The Hidden Threat in Your Journey
In truth, technical stagnation is rarely due to a lack of information. The techniques are there. The instruction is present. The problem is often psychological.
Among the most detrimental mindsets a practitioner can fall into is that of ‘The resistant learner’. This person appears to be engaged in learning. They ask questions. They describe their difficulties in detail. But beneath the surface, there’s resistance; not to the struggle of training, but to personal responsibility.
They frame their failures externally:
“My training partners are too rough.”
“My coach doesn’t explain things clearly.”
“No one wants to help me improve.”
And when solutions are offered, such as, “Try drilling more deliberately,” or “Have you focused on escapes first?”, the response is always the same:
“That won’t work for me.”
They speak of their struggles as if they want answers, but they’ve already decided none will help. These are students more committed to their narrative than their growth.
This mindset becomes a self-imposed cage. They seek validation for their suffering, not solutions for their growth. Over time, the mat becomes a stage where grievances are rehearsed, not skills refined.
Contrast this with the mindset of the disciplined learner: a person who studies their failures like a case file. They don’t romanticize hardship, but they take ownership of it. When they’re passed, they don’t ask, “Why did my partner do that?”They ask, “What did I allow?”
They understand that growth requires confrontation with the self. Not in dramatic gestures, but in the quiet choice to be accountable, to learn, to try again.
So, beware of becoming the student who seeks counsel but rejects correction. The kind who tells everyone what’s wrong but never listens for what could be right.
If you recognize the voice of resistance in yourself, that’s not shameful. It’s a signal. A chance to shift. A moment to stop rehearsing the reasons why you can’t, and instead start exploring what would happen if you simply tried again.
The mats do not lie. They will reveal our mindset more clearly than our words ever could.