Waltzing with the Right Partner

I have taken a few ballroom dance classes over the years. My first dance class was as an adult and I learned to waltz. Well, I can at least say I learned the basic tenants of a waltz—essentially a box step that is repeated over and over and over again.

The waltz is a beautiful dance. However, I learned many years ago, with my first visit to South America, that my soul is Latin. Let me explain.

I grew up in a household where there was music playing very often. Even today, it is common for me to turn on music at some point during the day. Music is good for my soul. It is comforting. Not because it is peaceful, but because it makes me want to dance. ?

Latin music, which I listen to infrequently, also makes me want to dance. So, after my waltz class, my next ballroom dance class was salsa. I absolutely loved everything about it. The vocals, the horns, the bass, the rhythm—all of it made me want to move. And samba! Don’t even get me started.

The last dance class that I took (pre-COVID) was a tango class. Tango is a different beast. It is a Latin dance, but it is nothing like salsa or samba. You are actually not supposed to move your hips in tango. Yet the lines of the dance are just gorgeous. It has been, by far, the hardest dance for me to learn, as it requires that I unlearn my natural dance tendencies.

When you take ballroom dance with a group, there is usually a rotation of dance partners that happens in the classroom. Imagine that you are in a circle with leaders (traditionally men) on the outside and followers (usually women) on the inside. The leaders stay put and the followers rotate to the next leader. The goal is to not let you learn the “bad habits” of a single partner.

In ballroom dancing, there are often twirls, where the leader is required to bring their arm and hand over the top of follower’s head and lead her into a turn or twirl. This is sometimes the most awkward move for the beginning leaders dancing with me (as a beginning follower) because I am 5 foot 10 inches tall.

Sometimes, the rotating dance circle is not my friend. If I am dancing with the instructor or an experienced leader, twirls is not a problem. However, I really need to have the right partner to learn these dances properly. My partner matters.

Last week, I mentioned that I would discuss for the next several weeks ways to upgrade in a downturn. This week I want to encourage you to find the right partners.

As a business leader, to find the right partner, you must be keenly aware of your own core competencies. With this knowledge, you can create a clearer vision of what you need to invest in and what you need a partner to bring. When you have fewer resources to invest (as in a down market), the right partners can be the right upgrade.

A downturn is also a good time to find partners with whom you have a common customer. Perhaps you are a natural service provider for a partners’ customers. Maybe you have unconverted leads that are valuable to a potential partner.

For most businesses, a downturn is not the time to vertically integrate. Identifying supply chain partners who you can work collaboratively with will require less capital and allow you to focus on core competencies.

In these uncertain times, it is important to know that you do not have to bear the market downturn alone. You can find the right partners and waltz into a beautiful collaboration.

#partnership #strategy #marketing

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Katherine Hunter-Blyden?is a CMO Partner at TechCXO. She is a senior marketing executive with P&L management experience. As a full-stack marketer, Katherine's experience includes brand strategy, advertising, digital marketing, sales promotion, product management, pricing and market research. Katherine helps businesses meet their goals with data-driven, quantifiable results.