Unexpected +10 Role Models
Last night I went out Salsa dancing. I really enjoy Salsa dancing. I’m not a natural dancer, but I practice a few nights a week and I’ve really improved. I consider Salsa dancing one of my personal +10 activities, because it really makes me happy.
As the music started playing, there was the usual awkward “8th grade moment” where the people separate into three groups.
- People who are definitely going to dance.
- People who might dance if asked.
- Those who are just there to watch.
Since I am out to make my night +10, I am in the first group. I start scanning the room for a woman in “group 1″. I find her. We dance. She was not bad, but was not good either. She was better than most, but couldn’t keep a beat. If you’ve ever partner danced before, you know that this situation can’t be sustained all night. So, after a couple of songs, I politely moved on to look for another partner. All the “group 1″ women were taken so I started looking for some “group 2″ women (women who might dance if asked).
My eye catches a very attractive woman who is smiling while watching the others dance. She’s tapping her toe and you can see her hips swaying virtually imperceptibly to the music. This is defintely a “group 2″ woman. She wants to dance. She’s just not going to make the first move. I walk over and introduce myself and she is DELIGHTED to dance.
So, we start dancing. Within 5 seconds I can already tell that this woman is WAY BETTER AT SALSA than me. We’re having a good time and we start chatting. She’s a doctor. WHA?
Now, don’t misinterpret my statement and infer that I don’t think doctors can dance. That’s not the point. My point is that the doctors I have encountered work very long hours, do not take care of themselves, are always tired, and certainly don’t have time to go dancing on a Wednesday night. Let me review the attributes of this woman…
- SMART – She’s a doctor!
- Beautiful – you had to be there, but believe me, she was.
- Fit – You could bounce a quarter off of this woman’s abs.
- Happy – Happy eyes, happy smile, happy everything.
- Graceful – An unbelievable dancer.
- Gracious – I was so not-in-her league (dancing-wise) but she never showed any sign of discontent. She just enjoyed dancing with me at the level I was at.
- Married – just in case you’re wondering if I asked her out. No, I didn’t
After a few dances we switched partners. She went on to a man who I have seen dance before and I knew was very good. When these two started dancing, it was like an atom bomb went off. I have never seen such an awesome display of skill and grace, not even in a movie. It was fantastic.
What am I driving at?
Some days, I look in the mirror and I feel like I’m doing pretty well for myself. That’s great, but if you look at yourself like that for too many days in a row, you start to lose your edge. That’s what has been happening to me over the last couple of weeks. Meeting this woman last night was a great reminder that you can always do something to be closer to +10. If a doctor, who likely works 60 hours a week, can make time to eat right, exercise, and learn to dance like Ginger Rogers (oh, and I think she’s probably 5 years younger than me), all while maintaining a genuine smile on her face, then what excuse do I have to not work just a little bit harder at being all that I can be? Pretty much none…
Goddamn, I love striving for +10!
