As for the second idea...
When I dance, I make a lot of empty meaningless movements.
I make some of tango steps just because I need to connect two movements together. I make some movements in folklore because I want to move from one point to another according to the dance scheme. Some of the movements I make while waiting for a certain music moment. I do not plan all the movements that I am going to make. I don't think specifically about the figures of the dance, but my subneocortex part knows somehow that there will be specific rhythm soon so I can dance it this or that way.
However, I stepped back from the main point. I make very few meaningful movements. Frankly speaking, it's very cool if such a movement happens to me at least once a tanda.
When dancing I feel like I am in a trance. I can think about whatever but the dance. I can think about the partner, about the traffic, about my job, about what I am going to eat, or I can even figure out what to ask my partner between songs. My body acts independently, it just moves and that's how my dance appears. Without my direct participation. I can talk while dancing, and it doesn't really affect my dancing technic.
Sometimes I wake out from this trance, by myself or with my partner's help. As though she asks me, hey, are you still here? I surprise, wow, she speaks! Not literally, of course. It usually happens when my partner decides to do something by herself, to take initiative in dancing instead of accepting what I offer her.