#62 True Flow: Bridging the Gap

The idea of True Flow comes directly from Bruce Lee’s physical study of martial arts and specifically from his art of Jeet Kune Do, which literally translated means "the Way of the Intercepting Fist." One of the core tenets behind Jeet Kune Do is that there are no separate movements of offense and defense, they can happen simultaneously and flow quickly together. This is an idea that can be applied to our movements in life, bridging the gap between happenings so that you can flow easier from one thing to the next. If we collapse the space between two separate movements, the result is flow--and when you’re in flow everything moves more quickly and smoothly without much effort. Forward movement becomes quicker when you don’t force or strain--you adapt and adjust in real-time, all the time. Gentleness and Firmness are also work together to bridge the gap. There is an interplay of movement between them, they are not separate motions or ideas. “Gentleness alone cannot forever dissolve away great force, nor can sheer brute force forever subdue one’s problems. In order to survive, the harmonious interfusion of gentleness and firmness as a whole is necessary, sometimes one dominating and sometimes the other, in wave like succession.” “Instead of opposing force by force, one should complete an opposing movement by accepting the flow of energy from it and defeat it by borrowing from it. This is the law of adaption.” If we can close that gap between our mistake and our learning, it can save us years of not growing. When we face challenges or make mistakes, if we can move quickly into “I was supposed to make this mistake so I could learn this lesson.” “What we are aiming for is there to be no dislocation in the movements. They are done with flowing continuity like the movement of a river that is forever flowing without a moment of cessation or standing still.” “In order to achieve oneness of movement and true flow, the gap between movements should be bridged.” “One shouldn’t, therefore, favor too much on either side alone. Remember, gentleness versus firmness is not the situation, but rather gentleness, firmness as a oneness is the way.” Take Action: Look and see, where are you being too extreme? Where is there something in your life that, deep down, you know is a problem but you don’t want to look at it? #AAHA “I wanted to reach out and recommend my best friend, Nick Maccarone, as someone who would be perfect for a feature. Nick is an Oakland native, half Korean/half Italian - an actor, filmmaker, published author and motivational speaker. Nick has done incredible volunteer work in Haiti, South Africa and Nepal which inspired him to create his own passion project here at home: OaklandGood.com. After years as a frustrated Asian-American actor in NYC, and with his mission of diversifying Hollywood and Broadway, Nick wrote a book "To the Perspective Artist: Lessons from an Unknown Actor," which was published earlier this year, along with the launch of his spin-off podcast. A few weeks ago, he was asked to give his inspiring TEDxTalk entitled, "6 Ways Actors & Artists Can Empower Themselves." Thank you Jen for nominating Nick, and Nick thank you for being awesome! #BruceLeeMoment From listener Benjamin: “In college I was casually learning Hapkido from a friend who had a black belt and also doing some recreational boxing. I looked for books at the library on martial arts and found one by Bruce Lee. I learned one of his quotes and still remember it today: “Mastery is not attained by accumulating knowledge but by stripping away to the essential.” I was impressed with the deeper side of this man, as I had only know him in films.” Share your #AAHAs, #BruceLeeMoments, and #TakeAction progress with us at hello@brucelee.com Find the full version of our show notes at BruceLee.com/podcast