Embracing the Messy Process of Creativity

During one of the busiest times in his life, Bruce Lee wrote a letter to himself titled "In My Own Process". When Bruce wrote this, he had just halted production on Game of Death was in mid-prep for Enter the Dragon which included re-writing script pages, creating fight choreography, and being a producer. He was moved to pause and write several drafts of this letter to himself—each version was an evolution of the ideas he began pondering. Through the different versions, you can witness his thinking and creative process—adding, building and refining with each iteration. He wrote: "At the moment I'm wondering for whom am I writing this organized mess? I have to say I am writing whatever wants to be written." "I have come to the realization that sooner or later what it really amounts to is the bare fact that even an attempt to really write something about ones self demands, first of all, an honesty towards oneself to be able to take responsibility to be what we actually are." "What it boils down to is my sincere and honest revelation of a man called Bruce Lee. Just who is Bruce Lee? Where is he heading? What does he hope to discover? To do this a person has to stand on his own two feet and find out the cause of ignorance. For the lazy and hopeless, they can forget it and do what they like best." Most of us spend our lives avoiding these questions or distracting ourselves, Bruce confronted these questions directly. "The truth is that life is an ever going process ever renewing and it just meant to be lived but not lived for. It is something that cannot be squeezed into a self-constructed security pattern, a game of rigid control and clever manipulation. Instead, to be what I term "a quality human being" one has to be transparently real and have the courage to be what he is." Take Action: When you feel compelled to express something meaningful to yourself, write it down. Keep track of all the different versions to research your own life and mark your progression. If you'd like to share how you're doing with this action item you can email us at hello@brucelee.com or on social @BruceLee #BruceLeePodcast. #AAHA (Awesome Asians and Hapas) This week our #AAHA shout-out goes to a close family friend of Shannon's, Taky Kimura, a Japanese America, martial artist, and one of Bruce Lee's best friends. Taky was one of Bruce Lee's top students, closest friends, best man at Bruce's wedding, first person Bruce certified to teach Jeet Kune Do, one of Bruce's first assistant instructors, and was pallbearer at Bruce's funeral. Taky is in his 90's and still teaching in Seattle, WA. Taky's family was interred in WWII with his family and experienced a lot of the prejudice and racism that followed the war. Taky met Bruce when he was in his 30's and credits Bruce with renewing his spirit. Taky has lived a quiet life and has trained people in his family's grocery store basement for free. Taky, you have been a wonderful friend to Bruce and Shannon's family, and you're awesome, thank you! #BruceLeeMoment This week's #BruceLeeMoment comes from Felix Sinn in Hamburg, Germany, read the full version in our show notes online: "I moved away from my family and friends south Germany up north to Hamburg, where I am going my own way and where I founded my company. And I am not only working on the company but also on myself and on being myself which seems to be a lifetime challenge. I am 28 years old now and there is nobody who I could copy, nobody who tells me what to do, and no mentor. And although I did not know too much about Bruce´s person I felt his philosophy. It felt like some of his spirit lives in me all the time and now as I hear all the information about him and his philosophy in the podcast, it is like you would tell me all these things that I already had in my heart but couldn´t express it in words like Bruce did." Share your #AAHA and #BruceLeeMoment recommendations with us via social media @BruceLee or email us at hello@brucelee.com