You can add a link to\u2014but no, it\u2019s written. It\u2019s written out. Let me show you one.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">Like, here\u2019s \u201cAmen, Hallelujah.\u201d That\u2019s what it looks like.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\"><strong>Participant:<\/strong> And how\u2019d you get it in there?<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\"><strong>Zareen:<\/strong> Um, you\u2014they type it in. You type it in. Like, so here it is. Here\u2019s the editing part. You type\u2014you put it in.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">It\u2019s got this little code. It\u2019s really easy to learn once you figure out how to do it, and I could send you some sample codes.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">Maybe we should have a whole lesson just on how to use\u2014<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\"><strong>Participant:<\/strong> How to cheat.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\"><strong>Zareen:<\/strong> How to cheat! How to cheat so fast nobody knows you\u2019re doing it.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\"><strong>Participant:<\/strong> But is the audio also recorded?<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\"><strong>Zareen:<\/strong> I can put a link to audio in there, and I also can put a\u2014let\u2019s see. Let me find one.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">I can also put a little image.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\"><strong>Participant:<\/strong> The score.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\"><strong>Zareen:<\/strong> Score.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\"><strong>Participant:<\/strong> And where are you linking these things to? You said a link, but where are they linked to?<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\"><strong>Zareen:<\/strong> If I do a link, it would have to be a link to someplace online, which, of course, isn\u2019t going to work if you\u2019re not online.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">Right. But what I usually need to know is\u2014I\u2019m like, I mean, do you guys have the same problem? Of course, we\u2019re totally off script here.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">But it\u2019s like so many songs are so much the same, and I\u2019m like, \u201cWait, how does that one go?\u201d Right?<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">And so if I can look at the little write-up, then I\u2019m like, \u201cOh, you know, it\u2019s\u2014what is this? La, la, la, la, la, la, la, la, la, la, yeah, yeah, yeah, yeah, yeah.\u201d I can remember.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">You just need to be able to read music if you\u2019re going to do it that way.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">But you could put a link to something online, too, and I\u2019ve done that before, too, where I\u2019m like, you know\u2014<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\"><strong>Participant:<\/strong> Oh yeah. I\u2019ve had to do that on my online Zoom sometimes. I haven\u2019t written down a Lila, Halala.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\"><strong>Zareen:<\/strong> Okay, which one?<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\"><strong>Participant:<\/strong> So, not to keep us too off script for what you want to do today, but I just looked it up. There\u2019s Songbook. There\u2019s Songbook Pro. There\u2019s a number of Songbook\u2014<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\"><strong>Zareen:<\/strong> Right. I have Songbook Pro. And here, can you see the icon right there? It\u2019s kind of orange.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">Okay, and I do Songbook Pro, and it\u2019s like a one-time purchase.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">And so I can\u2014and then I hook it to my Dropbox so that I can sync with Wayne.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">So I can actually input the songs on my computer because it\u2019s so much faster and easier, right? And then sync it to my phone.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">And the really nice thing is I can put together a playlist, and then I can sync it to Wayne, and so he knows exactly the order I\u2019m going to do things.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">And we do it for kirtans and for dances, and, you know, if we\u2019re going to be playing music down at a restaurant or in the park or something like that, too.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">So, yeah.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">So maybe, maybe I should change the name of my list, or maybe I should make a new list. It\u2019s like, \u201cHow to cheat so no one knows you\u2019re doing it.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\"><strong>Participant:<\/strong> Can I add something?<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\"><strong>Zareen:<\/strong> Yes, yes.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\"><strong>Participant:<\/strong> I have these little notes. There are several dances\u2014very little. I wrote them out with the chords in it and the steps in it so I can look it up.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">I put it in my\u2014how do you say?<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">And then\u2014<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\"><strong>Zareen:<\/strong> Okay. Oh, yeah. All right. That will fit here.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\"><strong>Participant:<\/strong> So some six or seven dances that are always handy.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\"><strong>Zareen:<\/strong> So the way I started out is\u2014remember back in the day when all we had was the books?<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">And I took all my books and I put them in this little folder so that I could go through and find it. And I made an index.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\"><strong>Participant:<\/strong> Yeah, great. Help me get to it.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\"><strong>Zareen:<\/strong> And I do the exact same thing, too, but mostly for practicing, because it\u2019s just a little stressful, you know? And you wanted to sit down and just practice effectively.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">And so I made this little\u2014<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\"><strong>Participant:<\/strong> Yeah, also\u2014<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\"><strong>Zareen:<\/strong> Yeah. And then I bring that because these are my totally bulletproof\u2014no, you know, but I do need a reminder. It\u2019s like, what key is it in, and stuff like that.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">So\u2014and really, that\u2019s just kind of about being prepared. Be prepared in the best way, you know.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">And I think maybe the biggest thing to let everyone know is that good dance leaders prepare and put a lot of work into it.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">And that\u2019s kind of what I meant in that very first thing where I\u2014where I\u2019m like, do you want to lead, and are you committed?<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">Because I think sometimes we make it look so easy that we don\u2019t realize that everybody has to put in that amount of work.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\"><strong>Participant:<\/strong> Except for maybe\u2014<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\"><strong>Another participant:<\/strong> I mean, yeah, right. It\u2019s not just me.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\"><strong>Zareen:<\/strong> Yeah. We have to practice, practice, practice. Get it in the body.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\"><strong>Participant:<\/strong> Right, right.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\"><strong>Zareen:<\/strong> And so that leads us right into the next thing on my checklist. It\u2019s like, leading the dance.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">And it all boils down to: have you practiced? Which is, first of all, going to make you more comfortable and less nervous.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">If you practiced, right?<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\"><strong>Participant:<\/strong> Confidence.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\"><strong>Zareen:<\/strong> Yeah.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">So, um, well, see, Carmen came in and said\u2014so I say, always sing the song first. Just one time through, though.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">You know, like, sometimes someone will come out\u2014<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">Well, and of course, Bernie, you know, I\u2019ll sing it through over and over and over and over, you know. Twenty times later, you know, and you\u2019re new and you\u2019re like, \u201cI still don\u2019t get it.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">But if you sing it, the human ear and the human brain can pick up words inside melody easier than it can pick it up speaking.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">Yeah, you know, there are scientists, anthropologists who are coming out now saying that music came before speech, before language. That it was actually the first language.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">So you\u2019re kind of using that trick with people when you step in and sing it first.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">And of course, you know, nothing can be completely written in stone, but if you\u2019re a new dance leader, or if you\u2019re stepping into somebody else\u2019s circle where you\u2019re not really well known, you know, this just kind of makes everything work well.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">You just sing the song.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">You know, and then the people that know it, they\u2019re like, \u201cOh, yeah.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">And then the people\u2014hopefully it\u2019s like a pretty song, or I mean, the melodies are compelling, right? And so you\u2019ve shared the melody first thing.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">And then\u2014I am kind of stuck on this, aren\u2019t I?<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">I have in my list, \u201cSing the song first,\u201d and then I have, \u201cReally mean it.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">And because what that does is it connects you with the people in the circle if you\u2019ve sung it.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">Then teach the words.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">Make sure everybody\u2019s getting it.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">And, you know, you guys look like pretty experienced leaders, but don\u2019t you really watch the circle?<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\"><strong>Participants:<\/strong> Yeah.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\"><strong>Zareen:<\/strong> Like, you know, to me, if there\u2019s one person that\u2019s not getting it, use that person to make sure everyone\u2019s getting it, right?<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">Because that person\u2019s important, you know, and they\u2019ll love it so much more if they kind of get it.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">Sometimes the words are so complicated that they\u2019re not going to get it the first time, really, and then you have to give them permission to not be perfect with it.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">Because ultimately, when we move, that\u2019s the thing that happens.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">Oh, yeah. And you\u2019ll notice that if you sing it first and then teach the words and get everybody singing it together, it reduces chattering in the circle.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">And once the circle starts chattering, you\u2019ve really lost it.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">But my advice there is don\u2019t criticize them and say, \u201cStop talking.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">I find what really works good is I just stop and I go, \u201cTalk amongst yourselves.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">What? I tell them, \u201cTalk.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">And then they like\u2014talk on purpose\u2014and then, boom, it just stops.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">Rather than criticize them and try to stop them, give them a moment to talk. They want to talk.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">So, anyway.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\"><strong>Carmen:<\/strong> Yes. I want to share what Bernie did one time in one retreat because it was brilliant.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">Everybody was talking and laughing, and he started a song, and people kept interrupting and talking and laughing.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">So pretty soon, he just stopped. He kind of hugged his guitar, and he just went around the circle looking at everybody with a big smile on his face.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">And I\u2019m just looking at everybody and just walking around in the circle and looking at everybody.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">And eventually, people just got the message.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">\u201cOkay, he\u2019s just waiting. Let\u2019s just stop.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">And that did the trick.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\"><strong>Zareen:<\/strong> Yeah, yeah.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">But, you know, if you criticize them, it kind of just ruins the whole point.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\"><strong>Participant:<\/strong> Yeah, I agree.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\"><strong>Zareen:<\/strong> Of an energy that you don\u2019t want when you criticize people in the dance circle and you\u2019re grumping.