Winning is important. It’s important both in life and Brazilian Jiu-Jitsu alike. Performing your technique with precision, and getting the tap with it… It’s such a marvelous feeling.
But marvelous as it may be, submitting people isn’t the most important thing in BJJ. Instead, you should focus on the experiences you gain as you spend your time on the mats!

EXPERIENCES OF LEARNING NEW TECHNIQUES

Learning new things is one of the most fantastic of things you can experience. From pouring so much effort and sweat into figuring out how a technique or setup works… To finally understanding and performing it with ease – that’s such a treacherous journey, but an extremely rewarding one in the end!
Enjoy the experiences of learning new things in Brazilian Jiu-Jitsu. Both the trill and the agony associated with it.

EXPERIENCES OF COMPETITION

Your adrenaline skyrockets, as you face your (hopefully) first opponent of the tournament. You don’t know how the match will end up, but you know very well that you’re going to give it your all. And what happens, happens!
The experiences of competing are second to none in all martial arts, grappling included. It builds character, perseverance… And it transforms you into a more complete Jiujiteiro.

EXPERIENCES OF THE DOUBTS AND THE BAD DAYS

Not everything is milk and honey in Jiu-Jitsu. There will be a lot of days when you’ll come to class feeling totally unmotivated to do anything. When you’re experiencing stress from work, school, or family… And when it seems as the whole world is against you.
Other times, the time you spend training will be agonizing itself. You’ll doubt your skill level, the belt that you wear, and whether or not you’ll ever be anything close to a „good“ athlete. Sometimes, these days will multiply and tie into weeks, months; heck, maybe even into a year.

Treasure these experiences. For, if you push through them and continue rolling nevertheless, they’ll make you a much more resilient person!

EXPERIENCES OF IMPROVING YOUR MINDSET

And that’s another one of the many great things that BJJ has to offer – through training, you’ll improve your mindset immensely! You’ll figure out that just because things are going bad right now, that it doesn’t mean that they will stay like that forever. That if you keep going, the clouds will eventually disappear and the Sun will shine through.
You won’t quit as easily as you did before, in all areas of your life. You’ll smile more, embrace challenges more, and experience life with more joy!

EXPERIENCES OF MEETING NEW PEOPLE AND SEEING NEW PLACES

Oh, the people you’ll meet through Jiu-Jitsu! They come from all sorts of different backgrounds, they have so many different ideas, cultures, histories, and worldviews that radiate through… That you’ll get to experience as you roll and talk with them!
All of these new people that you’re meeting on the mats will inspire you with new perspectives, shining a ray of light onto the parts of your life that are still unexamined.

Additionally, there’s a big probability that you’ll visit some insanely interesting places as you train! Cities, villages, countries that you’d never visit otherwise if there weren’t for that tournament or team road trip that you went on.
And guess what? Being in a new place, you’ll meet new people – so your experiences multiply with ease!

BREATHE, FULLY.

Don’t cut yourself short by focusing solely on „winning“ in Brazilian Jiu-Jitsu. Rather, embrace it as a whole! Breathe Jiu-Jitsu fully, with your mind open to experiencing it to the maximum.
But above all, enjoy it! And have faith in yourself.