Mischief managed.

What is done is done. 小猫 did his grading last night. He passed however due to frustration from earlier in the night not as well as he later wanted to have. Learning the difference between performing for the satisfaction of others and performing for the benefit of yourself, is difficult. If you are being tested and you view the test as the former, you are more likely to resent everything they ask you. If you see what they are asking of you as a chance to assess your ability and understanding under pressure, there won't be a conflict of ideals stopping you from performing. Usually people who enjoy the activity that they are doing like to be tested, as even a fail will help them improve, it will tell them that what they are doing is not working and they need to change their stratagem (or develop one). That there is a good way to look at a test is what 小猫 learned last night. That it took me several hours to change his perspective enough to learn the lesson becomes quiet incidental once he understood it.
The end result of the less adequate but less than possible pass has not made him value place value on the rank (rank not being something that he believes in) but it placed value on the process of gaining rank. I think that this is a healthy way to gain respect for those who show their achievement by symbols as well as proven ability. The latter being harder to display without pain in a martial context. He also stated that next time, no matter what mood he might be in, he will put his all into his next grading. I hope it is soon and successful.