Position over submission

Control is key

Having control over yourself and an opponent is one of the core concepts that should be emphasized in jiu jitsu. While it is challenging to keep up mentally with techniques and submissions, I think far too many beginners and even higher belts forget the importance of control and neglect to prioritize it in their training. 

Pace yourself

Watching and rolling with black belts has taught me that rolling with pace is an indicator of true maturity on the mats. Being able to dictate how fast or slow the roll goes is control personified and should be the focus of every practitioner, regardless of belt color.    

Update the database

Better control comes with understanding which positions are good, neutral, or bad. As much as jiu jitsu is physical in its nature, it is also very much a cerebral art. Positional knowledge is a  fundamental portion of grappling growth. 

Submissions

It is necessary to change your perception on submission hunting. There are instances when prioritizing submissions is the right thing to do. For example, when your opponent is completely controlled with no immediate means of escape or when your opponent's defensive reaction exposes a submission. 

It’s not about winning

It’s human nature to want to win and to correlate losing as being unsuccessful. However,  it’s not about winning the roll or getting the most amount of submissions. Instead, it should be about improving in every position and increasing control in those positions. It’s easy to focus on submitting people you’re better than. It’s difficult to intentionally try and control yourself and your opponent in every position during a roll.