Learn From Your Mistakes

The latest MF’ing Tuesdays goes LIVE tonight on WrestleZone’s Facebook page from The Monster Factory immediately following Smackdown Live. It features a behind the scenes look at how Monster Factory head coach and owner Danny Cage is training the Superstars of tomorrow. You can “Like” WrestleZone on Facebook by clicking HERE.

Mistakes. We all make them. Especially in Professional Wrestling. In most every sport there are people who have been learning for a decade before college or pros. Just look at football, baseball, hockey and countless others. Children are participating as early as eight years old. Now look at the average age of those who begin training to become Professional Wrestlers. That age falls into the early to mid twenties.

So what does the age of a prospect matter? Let me break this down for you. Someone who has been playing football since age eight has been conditioned. In the very beginning they might not have listened. Might not have been that focused. But through the help of the coaches, parents and those around them, saying listen to the coach…they begin to listen. They become coachable. In Professional Wrestling it’s a bit different. Most training to have careers in Professional Wrestling never were coached as such prior. Meaning coached as a serious athlete. So when they show up they have a preconceived notion about what it takes to make it as a Professional Wrestler. None are ever right. Most do not have true support of their family and friends. (Included in this: spouses/boyfriend/girlfriend)

As the prospect begins their journey in training to be a Professional Wrestler they are not accustomed to being held accountable. Not used to eating right. Not used to studying film. Not used to using social media. Not used to showing up on time. Not used to looking a certain way. Not used to being yelled at. Not used to being asked what is wrong? Not used to being told it is ok. Not used to being depended on. In other words, not used to being coached or being coachable. All of those things mentioned happen and can lead to the prospect quitting, getting kicked out or never making it. Especially when they do not learn from their mistakes.

I am not sure how others coach or run their facility. But how I run mine is I treat all of our students like athletes. I use methods others have used in sports and some tricks I picked up along the way. I not only care about them when they walk through those doors into training but also after and prior. If they are wearing that shirt from The World Famous Monster Factory they are held to a higher standard. I demand the best from them. When you demand the best from someone guess what happens? Mistakes. It is by design. You grow more from failure. It is a fact. The key is learning from those mistakes. Applying it to other aspects of their life or training. Passing what they learned on to others. I want our students to not only be great wrestlers but better people as well.

I have seen some of these students grow up right before my eyes. From not being able to lock up or cut a promo. Failing at strength and conditioning and screwing up countless drills. From cutting out of training and walking away. To now being at WWE and ROH. To also being back with us, making progress, training, learning. Being better people. How? By learning from their mistakes!

Do not let a mistake or failure define you. Let the lesson you learned from that mistake or failure define you. You should want to be wrong from time to time. It means you just learned something.

There will be times you get frustrated. Exhausted. Nothing seems to be going right. Like everyone is against you. Good. That means you are getting closer to your goal. Keep going. It pays off. Trust me.

Thanks for reading. I’m just some guy who loves Professional Wrestling.