Many people know of Bruce Lee from his wide achievements in film and martial arts. Born in the United States, Bruce Lee’s family hailed from Hong Kong. Bruce Lee lived in both countries throughout his life, and was a student of nearly ten different styles of martial arts. Bruce Lee became a master martial artist, and even founded his own branch, named Jeet Kune Do. While this may be a lesser known area of martial arts, notable Jeet Kune Do students include Chuck Norris and Kareem Abdul-Jabbar. His talents don’t stop there however, as Bruce Lee is often credited with changing the way Asians were portrayed in Western cinema. Not someone who only cultivated an air of high achievement, Bruce Lee really lived the lessons he sought to impart. The following quotes are some of the most mind blowing examples of this man’s true wisdom.
Keep Pushing Yourself
“There are no limits. There are plateaus, but you must not stay there, you must go beyond them. If it kills you, it kills you. A man must constantly exceed his level.”
In order to be successful, you must constantly challenge yourself and set new goals. In order to overcome some obstacles in life you must be determined enough to keep going no matter what.
Stay Positive
“Choose the positive. — You have choice — you are master of your attitude — choose the POSITIVE, the CONSTRUCTIVE. Optimism is a faith that leads to success.”
Be as optimistic as possible and you’ll find you can do more than you thought you could.
Be True To Yourself
“In life, what more can you ask for than to be real? To fulfill one’s potential instead of wasting energy on [attempting to] actualize one’s dissipating image, which is not real and an expenditure of one’s vital energy. We have great work ahead of us, and it needs devotion and much, much energy. To grow, to discover, we need involvement, which is something I experience every day — sometimes good, sometimes frustrating. No matter what, you must let your inner light guide you out of the darkness.”
All of us must put effort into growing a more functional society, whether in a distant country, or in our own communities.
Cultivate Determination
“You must have complete determination. The worst opponent you can come across is one whose aim has become an obsession. For instance, if a man has decided that he is going to bite off your nose no matter what happens to him in the process, the chances are he will succeed in doing it. He may be severely beaten up, too, but that will not stop him from carrying out his objective. That is the real fighter.”
Determination is a crucial skill on the road to success. Complete perseverance is sometimes required to reach them.
Always Keep Growing
“There is no such thing as maturity. There is instead an ever-evolving process of maturing. Because when there is a maturity, there is a conclusion and a cessation. That’s the end. That’s when the coffin is closed.”
A rich life is one that’s constantly open to new information and experiences. Once you cut yourself off to growth, you might as will be dead.
Never Stop Educating Yourself
“Faith makes it possible to achieve that which man’s mind can conceive and believe. Even today, I dare not say that I have reached a state of achievement. I’m still learning, for learning is boundless.”
In order to stay successful, one must always challenge themselves.
Time Is Precious
“We all have time to spend or waste, and it is our decision what to do with it. But once passed, it is gone forever.”
The time we have on this earth is limited, and each of us should want to make the most of it. We can achieve great things if we seize the day and jump in.
Live In The Moment
“What is is more important than what should be.”
It is critical to accept your current circumstance in order to move on from them. If you obsess over what you should or would have done, you only waste time that could be used to find solutions.
Be The Best Version Of Yourself
“Knowledge will give you power, but character respect.”
Most effective people in life are those who “walk the walk.”
Failures Are Steps To Success
“Don’t fear failure. — Not failure, but low aim, is the crime. In great attempts it is glorious even to fail.”
Failures are inevitable when trying new things. Failures are not permanent however, and failures should encourage you, because they show that you are in new territory.
Always Move Forward
“Walk on.”
You must keep challenging yourself and moving forward to truly reach your full potential.
There Are No Limits
“Life is wide, limitless. There is no border, no frontier.”
Societal stigmas or popular opinions don’t really have any true power. Everyone deserves to have a chance to explore and discover what makes them happy.
Life Should Be Enjoyed
“The meaning of life is that it is to be lived, and it is not to be traded and conceptualized and squeezed into a pattern of systems.”
If you don’t fit into other peoples expectations, don’t be afraid. You can go after things that make you feel truly alive.
Reflect On Your Experiences
“Life itself is your teacher, and you are in a state of constant learning.”
Always try to learn from your experiences in life.
Be Proactive
“Balance your thoughts with action. — If you spend too much time thinking about a thing, you’ll never get it done.”
We need goals to achieve anything, however thinking about an idea too long prevents us from taking time to achieve it.
Be Flexible
“Be like water making its way through cracks. Do not be assertive, but adjust to the object, and you shall find a way around or through it. If nothing within you stays rigid, outward things will disclose themselves.”
Sometimes the path to where you want to go isn’t the way you imagined it. However, if you remain flexible, you will always be able to move towards your goal.
Change Starts On The Inside
“The change is from inner to outer. — We start by dissolving our attitude not by altering outer conditions.”
Change starts from the inside, and we must utterly believe we can do something before we do it.
Negativity Is Toxic
“Pessimism blunts the tools you need to succeed.”
On the other hand, approaching life in a negative light makes it easy to walk away from challenges.
Live Your Life
“The key to immortality is first living a life worth remembering.”
Don’t be afraid to pursue your real goals. Our time here is short, and living a fulfilling life is a better reward than anything else.
