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Article by Peter J. Normandia. Follow me on Twitter.

Life can be very confusing with all the stimulus our mind has to deal with each day. We have bills to pay, family to make happy, work to do, bosses/clients to satisfy, dreams of a better life, and reality standing in our way.

All of this stimulus can really throw a wrench in our ability to prioritize what is really important, and what appears important on a daily basis. There is so much going on that we don’t know what we should focus on. Instead, we try to focus on it all.

I experienced the same type of situation while gaining rank in Jiu Jitsu. When I was a white belt, there was so much going on that I tried to pay attention to, my mind was unable to keep up with more experienced and athletic opponents. Everything my opponent did seemed like a battle for life or death.

Over time, as I got more comfortable, I learned to relax my mind and only pay attention to what is important. You see, all of the stuff I was paying attention to seemed important when I was a white belt. That is why every time my opponent moved, I reacted, or more likely, over reacted. This is because I did not understand what was, and was not important. Since I was not sure, I had to fight every battle as if it was my last.

Now that I am a purple belt (before brown) and carry five years of real experience, I do not react to my opponent’s every move. Each situation I get into, I am able to focus on what is important and disregard what used to appear important. So if my opponent is threatening a move, I know whether or not to take it seriously because I understand my priorities in each position I have experience in. In simple terms, I carefully pick my battles.

Life is much the same, though we don’t gain rank with colored belts. Instead, we gain rank in happiness. Much like any martial art, achieving happiness takes hard work. It is not easy to be happy. In order to truly be at peace with ourselves, we need to understand what we want in life.

On this Earth, no matter who we are, there is one thing we all have in common. That is time. Time is all any of us really have. If every government in the world toppled, and money no longer existed, time would still march on. There is no stopping it. The only thing you can do is roll with it. You can not save time. You have to spend it. So the question is, what do you invest your daily time in?

Valuing your time is a great way to prioritize your focus and motivate yourself. Remember, there is no choice on whether you spend your time or not. You are spending it regardless. Might as well get the most value out of it, no? If you look at the world from the view point of your time’s value, it becomes much easier to deal with the daily negativity and dilemmas we all face.

Here are some examples from my life:

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Someone says something bad about me.

In the past, I might try to confront them. To be honest, I probably wouldn’t be able to sleep until I did confront them. But now, I think of it in terms of my time’s value. Is it worth my time to deal with something somebody said? Or is it better to just move on and focus on my dreams?

I need to pay my bills, but I also have to grow my business.

My bills tell me I should get a job to pay them now. However, time tells me I need to invest as much of it as possible in my business to be successful. This helps me realize that, for me, growing my business takes priority over paying my monthly bills because it is my dream to earn a living doing what I love. It may suck for a little while, but in the end, I will be enjoying the time I spend working, and easily paying my bills.

Which job should I take?

Many of us look at one thing when it comes to work: the salary. We judge each job opportunity by the size of the salary and benefits package. However, when you take time into consideration, the salary does not seem so important. If I am going to spend the MAJORITY of my time doing something, I better be happy while I am doing it, or getting something equal to it’s investment.

If I am going to be miserable, even if the pay is good, it is not worth the time. On the same note, if I am going to spend my time to pay my bills each month, only to leave the job years later and have to immediately find another to pay my bills because I was unable to save, what is the point? I’d rather invest my time to help me climb up the financial ladder, then to just spend all my time moving laterally.

I can’t do that.

No matter what it is, this right here is the biggest bunch of baloney in the entire English language. This phrase should be banned for its lunacy. If all we have is time, then we certainly can do anything we put our mind to. We may not want to do something, or we may be afraid to do something, but saying we can’t do anything is just ludicrous. If we invest the time, anything is possible.

I really want to reach this goal, but I don’t have the time.

Well, if you’ve read this far you certainly understand that you do have the time. In fact, that is all we have. Now, your time may be tied up with other things, but the question is, what is more important to you: Spending your time doing other things that appear important, or taking the initiative to spend your time do what you always dreamed?

I’ll tell you this: No one ever accidentally lived a dream life.

How much do you value your time?

Are you spending the majority of your time doing what you love? Does getting up in the morning feel good, or is it the first of a long series of dreaded events in your day?

Remember, time is all we really have. We get to decide how we spend it and just like money, it is an investment. What are you investing your time in? Is the end result really worth it, or are you just delaying the inevitable?

Only time will tell.

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Article by Peter J. Normandia. Follow me on Twitter.

“The whole world is nuts. The only difference is the kind of shell we wear to protect us.” – Pj

Maybe it’s me, but lately I think everyone is a little on edge. I would imagine it has a lot to do with the economy. ‘Everyone is hurting out there, it’s just a matter to what degree’, a client recently told me. When money gets tight, emotions run high, and people can take out their rage in the strangest of places.

A perfect example of this is the other day. I was walking my dog through my development as I normally do. I live in a condo community, where you own everything on the inside, and they take care of the outside. You know, the basic definition of a condo. I stopped to talk to a neighbor about a stray cat everyone knows that animal control scooped up. I got the info I was looking for and continued walking. I stepped on the corner of grass in front of one of the condos when I heard a yell.

‘Hey, WTF are you doing? That’s the 2nd time I’ve seen you step on my grass.’

From out of their garage, this neighbor rapidly proceeded to get in my face with no shirt on. It was almost laughable. I explained to the dude that, first of all, it was not his grass. Second of all, you don’t have to be rude about it. If you would like me not to walk on someone elses’s grass, just ask politely. The dude acted as if he had snapped, and then regained control. He apologized briefly and just asked me to watch the grass he maintains.

Now, imagine being so angry in life that you are laying in your garage, waiting for someone to step on the corner of grass in front of a condo that you are renting. That’s right, not only does he not own the grass, he does not own the house either, yet he is worried about the grass.

I have noticed a rise in incidents like this ever since the economy started to decline. There seems to be more angry drivers, shoppers, customers, clients, and even business owners roaming about the world today. It is very tough out there right now, and the stress can weigh heavily on our minds throughout the day. Then, all of a sudden, one little incident can trigger a nuclear reaction. However, be careful out there. You never know when you might be messing with a blog writer who will tell your story to the whole world.

Even if you aren’t messing with a blog writer, it is important to not let the stress and emotions get the best of you. Currently, as I write this, I can think of many of my friends who would love to have their biggest challenge be navigating the current economy:

• My great friend, and ex-MMA fighter, who is now paralyzed after a motorcycle accident.
• My good friend growing up, who let drugs ruin his life, and now lives 50,000 miles away in Hawaii, unable to reconnect with his past out of fear of relapsing. He can’t even see his mother anymore.
• My sister’s friend who lost her sister in an automobile accident.
• A Cop in a town near me who’s 2 year old daughter just died from a rare sickness.

These are the kind of things that make us sit back and think that money problems are really no big deal. One way or another, we will get through them, and move on. Life is too big to stop for money issues, and so should we be. Why let some bills and debt ruin the days we are blessed to be above ground? So times are bad, economically. That does not mean they have to be bad overall.

I hope this post is a reminder to everyone of the important things in life. It sure is for me. It’s important to focus on your family, health, and happiness, not on the bills you can’t pay, or the job you hate. All of these things are changeable. None of them are life threatening, and in a few years, you may even sit back and laugh about it.

Until then, let’s all try to smile a little more during these trying times. Whether we are doing real good, or having the worst day, the fact that we are able to do one or the other, is really what we should be smiling about. I learned this first hand when I was hospitalized at 18 with Crohn’s disease. At the time, they did not know if I would get better. I remember all the little things I used to be concerned with kind of dissipated into thin air. They just seemed so trivial now that my quality of life was in danger.

Hopefully, it does not take a serious disease to teach you this valuable lesson. However bad things may seem, just remember, they could always be worse, just like they could always be better. At the end of the day, what’s really the difference? A good day is great, and a bad day makes you appreciate the good ones. Either way, we always win, no matter what our mind tries to tell us.

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Article by Peter J. Normandia. Follow me on Twitter.

The last few weeks have been a bit tough for me. Although it has been quite exciting building my business, and seeing projects coming to fruition, the problem has been in making enough steady money to live comfortably.  The future actually looks bright. It’s just, in the present, it’s still raining. I’m sure every entrepreneur knows the feeling. The money you make goes right back into the business as you keep on molding it to perfection, time and time again.

Yesterday, it just seemed like from the minute I got up, to the minute I went to sleep, the bad news just kept on rolling in. To sum it up briefly, there were credit card problems, client issues, a sick family cat that is not looking good, and my wife quit her job. You could say it was quite a whirlwind day.

In the middle of this nightmare, I went to my partner’s house to work on further branding our business, and finally put up our own website instead of everyone else’s. While he was going through the process, my head was spinning with all sorts of nonsense. I had too many things to worry about. The pressure felt overwhelming. What was I going to do? 

“PETE!”

….my partner yelled. He could tell I was on another planet. I fessed up and tried selling him on my problems, but he wouldn’t bite. Then he said something that took a little while to sink in, but eventually eased my mind. It was one of those things that is so obvious you almost don’t pay attention to the legitimacy of it.

He said, ‘What is worrying going to do about it?’

That had always been my motto on life. When I was sick, I did not worry about getting better. I just focused on getting through each day. The same goes for now. Things are rough out there, and starting a business in these times is very challenging. It is even more challenging when you need to sustain a certain level of living that your family is used to.

However, worrying about things is only wasting time.

In fact, I’ll take it further and say that worrying is actually a cop out to dealing with the problem. Instead of taking proactive steps to sturdy my situation, and fight through the rough spots, I was feeling sorry for myself. I was worrying about what I was going to do instead of actually doing something.

It’s like a fighter standing in the ring worried about getting knocked out. If you are thinking about it, chances are, it will happen. You don’t worry about getting hit when you fight. You expect it. You just focus on your game and trying to set the pace no matter what they throw at you.

If you are worried, you are not focused, and that means you will most likely fail.

I think this is a common trap many entrepreneurs fall into while trying to get their business off the ground. We get tied down with deciding each day whether or not we are going to make it. We worry about the outcome instead of dealing with the now. In the end, though, the ‘now’ is all we can control. We may be able to come up with all sorts of possible outcomes in our head, but none of them matter. The only thing that matters is what you do TODAY.

We must learn to stop worrying about whether or not it’s going to work out. As my partner said, have faith in yourself. It is going to work. It’s just a matter of taking care of the now. After this pep talk, we got down to branding Reimagine, and it went rather well. Instead of wasting time worrying about my situation, we spent it on making my situation easier for the future. I just have to remember that it all happens just one step at a time. Nobody leaps the staircase to success in a single bound. Not even Superman.

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Article by Peter J. Normandia. Follow me on Twitter.

The secret of success is actually quite simple if you think about it. Success is just about those people who keep on going when everybody else would have stopped.

For those of you that read Yin vs Yang regularly, you have definitely heard me mention Fallout Shelter before. I have chronicled their story a few times to show how persistence, patience, and perseverance can take you anywhere you want to go.

Recently, they have achieved a small success and their future is looking brighter then a new pair of 20 inch rims. URB Magazine has a big contest every year, and Haylo’s song ‘Don’t Let Her Go’ was one of the songs personally selected to enter the contest. Since then things have taken off. Fallout Shelter has been selling clothing, meeting new fans, and even was contacted by a big time Artist looking for beats. It’s a small step, but quite a motivating taste of the possibilities that lie ahead.

This just goes to show, that once again, no matter what anyone says, or how road the rough may seem, one day, if you keep on pushing, all the sweat and tears will seem worth it.  In fact, you will treasure them forever.  It’s tough times like these where we are reminded the value of everyday things we take for granted. It’s tough times like these that make moments like being selected for a major contest so exciting.

Success is an ongoing battle we all take part in daily. Most times we fail, but sometimes we triumph. It’s those of us reaching for the stars that benefit the most from these small moments of triumph, for they can carry us through the rest of our life.

