Welcome back! Thank you for tuning in for another Undeniable Level Up podcast episode with your hosts, Jose Medina and Crystal Garcia. Today, we have invited a special guest, Minh Nguyen. Welcome Minh.
Minh is the owner of Aspire Jiu Jitsu, based in Houston Texas and is a Brazilian Jiu Jitsu Professor and Black Belt. Minh has trained under Brazilian Jiu Jitsu World Champion, Professor Pablo Silva and operates as an affiliate of the Pablo Silva BJJ school which focuses and specializes in competitive BJJ for both children and adult competitors.
In our last episode of the Undeniable Level Up Podcast, we discussed getting out of your comfort zone. And in that podcast we discussed how we got into BJJ a little over a year ago, which has definitely taken us outside of our comfort zones as we dove head first into learning a martial arts and began competing at a national level in BJJ.
Today, we are going to learn how to “Embracing the Suck!”
Q: Have you ever heard this term before? What does it mean to you?
If you’ve never heard this term before, it was a term that I first heard in the military when referring to the most miserable experiences that you go through while in the military. If you were out in the field for training and it began raining, “Good, embrace the suck”. If you were on a deployment and found out you are being extended, “Good, embrace the suck!” It basically means: To consciously accept or appreciate something that is extremely unpleasant but unavoidable.
It is a term that basically encourages you to take the worst and most demoralizing part of your current experience and embrace it. Love the process, don’t quit, don’t give up and find the good in your experience.
But before we get too deep into our topic…
Q: Can you begin at the beginning. Where are you from and where did you grow up? How did you get into martial arts? Is BJJ the only martial arts background that you have? Have you always had a dream to open your own dojo?
I’m sure there have been moments in your journey where you’ve had to learn to embrace the suck, where you’ve had to learn to love the process and find value, growth and strength in the journey.
In the words of AJ Jacobs, “Accept failure. Enjoy it, even. Embrace the suck, for the suck is part of the process.”
PLAY: Clip by Admiral William McCraven “Don’t Ever Ring the Bell!”
NEVER QUITTING! I think of all of my uncomfortable sucky moments where I may have felt broken or defeated but charged forward anyway.
I have a tattoo that says, “A champion is bent over, drenched in sweat, and at the point of exhaustion when no one is watching.”
I got this tattoo as a reminder to myself of the courage I have had to bear my soul, learn, and grow in the most challenging and excruciating parts of my journey in life. Everyone sees the winner, the champion, the elite… but few know what the journey entailed.
With everything going on in the world today, there is enough suck in our lives to go around so that everyone gets their fair share. Whether it’s COVID19 restrictions, supply chain disruptions and port congestion, or unemployment and inflation, it is important that you don’t allow the suck to stop you from achieving success. And to assist with that, we are going to provide 8 steps that you can take to ensure you are able to fully embrace the suck, overcome temporary pain and face adversity with resilience and achieve success.
The first step, you must figure it out. There is a solution to every problem. For every obstacle you must either go around it, over it, under it or through it. In BJJ there is a defense move for every offensive move, that will allow you to win the fight. Sometimes, the answer isn’t immediately obvious, but with training and repetition and by placing yourself in these tough and challenging situations, you are able to build the muscle memory and the reflex to execute the proper response quickly.
Step two, quiting is never an option. Ringing the bell, is never an option. You must perservere. As long as you continue to place one foot in front of the other, and you continue to move forward, persistency and consistency will see you through the worst of it all.
Q: Have you ever felt like quitting at BJJ? At anything in life? What allowed you to fight through that moment of weakness or self-doubt? What words of wisdom would you give to a young…or old, new BJJ practitioner who is going through the suck right now?
Q: How has your mindset changed having not “rang the bell?” How has your life changed? Have you ever had to encourage or remind someone to not quit?
PLAY: Clip by David Goggins “Embrace the Suck!”
Q: Another great example from another military guy. Obviously, a lot of suck to embrace in the military. What are thoughts on David’s speech?
Step three, create the calluses of mental toughness. The more you do something the easier it gets for you to continue doing it. This applies the same to your mental toughness as it does to lifting weights, or the pain you feel in your hands when you first begin in BJJ.
Q: Where have you had to build mental toughness and psychological calluses?
Step four, do the things that suck when it is least optimal. It is easy to got to BJJ when you’ve had plenty of sleep and your back doesn’t hurt. It’s easy to go work out at the gym when you’re well rested and hydrated. It’s easy to go for a walk or a run when the weather is perfect outside. Do these same things when it’s not optimal. Go to BJJ when your toe is broken or you have a fractured spine. I did. Go to the gym when you’ve only had 2 hours of sleep and are cutting 5 pound of water weight for a competition. Go for a run when it’s pouring rain and the weather is south of 60 degrees. This is where resiliency is developed.
Q: Where do you struggle with this concept? Why do you think you struggle?
Step five, fix your face and your attitude. It’s what my mom used to tell me when I was younger. When you have something challenging to do, something that you find difficult or challenging, change your attitude about it. The more you complain about it, the more you will dread. Change the narrative by changing the internal dialogue. The more you do this, the less suck you find you must embrace.
Q: Have you’ve ever found a bad attitude to be part of your problem when dealing with a crappy situation?
Step six, be the best version of yourself. Would the best version of you quit? Would the best version of you procrastinate or make an excuse to avoid a challenge? If the answer is no, then get it done.
Q: What does the best version of you look like and how do you manifest this version of yourself?
Step seven, build a routine.&nbs...
