Get a Grip

The innumerable sweeps and reversals from the Guard provide the very foundation for the BJJ strategy of fighting from the bottom position. There are many styles of Guard, including, closed, half-guard, butterfly guard, etc. And each style provides a platform from which to execute an ever-growing armament of sweeps.
Each sweep of course, is different, and each has it’s own key-points that make or break it. But there are several things that are common to most sweeps and among the most important of these is ‘grips’.
Usually, when the fight goes to ‘Guard’, there is a scramble/fight for dominant hand-position. In simplistic terms, the person who achieves the grip[s they need, gets to advance forward in their strategy. Ie: if the person passing the guard gets the grips he/she needs, they advance to the next stage of their strategy – they begin to execute their ‘pass’. But likewise, the same applies to sweeps; if the person ‘playing guard’ gets the grips he/she needs, they in turn can advance in their strategy and begin the execute their sweep. The rule is a simple but profound one – grips first then sweep: grips first then pass. Only one person can win this grip-war; it is akin to a coin toss. One wins – and that person advances with their strategy. So when working a particular sweep it is vitally important to become clear on the grips you need to make the sweep work; and then diligently work (whilst grappling) toward attaining these grips before the opponent gets his ‘passing grips’. Start today – get a grip!
JBW

Needs ...

The most fundamental need we have is for certainty. We need to be certain that we are safe and secure; that we have a place to live and food to eat. This of course, ties in with certainty of gainful employment (or self-employment), etc.
Once we have squared away this need, the next in line is almost the exact opposite – a little uncertainty. Some excitement, something that appeals to our ‘inner child’; this is one of the main reasons people take up sports and embark on adventures; these things provide us with excitement born out of a sense of uncertainty.
Beyond these things, most of us want to feel that we are ‘significant’ in some way. We want to achieve. We feel a need to be acknowledged for our uniqueness.
When this uniqueness is acknowledged by another (whose uniqueness we in turn acknowledge) we sometimes find ‘love’. Love is a fundamental human need that can surpass all others when conditions are right.
If all of the above needs are being met, we will most likely yearn for some sense of ‘improvement’ or ‘growth’. Most of us feel the need to ‘aspire’, ‘move forward’, and improve the ways in which we connect with the world around us.
Lastly, one of the most important of human needs, is a quiet, (gentle nagging) insistence that we feel from within – the need to ‘contribute’. ‘Give something back’, we often hear successful people say.
For me, my martial arts training has always been in complete congruence with this philosophy of 'needs'. The confidence I earned from my training, took me from a place of uncertainty to a place of certainty. It also provided the next need – a little excitement. The chaos of fighting spoke deeply to my inner child. My achievements within the martial arts field gave me a sense of significance. Through such significance, I met the love of my life – and married her. The martial arts have inspired me to adopt an attitude of ‘excellence’ – I have applied this thinking to most areas of my life and been the better for it. Finally, I have more of a connection than ever before, with the nagging need to ‘give something back’ – providing others with what they need and want is something the universe seems to greatly approve of.
The martial arts journey is a journey of self-discovery and growth. I cannot recommend it highly enough. A deep connection to training provides me with a deep connection to life. Get connected.
JBW

Build a life - not a living!

It seems that we have a cultural obsession with making a living. The questions come with unrelenting insistence ... What are you going to be when you grow up? What course do you want to take at University? What job are you going to apply for? What career plans have you laid out? What kind of salary are you shooting for? It never ends! Even the answers to those questions don't really make people happy - not from what I have seen of life anyways. The happiest people I know are people with purpose - people who are passionate about the lives they live. The most important thing to do is to build yourself an amazing life - a life of purpose - a life you are deeply connected to. This begins with listening; listening to the 'taps on the shoulder' that the universe gives you. In the greater scheme of things, each and every one of us plays the most important part; learn to listen - what do your feelings tell you? What are the things you feel deeply about? What drives you - what really drives you? The answers to such questions connect you with a boundless source of energy; they allow you to connect with the type of life you are designed to live. Get connected. Build a grand life - not a great living!
Have a great Christmas and a great start to 2008!
Warm regards,
JBW

Brian wins Grapplers Quest!

Another great win for one of our black belts. Brian Johnson, from Seattle, a received hisblack belt from Dave Meyer and myself, earlier in the year. Brian is a good friend, a wonderful student and a passionate BJJ coach in his own right. He has a strong BJJ school in the Pacific North-west, and I make sure I visit each time I head to the states.
Brian just won the biggest grappling comp in north America, grapplers Quest. he tapped his way confidently through his division and take out gold in true style. Congratulations brian, on a wonderful achievement. I look forward to catching up again in '08! Best regards,
JBW 2007

New year - New Black Belt

Last night, we held our 'end of year' BJJ Gradings at Black Belt Studios. Five new blue belts were presented (earned) - two purple belts - one brown (Stewie Moulden from Bendigo) and a Black Belt to BBS 's own Craig Robinson. I see Craig as a real martial arts success story. Through sheer perserverance and dedication, he totally re-invented himself. His 9 year journey has been a very transformative one and he stands out as a wonderful example of what can be achieved through steady and unflagging commitment to training.

Craig is one of the most 'club-minded' people in the school. His work with the intermediate students has been exemplary. It was a very proud moment for me when I presented him with the coveted rank. Well deserved Craig - a huge congratulations from myself and the rest of the students at Black Belt Studios.

John Will 2007

Beyond here … there be dragons

Old map-makers used to mark the edges of ‘known territory’ with those words – “Beyond here – there be dragons”. What a vivid example of man’s fear of the unknown. Seemingly, we are not merely content to admit that we have a love for the familiar, we go a step further, we associate the unknown with fire-breathing, man-eating monsters.
The new paradigm could perhaps replace the old warning with the words “Beyond here – there be knowing”. There is, at this point, no stopping us. Think on all those people, who at one time or another, must have not given the dragons a second thought. It is those people who have pushed mankind ever upward, ever onward.
Dragon-slayers all.
JBW

Life Unfolds ...

Life unfolds. Each and every day we awake to an opportunity for re-invention. The wonder of the whole adventure is that we get to do a ‘re-take’ on who we are, each and every day. We are not our past; the past is simply a name for the series of paths and choices we made to arrive here in the present. We ARE, exactly who we continue to CHOOSE to be.
A lot of people leap at the chance to make new years resolutions; this represents a chance to ‘start over’; a chance to re-define who they are and how they act in the world. To that, I ask this – WHY WAIT?

JBW 2007

Cutting the strings ...

Dancing to the tune of popular opinion is something I have never done.
I suppose at one time, as a mildly disturbed youth, I did rebel for rebellions sake alone. Now though, my departure from the mainstream is a result of being in strong disagreement with the direction that the larger portion of society seems to be taking.
As children, and perhaps to some degree as adults, we are strongly influenced by the opinions and actions of others. Again, I hark back to our ancient genetic hardwiring that says if we are ‘familiar’ to the tribe, then we are accepted into the tribe and the chances of our survival are greatly improved. Ten thousand years ago, if we were outcast from the tribe, an imminent death would be the most likely result. And still today, we have powerful forces at work within that tell us to walk in the same direction that all the others are walking; we feel the need to speak the same, dress the same, undergo the same rituals … be like everyone else.
I just can’t do it. I’ve tried. It hurts!
In looking around at the world today, it becomes clear to me that I cannot accept the norm. Particularly, when I notice that the norm is: hard work for little pay, bad diet, obesity, illness, divorce, tooth decay and early death. I don’t mean to sound morbid – but seriously, who in their right mid, would choose to live such a ‘normal’ existence? Not this ‘upstart’.
I cut the puppet strings long ago. I still refuse to dance to the tune of society’s opinion and am happier, healthier, wealthier and more fulfilled for it.
JBW 2007