If we understand that the salsa connection is foundational to salsa dancing and if we understand that the salsa connection requires as much from follows as leads, then we need to teach as much to follows as to leads; women as to men.  I’ve always aspired to give equal attention to the women as to the men (to follows as to leads) when teaching salsa. I have always seen the dance ideally as a totally equal connection between leads and follows, women and men. In teaching and dancing with SalsAmigos (www.SalsAmigos.org) and Salseritas (www.Salsa-Challenge.com ), where all dancers learn equally to both lead and follow, and in following lots while teaching, I follow about as much as I lead and I know from experience that, while the roles are different, they are equally demanding.  Still, until my recent attention to teaching everything in terms of the salsa connection, I found it difficult to give as much attention to follows as to leads.  Developing methods of teaching salsa dancing based on the equal roles of leads and follows to create a salsa connection is the most important single area of growth in my many years teaching salsa dancing. 

For years I progressively refined my understanding of salsa technique and have taught that to students, but it didn’t include nearly enough attention to what I am now calling the salsa connection.  I have always really wanted to focus equally on leads and follows, but inevitably I found myself spending far more time and effort on the leads.  What I have slowly discovered over the years is that this approach to teaching doesn’t create solid partnering skills.  Here is how I see it.  In the class setting, we tend to focus on moves.  It is amazing how strongly students in salsa classes demand more and more moves.  We believe, mistakenly I think, that great dancers are the ones with the most moves.  We certainly are conditioned to think this way in our culture where those most admired have the most toys.  In teaching moves most follows quickly, yet largely unconsciously, learn subtle clues that tell them what move the lead is hoping to do.  Then follows simply do this move pretty much on their own when they pick up the clue.  In moves classes, new moves are practiced over and over again.  While it appears that leading and following these moves are actually being mastered, most dancers experience that when they go out dancing they can neither lead or follow the moves they learned in class.  So what is the problem?  Neither dancer has learned the basic skills of partnering, how to establish the salsa connection.  Most do not even know what is missing.  I am now making sure that this no longer happens in my classes.  Women, you will get equal attention.

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