So here is a Yin vs Yang tribute to Fallout Shelter for continuing to attack their dream with relentless passion. If you are interested, you can help them out by voting here.

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Article by Peter J. Normandia. Follow me on Twitter.

Every Monday is personal development through Jiu Jitsu…

Today, it occurred to me that achieving success in life is a lot like setting up a good arm bar. For those that don’t know, an arm bar is a submission attempt in which you use your body to hyperextend the elbow on someone’s arm. In training, and even fights, the person ‘taps’ before their elbow is hyperextended, unless they are rather dumb, which happens from time to time.

Today I was rolling with a lower belt in Jiu Jitsu. He was a stronger person than me, and weighed about 30 pounds more. I was on my knees in his guard (between his closed legs). He was ripping my right arm with all his strength, desperate to kick his leg over my head and apply an arm bar, similar to the guy on his back in the picture below.

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Now, trying to force a move on someone may work when they are less experienced because they don’t know what to do either. However, when dealing with someone more experienced, it’s a waste of time. This is because, one of the keys to Jiu Jitsu is…

Position before Submission

Before you attempt to apply the arm bar, you must first put yourself in a position to succeed. When my opponent starts pulling my arm, and sloppily wrapping his leg over my head, I immediately know what he is going for. Not only that, but there is plenty of space to escape through. This means my defense will be more successful than his submission attempt. He is trying to force my position, instead of properly setting it up.

The Set Up

After training for a bit, you realize that you must ‘set-up’ a successful arm-bar. You do this by applying the proper grips. Then you place your foot on the hip, rotate, slice your leg over their head, and apply pressure with your hips.  After doing these for a while, you realize the key is the first few steps. By making the first few steps successful, the rest of the move just flows. Once the grips are secured, and the foot is tight on the hip, the person will have a very tough time escaping, whether they know the move or not. Here is the right way to set up an arm bar…

Life is Like An Arm Bar

Life is very much the same. You can not force your way into any position in life. In order to reach your dream position, you must take the proper initial steps. Depending on your goal, it may take a long time, even years to achieve, but it is certainly worth the wait. Remember, it is not the speed that matters, it is the results.

The rest should be as simple as following your plan of action. The proper set up to any plan will make the final steps that much easier. However, if you take sloppy initial steps, your chances of success will diminish drastically, just like my opponent’s arm bar attempt. In fact, you could even wind up in a much worse position then when you started, just like he did.

Whatever you do in life, make sure you take the right steps and do it right. Put yourself in the position to succeed, or take the risk of dealing with the failure.

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Article by Peter J. Normandia. Follow me on Twitter.

Normally, today’s post is about personal development through Jiu Jitsu. However, today is not just any other day. First off, it’s Groundhog’s day. Secondly, in a few short house I will be leaving my 20s behind, and passing into the next phase of life otherwise known as my 30s.

Thirty years ago today (2/2/1979), at 1:22 pm, a 22 inch, 9 pound, 2 ounce bundle of joy arrived. I was the first child in my family, and the only male child for a long, long time. To celebrate this Yinvsyang style, I felt like writing a personal post to myself about what it’s like to look back on 30 years, and what to look forward to.

I can safely say that all of the previous decades I was completely unprepared for. I think your 30s is the first time in your life that you kind of know what to expect. In the teens there is high school, in your 20s there is drinking and college (not necessarily in that order), but in your 30s, you just kind of sail in unnoticed. Nothing much to look forward to age wise, except whatever you have going on in your life.

However, I am pretty excited about this decade. I figure I spent the last 29 and somewhat years learning what not to do. I am planning for my 30s to be the decade that I put all of those mistakes and learning experiences to good use. In light of this, I am going to list a few goals I have developed for myself to conquer in the next decade, not necessarily in any order…

1. Write a phenomenal screenplay
2. Make a movie
3. Have a child or two or three
4. Gross a million dollars for Reimagine in a single year
5. Get my black belt in BJJ.

Yes, these are some lofty goals, but if you are not aiming for the stars, where are you aiming? One of my favorite quotes, that my Dad sent to me, sums up my philosophy…

“The greater danger for most of us is not that our aim is too high and we miss it, but that it is too low and we reach it.” – Michelangelo

I think listing your long term goals on paper is a great way to inspire yourself to attain them. I would certainly suggest that anytime you have a birthday, especially a milestone one like 30, that you take the time to do so.

So let’s have a little fun for my birthday. I’d like to open up the comments today with a change of pace. I’d love to hear from all of you any advice, comments, or jokes, you have about turning 30. Let me have it!

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Article by Peter J. Normandia. Follow me on Twitter.

Every Friday is Video Day…

Two days ago, at the tender age of 95, one of the most influential martial artists in history, Helio Gracie, passed on from this world.

He is one of the founders of Brazilian Jiu Jitsu, also known as Gracie Jiu Jitsu. His list of accomplishments are too long to list. If you are interested, I certainly invite you to check out his Wikipedia page. His story is the stuff legends are made from.

The video up top is an interview from October of 2007. Helio talks about his long lasting legacy and what he considers his greatest accomplishment. As a student of Gracie Jiu Jitsu, I’d like to personally wish the entire Gracie family my condolences during this trying time. I have never met a bunch of nicer, more down to earth people than the Gracie family, and all those that train in their schools.

The video below, as explained in the voiceover, is s great example of why Helio had such a profound impact on the world of Martial Arts. It is two minutes of footage from Helio’s world changing fight against Kimura.

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Article by Peter J. Normandia. Follow me on Twitter.

Every Monday is personal development through Jiu Jitsu…

Everybody has read about the fear of failure at one time or another. I have even written about it myself. It is often talked about as the reason most people hold themselves back. However, there is another fear that can be just as strong an obstacle. It is the fear of success.

Back when I was in high school, I tried out each year for my varsity soccer team. I never made the cut, and even gave up my senior year because I doubted I would get playing time. In hindsight, it was one of the worst decisions I ever made. However, the funny part about the whole thing is I bet I could have made varsity at anytime if would I have just tried to do so.

I was reminded of these events this week while teaching my Jiu Jitsu class. There was a girl taking the class who has been training for awhile. She is pretty good, and just about approaching a blue belt level. We were doing guard drills when I asked her to go with a rather new and out of shape white belt. She hesitated because the guy was almost twice her size. For those who don’t know what guard drills are, she was going to get in between his legs while he was laying on his back. She needed to get her body past his legs while keeping control and not getting swept.

You could tell she was scared, but she gave it a shot. Unfortunately, she lost her balance and was swept over rather easily. Afterwards, I explained to her what she did wrong, and she actually knew what I was going to say before it even came out of my mouth. I realized she knew how to win, but she was afraid to do so. It was then I had the flash back to the soccer field.

Believing in Yourself

The problem the girl and the younger me shared was the lack of belief in our abilities. Both of us were afraid of the challenge in front of us, even though we were more than capable of meeting it. If she would have understood that here abilities were no match for her competition, she would have easily succeeded. Instead, she believed she was going to fail and that is exactly what happened.

Just like me, however, she was not afraid of failing. If she was, she would have never even tried. She was actually afraid of succeeding. By winning that battle, she would then have no excuse to face that challenge again. The safety net of being smaller and female would no longer be relevant. She would have conquered her fear, and therefore, eliminated the excuse. This is exactly what she was afraid of.

The same went for me on the soccer field. I was afraid of trying to be better than everyone around me. I was afraid of having to meet that challenge day in and day out against the best players in the school. I would have to come to compete everyday. I would have no excuse if I failed. This is what I was really afraid of.

Being a success, means you have a new expectation to live up to. You will be held in higher regard. No longer will you be able to blend in with the masses. Nope, as a success, you are on a pedestal that everyone else below you strives to be on.

This can be a very scary thought for some. Giving our best effort to succeed means we will have to continue to do so consistently. Being a success means we will be challenged and have to prove ourselves day in and day out. 

