Learn to Lose

The longevity of your grappling career is going to depend on your ability to lose, especially if you start after 30. When you begin, you will lose all the time. Two things happen if you can't handle that. One you are hurt all the time, from exerting unnecessary force, or two you quit. Neither of those is what anyone wants. Even as you age and you're good at jiu jitsu, you will have to accept that there are those out there who are going to overtake you, including your own students. I fully believe that in the next five years my 12-year-old student will be coming for his revenge. That's okay, that's what I want. If I don't lose to my students eventually, I'm not doing my job. All of us have to figure out how to lose for both the beginning and the end of our grappling journeys.