[armbar1]

http://bjjcanvas.com/embrace-the-process/

Thoughts or comments??

[buhriyon]

Interesting read, although the I disagree with the interpretation of "The Art Of Learning", I was under the understanding that he didn't want' to play because it just wasn't fun competing at the level he was competing at, but I guess it can be seen either way.

[bjjgrrl lgd]

[georgetteoden]

No offense to the author but I thought it was a boring post. Lots of trite, truistic blather.

[Shinoken]

Yeah, that comment wasn't offensive at all.

[scotty2dogs]

[quote="Shinoken"]Yeah, that comment wasn't offensive at all.[/quote]

[georgetteoden]

Well-- I could have put that better. What I should have said:

I don't mean this to be a personal attack against the author, but in the spirit of honest and hopefully constructive criticism, I will say the post itself was boring, trite, and full of truism.

The "blather" comment was not constructive and was almost certainly born out of a low-blood-sugar moment. I apologize!

[parabellum]

[Shinoken]

I am the author, and it is my site. I wrote that post for a very specific audience. It was for those who aren't naturally wired to persist in the face of adversity. It's a learned behavior so to address it you have to reinforce the message that setbacks are only temporary unless you allow yourself to be deterred.

Right now, I have a teammate who won the Pan Ams and then lost in the first round at Worlds. He's been down and out every since. He went from being excited and motivated about training and competing to indifference because of a setback. It saddens me, and I don't like to see it, but I see such things too much.

Now on the other matter, to say that the post was boring, trite, or full of truisms is not helpful to me at all. So it cannot be considered constructive criticism in any way, shape, or form. There is no way for me to take that comment and make changes in order to better convey the message.

Also the idea that concepts aren't worth repeating is something I cannot agree with. Even if the concept of defeat being only a mindset was truly self-evident and everyone knew it, there would still be worth in reinforcing the message.

Just knowing something doesn't mean that you are able to apply that knowledge. It's only by consistently drilling the message in that you can reach the point where you just naturally keep moving forward even when you trip.

[sOz]

[georgetteoden]

I'm happy to explain what I meant. See below.

[blksheep618]

I believe that books such as the Art of Learning and The Talent Code are great reads and offer at least a perceptive into the mental aspects of becoming good at something. Both books present debatable concepts, but isnt that what its all about anyway? I am a firm believer in needing to fail or at least be challenged to the brink of failure, in order to experience sustained growth in whatever you do in life. If you dont use it, you lose it, whether its your muscles, cardio vascular system, or your brain. You either agree or disagree with the concepts, but at least you have an opinion.

I am in the process of reading AoL and just completed The Talent Code and posted a review of it on my blog (http://southernjiujitsu.com/?p=254).

[Shinoken]

[georgetteoden]

Sadly, I get short, critical, to-the-point critique of my writing on a regular basis from my boss and colleagues, right before I file in the the USSCt. And I don't take it personally. The goal is to produce the best possible product.

I recognize that my initial post was overly harsh-- I tried to soften it a little bit although my self-deprecation was obviously not significant enough to make you feel better. I apologize again. My intent was not to cause hurt feelings. It was my honest, knee-jerk reaction. Clearly, your blog post was written from the heart and not intended to be a magnum opus on the subject of motivation and success in sport. I hope you keep writing about what's important to you. If you think my critique was way off in left field, then ignore it If I might have been a little bit right, tuck it away in the corner of your mind and the next time you post, perhaps it will help.

Cheers and happy training. And happy writing

[scifigal]

When I read it, I had a negative reaction to the opening line - to be very honest, it read like a white belt or new blue. It didn't sound humble at all and I couldn't connect with it.

I also agree - there was a lack of personality in it. It read like a "truth" but the problem is that it seems to lack perspective - what I mean is that - I'm a blue belt, and my jiu jitsu journey is just beginning - less than 3 years old. For me to be talking about jiu jitsu truths it doesn't ring true. For a black belt to speak about BJJ truths - rings more true, but I still don't know that I've read articles where black belts were talking about their quest for greatness or that they are on a path to being great.

I think what Georgette is saying, (and please correct me if I'm wrong, G), is that the way you wrote sounds too lofty to connect with.

I know that one thing I appreciate about blog posts, books, and perspectives, is having a personal connection. Someone talking about their teammate, a challenge they went through, or even a lot of nitty gritty personal realization about themselves, their attitudes, or their lives. It felt like it lacked perspective - like it was too sanitary, too much of a truism.

What I appreciate is when people take truisms and they add their own insight or some personal perspective. It felt like it lacked that - like you were only speaking in "truths" and about other people's stories.

I sincerely hope this was viewed as constructive - it was intended to be. It was my personal opinion, and if most or all of your blog posts are written from that perspective, I would not likely read again - there's no personal voice in there, and if it's all "truths" I'd like to hear them from a black belt.

[PotownAl]

[parabellum]

Shinoken:

If you had responded to Georgette with "Damn, I'm sorry this article missed the mark for you. Your critique was harsh, but I appreciate all honest feedback, hopefully my next article will have more insight that you can appreciate"...(or something to that affect), at least you would have put your money where your mouth is in terms of actually living the stuff that you talk about in the article.

If you can't handle criticism, I highly suggest you stop writing, especially in such a public forum as a blog on the internet.

I write. I have had people tell me my writing flat out sucks. I think one person in a writing workshop said my writing was "the worst kind of adolescent hubris" they had ever read. Did I shoot right back with "Oh well that reflects more on you than me"...of course not. I shook their hand like a man and thanked them for being so honest with me, then I thought about it and realized that they were actually right in some ways. The piece I read for that class WAS hubristic and it did revolve around themes that played out for me in my mid to late teens. That doesn't mean I dislike that piece, but it does mean that in the future, his words echoed in my head and reminded me to more thoroughly consider if my narrative was truly useful for the AUDIENCE or if it was just something I wanted to write for myself.

Your response to our critique here is something I would not expect from someone who just wrote an article on the mertis of not crumbling in the face of adversity:

"Thus, his potential was limited because he thought of himself in static terms. I could easily see him crumbling if there ever came a day when he lost."

Doesn't that statement, in this context, strike you as ironic?

On a personal note: You can't take this kind of critique too seriously either. All of us who write, have to learn how to say "Ok, thanks for the feedback" when someone destroys a piece we just poured our heart into. If you can't learn how to do that (even if the critique is a hit piece that isn't constructive at all), you aren't going to last as a writer. Removal of ego is just as important to the aspiring writer as it is to the Jiu-Jitiero.

[Piratepetetx]

I liked it. When you write you can tell it's from the heart and is meant to be a learning tool for others. I don't offer constructive criticism because my grammer/spelling/penmanship is atrocious. And yes I had to use spell check. A Blog from me would be more painful to read then to write, but in life I've learned to take the criticisms with the praise. As your blog implies everything is a learning experience. Again, I thought it was a good article and the video tie-in was a bonus. But coming from me that doesn't mean much due to my lack of knowledge of the blogosphere and the proper use of the english language.

Keep writing

Y'all be gentle on me I'm still new here ans the posting etiquette (spell check again)

[georgetteoden]

[Shinoken]