Shifting gears

A few weeks ago, my cousin told me something that really changed how I looked at my path.

He said that I was on the road to becoming a good blue or purple belt, but I was veering off the path of becoming a good black belt.

What that means is that I am entirely too focused on submissions and tapping people out rather than learning how to resist and defend submissions and escape from inferior positions.

I have been on a tear lately in terms of tapping people out, even those who have been training for much longer than I have.

However, my defense isn't as solid as I'd like, and I can easily be dominated when in an inferior position. The point is, once I rise up in the ranks, I am going to have a big hole in my game if I don't begin focusing on defense.

I look at my cousin who is an advanced purple belt, and I don't think I've ever seen him get tapped. Even when a submission is fully locked in, he always seems to be able to escape.

I feel that if if I change my focus and allow myself to get caught in inferior positions, I'll actually learn a lot more.

The ego needs to take a back seat, for real.