Learn from the best, as soon as possible.
If you start on your own, or with a subpar teacher1, you’re going to have to relearn some things or even everything.
I’ve had students come to me with prior training, but most are starting at zero. It’s been a lot easier teaching the ones starting at zero.
If you’re new, think hard about your school and instructors. Most of the people I consider good, started with good instruction from the start.2
While it’s true you don’t need a black belt3 to teach you the basics, it certainly helps. I look at my own journey, and I’m still relearning a lot of the basics, stuff I learned before moving on to training at Gracie University exclusively.
If you’re switching schools, be willing to put aside everything you’ve already learned elsewhere. There’s a reason you’re changing schools. If it’s because of something like bad instruction, bad culture, or anything else negative, then just be quiet and start over.
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Which unfortunately, you wouldn’t know is subpar if you’re just starting out. ↩︎
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Of course, I know a few people who got good with questionable instructors, but they got good because they trained elsewhere at the same time. Naturally, the mediocre teacher plead for and claimed credit. ↩︎
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And let’s not forget, that just because your teacher is a black belt, doesn’t mean he/she knows how to teach. We all know black belts that teach poorly or unsafely, or developed a bad school culture. ↩︎