Easier said then done. If you focus too much on the next color of you belt , then you risk losing sight of what is important, and that is to improve your game. It is important that you have a clear goal,for instance improving enough to become a blue belt, not getting the belt in it self.
I have been told that my requirements for giving out new belts are too high, but the way I look at it is, that when you get your belt, you should be able to train in any gym in the world and not get steamrolled by the people at the same belt level. Of course there are going to be guys better then you. But you should be able you hang with almost all the guys there. Bacause there is nothing worse then having something that you don’t deserve. Just keep on training and next belt will come one day.

One of the most important things when we train Jiu Jitsu is to remain openminded to new techniques and concepts. It doesent matter if it is not part of your game, you still need to know what to do if somebody puts you in that position, and you might even learn something new or see things in a different perspective.

What will obstruct you the most is the fear of failure, it keeps you from competition, trying new things in practice and so on. It is not that you should want to lose or fail at what you do, but that in order to get better you have to try something new, something you are not already good at or familiar with or you will stagnate, and it will take much longer to get proficient and succesfull in Jiu Jitsu.

There are no short cuts, so I will see you on the mats.