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Zat Rana
Playing at the intersection of science, art, and business. I write to reduce noise. www.designluck.com. CNBC, Business Insider, World Economic Forum, etc.
Nov 28
https://www.brucelee.com/
Bruce Lee: How to Think Like Nobody Else

The legacy of Bruce Lee is mainly rooted in his success as a movie star and a martial artist.

Not many people know that he was also an avid reader and a deep thinker. In fact, he often noted that many of the impressive feats he accomplished weren’t just a direct product of his commitment to training his body. Everything began with his ability to cultivate his mind.

He rose to fame at a time when he had to deal with criticism for his mixed heritage. In Hong Kong, he was judged for being American. In America, he was judged for being Chinese.

It wasn’t enough for him to just do his work and reap the rewards of his labor. He also had to deal with a world that was pulling him in two different directions. It perhaps explains his deeply introspective habits and also how he became such a fiercely independent thinker.

In one instance, at a talk show in Hong Kong, the host asked him how he really saw himself. Did he identify as Chinese or American? Bruce Lee looked at him before calmly saying:

    “Neither. I think of myself as a human being.”

We can all learn something from Bruce Lee the icon and the athlete. There is a lot there. That said, we should all also aim to get what we can out of Bruce Lee the philosopher.

Through his writing and his interviews, he gives us intimate insight into his thought process, and what it means to use the human mind productively to nurture independent thought.

Bruce Lee may be famous as a combat fighter, but it’s with his mind that he really got there. Let’s see what we can learn.
1. Know That No Dogma Contains All Answers

Depending on the part of the world you happen to live in, you likely abide by a set of customs and beliefs about what the right conduct of behavior is and what it means to live well.

If all you have been exposed to is one cultural or ideological framework, the chances are that much of your thinking patterns are informed by a very specific and regimented set of values.

Different countries, cultures, and even cities have different beliefs about what is right and what is wrong, what is respected and what is not, and what is true and what is false. Sometimes these differences are subtle, and other times, it’s a distinction of day and night.

Bruce Lee was heavily influenced by Chinese philosophy, and he was particularly fond of the work of people like Alan Watts who brought a lot of eastern values and ideas to the west.

He saw himself doing the same. He thought there was a lot of beauty in many of the ideals of the east, and through his movies and writings, he hoped to spread some of that to the west.
Still, he was always cognizant of the limitations of a single tradition or culture, and he always sought to mix and match different ideas to arrive at his own personal conclusions.

By and large, every dogma asserts itself as the one with all the answers. Yet, if we look through the lens of history, we see that they each have their successes and their failures.

Much of the time, the reason that most of the people who support a particular dogma do so is that of pure chance. Most of them were either born into it or it was the predominant influence around them, which eventually extended itself into their own lives.

This isn’t necessarily to say that you can’t buy into a belief system that’s supported by a larger framework that many others also see as true. It’s just about thinking with caution.

Every culture or ideology has something to teach, but no single one has it all figured out.
2. Build True Intellectual Confidence

One of the strengths of existing frameworks for thinking and living is that many of them have survived the test of time. Generally speaking, if an idea has been around throughout history, it’s often fair to assume that, whatever it is, it has a good overall reason for existing.

This isn’t always the case, but it’s a rule of thumb that mostly holds up. As such, if you want to refute a part of an existing dogma, then you need strong intellectual confidence to do so.

You need to trust that your reason for either rejecting or accepting a part of something else is good and honest and that it’s not going to lead you astray. Otherwise, it could be costly.

When John Little, who compiled Bruce Lee’s writing after his death, went through the remains of his work, he found something in the range of 1,700 annotated books in the house.

Bruce Lee believed that even his confidence (and he had a lot of it) in his physical abilities began with the intellectual confidence he cultivated in his mind. In an old letter he wrote in his 20s, he talks about a “creative and spiritual force” within him that guides everything else.

He was a thinker first and foremost, and the confidence he gained from sharpening his mind was the catalyst that allowed him to trust his independent way of thought and action. It’s why he asked not only questions but also why he innovated by creating new styles of combat.