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\"><strong>Participant:<\/strong> Oh, nice.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\"><strong>Another participant:<\/strong> Terrible. In yourself, too. In yourself, too.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\"><strong>Zareen:<\/strong> Yeah. All of a sudden you\u2019re not gently inviting people back in with their attention.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">Start playing. Might walk around and start walking and playing, or do something really simple to kind of cohesive again, even if it\u2019s not that they planned.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">I always figure one of the reasons we\u2019re doing it is to build community, right? And so when they talk together, they\u2019re talking together.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">So it\u2019s not really like bad. It\u2019s just\u2014it\u2019s fine.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">So then, okay, so here we are: how to lead the dance.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">So we\u2019ve sung it. We\u2019ve done the words. We have everybody singing it back and forth. They\u2019re getting pretty familiar.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">Oh, by the way, sometimes you don\u2019t have to go over and over and over the words, because you know that the dance movements are going to help them learn the words, right?<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">Because they have a whole nother chance to actually learn these words while we\u2019re learning the movements.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">So you don\u2019t have to be 100 percent there before you start leading the movements, particularly like in \u201cLord, Make Me an Instrument.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">I\u2019ll sing it one time. I\u2019ll have everybody that knows it sing it one time with me. And then I\u2019ll say, \u201cDon\u2019t worry about the words. By the time we get to the end of the movements, you will know them.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">And then I go straight into the movements.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">Right? Because if you just go all\u2014you know, left brain\u2014when you\u2019re trying to learn too many complicated words\u2014<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">So we are at \u201cTeach the Movements\u201d now.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">And it\u2019s really good to have this planned beforehand as part of your practicing. Like, how do you really describe these movements?<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">And man, I\u2019ll tell you what. Fortunately, the circles I lead in are very forgiving, because I cannot get left and right straightened up.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">I\u2019m always like, \u201cLet\u2019s go right,\u201d and then I go left, and someone in the circle will shout out, \u201cZareen, you\u2019re going left!\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">And I\u2019m like, \u201cOh, yeah.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">So\u2014but it\u2019s good. It\u2019s good to plan beforehand, kind of, you know, just a little strategy. How are you going to teach these movements?<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">And sometimes I\u2019ll do it from something that I\u2019ve seen other people do.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">Like, \u201cLord, Make Me an Instrument\u201d has some really complicated movements in it. But I\u2019ve watched it being led really well, and I\u2019ve led it really badly myself, and I\u2019ve led it well myself.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">So I kind of have this strategy that I do beginning to end to make sure that everybody gets it.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">And once again, there will be talking if you\u2019re doing a partner dance. So, you know, kind of a strategy of where that\u2019s going to happen.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">So then, personally, me, I don\u2019t do the big attunement until I get to this point in the dances.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">Very often, when you\u2019re teaching the words, you need to teach kind of what this means, what language it\u2019s in, and kind of give a\u2014<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">But if you have, like, a real attunement you want to give, this\u2014get through, you know, the words, you know the movements.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">And then before we start, it can be, \u201cOh, you know,\u201d you can bring a little something in.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">And I also find that if I do that, I\u2019ve split my attunement into two different pieces, so it\u2019s not just a long monologue from me, right?<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">And it usually lands a little better, and I tend to be more succinct when I do it that way.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">Really long, monologue attunements can really break the energy of a circle.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">Sometimes it\u2019s necessary.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">Wally always said, if you\u2019re going to give an attunement over just a couple of sentences, have everybody sit down because now you\u2019re giving a teaching.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\"><strong>Participant:<\/strong> Right.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\"><strong>Zareen:<\/strong> Which I never do because we can\u2019t sit down on the ground anymore.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\"><strong>Participant:<\/strong> You don\u2019t get up anymore.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\"><strong>Zareen:<\/strong> We can get down. We can\u2019t get up.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\"><strong>Participant:<\/strong> Yeah.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\"><strong>Zareen:<\/strong> So, yeah, that\u2019s right.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">And just think of, you know, as you\u2019re doing all these things, how many opportunities in putting the dance together you have for setting the attunement without having to actually describe it.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">You know, when you first sing the song, that gives the energy right there. And then when you\u2019re teaching the words, that gives more energy and meaning right there.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">And so by the time you get to the point where you\u2019re just about ready to lead the song, 90 percent of what needs to be said has already been said.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">And sometimes people in the circle, you know, you\u2019ll have somebody who\u2019s a really, you know, 30-year-long Buddhist practitioner who will come in and add something into it.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">So sometimes by the time you get to the place where you\u2019re ready to start the dance, everything\u2019s been said.