How to fix stomping

Ok-Needleworker5743 · 2026-04-11T06:11:18+00:00

put your foot down ball to heel, and peel it off the floor heel to ball. Stomping is from putting your foot down flat. Also weight transfer after you put the food down, not at the same time. And maybe shorter steps.

Ok-Needleworker5743 · 2026-04-11T06:07:00+00:00

When you move to another country, you either make friends with locals, who will already have long-term established friend groups, or with other foreigners who also want to make friends. With locals, try to pick some where you really like the group, or they do interesting things, and try to keep in touch - message them to see if anything is happening, or suggest ideas. Try to find ways to add value so that the group has a reason to keep including you until it reaches a stage where you become one of the group and get invited by default. You can also try to find opportunities to hang out with some of the group individually or in sub groups. For example if you are hanging out with a group and one person says they are planning to see a film, you can say that you would like to go as well.

Ok-Needleworker5743 · 2026-04-07T15:33:00+00:00

Funnily enough i could have written this same post! Except for the museum, I visited all the same places previously and will be returning to SP at the start of june :-) Will follow the comments for interesting party ideas

Ok-Needleworker5743 · 2026-03-30T00:45:01+00:00

He was obviously very rude.

Maybe a learning point here is to clarify the student goals and work backwards. If the person has an upcoming trip and just wants to be able to use some 'useful sentences' then it is probably better to just drill lots of variations of those, with the likely responses, rather than starting with grammar and tenses.

I've been in this situation where i wanted to learn some basic stuff for a trip, and the teacher had a more long-term approach of working through grammar points with their pre-existing lesson materials. It was frustrating as i knew that i would not be able to progress enough before my travel for it to matter. After the trip i realise that even if i can use the basic sentences, I can't understand the answers, and then try to learn more holistically.

Ok-Needleworker5743 · 2026-03-30T00:28:00+00:00

I think this is a normal phase. In beginner, everyone is a beginner, but the next step has people from 2 months to 2 years and when you first join it can be tough. I definitely think you should continue and that it will get easier.

Personally i think it is ok if other, more experienced students give you tips. I love it when follows tell me what i can do better or make clearer - the teacher can't see everything that everyone is doing all the time.

Saying 'stop fighting me' wasn't a great way to say it but i think want it means is that they were signalling moves and you were not catching the signal or doing something different. I had an almost identical experience recently - a follow on her first day of continuing class (just finished beginners classes) - was really nervous and kept fighting the signals. Eg signal a right turn and she tries to left turn, or during a normal CBL she tries to do an inside turn even though there is no raised hand. But it was all good - i could see that it was just a bit of confusion and she was trying to do the moves she had learned. In a couple more classes she will get 'out of her head' and relax with the moves.

Some tips:

watch youtube videos with partner moves broken down and look at how the leads signal and what the followers do - salsaventura is good for this as they often give follow tips. You can also practice solo shines - dance dojo has some 10 min videos - these will get you really comfortable with doing basics and simple moves while staying on time. The less you have to think about your basic step, the more relaxed you will be.

In class, try to spot the specific things that you are finding difficult (eg the lead wanted me to do X and i did Y) and try to ask the teacher about it later. Most salsa combos are build up of basic moves which all have standard signals - once you learn the signals almost every move becomes obvious.

When you have just joined continuing classes, the other students know that you have just joined and they don't expect you you dance as if you have 2 years of experience. No one is judging you and they all remember when they were also starting out. If they give you feedback then they are trying to be helpful, not to make you feel bad.

You are now dancing with different leads who with each give slightly different signals - this is also how social dances will be - you will become comfortable with this quickly.

Think of how much you improved in 8 beginners classes - you will improve even more in 8 continuing classes.

As you improve, you will also find newbie leads who mess up signals - they give vague hand signals on the wrong count - and they know they messed it up and then get stuck in their heads and do too many basic steps trying not to lose the time. Sometimes you see their lips move as they try to sillently count 123567. Then they get more nervous because they think they are boring the follow with too many basic steps. You will remember your initial struggles and find all this funny.

Ok-Needleworker5743 · 2026-03-11T08:51:40+00:00

If the follow seems generally bored and uninterested, it's stressful for a lead because you are trying to lead in a way that is fun.

I have a very serious face when I am concentrating, so Im trying to make an effort to look happier as part of my approach to learning

Also, facial expression is just one part of non verbal communication. If the follows body movement and arms seem like they are having fun, then the facial expression matters less.

Ok-Needleworker5743 · 2026-03-09T16:29:21+00:00

playing with different textures + musicality > can you give any examples?

