Meet Alexi Noble | Founder of DFW Young & Social & Ballroom Dancer

We had the good fortune of connecting with Alexi Noble and we’ve shared our conversation below.

Hi Alexi, is there something that you feel is most responsible for your success?
One of the most universal sentiments I hear from my peers in their 20’s and 30’s is this: “Making friends and/or meeting romantic partners as an adult is hard.”

It doesn’t matter if they’re single, married, fresh out of college, or if they’ve been established in their career for fifteen years. Without fail, the complaint is the same.

But why?

The reality is, most of us are running in twenty directions, building careers and families. Increasingly, we’re working from home, or moving from city to city. As a society, the way our daily lives are set up makes it tricky to connect.

Yet even when we follow the standard advice for making new friends or romantic partners (go to classes, events, lectures, online dating, etc), more often than not, it’s still a struggle. Sure, online dating is its own can of worms. But I also can’t count the times my sister and I have gone to an event, hoping to meet people, only to watch crowds of interesting strangers—ironically, also there with the hopes of meeting people—disperse without saying one word to each other.

Hello, frustration!

But here’s the thing—it’s not our fault. You’re not crazy, or socially awkward. (I mean, we all have our moments, but that’s not why it feels hard. Ha!) The truth is, most social events just aren’t set up to support meaningful connections. Your goal is to meet others. But that’s rarely the top priority of the event itself.

I think the key to DFW Young and Social’s success so far is that our passion is not just for creating events, but for creating a lasting community for young adults. I design every event to be fun and creative in its own right—but most importantly, to make genuine connection as easy as possible. At the end of the day, my fellow young adults deserve a better answer. I’d like to give it to them.

Let’s talk shop? Tell us more about your career, what can you share with our community?
Like many people, I did a hairpin turn after college. I’d studied Political Economics, but I startled all of my friends by flying off to Hollywood to become a Ballroom & Latin dance professional.

I’d been dancing since the age of thirteen or fourteen, but only socially and in group classes. So when I tell you that it was a challenge—by golly, it was a challenge. I was by far the worst in the teacher training program at first.

But one thing I knew was how to study. I discovered that if I could challenge myself to the point where I was almost—but not quite—drowning, it was the fastest way to grow. And it worked! By the end of five years in Los Angeles, I’d taught hundreds and hundreds of students, learned well over 20 dance styles, and performed professionally alongside dancers with 30+ years of experience. I’d also begun working as an event planner/project manager for the studio’s performance company, helping to put together events for 150+ people.

Meanwhile, back when I first moved to LA, I didn’t know anyone outside of my classes. At all. So I started a Meetup. To my surprise, the group grew rapidly—over 6,000 online members by the time I hung up my hat. More importantly, I’d also discovered the joy of creating social events, and helping people connect.

I moved to Texas at the end of 2019, to be closer to family. I had a vision for something very much like DFW Young & Social. But then…well, you know what’s coming. To say 2020 broke my heart puts it mildly. To go from dancing and teaching almost every day to a near full stop, from having a vast social community to having my way of connecting taken away….well. I almost gave up on the dream altogether. But somehow, in my heart, I never quite could.

Fortunately, this story has a happy ending! In the middle of 2021, as things began to reopen, I launched DFW Young & Social! It was small at first, but it grew rapidly. Funnily enough, it was my members who coaxed me to teach dance again as well. Now, I combine my two loves! Alongside my general social events, such as hiking outings, museum days, or themed parties (such as our upcoming Halloween Extravaganza, and Holiday Masquerade Soiree)—some of the very most popular events I host are my dance socials! I’m so grateful to be able to connect with others again, as a teacher, a dancer, and a host. I will never not be grateful for that, and for every person who has chosen to take part.

Any places to eat or things to do that you can share with our readers? If they have a friend visiting town, what are some spots they could take them to?
What a fun question. You have to try Texas BBQ, if you eat meat. I don’t have a specific place for that, because my favorite place just closed down, sadly. If you like sushi and you’re willing to splurge, make the drive up to Denton. Yes, really. There’s a tiny little place, called Keiichi, that flies in its seafood directly from Japan. It also does some Japanese Italian fusion. It’s only open a couple of days a week and you have to reserve months in advance. But it’s worth it.

Then—Cowboy’s Red River. Yes, I’m biased—but what’s more Texas than Two-Step? Plus, the place has a Disco saddle. The Arboretum and the Dallas Museum of Art are also must-see items. And of course, if you’re between the ages of 21-40 (give or take a few years) you should take a look at DFW Young & Social. Hey, it’s a shameless plug, but it’s true—I host events every week, and it’s a great way to meet cool people and explore the city!

The Shoutout series is all about recognizing that our success and where we are in life is at least somewhat thanks to the efforts, support, mentorship, love and encouragement of others. So is there someone that you want to dedicate your shoutout to?
I’d like to dedicate my shoutout to two parties!

The first is my family, who has been endlessly supportive in my sprawling journey toward the birth of DFW Young & Social. I come from entrepreneurial roots—my parents were business partners before they married, and kept right on running businesses with each other my entire childhood. I was raised with the mindset that if you saw something that should be better in the world, you had a choice: complain about it and be miserable, or rise to the challenge and try to solve it yourself. In fact, maybe the Divine is calling you to do precisely that.

The second is my fiance and best friend, Marco, who is also my business advisor. We intersected just as DFW Young & Social was starting to take off. In fact, I met him for the first time at my very second event! His unwavering love, emotional support, and practical insight has made it possible for me to do so much more, so much faster, than I would have done alone.

Website: www.dfwyas.com

Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/dfwyoungsocial/

Linkedin: https://www.linkedin.com/in/alexidnoble/

Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/dfwyoungsocial