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">Any suggestions on that?<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">Nobody has a really long attunement to give.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">And then another thing is, you know, we\u2019re kind of gearing this towards new dance leaders and bringing them in.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">And hopefully new dance leaders will watch this and read it online.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">When you\u2019re stepping into somebody else\u2019s circle, you are not the main event.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">So you don\u2019t need to make your dance be the biggest, most important attunement.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">You can\u2014and it\u2019s just like Amy was talking about, too\u2014you can, because you\u2019re coming after somebody else and you\u2019re coming before somebody else.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">So how do you make what you\u2019re doing fit?<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">Just what they said.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">Lots of times I\u2019ll come in, and I\u2019ll say, \u201cYou know, Sky just taught us blah, blah, blah,\u201d you know, and then, \u201cLet\u2019s do X, Y, Z,\u201d you know, and then that kind of ties the attunement in.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">It makes it feel like we\u2019re doing it together.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\"><strong>Carmen:<\/strong> Yes. Well, you\u2019re giving an example right there that we do sometimes. Repeat something that somebody else said before, tying it with the dance that you are doing now.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">But, you know, I\u2019m thinking now that it might be very useful for new leaders\u2014and I\u2019m not completely new, but I\u2019ve only been leading for three years, so that\u2019s relatively new, I think, comparing it to you and many others.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">So it would be good to have at least some sample attunements. You know, like, this one could be examples.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">So really new leaders can envision what the meaning of attunement is in different circumstances and settings, because that is not an easy thing to wrap your mind around.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\"><strong>Zareen:<\/strong> Right. Yeah, that\u2019s a really good suggestion.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">And another thing that we need to put together, and I would appreciate everybody\u2019s help with this, is the closing seal.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">You know, it\u2019d be really nice\u2014some people are really good at it, and then some people, like me, aren\u2019t.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">And it\u2019d be kind of really good to have some wisps of that as well, I think.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">So we can roll\u2014we can, and Sky\u2019s going to help me put that kind of together for our\u2014for actually for a whole session, I think.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">So the more input everybody has into that, wouldn\u2019t it be nice to kind of have that kind of put together?<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">And so we are almost at an hour, so there\u2019s no way we\u2019re getting through my whole list.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">But we\u2019re through pretty good.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">So we\u2019re at the place where you\u2019re starting the dance.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">And I always start the dance and really watch for confusion as I first start it, because this is the time where it\u2019s really easy to stop it if things are going wrong.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">And if you\u2019re doing a partner dance, it\u2019s really important.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">You\u2019ll notice that you\u2019re doing a partner dance and you\u2019re just explaining it, and you even say, \u201cDon\u2019t do this yet. Just watch me.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">Half the people will do it, and half the people won\u2019t do it.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">And so now half the people have progressed and they don\u2019t have a partner, and half the people haven\u2019t progressed and they don\u2019t have a partner, and the whole thing\u2019s a giant mess.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">So that\u2019s really important to watch.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">And when you\u2019re leading a partner dance and it\u2019s like, \u201cGo back to your original partner,\u201d is what\u2014the way we usually solve that.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">But, um, sometimes\u2014oh, one time I was leading a dance in a big retreat. Gosh, and I think, like\u2014was Wally Olly there?<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">And it just completely fell apart.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">And what had happened was it was a dance where you\u2014it was slow, and you start out with right hand and you see somebody, and then left hand and you see somebody.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">And somehow I had started it and stopped it so that half the people were starting with their right hand and half the people were starting with their left hand.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">And so the whole circle was just completely messed up.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">And I should have just stopped the dance and made it go and start again when I did that, but I wasn\u2019t smart enough to do that way back then.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">And just the whole thing just like fell apart, and it was a disaster.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">So, start the dance and watch carefully what\u2019s going on, because it\u2019s so easy to stop it after the first time, the first couple of times, and get it going again.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">Anybody else have these experiences?<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\"><strong>Participant:<\/strong> I had a couple questions about earlier stuff.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\"><strong>Zareen:<\/strong> Yes.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\"><strong>Participant:<\/strong> One is, so if you have a little card with just little notes on it, reminders that, you know, you review beforehand, do you ever use them just to sneak a peek as you start explaining things, or\u2014<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\"><strong>Zareen:<\/strong> No, before\u2014beforehand, usually.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">Unless I happen to be in a situation\u2014I have literally been in a situation where it\u2019s like, I step in to lead a dance and I suddenly remember, I have no idea what\u2019s going on.