It takes time to get a dance right, to create something memorable.
Fred AstaireRead
For ballroom dancing, remember that your partners have their own distinctive styles also. Cultivate flexibility. Be able to adapt your style to that of your partner. In doing so, you are not surrendering your individuality, but blending it with that of your partner.
Interpretation
What this quote means
Embrace the unique styles of others while maintaining your individuality in partnership.
This quote emphasizes the importance of flexibility and adaptability in relationships, particularly in the context of partnership, such as in ballroom dancing. It suggests that while it is crucial to embrace and learn from the distinctive styles of others, one should not lose their own identity; instead, they should blend their individuality with that of their partners to create harmony.
Themes
FlexibilityAdaptabilityPartnershipIndividualityHarmony
In practice
Example use cases
In a speech about teamwork at a company retreat.
More from Fred Astaire
All quotes →Some people seem to think that good dancers are born, but all the good dancers I have known are taught or trained.
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Can't act. Can't sing. Slightly bald. Can dance a little.
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I have no desire to prove anything by dancing. I have never used it as an outlet or a means of expressing myself. I just dance. I just put my feet in the air and move them around.
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I inherited the knowledge that sometimes (talents) not only skip a generation, but sometimes run screaming from it. Ironically, it was the singing non-ability that helped feed my love of laughter.
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Either the camera will dance, or I will.
Fred AstaireRead
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