Non JiuJitsu Books for JiuJitsu
If you want to skip right into the book recommendations, feel free to skip the introduction, which has a little personal backstory for me, and jump right down to the next bold lettering to get into the meat and potatoes of this post.Introduction
I love to read! I grew up devouring book after book. My siblings and I would go to the library and we'd each carry out a pile of new titles that stacked up to our chins. After I would go through all of my titles, I'd read what my brothers and sisters had picked out and see if there was anything to be found there. My poor parents spent a fortune in late fees because we never seemed to be able to round up everything before we made our next trip. I love to read so much that I have to be careful about what I pick up. If there's a fictional series out about anything with magic, dragons, or battles, I have to avoid picking it up. Otherwise I turn into a hermit, sitting in my room hunched over turning page after page and getting lost into another world.
At the beginning of 2016 I got back on a reading kick, but this time it was a little different. Instead of fictional fantasy, I couldn't get my hands on enough developmental books. Anything about leadership, finance, personalities and communicating with others, I ordered it. 36 titles later now, I've slowed down my pace quite a bit and now typically only get to new titles on Audible during long car rides.
If you want to just show up to JiuJitsu class and get a good workout in while having fun, I completely respect that and I'm happy to share the mats with you. I think that there are a lot of benefits from training that can be applied back into life though if we look for them. Out of the 36 titles, these particular ones below helped me out a lot both on and off the mats and I think they would be a great read for any practitioner that is looking to grow in either area.
Community Submissions
I've already received some awesome feedback from ya'll 😄I really want this blog to be for the community more than for myself, so I wanted to place their recommendations here first.
-The Art of Learning by Josh Waitzkin and The Heart and the Fist by Eric Greitens.
These recommendation are from Nick Spirito a brown belt, active competitor and assistant instructor from Fight to Win BJJ in Charlotte, NC. He recommends these for yourself or for instructors because "They are both full of leadership qualities, and you need to be very self aware as an instructor."
-Relentless: From Good to Great to Unstoppable by Tim Grover. This recommendation is from Sa'idah Zeinab Durkee "The Ginja Ninja" that recently won master world's at blue belt and is a Roll Forever sponsored athlete. She says this title is "About breaking apart any rules about your exceptions of who and what you were SUPPOSED to be as an athlete so that you can truly train mind and body to be the greatest version of yourself using your own best tools."
Books for On the Mats:
-The Compound Effect by Darren Hardy. If there was one book that you are going to read from this list, this one is it. This one changed my entire perspective and approach to training. This book goes into great detail on how little changes that you make in your life can eventually stack (or compound) into making dramatic differences in outcomes. The basic concept works off of how money compounds, and a small amount of money over time can eventually earn a great deal of interest. I compared this to two students of similar attributes that begin at the same time. One trains here and there a couple times a week while the other consistently trains 3-5 days a week. While the first one will probably always remain a hobbyist practitioner, the other may go on to become a world champion, open their own school, or just be a really good black belt. The "interest" return of small, consistent "deposits" of showing up to class.
-The Power of Habit by Charles Duhigg. This one is a great pairing for The Compound Effect. While the first pick explains what the compound effect is and how to take advantage of it. The Power of Habit gives a scientific understanding on how those good habits are created or bad ones are broken. Whether you want to get into a better habit of showing up to class more regularly, or their is a bad habit that you haven't been able to shake, I'd highly recommend reading this one. It also comes with some fascinating stories on the topic that are really interesting to read about.
Books for Traveling JiuJitsu
-The 4 Hour Work Week by Tim Ferris. This book gave me a life changing perspective on work and travel. This was the book that inspired me to quite my job and train JiuJitsu full time for 6 months (Something I'll have to write about one day). It planted the seed for this blog, and was one of the inspirational elements of traveling and figuring out how to afford it. The book does at times go into some pretty minute details that I had to power through, but just wow on this one. If traveling is your thing, I would consider this one to be a must read.
-The Total Money Makeover by Dave Ramsey. I know that Dave Ramsey's investing advice can get a lot of flak from other investing pros, but their is no arguing that his budgeting advice is rock solid. If you're traveling with limited financial resources or just a practitioner that balling out on a budget I loved this book. Between tuition, seminars, competitions and sweet sweet Shoyoroll gi's, being a JiuJitsu guy isn't always the cheapest lifestyle. This book is a great way to get some principals to allow you to find those extra finances in your budget to make it all work.