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">And then I have to pick up a piece of paper or use my phone.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">I have been in situations where I\u2019m leading way more dances than I knew I was going to. And so I\u2019m just sitting there on my phone. Well, what should we do next?<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">And I\u2019d pick one out real fast, and then we do it.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">So, yeah. I try to avoid that if at all possible, but yeah.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\"><strong>Participant:<\/strong> On the end, the ceiling\u2014sealing, I mean, you can say, you know, \u201cMe\u201d or whatever the appropriate word is\u2014but do you go back and do a little bit of a touching of a summary, or a touching the meaning of the dance at that point?<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\"><strong>Zareen:<\/strong> I don\u2019t usually, just because it would interrupt the sealing of it and the silence.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">The only reason I would do it is if I\u2019m leading two dances in a row and it\u2019s going to lead into the next dance.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">For me, feelings after the silence, to take it in.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\"><strong>Participant:<\/strong> Yeah. Okay. Thank you.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\"><strong>Another participant:<\/strong> In most of the situations where I lead, when I\u2019m done with my dance, somebody else steps in and leads the next one, so it wouldn\u2019t be appropriate to do that.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">Other people have things to say about that?<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">I like that. I kind of go with that.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">Sometimes in the circle, as soon as it\u2019s over, people are done and they\u2019re moving. So I may give the suggestion to just stay with your experience for the next moment. Just be with what you\u2019re experiencing.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">I don\u2019t recap because people are having their own experience, and going into the mind of what it means to understand what it means kind of takes them away from their direct experience.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\"><strong>Zareen:<\/strong> I agree. And I actually kind of have that in this list at this\u2014\u201dTrust your dancers.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">These are your friends, and some of them are way better at dancing than I am at leading, you know?<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">And so, you know, what you said right there is you kind of just stay with this.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">They have had an experience.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">But Wendy, I would say every once in a while, by the time I get to the end of the dance, something has really occurred to me that needs to be said.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">And if I can do it succinctly, I will.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">But I don\u2019t think that\u2019s real\u2014<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\"><strong>Participant:<\/strong> What do you do? Sometimes I get so into the experience I totally like, \u201cWhat was this all about?\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\"><strong>Zareen:<\/strong> You know, I guess. But, yeah.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\"><strong>Participants:<\/strong> Yeah.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\"><strong>Zareen:<\/strong> Okay, so we are at an hour.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">So I think probably we better go.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">Did you have something? I don\u2019t know how to say your name, Maha.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\"><strong>Participant:<\/strong> My, yeah. Epsilon?<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\"><strong>Zareen:<\/strong> Yeah.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\"><strong>Participant:<\/strong> You can see it in Ipsilom, but in my language, it\u2019s Rita Mita G.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\"><strong>Zareen:<\/strong> Oh, okay.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\"><strong>Participant:<\/strong> I have to go. I promised my son, but thank you so very much.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\"><strong>Zareen:<\/strong> Right.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">Well, let\u2019s end this here, and maybe we can do some more list.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">But, um, thank you, everybody. Good suggestions.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">I think we just made our list a lot longer.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\"><strong>Participants:<\/strong> Thank you, Zareen. Thank you. Thank you.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">Thank you. Thank you. So nice to see you.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">Yeah. Bye.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">Bye-bye.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">Bye-bye.<\/p>\n<\/body>","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"<p>Dance Leading Check List Transcript of Video meeting Okay. Cool. Hello, everybody. Sky isn\u2019t making it this time. She is at a retreat up in Canada. So, um, I started&hellip;<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"om_disable_all_campaigns":false,"pagelayer_contact_templates":[],"_pagelayer_content":"","footnotes":""},"categories":[1],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-134","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","hentry","category-uncategorized"],"jetpack_featured_media_url":"","_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/mysticdance.com\/dlt\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/134","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/mysticdance.com\/dlt\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/mysticdance.com\/dlt\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/mysticdance.com\/dlt\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/1"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/mysticdance.com\/dlt\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=134"}],"version-history":[{"count":3,"href":"https:\/\/mysticdance.com\/dlt\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/134\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":146,"href":"https:\/\/mysticdance.com\/dlt\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/134\/revisions\/146"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/mysticdance.com\/dlt\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=134"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/mysticdance.com\/dlt\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=134"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/mysticdance.com\/dlt\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=134"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}