Killer Instinct

[Joshua Jarboe]

Any advice on mindset while rolling after class? Honestly, I'm so new and just tell the person I'm rolling with that I'm new, then say something stupid like, "Please don't kill me too hard." It seems like some people I roll with go 100 and other people try to control me as much as possible while being efficient with their movement and breathing. I'd rather be the latter, but I get lost in positions still and try to improvise to the best of my ability. I have very little ego here, I tap when I know I'm in a bad spot and I'm smart enough to know when I'm in a bad spot, but I guess my question, or reason for starting this thread is what should be my mindset in class? How do I deal with someone that is not on the same frequency? And what should I be trying to accomplish as a beginner, rolling with people bigger, stronger, and that have more experience than me?

I'm game, I like to hustle, and I want to learn. I am a scientist and want to approach the system like I do the method so mindset going into crucial learning experience is essential to my future development.

So much that's been said here is on point!

I would roll with everyone. Take things as they come. And be prepared to learn from your opponent's success.

My advice:
1) don't worry too much if you're getting annihilated. You're probably doing just fine. It seems to me that BJJ is a 10 year test of heart.
2) You're going to learn a lot from the people that are the most brutal to your body. One of the things those people have taught me is that "No, really, you can't just hang out when I have my knee on your belly." Another is to keep shoulders away from my throat. The scientists you like rolling with might not teach you these things because we nerd out about technical details. I don't think we get joy from the nitty gritty art of pressure (though I'm slowly learning that pressure is technical!)
2.5) But with folks that are brutal, you can slow them down by asking a question. "What am I doing wrong?" "How did you do that?" etc.
3) Getting beaten by a scientist, for me, is like being a car being dismantled by a skilled mechanic. They know how everything goes together and they know how to take it apart. So one thing I like to do with a person like that is present them with a defense that confuses me or that I have trouble with and see how they defeat it. Present them with an offense I have trouble with and see how they defeat it.

Good luck