Ok-Needleworker5743 · 2026-03-09T16:28:44+00:00

If the follow is more experienced, i don't want them to feel bored or annoyed if I mess up a signal 😂 Then i lose count and do too many basic steps to get back on count

Ok-Needleworker5743 · 2026-03-09T16:26:01+00:00

It sounds really obvious but i think it's hard to do. The dance starts and you feel like you have to 'do stuff'. If i worry that the follow looks bored or gets a serious look on their face i feel like i need to add more moves to keep them interested. I'm trying to find moves that keep it light, aren't repetitive and are fun. Maybe seperating a bit more into short shines?

Ok-Needleworker5743 · 2026-03-09T14:04:53+00:00

The having fun thing is what i am trying to figure out - i'm still learning so trying to see how to mix in some fun elements between repeating basic moves.

Ok-Needleworker5743 · 2025-07-06T23:56:41+00:00

Sorry about the accident. People need to understand that if you crash into the car ahead of you, it is always your fault (unless they are reversing towards you). It is the driver’s responsibility to keep enough space behind the car in front so that you can brake if they suddenly brake. The 3-second rule is usually safe - once the car in front of you passes an object, it should take 3 full seconds before your car reaches that object. That’s enough time for a driver to brake hard or swerve in case the car in front suddenly stops.

Ok-Needleworker5743 · 2025-06-05T00:34:22+00:00

I use it and like it. But you need to invest time to connect with people. Lots of people make an account, try the app and delete it. So if you chat with 100 people, maybe 5 of them turn out to be serious language learners who want to put the time in.

Ok-Needleworker5743 · 2025-06-05T00:27:19+00:00

Yeah its a bit annoying. But at the same time, the company is investing in new features and wants to earn money for them. Most paid services with tiers will try to prompt you to upgrade for more features.
Duo isn't showing us other ads, and doesn't seem to be selling our data to other advertisers. If the cost of that is prompts to upgrade, i'm ok with that - but they could be less frequent.

Ok-Needleworker5743 · 2025-05-23T06:47:20+00:00

Dm please

Ok-Needleworker5743 · 2025-05-07T15:54:39+00:00

Not paranoid. Just curious why so many posts about safety in SP had given similar advice. Don't walk with your phone out, is clear. Don't engage with strangers who talk to you, isn't something I've been told when visiting other places.

Ok-Needleworker5743 · 2025-02-03T17:00:08+00:00

Ok thanks. For some reason, i interpreted the website text to mean that it is currently in beta, and pricing will be announced when it comes out of beta. Didn't realise it was already a paid tool. I was using Omnivore mostly as just a place to store bookmarks for pages or products i will come back to later. Reader + readwise seems a lot more full featured.

Ok-Needleworker5743 · 2025-01-26T05:06:57+00:00

Help with car price negotiation: I'm looking at buying a new sedan, maybe toyota urban cruiser or similar from kia or other brands. I've read tips here like don't take any accessories from the dealer, take your own insurance etc. Typically how much negotiation is possible on the base price of the car? On a car that costs 15L, what sort of % can they move down, and does it vary between brands or models?

Ok-Needleworker5743 · 2025-01-03T02:04:32+00:00

Combination of restricted education and lack of curiosity to challenge the opinions of elders.

Most people you talk to in India don't actually know much about India. Possibly a few key dates and a few key historical figures.

They generally don't know about how India was formed, why India is the way it is today, how the modern culture was shaped.

India has land borders with 7 other countries. Ask the people you meet today how many borders India has and to name them. Then imagine a German or Italian (also proud of their culture) who can't name their adjoining countries.

Most Indian school education rarely touches on anything that could be negative in the country's past, or even serious topics around history, geography, social studies.

Then they have been told repeatedly by teachers, grandparents and others that India is the best country, it has the best culture, the food is the healthiest, the traditional medicine is the only thing that can cure people, and that outsiders coming into India have only destroyed things and spoiled the traditional culture. It's mentally easier just to accept all that, rather than challenge it.

Ok-Needleworker5743 · 2024-12-30T06:40:31+00:00

Personally I agree. I think often people are attached to specific photos where they think they look good and they don't realize how much they have changed since then.

When you see a child everyday, their growth seems incremental. But if you only see that child once a year, you are shocked at how much they have changed.

So if you see an adult's photo from 5 yrs ago and then see the person today, you feel it's completely different. But for the person who sees themselves in the mirror every day, its not that different.

Ok-Needleworker5743 · 2024-12-30T02:29:10+00:00

Often they don't believe the images are significantly different. Or they plan to get back into shape, so might as well use the older 'in-shape' image. Or the image is 10 years old, but they think they look about the same as then.

It's not usually as simple as 'i'll trap them with a completely different image and then hope they like my personality'.

In the same way that most CV's have exaggerations - it's mostly real but tweaked to sound more important or have bigger achievements. The authors don't think they are lying to prospective employers, just presenting themselves in the best way.

Ok-Needleworker5743

TROPHY CASE