killer instinct

[Chris Odell (Datsusara)]

Had a little issue I have been struggling with for years and I'm curious to see what the forum has to say on it.

I am not an aggressive person by nature, so much so that if Aikdo actually worked, I'd probably be doing that. The good part about this is I never hurt my training partners and I don't use much energy in my rolls since I'm not stressed on winning. But the later is the bad part too.

Sometimes I know exactly what I should be doing to escape from a bad position or to finish someone off but most days I just don't really care so i either get lazy or simply drop the move because I don't want to force things too much. I also play from my guard too much, once again since it's more defensive overall (I do love my RG attacks though).

I see that most of the guys who do well have something that makes them take that initiative and be aggressive and I wonder if that's just something that is born into you or if it takes cultivation? Might be either or for some but I would love to know what gives you that drive.

Feel free to call me a total wuss cus it's true and I'm ok with that but I would love to find a way to at least give a crap without totally going dark side.

[Mike Dewitt Jr]

I think it can both be organic or created. For me it was actually being in competition that made me realize that I need to hit this move when I see it and to get confident in doing that and make it a reaction instead of having to think the process through.

[Taylor Culbertson]

wuss

[Jason 'J-Faz' Farren]

I've dealt with this myself and honestly if you're not willing to give it all you got than you are not going to get anywhere.
Before I got agressive I had no top game, wasn't willing to take risks, couldn't get sweeps you name it.
I even got caught in a Guillotine by a newbie simply because he was more agressive than me.
It was lesson learnt after that and not to toot my own horn but I'm becoming quite the beast in all area's thanks to the change in my mental approach to the game.
Do yourself a favour get yourself aggresive, intense (controlled agression you understand) and you'll begin to step up, then leap up.
Otherwise keep limping it and stay stagnant it's your call.

[Landon DuMar]

You might find some help in reading A few books as I have. A Fighter's Mind by Sam Sheridan, Finding Your Zone by Michael Lardon, and my favorite was The Art of Learning by Josh Waitzkin. A main basic sports idea is that you practice how you play. If you're lazy in the school, you'll fall back on bad habits when under pressure in a tournament. I am not an aggressive person by nature either, I've never been in a fist fight in my life, but that doesn't mean I can't be that way in the gym. What has helped me is taking more of a wrestler mentality to my Jiu Jitsu. Wrestling is about breaking your opponents spirit, which can be with technique, it doesn't have to involve strength. Every time I roll, I also TRY to think of something to work on, no matter who I roll with, to make sure I'm not being lazy, and even if I'm more experienced than my opponent I'm still growing as a competitor.

[AJ Camacho]

I have no sense of aggression, I'm apathetic about most things, and I don't have a single competitive ounce in any part of my body. When I roll I don't even view it as having anything to do with fighting and I literally have no anger, malice, or ill will towards anybody I roll against.

I sort of view grappling like skateboarding only instead of doing tricks on a board I'm doing tricks on someone's face. The pain, discomfort, and psychological distress that my opponent might feel is all incidental and just something that they're going to have to deal with until I land my trick. For some reason this mentality allows me to keep pushing even when I'm getting smashed but it's also this mentality that makes it almost impossible for me to care about losing. After all, I wasn't even fighting I was just trying to hit my moves.

[Muhammad Abdou]

+1 with camacho. i wouldnt say im aggressive either. every single instance where iv accidentally kicked a guy in the face trying to finish an armbar or retain butterfly guard, il be apologizing constantly for the next 5 seconds.

on the other hand though, when i roll, im not thinking about beating the other guy. the only thing im thinking about is doing my techniques properly and making my game more successful. if i ever get angry at someone while theyre thrashing about to avoid my techniques, its not because im angry at them, but because im angry at myself for not being capable of using the technique properly under pressure.

i guess you could say that i have an aggressive drive to improve rather than an aggressive drive towards other people..

[Harry Evans]

Think about timed aggression in bursts. I have the same issue. I smoke pot before I roll, and I like to tow the line between laziness and efficiency as much as possible. But pulling the trigger is in itself an attack. I'm sure you have heard this many times, but if you force your opponent to always defend, he can rarely attack. Go limp, but then explode into an escape. Play your game on top, but snap into that guard pass a little quicker. That way, you don't have to go nuts, but you can start making explosiveness instinctive.

[Joachim Hoff]

^^ +1! Here's something also: Study Akuma in the Streetfighter II anime's.. He's the incarnation of killer instinct. Sooner or later you'll discover the dark Hadou. Once you go dark Hadou there's no going back! (And there are cookies)

[Danny Stolfi]

I worked the shit out of my guard as a white belt and still do. The most important thing is learning as much as possible and sharpening your technique. It's cool to not get overly aggressive and stress on winning, but don't get lazy bc then your not helping anyone.