It is said that, “Life is hard.” Even within the context of our modern era, and all the luxuries that we enjoy these days, there are those who succeed and those who fail, those who appear to have it pretty easy and those who struggle. On this spectrum one can find families who are financially secure and those who struggle to make rent, or world-class athletes alongside poor folks who are too obese to get out of bed.
There are many factors that lead to such disparity. Many are out of our control, such as our genetic predisposition, or where we were born, whether geographically, or socio-economically. As I’m continually reminding my children, fretting about these things is a waste of time and energy. Focus instead, on the things you can do something about, and get busy doing something about them. In this regard, Life is hard – it requires a concerted effort over a long period of time in order to achieve higher levels of success.
Take world-class athletes as an example. Ask anybody who has competed at the World-Championship or Olympic level in any sport and they will tell you the same thing. It is a long, hard road. Having some talent doesn’t hurt, but at the end it’s about who is willing to put in the long, hard hours, day-in and day-out, year after year, in order to reach their goal.
Thankfully, there is plenty of research on this subject. Indeed, self-help/self-improvement is a multi-billion dollar industry. While there are many factors recognized as being keys to success, one constant is Grit: dedication, indefatigability, perseverance, steadfastness, tenacity, or stick-to-itiveness. Whatever you wish to call it, one undeniable fact is: those who keep trying keep succeeding.
Check out this great Ted Talk on Grit.
This week the Little Samurai and Junior Jujiteiros will be working on escaping the side control and mount positions, while Adults Level 1 will be working on arm bars and arm bar escapes.
See you on the mats!