# Second stripe



## Headhunter (Dec 23, 2017)

Just got awarded my second stripe rank doesn't mean much to me but hey it's always nice.. Most probably don't care but hey whatever lol


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## Gerry Seymour (Dec 23, 2017)

What does the second stripe mean at your school, HH?

Where ranks are used, it's always fun to see a new one show up, whether it's a stripe or a brand new belt, stiff enough to poke eyes out.


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## Headhunter (Dec 23, 2017)

gpseymour said:


> What does the second stripe mean at your school, HH?
> 
> Where ranks are used, it's always fun to see a new one show up, whether it's a stripe or a brand new belt, stiff enough to poke eyes out.


Doesn't really mean anything just a sign your progressing more. You need to earn 4 stripes before earning your blue belt (first coloured belt) and it's taken me 7 months to earn 2 so for a blue it takes most people over a year to gain which I like because people are focused more on just training and getting better than earning belts


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## Gerry Seymour (Dec 23, 2017)

Headhunter said:


> Doesn't really mean anything just a sign your progressing more. You need to earn 4 stripes before earning your blue belt (first coloured belt) and it's taken me 7 months to earn 2 so for a blue it takes most people over a year to gain which I like because people are focused more on just training and getting better than earning belts


I like that, too. When I reworked my curriculum, I made a point of putting more information (and, therefor, time) before the first belt.


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## kuniggety (Dec 25, 2017)

Day to day, it’s not always easy to see the growth. The stripes are nice reminders of how you’ve stuck with it and continuing on the path. My last school didn’t do stripes but my current one days. I’m a fan as long as people remember (like the belts) that they’re an indicator of where you’re at in your own journey and not necessarily how you stack up against the guy next to you.


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## Tony Dismukes (Dec 25, 2017)

Congratulations. The stripes can be useful bits of encouragement to let you know you are progressing. Often in BJJ it's hard to see your own improvement because the people you're rolling with are progressing along with you and you may not feel you're doing any better. The stripes can function as an "attaboy" from the instructor to let you know that he/she can see your technical growth.


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## JR 137 (Dec 25, 2017)

kuniggety said:


> Day to day, it’s not always easy to see the growth. The stripes are nice reminders of how you’ve stuck with it and continuing on the path. My last school didn’t do stripes but my current one days. I’m a fan as long as people remember (like the belts) that they’re an indicator of where you’re at in your own journey and not necessarily how you stack up against the guy next to you.


That reminds me of what my teacher says from time to time (paraphrased, but pretty close to an exact quote)...

“It’s hard for you guys to see the day to day progress in yourselves sometimes.  When you’re sparring the same group of people you start to think you’re not getting better because you beat and lose to the same people consistently.  The thing is you’re all getting better at about the same rate; so if you improved 10%, and the person you’re sparring did too, it’s going to seem like you got nowhere.  If you’re standing where I’m standing and watching what I’m watching day in and day out, it’s quite obvious that you and everyone else is improving.”

One thing going through the ranks has taught me is that it often gets more frustrating as you and your partners advance.  It seems like less and less stuff works.  Then you take a step back and realize you’re getting into a stalemate more and more because you’ve figured out how to counter each other better.  And while you’ve figured out your partners’ game, they’ve figured out yours too.  It forces you to try new stuff they’re not expecting.  Then you spar someone completely new and realize your go-to stuff is pretty effective (hopefully  )against someone who isn’t used to seeing you do it.  I’ve figured out the 20 or so people I regularly spar with at my dojo. I can stop some of it before it starts, and other stuff people throw still gets me every time.  And it frustrates me even more when I know it’s coming but can’t do anything about it.

Sorry for the sidetrack.  A very long winded way of saying sometimes we need reminders of how far we’ve come along in our journey.  Stripes, belts, sashes, etc. are all great reminders of our progress on those days when we’re thinking that we haven’t improved and questioning what the point of going every day is.


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## JowGaWolf (Dec 27, 2017)

Congrats on your accomplishment.  My school doesn't have belts or a skill ranking system. New students are always my reminders.  They show me where I was and their "amazement in what I'm able to do" tells me that I progress more than what I actually feel. Because of my focus in training, I only feel as if I accomplish something when I understand a technique well enough to actually be able to use it.  To me this is my enlightenment in martial arts, to finally understand something that I had train with the trust that someone told me it would work.  I believed that something would work even though I fully don't understand it at first.  When I finally understand, it's like stepping out of the dark and I no longer have to believe it because someone told me so.  I can now believe it because I finally understand. It's a good feeling for me.

Those stripes on your belt are probably a good feeling for you as well if you look at it from a different perspective.  Someone other than you recognizes your progress and acknowledge you by giving you the stripes.  Not everyone gets acknowledge for the hard work one does and the progress one makes.  Congrats.


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