THE BASICS
Today’s guest is Professor Gustavo Gasperin, who is a Brazilian Jiu Jitsu (BJJ) and Mixed Martial Arts (MMA) Instructor, Bachelor of Physical Education and Certified Personal Trainer. He is a legend in the sport, the creator of the much loved BJJ information site MMA Leech. His analysis into performance has been used in research work. He has competed and won many of the industry titles, and is now passing on his extensive knowledge to the next generation of BJJ practitioners.
In this interview we discuss his story, how to excel at BJJ, building a brand, how to cope with becoming a father and the work you need to do to keep the relationship working. Gustavo is very open and honest in this interview and I know it will help anyone looking to learn BJJ, or to build a brand, to heal themselves or their relationship and everything in-between. He shows how you can find the strength inside yourself to find solutions to problems, chase your dreams and become the man you want to be.
Apologies, my mic on my side starts playing up. I decided to release it as is, as you can hear OK enough and I did not want to mess with the flow and validity of the interview by redoing it. You come to listen to the greats I interview, not me, so hopefully it won’t annoy you too much!
LISTEN HERE
WHAT WE COVER
In this interview, we discuss gems like:
- Who he is
- His upbringing and experiences of BJJ
- How the sport of BJJ teaching being in it’s infancy helped him shape the way of teaching and build a popular training BJJ brand
- How the style of teaching BJJ has changed as the interest in the sport has increased
- How your learning and understanding of BJJ changes as you progress through the ranks.
- What is the best method to learn BJJ?
- The biggest impact to his BJJ was when he did this
- How open mat training really helped his development and success as a competitor
- What was the turning point for the creation of MMA Leech
- How he juggled trying to create a business, becoming a new father, being the sole breadwinner
- How he saved his marriage by counselling and the changes he had to make in himself
- What was holding him back and the changes he made to overcome this
- His experience of therapy and how it will help men, and couples to overcome thier demons and work to become happier again
- How he adapted his mindset to reach a new level of success in his life
- The difference between being a good and great BJJ practitioner
- How he built up MMA Leech and his hoped evolution of the business
- What does he want you to take from the interview
- How can you get in touch with him, purchase his awesome products and follow him for future projects
SOME THINGS TO REFLECT ON
In this interview, a lot of jewels of self-improvement are discussed. Some of these and their associated thoughts include:
- He is a prime example of someone who lets the quality of his actions speak for him, to be his business card. If you put out quality content, it is the only marketing you will need.
- You can achieve what you want from live but only if you put in the work. Pick your goal, get focused and work for it.
- Your black belt does not mean you know everything. A lot of black belts state they felt like they only really started learning BJJ at black belt level as they just began to understand things!
- Doing too much is just as bad as doing too little when it comes to training. Plan out your week, book in rest, do not overdo it. Listen to your body and get your rest in. Training efficiently and effectively a few times a week will always outdo training every night if done haphazardly.
- It is not a weakness to ask for help. It is a sign of strength. Being able to admit there is a problem and looking for a fix to that problem shows intelligence, strength and maturity. Problems rarely go away, typically they grow and escalate. Seek help if you need it.
- You have true power within yourself. You have a duty to find it, and unleash it on the world to make it a better place. You can do what you dream, do not live a shallow life, go for what you want.
- Go for it. Don’t wait. Don’t second guess yourself. Pick your target and go for it. Life is too short to have regrets.
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I love Gustavo, my Professor for many years. Thanks Ian for this interview. It gave me a deeper understanding of his story that I did not know. For that, I am grateful. Bless his precious heart and bless yours for making this happen. Can’t wait to see him in class tomorrow morning and let him know how much this interview touched me and how much I learned from it. Ian, again, thanks for this content buddy. Cheers.
Hey, thank you so much for the comment, I am really touched by it. It was a joy to speak to the Professor, and I hope to have round two at the start of 2020. Did you have a favourite part?