That's a bullshit reason IMO. Can't train because a full-time job gets in the way? Quit your job and work part-time. Girlfriend complains you never have time for her? Dump her. Too busy partying on the weekend to train? Stop drinking. Friends pressuring you to spend all your free time with them? Make new friends.
It's quite simple. There's being dedicated and there's not being dedicated, if you don't have the dedication you can't complain about not having the time.
You are over generalizing. Priorities are like opinions. Everyone has them, but no one person's is exactly the same. You highly prioritize training. That's cool, I respect and admire what you say you are doing to do what you love.
I have passion for jiu jitsu, but I also have passion for my academic work, and I enjoy having a close relationship with a girl I love. So yeah, I will skip a night of training to see my girl. We live in different cities, and if not training Friday night means I get an extra night with her because it's my turn to travel, that's cool with me. If I need to skip a technique night so I can keep up on my studies and maintain my average over 85%, that's a done decision.
There will also be other nights that I will sacrifice that Friday night and cut my weekend with the girl short, because I actually have BJJ fairly high on my list of priorities for a hobbyist. I think life is about balance and flexibility. The kind of rigid dichotomy you prescribe for addressing priorities doesn't jive with my life view, and likely for many others. That doesn't mean whatsoever that I am not dedicated to my training though.
Yes, they would. Many people do. They see how much effort and time it would take to really get good, so they quit. Sure, they might keep a guitar around their house that they'll pull out and strum once a year, but they don't PLAY guitar.
Yeah I reread this thread an I have no idea what I was going on about there. I completely agree with you here. I think I worded my response to the point incorrectly.
There is a notion that people stop training at blue belt because "they feel they know enough" for their needs.
My argument is that by training to the point of blue belt, you at least know by then that you need to continue training in order to keep sharp.
It comes down to what you say, difficulty or time invested trumps whatever perceived benefit the individual feels they are getting from training, or they are actually not that interested in it. Any number of underlying reasons for quitting really, but I don't believe "knowing enough" would ever be a real reason for a majority of people, just like no one would learn a few scales, a couple of easy tunes, and decide that is enough guitar to get them by. Keeping the guitar around is residual interest, but it's never enough to keep them motivated.
Basically if they ever thought they "had enough skill," the activity is pretty low on their priorities to begin with, a temporary distraction. It's not a genuine explanation. It's like saying you're full when offered a second helping of your step mum's horrible goat cheese and caper quiche, but being first in line for that slice of cheesecake you really have you eye on.