It’s easy to romanticize independent thought and for a reason. It’s generally the advisable way to make progress. That said, it’s contingent on you actually being an effective thinker.

To think for yourself, you first have to put in the work to trust your own thought process.
3. Choose Self-Expression Over Imitation

Besides rejecting a single all-encompassing dogma, Bruce Lee also felt that the culture of his time, especially in the martial arts community of Hong Kong, was too concerned with picking and choosing particular strains of action and not enough with self-expression.

He strongly felt that improvement and development of oneself weren’t necessarily acts of copying an existing success story, but it was about observing and iterating in a personal way.

By first understanding yourself, you have a better idea of what is useful to you and what isn’t, and from there you build on only what’s relevant, not just everything. As Lee said himself:

    “Learning is definitely not mere imitation or the ability to accumulate and conform to fixed knowledge. Learning is a constant process of discovery and never a concluding one.”

Everyone can learn something from almost anything, and it’s worth developing a mentality that does so. That said, with a few exceptions, the lessons should always conform to your own expression, rather than mold to whatever it is that you’re extracting the lesson from.

Any valuable development begins at the base layer of who you are and what you know to be true. Naturally, that doesn’t mean that those parts of you can’t change for the better and that you shouldn’t seek to improve them. It’s just about starting internally.

Once you have a solid base of intellectual confidence, your aim should be to iterate and improve on that, not give that up to try and become like something that you’re not.

People often get too attached to whatever the source or example of their learning is, and although sometimes it can be good, much of the time it just steals their unique blueprint.

You should always seek to observe for insight, but do so without attachment.
All You Need to Know

If you’re thinking the same things as everyone else, you’re generally also making the same mistakes as them. Thinking for yourself isn’t just optimal, but it’s the only way to get ahead.

Bruce Lee is the father of modern martial arts, and his movies continue to attract fans from everywhere. His independent style of thought and action have always been visible in his commercial work, but they’re arguably even more apparent in the philosophy he left behind.

Knowing how to think for yourself isn’t about rejecting existing ideas for the sake of doing so. It’s about being critical and cautious in your approach to making decisions of importance.

Your mind is responsible for whatever else comes your way in life. Give it the right edge.
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Go to the profile of Zat Rana
Zat Rana
Medium member since May 2017

Playing at the intersection of science, art, and business. I write to reduce noise. www.designluck.com. CNBC, Business Insider, World Economic Forum, etc.
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Responses
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Go to the profile of Nancy Churchill
Nancy Churchill
Nov 29
To think for yourself, you first have to put in the work to trust your own thought process.

Learning to think for oneself seems to be a lost art these days. Hopefully, this trend will soon reverse as it becomes counter-culture to be a deep thinker.
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Go to the profile of Roxanne Henkle
Roxanne Henkle
Nov 28

A wonderful article on developing the Self. We live in a compartmental world. Forces outside require most humans to belong to one group or another. The push to adhere to their dogma. True self expression individuals do take parts from one dogma and create a mash up of belief.
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Go to the profile of Brenda Ammon
Brenda Ammon
Nov 28

ZAT, this is profound! “If you’re thinking the same things as everyone else, you’re generally also making the same mistakes as them. Thinking for yourself isn’t just optimal, but it’s the only way to get ahead”.
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Go to the profile of Mukundarajan V N
Mukundarajan V N
Nov 28

It is astonishing that Bruce Lee the fighter was also a deep thinker. Fame did not distract him from looking inwards to search for answers to existential questions.A capacity for self-introspection and a philosophical disposition complemented Bruce Lee’s physical exploits as a martial artist.
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Go to the profile of Tommy Delarosbil
Tommy Delarosbil
Nov 29

I would never compare myself to this great man. He had so much influence on people before dying at the young age of 32 years old. Beside being smart, you need a charisma out of this world to achieve that.

