Bullying has become more prevalent than ever in middle schools and high schools, making kids feel anxious, isolated, and depressed. In many of these cases, concerned parents turn to “babying” their kids to make them feel better.
“Those girls are terrible, just don’t pay attention to them” is just one example of a momentary quick fix. In the end, that kind of well-meaning advice does little to help the child who has to go to school every day and face the bullies alone. And a child who is bullied at school will find it extremely difficult to focus on what’s most important — their education. Instead, they spend their years of schooling living in fear. Repercussions of bullying live long after the incidents and for some the trauma carries on into adulthood. For this reason, it’s wise to start learning to develop a strong sense of confidence at a young age.
Brazilian Jiu-Jitsu is built on the principles of patience, control, and respect. It’s the sport that might even have been developed with bullying in mind. As Jiu Jitsu grandmaster Helio Gracie famously noted, Jiu Jitsu “is for the protection of the individual: the older man, the weak, the child, the lady, and the young woman — anyone who doesn’t have the physical attributes to defend themselves.”
Ex-Navy SEAL commander and BJJ black belt Jocko Willink was asked how one should build confidence in order to deal with bullying:
