5 Motivational quotes to help you through BJJ

I have composed a list of 5 Motivational quotes to help you through BJJ. Throughout your BJJ journey, you will see hundreds or thousands of motivational quotes. These 5 really helped me over the years. The last one by Jim Rohn became a life credo for me.

“A journey of a thousand miles begins with a single step” – Lao Tzu

The hardest part of starting any martial art, not just Brazilian Jiu-Jitsu, is getting over the fear of walking through the front door. It is the hardest step you ever take and your first lesson….facing your fears. Facing fears is a huge part of the martial arts and you already did it unknowingly. One of the blackbelts at Savarese BJJ is a life-long martial artist who began under his dad. His dad is a member of the martial arts Hall Of Fame. He uses a saying he learned from his dad years ago, “face your fear and the fear disappears.” Taking that first step is the first step in becoming a blackbelt someday.

“You will never find time for anything. If you want time, you must make it.” – Charles Buxton

We all have lives outside of the Academy. The phrase “I’m so busy” or “I have no time” is used way too often. Truth is, EVERYONE IS BUSY in their own way. Over my 10 years of being a school owner, the most common thing I see is people unable to manage their time properly. If you want time, you must make it, you have to schedule things better or find a class you can attend. Even if that class is the dreaded 7am class.

Don’t let the fear of the time it will take to accomplish something stand in the way of your doing it. The time will pass anyway; - Earl Nightingale

There comes a time around 1 year into your bluebelt when students getting frustrated. They are frustrated with being defeated and their progress start to question whether BJJ is worth it because they are so far away from blackbelt. This saying goes hand in hand with the one below at this stage.

“It does not matter how slowly you go as long as you do not stop.” – Confucius

People quit at bluebelt more than any other belt. It is usually the longest belt next to black. In Saulo Ribeiro’s book Jiu-Jitsu University , he speaks about surviving at white and bluebelt. It is a tough time to go through but one almost 100% of blackbelts appreciate the most once they reach blackbelt. I am seeing more and more purplebelts quit as well these days. Recreational practitioners of the art will see their promotions come a little more slowly and will often get frustrated. They compare themselves to other who are sometimes training more, are younger etc. It is a mistake to compare yourself to anyone because everyone’s BJJ journey is different. Some may reach a rank faster, doesn’t mean they will be better long term.

“If you really want to do something, you‘ll find a way. If you don’t, you‘ll find an excuse.†—Jim Rohn.

This is my life’s credo. It helps me in the “no excuses” mindset I try to live by. Once I got rid of all the negative people and excuse makers in my life, I said this saying to myself over and over and my life got so much better because of it. I have ingrained this into my mindset so deeply that I can answer any excuse someone tries to give me about anything with this saying. Examples:

Hit too much traffic? Leave 15 to 20 minutes earlier

You’re taking extra classes this semester? Come to 7am or weekend classes

Don’t have the $? shovel snow, mow lawns, get a 2nd job on weekends or at night 1x a week, sell something you own that you do not need or stop spending on things you don’t need.

Once we get in the mindset of holding ourselves accountable for what we do and do not do, life gets easier and we make better decisions. Our focus gets better, our attitude gets better and we are happier.