While the Beginner BJJ student focuses on learning new skills and techniques, the Intermediate BJJ student (blue and purple belt) is selecting material from that catalog that best suit them - and spending many hours developing this material into their own game.
The blue belt is the most dynamic and critical rank, perhaps the most important in Brazilian Jiu-Jitsu. The focus of a blue belt is to learn how to string together techniques. Think of it like this... blue belts know a lot of words (techniques) but are still learning to string together sentences.
Using the above analogy, a purple belt is someone who can have a conversation. A purple belt that knows 6 passes can string together 2 or 3 of them to make one work.
One sign that you're closing in on your purple belt is that your guard is becoming very difficult to pass. You can also handle a non-Brazilian Jiu-Jitsu grappler (like a wrestler) from guard while maintaining your position. Hip shifts should be fluid, the opponent's ankle lock attempts should be spotted and nullified, and the opponent's balance should be regularly tested. Of course, there is a lot more to this so come to class to learn more.
These are subjective measures and you should trust your instructor(s) to point out ways for you to improve your game.
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