Frank Chen

Frank Chen

each one teach one

"The single biggest mistake young people make when they decide to pursue a career in jiujitsu is assuming that winning tournaments is automatically going to lead to professional success. The reality of our work in jiujitsu is that we make a living based upon our capacity to create value in the form of instruction for others. What this means ultimately is that your ability to meaningfully understand the mechanics and tactics of the art of jiujitsu and your skill at expressing this knowledge through your teaching is far more important to your work than any competitive accolades."

"Competition is a beautiful thing if we understand we are doing it to improve ourselves. In that sense it's a very personal, selfish journey. Beyond that if you want a career in this art the next step is to learn how to engage in research and how to convey that research through instruction that makes other peoples lives more fulfilling. If we aren't making peoples lives more fulfilling through jiujitsu then ultimately what is the point of doing this?"

~ Robert Degle

I've always had difficulty accepting that those without competitive accolades could be successful in other ways, but like competition, teaching, explaining, and conveying technical information in a digestible way is a learned skill.

Sure, if you wanted to sell instructionals, it helps if you have competitive accomplishments, but it's totally viable to be an amazing coach regardless of competitve accolades.


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