Making Success Unconscious in Grappling

We slapped hands, as is customary before a grappling session. His demeanor was calm and he gave no indication when we were talking earlier that he was ultra-aggressive. We postured for a brief second, sizing each other up. Without warning he leapt into the air with both of his arms, legs and torso coming my way. Reflexively, I placed both hands in the middle of his chest and pushed him downward. There was a thunderous sound when he hit the mat. We both looked at each other for a moment; me startled by his aggression and he by my quick but explosive defense.

What happened that moment lies at the heart of what Malcolm Gladwell wrote about in his book, Blink: the power of thinking without thinking. I am by no means an expert at Brazilian Jiu-jitsu (BJJ), which is essentially wrestling with submissions. But I have been practicing BJJ as well as Judo for a combined 8 years. Each class we drill takedowns, takedown defense, how to hold someone down, how to protect yourself if taken down and how to make a person submit through a combination of chokes, joint locks and other nefarious techniques.

Once we finish drills we then ‘roll' or wrestle with each other to solidify the techniques we practice. Where I train, new and advanced techniques are introduced often. Yet, they are extensions of basic techniques, so it is not uncommon to practice the basics hundreds of times. We practice to the point where carrying out a technique becomes an unconscious process. Or what Gladwell would describe as a Level 2 event. Level 1 is reserved for tasks where we must be actively engaged in order to get something done. Unfamiliar tasks and unknown variables cause us to perk up and pay attention in these situations.

At a speech at the University of Washington, Anthony Greenwald, Ph.D., who Gladwell also profiles in his book, discussed the unconscious manner in which we operate when performing certain tasks. He asserted that we are comfortable in these situations and can go through the motions without having to think about what to do next. He cited riding a bicycle, going through a checkout lane and driving as actions where we don't often give our full attention. In fact, he went a step further and said we spend most of our lives in Level 2.

We have to ask ourselves tough questions as grapplers. For example: How many of the tasks related to becoming a success do you complete at Level 2? How many ‘reps' have you done; how much ‘film' have you watched; how many ‘plays' have you devised and practiced and how many ‘competitions' have you entered in order to make what you do an unconscious process? Sure, we must be fully present when engaging in any activity. But the more we can focus on the big picture and not on the individual steps the better off we will be.