How to Consume Content - Part 2
Guest post part 2 with JiuJitology
[This guest post is a continuation of How to Consume Content]
I live by a philosophy and I got this from one of my favorite books, "Secrets of the Millionaire Mind". That philosophy is this:
"If you're not where you want to be, there's just something that you do not know."
The book changed how I looked at barriers and roadblocks and ultimately showed me that for everything I aspire to do better at, if I am stuck, it’s simply a lack of knowledge. Therefore, if I attempt to break through my own barriers, there’s something I need to learn.
This is the case in jiu-jitsu. For everything you are having trouble with, simply consider that there’s something you do not know. And this is why the consumption of content can be helpful. If you know your blind spots, then you know what you should be consuming.
How do you find your blind spots? Great question.
The best answer here is to talk to your instructors and coaches or you can hire a coach for a private lesson (or any online coaching) to help you figure this out. The old adage “you don’t know what you don’t know” is accurate. In jiu-jitsu, you don’t know what you don’t know and even I, a jiu-jitsu black belt, have this problem too.
If you do know your blind spot, then you can consume content that helps figure this specific problem out. In my last article for Grappler’s Diary, I talked about how to consume content by giving a simple, fundamental approach that I take to learning. It starts off with “The One Thing”. If you missed it, I encourage you to read it here.
The principle was that you should be consuming content based on “THE ONE THING”, such that by learning it makes everything else much easier. In my opinion, finding one specific thing to focus on and then studying that will pay immense dividends.
The next step was to continuously adapt that one thing. The “one thing” will continue to evolve and adapt and your job is to make sure you’re evolving and adapting with it. If you can continuously identify the one thing in your training, you will continue to reap the rewards of more focused content consumption that will lead to more focused training. This should lead to better results.
Now, let’s go back to the beginning of this article:
“If you’re not where you want to be, there’s something you do not know.”
I'll take it one step further and add: If you're not where you want to be, there's just something that you do not know OR there's something you do know but that you are not APPLYING”. This leads me to my next principle.
Principle Three: Knowledge without application is Worthless
All the content you consume is worthless if you're unable to apply it. Sure, you may take in some information that may be useful in the next month or two, but in order to optimize, you need to be applying that information ASAP.
So, for example, if your big problem is side control escapes but you're studying triangles, the likelihood of being able to apply those triangles is slim to none. So consume wisely. You need to be learning and applying immediately. Otherwise, your brain will discard the information you are not using. The brain likes to be efficient. It does not like holding onto information that doesn’t seem to serve a purpose.
Bottom-up and Top-Down Approaches to Content consumption
Alright, time for some actionable content. This is where I’ll help you strategize your content consumption. I also wrote a long-form article on what I call “Bottom-up and Top-down” approaches to training. For now, I’m going to show you how to strategize your content consumption based on this principle.
This section will essentially be split into two parts. And in order for me to explain these two parts better, I want you to understand that jiu-jitsu has a very logical path: I call it the “Jiu-jitsu funnel”.
Jiu-jitsu, as Danaher describes it, is the “art of control that leads to submission.”
When I heard this, I added my own little condition: “Jiu-jitsu is the art of control that leads to submission by decreasing power and mobility”.
So, with this said, what is the goal of a jiu-jitsu practitioner?
Assume both grapplers are standing. The goal of one grappler is to take the other grappler to the ground (decrease power and mobility), pass the guard (further decreasing power and mobility), pin (control: power and mobility are rendered null), isolate a limb, and submit.
The goal of the vulnerable partner in this case:
If the limb is isolated, it must then be consolidated (Bring elbows back in). Then the grappler must get on his side (increase mobility and power), create space to recover guard (increasing power and mobility), off-balance (decrease power and mobility of opponent) and sweep or submit.
Again, these are generic descriptions but you see the overall concept: Jiu-jitsu is logical and it follows a logical path from start to finish.
Now, before we get into the weeds with the funnel (Again, I dive deep into this funnel in my first book: here’s the plug again so you can take advantage for free), let’s talk about the bottom-up and top-down approaches to consuming content.
Working top down is a matter of working backward from the positions you do well in. For example, if you’re great at Kimuras, you’ll work backward from Kimuras. The “top-down” approach here is to work on transitions to and from the kimura. Work on your setups and specifically what positions lead you to the kimuras more often.
For beginners, let’s assume you’re working from scratch. In other words, you have no “top-down” (submissions) approach. Instead, you’ll be working from the bottom up. This includes your defensive escapes (positional and submission), as well as take-downs or guard, pulls (IE: the “start of the funnel).
When you work forwards and backward, you identify very specific positions and submissions to focus on instead of trying to get better at everything in between.
This should help you understand how you prioritize the content you consume based on how you want to strategize your learning. I believe you should be focusing on your strengths while also working to improve your defense overall until your defense is automatic and you’re an escape artist.
Now, let’s sum everything up from this article and my last:
Here’s the TLDR for these pillars:
1. Solve for "the one thing". What is the one thing such that by learning and applying it makes the rest of your jiu-jitsu easier?
2. Always ask "what's the one thing" because it changes often. Problem-solving in jiu-jitsu is dynamic, not static. The “one thing” will continue to change and you need to be actively looking for it.
3. Think of jiu-jitsu as "top-down" and "bottom-up". It's great to work backward from positions of strength. Combine that with a bottom-up approach of understanding how escapes, takedowns, and guard play will help get you to those strengths.
4. The above 3 should provide a framework on how you should seek out information. So in this case, as an example, bottom-up: You can't escape side control and you end up here a LOT. Solve for this. This is a defensive priority.
On the other end, top-down, you are noticing a proficiency with arm bars. Figure out how to get to these more often. What positions do you need to learn to get there?
If these two are the most important levers you need to pull in jiu-jitsu, then start your content consumption based on these two components and then continue to assess as your training environment changes.
If you need any help, feel free to reach out!
For more, you can find me on my substack at:
Ricardo is a first-degree black belt in BJJ and currently teaches full-time as a co-owner of his school. He has a Master’s degree in Psychology and enjoys getting into the psychology of training. To view some of his other content, you can follow him on Instagram and YouTube.
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