THERE IS SOMETHING UNIQUE about training in the art of jiu-jitsu that can dramatically improve a person's life. Even though it is a form of hand-to-hand combat that teaches how to control and submit an opponent with chokes, strangles and joint locks, it is also a lifestyle that embraces a learning, sharing and caring mindset. As you advance through the years of your training, you experience an awakening of a consciousness. A beginning student tends to be hyper focused on what their own hands are doing at any given moment. The more advanced student's awareness extends far beyond their own body. Ideally, this sensitivity to the world around you will affect your overall disposition allowing you to embrace the difficulties you face with an enhanced sense of calm, control, and empathy. Ultimately, the art of jiu-jitsu can transform a person in body and spirit; from fear and aggression of the lower belts, to community leader and teacher of the upper belts. This book distills some of the life lessons that can be gleaned from training in the art of jiu-jitsu. We have organized the materials around the belt colors that are earned as one advances through their training from white to blue to purple, to brown and then black. Each belt level presents its own physical, intellectual, and emotional challenges. Embracing the jiu-jitsu life means that you are in a constant state of growth. Here are a few examples of the issues we face in our training: Problem Solving: At any given moment in the fray of combat, one must ask, "what is within my control? What can I change right now?" By seeing the problem from different angles, you may become aware of problem-solving attributes you never even knew you had. Compassion and Empathy: We cannot continue to train and improve if we injure our training partners. So, we help each other. We show compassion by letting go before they are hurt. This reflects empathy and self-control. Fear and Resilience: If we are afraid to try new moves because we might fail, then we will never improve. So, we learn to embrace failure as the map along the road of self-improvement. Failure just becomes another step in the process. Through failure, we learn humility and patience and resilience. These materials will show you how to experience life through the jiu-jitsu perspective. However, instead of physical training, we will be using a process of guided self-reflection to explore a variety of concepts including: Self-Acceptance Self-Awareness Self-Control