Stance is the foundation

I've noticed lately how the proper stance is the basis of everything in fencing. Just a little something out of place leads to all sorts of other things happening. The trouble is, it's one of the hardest things to correct in fencing, both as a coach and as a fencer. There are many reasons for this but the primary one is that the focus of fencing tends to be on the weapon and the techniques used to deliver it onto the opponent, i.e. various types of attacks, ripostes etc etc. The form of the action tends to dominate the attention so that when the fencer is practising say a disengage attack they concentrate (rightly) on their fingers and neglect the attention on the feet and body. In some ways the footwork and stance are less glamorous than the attacks and parries. However, if the feet are wrong the balance is wrong, if the balance is wrong the body is wrong, if the body is wrong the arm is wrong, if the arm is wrong the hand is wrong et voila! The whole thing falls apart.
So as a fencer what to concentrate on? Well, in all honesty it's difficult to say, but if you consider the basics as your foundation and are mindful of them when fencing then hopefully all will be in balance. If that fails, you've always got your coach to nag you!