How good are you at getting out of bad positions? Whenever people ask me to diagnose their skill level one of the first things I observe is their skill at getting out of bad positions. Why? Because that will tell me not only how good they are DEFENSIVELY but also OFFENSIVELY. This might strike you as strange. How can defensive skill reflect your offensive skill? Simple – the more faith you have in your defense the more risks you will take with your offense. Your success will always be determined by the amount of risk you are willing to subject yourself to. As they say – NOTHING RISKED, NOTHING GAINED. If you won't take the risk associated with offense you'll never even begin an attack. If you're afraid that when you try to attack you may be open to positional counters that leave you pinned in holds from which you can't escape – then you won't take the risk of attacking. The only thing that will liberate you from those fears that hold you back is the belief that you can escape any hold. The moment you believe that you will attack and hold nothing back.
