E·go ˈēɡō/
noun
a person's sense of self-esteem or self-importance.
"a boost to my ego"
self-esteem, self-importance, self-worth, self-respect, self-image, self-confidence
"the defeat was a bruise to his ego"
It's easy to say check it at the door, but like shrimping, it ain't easy. (“Shrimpin’ ain’t easy.”)
Ego gets in the way of jiujiitsu in lots of ways. One way is in feeling like you have to win, all the time. When you are tapping someone out ego prevents you from developing weaker parts of your game because you are afraid to lose. Ego also keeps your partners from developing their game because every roll becomes a competition and not training.
Ego makes you want to defeat people you may not be able to due to size, skill level, age, or other factors. You may mentally defeat yourself with negative feedback based on your own ego.
Ego can also make you feel like you deserve something you don't, such as belt promotion. No one deserves a promotion (though I do believe people who have earned it deserve the right to test for promotion.) People come to expect promotion due to having attained skill, time on the mat, etc. It's up to the professor's judgement on when someone is to be promoted. No one deserves a promotion for any reason. You pay for lessons and training, not for promotion. Dealing with the ego sometimes can be the lesson of The Wait.
This is a lesson I am learning right now. To free myself from ego and expectations of reward and live in the jiujitsu moment. Learning, playing, practicing for the love of jiujitsu and learning it’s way, rather than being bothered with the attachment of the ego and desire for the belt.
I had to remind myself that a professor doesn’t owe a student anything but lessons and training. They do not owe you a belt. A belt is just a visual representation of skill and whatever other subjective things a professor looks for. But it is not owed to you, regardless.
So I have to let my ego go so that I can be free from it, and therefore free from its trappings. Just play jiujitsu for jiujitsu sake. Leave your ego at the door.
noun
a person's sense of self-esteem or self-importance.
"a boost to my ego"
self-esteem, self-importance, self-worth, self-respect, self-image, self-confidence
"the defeat was a bruise to his ego"
It's easy to say check it at the door, but like shrimping, it ain't easy. (“Shrimpin’ ain’t easy.”)
Ego gets in the way of jiujiitsu in lots of ways. One way is in feeling like you have to win, all the time. When you are tapping someone out ego prevents you from developing weaker parts of your game because you are afraid to lose. Ego also keeps your partners from developing their game because every roll becomes a competition and not training.
Ego makes you want to defeat people you may not be able to due to size, skill level, age, or other factors. You may mentally defeat yourself with negative feedback based on your own ego.
Ego can also make you feel like you deserve something you don't, such as belt promotion. No one deserves a promotion (though I do believe people who have earned it deserve the right to test for promotion.) People come to expect promotion due to having attained skill, time on the mat, etc. It's up to the professor's judgement on when someone is to be promoted. No one deserves a promotion for any reason. You pay for lessons and training, not for promotion. Dealing with the ego sometimes can be the lesson of The Wait.
This is a lesson I am learning right now. To free myself from ego and expectations of reward and live in the jiujitsu moment. Learning, playing, practicing for the love of jiujitsu and learning it’s way, rather than being bothered with the attachment of the ego and desire for the belt.
I had to remind myself that a professor doesn’t owe a student anything but lessons and training. They do not owe you a belt. A belt is just a visual representation of skill and whatever other subjective things a professor looks for. But it is not owed to you, regardless.
So I have to let my ego go so that I can be free from it, and therefore free from its trappings. Just play jiujitsu for jiujitsu sake. Leave your ego at the door.
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