Quote of the day by Bruce Lee: ‘Research your own experience, absorb what is useful, reject what is useless, add what is essentially your own,’ life lesson by ‘Enter The Dragon’ star on individual intelligence and discarding unessentials
Modern-day smooth and fast-paced action sequences could not have been achieved if it weren’t for the charming Bruce Lee. His martial arts contributions created a domino effect that continues to make audiences feel awe at the edge-of-your-seat moments. Breaking barriers, the star transformed global perceptions of action films. Today’s inspirational quote comes from his book, ‘Tao of Jeet Kune Do,’ where he spoke about becoming better and moving forward. Here’s a closer look at Bruce Lee’s quote and its meaning.The quote of the day by Bruce Lee reads, “Research your own experience, absorb what is useful, reject what is useless, add what is essentially your own.”
What does Bruce Lee’s quote mean?
While the quote was penned decades ago, its relevance persists even today. Bruce Lee’s inspirational statement suggests building an identity and individual thought process rather than borrowing one from someone else. Learning the raw materials, analysing them, and concluding the experience is important. Instead of blindly listening to what someone else tells you, it is important to examine what actually happens.
Explaining the meaning of Bruce Lee’s quote(Image Credit: Instagram)
Another significant part is discarding practices that no longer serve your benefit, even if they are widely respected or societally approved. You can take pieces from different sources, reject what conflicts with your experience, and eventually create something that genuinely belongs to you.Bruce Lee is not championing the rejection of tradition; he is advocating for examination. ‘Add what is essentially your own’ completes the statement, as mastery cannot be achieved by reproducing somebody else’s method. You need to add your touch of personality and understanding.
The early life of Bruce Lee
Born on November 27, 1940, in San Francisco, United States of America, Bruce Lee and his family moved back to Hong Kong after the Sino-Japanese War. His debut lead role was ‘My Son A-Chang’ (aka ‘The Kid’) in 1950. He would often engage in local gang fights as a teenager and learned the martial art form of Wing Chun. As his parents worried about his potential future in jail, they sent him to the United States as he turned 18. After working odd jobs in a restaurant, he opened his martial arts classes in Seattle. During this time, he completed his high school education and enrolled on philosophy as well as drama at the University of Washington – but soon dropped out, per Britannica.Bruce Lee’s karate performance at the Los Angeles tournament impressed a television producer, leading to his role in ‘The Green Hornet.’ While the show lasted for a year, the Kung Fu techniques became a hit amongst the youngsters. After starring in the 1969 film ‘Marlowe,’ he appeared in ‘Longstreet.’ However, he had trouble finding suitable roles in Hollywood and decided to move back to Hong Kong. With a tremendous fan base, he starred in ‘Tang shan da xiong’ (‘The Big Boss’), which embraced realistic martial arts. The blockbuster was followed by ‘Jing wu men’ (‘Fists of Fury’), ‘Meng long guo jiang’ (‘The Way of the Dragon’), and ‘Enter the Dragon.’
A still from Bruce Lee’s on-screen presence.(Image Credit: Instagram)
Six days before the Hong Kong release of ‘Enter the Dragon,’ Bruce Lee unfortunately passed away due to mysterious circumstances. However, he is often credited for changing the Asian landscape in Hollywood. His films continue to shape modern pop culture and have a cult following. During that time, he was working on the film ‘Game of Death,’ which was released posthumously with cutouts of his face and stand-ins put together.
Bruce Lee: Personal life, net worth, and more
After working towards his dream with passion and thoughtfulness, Bruce Lee’s approximate net worth was USD 1.5 million, which stands to be USD 10 million today, per Celebrity Net Worth. He tied the knot with Linda Emery in 1964 after meeting while he was teaching martial arts in Seattle. They shared two children, Brandon and Shannon, and remained together until his unfortunate demise.Bruce Lee passed away on July 20, 1973.
