Hard work becomes easier when it's done from a good stance: Jiu jitsu is a game played out in various scenarios. Sometimes you are standing in neutral, sometimes in various kinds of tie up, sometimes you're in bottom half guard, seated butterfly guard – the list is quite long with many variation (but don't worry it's not impossibly long). For each one of those scenarios there is an appropriate stance that maximizes your efficiency and reduces your workload. The faster you get to that stance, maintain it as long as appropriate and change to a new appropriate stance in the face of changing circumstances – the less work you will have to do. At first these stances will seem tiring and frustrating; you won't be able to hold them very long and sometimes forget to hold them at all – but your long term success is completely bound up with your ability to know them and hold them. Initial failures in stance almost always lead to later failures in technique and endurance. When you practice scenarios in Jiu jitsu; make a habit of start in good stance. Focus on the stance first and the techniques second. If you aren't sure what the appropriate stance is, your instructor will know. If there is time and it's appropriate ask him or her the REASONING behind that stance – when you know WHY to stand or sit or kneel or lie down a certain way it's usually easier to recall next time.