Somehow, I see myself in Bruce Lee. I always searched for answers through my own lenses. I always believed in myself…
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Go to the profile of Erik van Mechelen
Erik van Mechelen
Nov 29
Much of the time, the reason that most of the people who support a particular dogma do so is that of pure chance. Most of them were either born into it or it was the predominant infl...

This fact should be reminder of three things:

    To have empathy and compassion for those espousing their un/chosen dogma
    To help the dogmatic realize it is okay to let go their dogma
    But first, to notice first the dogmatic in oneself, and shed it

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Go to the profile of Christin Platzek
Christin Platzek
Nov 28
People often get too attached to whatever the source or example of their learning is, and although sometimes it can be good, much of the time it just steals their unique blueprint.

This couldn’t have come more timely for me.

Thank you for this brilliant article!
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Go to the profile of Denis Murphy
Denis Murphy
Nov 28

Very well written article and some very useful points to keep in mind.
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Go to the profile of Darren Stehle
Darren Stehle
Nov 29
If you’re thinking the same things as everyone else, you’re generally also making the same mistakes as them

Wow! Powerful distinction/co-relation.
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Go to the profile of Roy Huff ♛
Roy Huff ♛
Nov 30
“Neither. I think of myself as a human being.”

Thank you!
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Go to the profile of Chris Schenk
Chris Schenk
Nov 29
It’s just about thinking with caution.

This is a great sentence. I love how you wrote it.
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Go to the profile of Vico Biscotti
Vico Biscotti
Nov 29

Great article, Zat. Thank you.

I think you did honor the legacy of Bruce Lee.
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Go to the profile of Naulikha
Naulikha
Nov 29
Neither. I think of myself as a human being

    Drops mic!

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Go to the profile of Raph
Raph
Nov 29

    Did he identify as Chinese or American? Bruce Lee looked at him before calmly saying:

    “Neither. I think of myself as a human being.”

This bears another mention in this wave of nationalism. While it’s great to not forget your roots and know your heritage, we are all human beings sharing the same…
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Go to the profile of reni de sousa
reni de sousa
Nov 30

Thinking is an addiction, like anything else. It is all conditioned Thought, and

we are all parrots. Language is 26 alphabets. Whats there to think about?
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Go to the profile of Action Press Stunts
Action Press Stunts
Nov 30

As usual Zat, insightful and inspiring. Thank you.
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Go to the profile of Shaun G. Si
Shaun G. Si
Nov 30

This is wonderful!!! I loved the fact that the article showed a different side of Bruce Lee. To many he is merely an excellent martial artist, but only a few see him as a brilliant thinker and one with a very philosophical mindset.

I have always been an advocate of learning (reading articles, watching TED Talks) but…
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Go to the profile of Asim K
Asim K
Nov 30

thoroughly written article and some very useful factors to hold in mind.

<a href=”http://www.worldwidelifestyles.com/bodyweight-squats-everyday/">Bodyweight Squats Everyday</a>
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Go to the profile of Phil Johnson
Phil Johnson
Nov 30

Another fantastic essay! Great work.
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Go to the profile of Action Press Stunts
Action Press Stunts
Nov 30
Your mind is responsible for whatever else comes your way in life.

“We become what we think about”

Earl Nightingale — The Strangest Secret
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Go to the profile of Yester Vue
Yester Vue
Nov 29

For the most part he is usually labeled as a “Martial Artist” but I have always admired his views and the things he spoke on in interviews. I have always thought of him more as an “Artist” that ALSO excelled in the martial arts.
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Go to the profile of Shubham Kanojiya
Shubham Kanojiya
Nov 30
Neither. I think of myself as a human being

Humble..
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Go to the profile of TheseEyesGod
TheseEyesGod
Nov 29

What an interesting article, revealing much not widely known about Bruce Lee. I’d call it excellent except for one omission — spirit or soul is even more important than mind in such things. 😉

~♥~
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Go to the profile of Dr. C. Cat
Dr. C. Cat
Nov 30

The main reason why he was never truly accepted by the Chinese was because he was born in the US, San Francisco to be exact.