Blue Belt Blues

In Jiu Jitsu, it is similar to the ‘blue-belt blues’. When I first got my blue belt (the rank after white belt), I was extremely proud. I was one of the first to do so in my school, and it was quite an honor. That honor, though, quickly became a nightmare for me.

You see, as one of the few blue belts in the school at the time, I suddenly had a target on my back. Whereas it used to be okay to lose to someone with a white belt, suddenly I was supposed to be better just because my belt color changed. It was an enormous amount of pressure that actually set me back for a few weeks. During my matches, instead of just trusting my abilities, I was constantly afraid of not living up to the expectations.

It took some time, but I soon realized the reason my belt color changed was because I had the ability. I may not have realized it, but it was there. I just had to accept that success in my own head, in order to fulfill my potential.

Some people can see this situation before they achieve their goals. They can see that winning is going to set them apart and put enormous pressure on them. This is what causes the fear of success. To battle this, I have come up with three small steps on….

How to Overcome the Fear of Success

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1) Admit it to Yourself

The most important step is the admission of this fear. When I was trying out for soccer, I had no idea this was my fear. However, looking back, I can see it now. A surefire sign that this fear exists is if you are considered an underachiever at something. Simply put, that means you should be able to do something, but you are not. Chances are, it is because you are afraid of the challenges success might bring.

2) Live in The Moment

Rome was not built in a day. That saying is perfect for overcoming this fear. The fear of success is not the fear of the challenge in front of you, but rather the new challenges that success will bring. Well, you don’t have to conquer all of those right now. Take it one challenge at a time. Take a deep breath and conquer the challenge in front of you. Live in the moment.

3) Be an Inspiration

If your own success is not the right motivation, then do it for others. In the Bronx Tale, the tag line from Robert DeNiro’s character was, “There is nothing worse than wasted talent.” Wasting the abilities you are given is a disservice not only to yourself, but to those around you. Successful people inspire others to achieve their own goals. Remember, by doing your best, even if it is not good enough, you are inspiring those around you to do the same. You will push them to be better, and in turn, they will push you to be better. It is why successful people are never alone.  Once you achieve something once, it becomes easier each time thereafter.

“The world cares very little about what a man or woman knows, it is what the man or woman is able to do that counts.” -Booker T Washington

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At Yin vs Yang, we feel that humor is one of the best ways to deal with everyday life. Nothing provides more humor for me then my pets. Anytime I’m having a bad day, I simply chill with my cats and dog. They bring a joy to my life not possible to translate into words.  All the late night walks, accidents, vet bills, and annoyances that come with the responsibility of a pet do not come close to matching the joy they provide in life.

With that in mind, enjoy this video of some unexpected, and choreographed, animal clips. Being a pet lover, this definitely brought a smile to my face.

Enjoy the weekend!!!

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Article by Peter J. Normandia. Follow me on Twitter.

Every Monday is personal development through Jiu Jitsu…

Recently, I tweaked my knee and was forced to take a small vacation from the mat. I always like to say that Jiu Jitsu tells you when it’s time to take a vacation. This was one of those times, as I strained my meniscus while training someone. I have not been forced to miss this much time in awhile, not since I tore the cartilage off of my rib right after I got my blue belt (I am a purple now). However, I definitely learned an important life lesson this week as I started to make my way back.

The Pecking Order of Life

In a Jiu Jitsu school, there is always a pecking order. It is constantly changing, but for the most part, everyone knows who taps who. It is not like there is one person who taps everyone (except the instructor). No, in Jiu Jitsu, it is all about match ups. I may do well against Person ‘A’. Person ‘A’ may do well against Person ‘B’, but Person ‘B’ may tap me. That is just how it goes.

The pecking order is not really important. It is just there for motivation. If I know there is someone who gets the best of me, I try to roll with them as much as possible to figure out why that is. In my school, though, I have been lucky enough to be near the top of the order, simply cause I was one of the first students. Since then, I have consistently trained, and therefore, anyone newer has less experience. However, that can all change relatively quickly.

Right before I got injured, I had been training a lot lighter than usual. I have been working my but off to promote my business, and I have a major project that needed my full attention. So, basically, for the last month and a half, I have not really been putting my best effort forth at Jiu Jitsu.

