Ep. 391: Am I Getting Better? feat. Josh McKinney

This week, we're joined by Josh McKinney! Josh is a black belt, head coach at HeadNod Jiu-Jitsu in Southern Illinois, and the host of the I Suck at Jiu-Jitsu podcast. In this episode, Josh shares a framework for self-coaching beyond getting belt promotions, and explains why submission count and belt color are the wrong yardsticks for measuring whether you're getting better. Topics include: false metrics, the over-reliance on your A-game, learning to read old-school black belts, the Henry Akins "how many steps" test, and managing effort as a progress metric. Follow Josh on Instagram:   / thejoshmckinney   Listen to the I Suck at Jiu-Jitsu podcast:    / @joshmckinneyajj   Call the Hot Take Hotline: 951-HOT-TAKE Train with Josh at HeadNod in Southern Illinois: https://headnodhq.com Mental models discussed in this episode: Self-Competition https://bjjmentalmodels.com/self-comp... Goodhart's Law https://bjjmentalmodels.com/goodharts... Systematic Abandonment https://bjjmentalmodels.com/systemati... Concepts Over Techniques https://bjjmentalmodels.com/concepts-... Deliberate Practice https://bjjmentalmodels.com/deliberat... Resulting Fallacy https://bjjmentalmodels.com/resulting Economy of Motion https://bjjmentalmodels.com/economy-o... Making Smaller Circles https://bjjmentalmodels.com/making-sm... Process Over Outcomes https://bjjmentalmodels.com/process-o... ⬆️ LEVEL UP with BJJ Mental Models Premium! The world's LARGEST library of jiu-jitsu audio lessons, our complete podcast network, online coaching, and much more! Your first week is free: https://bjjmentalmodels.com Need more BJJ Mental Models? Get the legendary BJJMM newsletter: https://bjjmentalmodels.com/newsletter Learn more mental models in our online database: https://bjjmentalmodels.com/database Follow us on social:   / bjjmentalmodels   https://threads.com/@bjjmentalmodels https://bjjmentalmodels.bsky.social    / @bjjmentalmodels   Music by Enterprize: https://enterprize.bandcamp.com