A lot has been said, correctly, about the benefit of maintaining a “White Belt Mentality.” Indeed, my esteemed colleague and all-around great dude Harry Shaw penned an article for Power Athlete about that exact topic which you can read here.

However, as Harry goes over in his own work, no one really wants to be a white belt forever. We all get into our crafts with the hope of one day achieving the mark of mastery, whether we are martial artists seeking out a black belt or in some other field, working to achieve similar acclaim.

Back in December, I was awarded my black belt in Brazilian Jiu-Jitsu after having started my journey all the way back in 2010. It wasn’t my first time receiving a black belt, and it won’t be my last, but I have become more introspective as I’ve gotten older, and I realized that with all this talk about the “white belt mentality,” there is also a space to discuss a “black belt mentality.”

Just as there are good ways to be a perpetual student, there are important ways to be a purposeful and responsible master, to honor our craft.

With that in mind, I took some time to jot down some tips for “mastering mastery”.

1. Learn the art of expertise

When on the road to mastery in any field, it is often best to be a generalist. We learn “broad and wide,” a little bit of everything, so that we can have a comprehensive knowledge of the fundamentals in our chosen discipline. However, upon becoming masters, the task of education changes. You must have a filter now and have developed preferences. Change your style of learning to “deep” instead of “broad.” Isolate those things which you do best and hammer away at them, leaving no stone unturned as you become a true specialist.

2. Pass on what you have learned

One of the all-time best masters, Yoda of Star Wars, has a great line about this: 

“Pass on what you have learned. Strength, mastery, but weakness, folly, failure also. Yes: failure, most of all. The greatest teacher, failure is… we are what they grow beyond. That is the true burden of all masters.”

Now that you’re a master, act like one! Teach your training partners. Shift your concerns from being selfish, building up your own skill set, and learn to teach to others. Give back to the art that has given you so much. You can share your best moves, teach tactics, but also educate them on your regrets, what you’d do differently, where you may have gone wrong. If you’re too selfish for that, remember that “to teach is to learn twice.. In teaching, we often develop our own expertise even further.

3. Make room for new growth

I’ve watched many black belts quit a martial art because their attachment to it was entirely based on their own dominance, which cannot last. We can age gracefully, but we will still age. As we get older, we may find ourselves getting a bit slower, weaker, or less conditioned. Much of this decline can be staved off with a solid strength and conditioning protocol, and Power Athlete has just such a program for martial artists. Check out Dragon Slayer!

Regardless of your strength and conditioning training, you must release your ego if you wish to master mastery. A new era will come; there are young blue belts at my academy training to take my head as I write this. I welcome their efforts, and so should you. Bruce Lee put it best, “to learn to die is to be liberated from it.” I actually want them to defeat me, but I will force them to earn it. I want them to catch me, but I will never stop running. In doing this, I will force them to surpass me, and one day, others will be forced to surpass them. This is how we give back to the immortal life of the arts that we have embraced, regardless of which one you are passionate about.

4. Be prepared to lose

In line with the last point but deserving of its own topic, make space for yourself to lose so that you can continue to grow. This one is a bit more for martial artists but could apply to any sport. Give your opponent an advantage. In reference to Jiu-Jitsu specifically, let your opponent start in the mount or top side control positions. Limit yourself to only one submission. For the striking arts, which I also love deeply, force yourself to fight in a way that is uncomfortable for you. Switch your stance for several months. If you’re a talented kicker, limit yourself to using your hands. If you’re a boxer, develop your kicks. This may seem to go against what I instructed earlier about embracing expertise, but you’ll find that giving yourself handicaps forces you to look at the art differently and is simply a different way to deepen expertise.

5. Get comfortable being a role model

Embrace the burden of mastery by being a virtuous role model. Many will respond to this by saying that they didn’t start down the road of whatever art or sport they’re involved in to be seen as a leader or role model.

That’s fine, but know that your mastery will forever be subpar. Part of the obligation of a master is to be a strong role model for others. Keep your word. Train hard. Show up on days you don’t want to, take your wins and your losses with equal humility, and treat all others with the utmost respect. Avoid gossiping about others in your field, or talking smack about someone else who’s views or style don’t align with yours.

We are all temporary caretakers of the arts that we practice, tending to a fire that has burned since long before we were born and which will burn long after we are gone. Tend the fire well, and welcome all those who would like to sit beside it: do not be a gatekeeper who turns away those with good intentions who wish simply to learn. Whether we are talking about the art of coaching, the martial arts, or any sport, what we do is meant to be for everyone, regardless of factors like race, gender, or economic background.

The belt around your waist, the Ph.D on your wall, whatever your mark of mastery may be, honor it by being honorable, and you will become a master of more than just your chosen discipline. Being a master of character is as worthy a pursuit as any other.

6. Maintain a beginners mindset

The last tip is a bit of a funny one: keep that White Belt Mentality! In particular, develop a very powerful “Beginner’s Mind.” In Zen practice, this is one of the mentalities that is strived for constantly. Stay curious, open-minded, and invested in your development. I notice a lot of black belts stop coming to class to drill or learn new techniques, and often only show up to roll or come to Open Mat. My least favorite kind of black belt is the one who sits aside from the class, sometimes even on their phone, waiting for the sparring to start. If this sounds like you, fix your mentality.

To close out our tip list, here are a few mentality shifts that can help you to constantly embrace learning:

• When someone is teaching you something you already know, question how well you know it. To keep with our Jiu-Jitsu metaphor, can you do it on “both sides?” What about with your eyes closed? How well do you think you could do it while tired?
• When learning, instead of focusing on what is being taught, focus on how it is being taught. Is there an aspect to the instruction that is new to you, even if the material is old? Is something being expressed or conveyed in a way you haven’t heard before? Understanding is an infinitely deep well, just as teaching is infinite in its measure of self-expression. Oftentimes you will find that you know a certain aspect of your discipline, but you will run into someone who teaches it better than you can. There is much to be learned here, even if it isn’t “new.”
• Can you “kill your clone?” Imagine someone cloned you before class started, and you had to fight your clone after class. Can you pick up on one detail, no matter how small, that could give you an edge on your clone? Immerse yourself as much as possible in the instruction, ask questions, and seek out those miniscule adaptations that can give you the slightest edge. You owe it to yourself, as a master in your art.

No one wants to be a white belt forever, even if there are benefits to maintaining some of the white belt mentality. As we train, the “dirt accumulates on the belt”, and before we know it, there is a black sash holding our jacket closed. Invest your time and energy into being worthy of your mastery and you can unlock a path of endless self-discovery.

Start your journey now with Dragon Slayer.

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