Tom DeBlass "When I was 23 and I told my girlfriend at the time I had dreams to open my own school, she looked at me and laughed"

As you climb towards success – in BJJ and everything else in life – you’re going to encounter some obstacles. Unfortunately, those obstacles will sometimes be the people you deeply care about; sometimes even the people you love.

"I remember when I was 23 and I told my girlfriend at the time I had dreams to open my own school, she looked at me and laughed. Her response was: “Are you serious? I was hoping you’d grow out of this stage and live like an actual adult.”
I laughed it off and didn’t say much. Needless to say that relationship ended.

One year later I opened my Academy. Well I don’t know if you could call it an Academy. It was a small office space, 800sq feet on the second floor in an industrial park. I couldn’t afford a real sign so I got a white poster board with blue tape and spelled out “Jiu-Jitsu”.

My bank account was negative. I had to borrow money from my Mother to buy mats.

Fast forward 20 years, I have a lock on this Jiu-Jitsu game. I am now able to take care of my Mother. She was able to retire early and get out of a shit job where she wasn’t appreciated. I can give her everything she deserved. She sacrificed a lifetime for me and I could finally give back.

No one needs to believe in you, just make sure you believe in yourself and work harder than anyone else."

Tom DeBlass

Casa De Luta FightKlub Saarbrücken (Eingang im Hinterhof) Mainzer Str. 30 66111 Saarbrücken Email: acasadeluta@gmail.com

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