Why do so many young students quit at brown belt?
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There are so many adults that regret quitting the martial arts when they are young. I can almost guarantee that anyone who quits training at a brown belt level will one day regret it.
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So why do so many young people give up? After training and advancing toward such an important goal for such a long time, there is perhaps only one reason, and that is; they become ‘teenagers’.
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A lot of changes are happening around this time, and he or she may truly have lost interest. Teenagers really believe they know what’s best for them….. But they don’t.
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Adults and kids look at martial arts differently. You and I might look at it as a way of life, while kids may look at it as just another ‘thing’, like soccer, gymnastics, basketball, etc., kids that age explore all kinds of things, and the martial arts are just another ‘thing’.
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Other than being a teenager, if you or your child are ready to call it quits at brown belt, that takes some further questioning….. there maybe many feelings, but feelings aren’t facts.
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Is forcing them to finish what they started a good idea? We all know it’s hard to be a parent. But students need to understand that they have to work hard to get rewards and to achieve, and that nothing comes easy.
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But forcing them won’t get better results either. So the question remains. Why do they want to quit? Is it for a well-thought-out, serious reason, or because they don’t feel like it? The reason can make all the difference.
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It’s usually a lot easier to find excuses than to come up with reasons. We tend to sabotage ourselves into trying nothing and attempting even less. It is so hard to be truthful and honest with ourselves. When we choose to think we’re “too busy” that becomes our excuse.
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The martial arts are a hobby for 99% of people doing it. Those of us who have managed to stick with it and have been doing it for a long time, we like to say that it’s “a way of life” and a philosophy for living by, but unfortunately, it’s not true for the vast majority of people.
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Many people will just get bored, like people do for any hobby. Even for the ones who don’t become bored, for a teenager, a new life direction, a driving license, collage, university, work, family etc. will take priority and many young people will now just move in that new direction.
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Everyone’s journey within the martial arts is different. Each person has a different beginning and end. At some point it will end for me as it will for you. The journey and path is up to you to follow and for however long you see fit. In the end, you will only regret the chances you didn’t take. 
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”The only impossible journey is the one you never begin.” – Tony Robbins