My guess is that many people will simultaneously agree and disagree with my five-part list. But I think it is defensible through both the "jiu-jitsu for everyone" and "competitive jiu-jitsu" lenses - the latter including jiu-jitsu's crucial crucible of mixed martial arts.
The Five Factors of a Complete Jiu-Jitsu
1. You can use jiu-jitsu to take a physical conflict to the ground in a controlled fashion.
2. You can use jiu-jitsu to move from a defensive position on the ground to a dominant position on the ground.
3. You can use jiu-jitsu to subdue an adversary from a dominant position on the ground.
4. You can use jiu-jitsu to subdue an adversary from a defensive position on the ground.
5. You can accomplish 1-4 in conflict with an adversary against whom you do not have a significant athletic (size, speed, power) advantage.
I think a lot of people confuse the techniques that can provide someone with a complete jiu-jitsu from the fundamental notion of what a complete jiu-jitsu actually means.
I think a lot of people overthink it, affected more by the innovations in sport jiu-jitsu than by either jiu-jitsu's trial by fire in mid-to-late 20th century vale tudo contests or the practical necessities of individuals seeking to protect themselves from physical harm.
I think, maybe most importantly, that all of this is still applicable to sport jiu-jitsu, that it can serve as the basis for a successful competition strategy, that it helps connect the old school jiu-jitsu that many of us love with the ever more new schools of jiu-jitsu developing right now in academies all over the world.