Books for the Competitor
-What to Say When You Talk to Yourself by Shad Helmstetter. This one could get labeled a "pseudo science" book, but I really liked this one. A big portion of competing is the mental aspect, and Helmstetter talks about how to program your self talk to condition your mind for situations like a competition. I found this book to be powerful and it had a big impact on what I say to my teammates and how I describe myself to other people.
-The Magic of Thinking Big by David Schwartz. You could really put this book in any category. Finances, opening a new school, traveling or competitions. I put this one here because I personally have big dreams in the competition arena. The title of this book kinda gives away what it's about, but it is one that will inspire you and stretch your imagination. I just loved reading this one and my mind ran wild with possibilities and put some belief into those possibilities.
Books for the Instructor
Being an instructor is a big role. One that carries with it a lot of responsibility. I have a few titles that I think could go here, but since I have yet to walk in these shoes I think I'll wait to make any recommendations. If you are an instructor I would love to hear your feedback on this one and would include your name along with your recommendation.
Books for the Number 2 Guy
-The 360 Degree Leader by John Maxwell. John Maxwell puts out a TON of books on the topic of leadership. I'd almost be tempted to say that if you've read one of them you've read them all, but there always seems to be something new to take away from one of his titles. If you aren't the head honcho at your Academy, maybe you're an assistant instructor or someone that wants to contribute more to your school, this would be a good book for you. The book is focused on the corporate environment, but just change the words business to academy and you get the desired effect. Maxwell talks about how to help out the leaders above you, while setting an example and leader for those below or at your level.
Books for Yourself
Out of all of these books, these particular ones are my absolute favorite. The phrase "life changing" gets thrown around a lot, but that's really what these one were for me. As I read them and learned more about others, I learned a lot about myself. It was hard to go through some of these chapters because they exposed flaws in myself that were painful to learn about. The more that I've learned about myself though, the happier that I have found myself in both life and in training. These books have also given me a much better understanding of my family, friends and teammates, which has made for much more enriching relationships with them. If you get a chance, I'd really recommend reading these titles. I will give a forewarning that some of them are written by a Christian author and that perspective does come through in the text. Despite your religious or non religious preferences, I think that the content is still insightful and beneficial.
-Personlity Plus by Florence Littauer. I read this book, reread it and then bought six more copies and gave them to my closest friends. This book completely changed my perspective on other people. It explains the differences in personalities between people, what your own is, and then how to best relate to others. I never quite understood the hard charging (What I might be tempted to call "bossy") person, or the person that quietly comes to class and hardly says two words the whole time. When I'm happy, I'm a non stop chatter bug, talking and smiling at everyone I cross paths with. I assumed that if people weren't that way, they probably weren't happy and I wanted to bring some extra sunshine into their lives. I say that laughing now because I realize how ridiculous I must have come across at times to others. If you're looking through to improve relationships at work, home or in the gym, this is a phenomenal read.
-Boundaries by Henry Cloud. This was the first book that I read from Doctor Cloud and it's powerful. The sad reality of life is that not everyone has the best interests at heart. Toxic JiuJitsu academies and instructors do exist out there. I can say in my personal experience they are fortunately rare, but they none the less are still out there. Learning to say no was an important thing for me to learn because I have a big heart for people and can easily overextend myself. I'll be honest, I'm still working on this area in my own life, but the things that I have learned from this book have really helped me to have a much better work, training and life balance that has made me a much happier person.
-The 5 Love Languages by Gary Chapman. Okay I know I just lost a ton of Bro points for putting this one in here, but I loved this book and I can choke you out so I don't care 😝 I'm a words of affirmation person. I'll admit that if I'm setting up a submission, I'll look over to see if my instructor happens to be looking over my way. If they aren't, I might just hold delay finishing the submission for a couple seconds just in the chance that they do look over. I'll run on that slight smile and nod of approval for days. I know the title says love, but it's really about the base way that people communicate. Learning what yours is and how to discover others can clear up a lot of miscommunication. If your'e a words of affirmation person like me, and your instructor is an acts of service person, realizing that you will rarely hear "good job" from them can really help you out. Instead they will express their acknowledgement of your development in other ways. Great read, and probably a must read if you're in any kind of relationship.
That's it for now! This very quickly became much longer than I expected it to be when I began writing it. I love the continued feedback from everyone (I am a words of affirmation person after all 😉) If you read one of the books I'd love to hear what you thought about it! Or if you have a recommendation, include a short review of it and I'd love to include it here and later read it for myself! I'd especially love some feedback from my black belt friends. As always, thank you for reading and I'll hopefully see you soon on the mats.
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