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I’m always thinking about my gym. I like to be there, it’s like a sanctuary from everyday life. I’ve always thought of the jiu-jitsu school as a sanctuary, a place of safety and a place to get away from things. I remember when I went to a seminar with Carlos Valente, he was trying to [...]

Email us a picture of a tap or die Sticker in an unusual place and win a free Tap or Die T-shirt. Send a self addressed, stamped envelope to: Tap or Die c/o M Johnson 2236 Washington Blvd Ogden UT 84401 and we’ll send you a free sticker. If we post your picture we’ll send [...]

Fred Ettish was a frog. You remember Fred Ettish—a kenpo karate, black belt who had trained in karate for over twelve years. He’s the same guy who was absolutely annihilated in UFC 2. Fred was a frog. There is a story about a frog in a well. He was the biggest and baddest frog in [...]

In jiu-jitsu, repetition is king and drilling is queen; they are both crucial to the kingdom. I try to explain to people the importance of becoming a technique perfector and not a technique collector. Technique collectors always come to class looking for something new. They learned a new technique last week and now they’re ready [...]

Things aren’t good or bad they just are. I didn’t really understand that saying the first time I heard it, until someone told me the story of the farmer and his son. There once was a farmer who had horses. One day his son left the the gate to the coral open and all the [...]

Do you remember when you were a kid and an adult would ask you what you wanted to be when you grew up? I remember my Aunt Berma asked me that question when I was younger. “Markie, what do you want to be when you grow up? You can be anything you want.” “Anything?” “Yes, [...]

You can’t demand respect; it just doesn’t work like that. Respect is something that is earned. Just because you have a title, or you’re the owner of a school, or you’re a black belt in whatever style you practice; respect is something you earn over time. It’s not something that can be demanded. People can [...]

July is the month to hold on if you own a martial arts school. Attendance is low and money is lower, but the bills stay the same. August is better, but July can kill you. According to William Feather, “Success seems to largely be a matter of hanging on after others have let go.” I [...]

In hip-hop culture, if someone is “biting” your rhymes, that means they’re stealing your lyrics and using them as their own. Basically it means someone has stolen your shit. Someone bit my blog. In June I wrote about a video I found on YouTube (a guy dancing). I compared it to how I wanted Tap [...]

One Love–it’s a Bob Marley song, but it should be a jiu-jitsu mantra. It should be spoken when people from other gyms come to train at yours or vice-versa. “Hey, my name is James, I’m visiting from Tucson. I‘m wondering if I can train at your gym for a couple of days.” “Of course, James–One [...]

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