Making A Comeback

The other day, excited as can be, I decided to give my knee a try and go back. Luckily, everything went pretty well. While it bothered me a little, it was definitely no big deal. In fact, my knee was the least of my problems. My biggest challenge was keeping up with all the students who had been training consistently since I was gone. Sure, my wind was a bit off, and I was rusty, but all of a sudden, half of the students I used to walk through were giving me problems. Their guards were better, their movements were crisp, and their reactions were a step ahead of mine. Suddenly, I was not so sure where I stood in the pecking order.

Since my return (a week), I have trained a few more times and things are slowly returning to the way they were. However, what a shock it was for me at first. I never figured the time off could set me back as much as it did. What I failed to consider, was that while I was resting, other people were training. They were working to get better, while I was staying stagnant, or even falling back slightly.

The fact is my competition did not take a break, I did. Now I am going to have to work twice as hard to get back.

Jiu Jitsu = Life

My Jiu Jitsu school is like a very small sample of life in general. In life, and especially in business, if I take a break, I must realize that my competition will continue to work. Just because I was at a certain level when I stopped, does not mean I will automatically take back that level. While I am sleeping, resting, vacationing, dilly dallying or whatever, someone out there is working to get better than me at my bread & butter. Just like my Jiu Jitsu school, when I return, it is going to be twice as hard to get back to where I was.

This is not to say, don’t ever take a break. Rest is very important, especially if you are injured. But in the business world, there is no rest. We all need to sleep and take breaks, but we must realize the effort we are putting forth. See, my issue was not the injury. My issue was the slacking off I did before the injury. I was barely putting forth a solid effort and then I was forced to stop completely. Couple those together, and all of a sudden I fell almost two months behind.

Being on Top is Not Permanent

We all can get complacent when things are going well. When you are riding high on the ocean of life, it can be very hard to see when the wave is going to break. Then, out of nowhere, everything can come crashing back to earth. It forces you to get back on the surfboard and start paddling again as you watch your competition surf on by.

This post is a reminder to continue working hard, even if you are doing well. Just because you are at the top of the game, does not mean it is a permanent position. It is important to remember the work ethic that got you to that point because it will take the same the work ethic, if not more, to keep you there.

Think of it this way: The position you are in is bound to change naturally, because it is out of your control what others do. So, if that is the case, then you can either work to consistently adjust to the competition, or get comfortable in your spot and watch everyone else pass you by. With that in mind, I have come up with…

5 Tips to Fight Off Complacency

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1. Set New Loftier Goals

Sometimes, to re-energize ourselves, we need to set new goals. When I first started Jiu Jitsu, I never imagined I would get my purple belt. It just seemed so far away. Now that I have achieved that, it is time to focus on getting a black belt, something that never even seemed possible before. Setting this new goal will give me the energy to continue to train hard.

2. Find Someone Who Is Better

If your competition is not providing the challenge you need, find someone who does. Whatever your field, search high & low for a competitor worthy of your level. Remember, you only get to the top by beating the best. It is your job to continue to seek out those who are better.

3. If No One is Better, Create Your Competition

In Jiu Jitsu, this is kind of unrealistic. However, in life, sometimes we are the best at what we do. The best way to fight off complacency when you are on top is to create a better person. Challenge yourself by creating the perfect competition. What makes them better? How can you be more like them?

4. Take A Mentor Role

Sometimes, when we have reached our goals, we can find motivation in helping others reach theirs. I believe the best way to consistently improve yourself is to teach others what you know.Find someone who wants to be where you are, and help them get to that position. Indirectly, you will watch yourself grow as a result.

5. Raise the Stakes

When I roll with a person in Jiu Jitsu that I know I can beat, I tend to raise the stakes. What I mean, is I will let the person get me in a very bad position. I will allow them to get the right position in order to tap me. It is then that I will start to roll for real. This helps me prepare for when I am really put in that position. The preparation of getting out of bad spots allows me to get the most out of training with a person not on my level.

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What tips can you add to this list to fight off complacency….

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