Can you be the cup?

Bruce Lee famously and eloquently once said: “Don't get set into one form, adapt it and build your own, and let it grow, be like water. Empty your mind, be formless, shapeless — like water. Now you put water in a cup, it becomes the cup; You put water into a bottle it becomes the bottle; You put it in a teapot it becomes the teapot. Now water can flow or it can crash. Be water, my friend.”

Here was a life cut too short far too early.

We’ve all met people who were like water before. They’re people that can step into any workplace setting and find their feet quickly and easily. They can mix with all different types of people. They adapt, they become what they need to become to suit the task at hand.

I love the way Bruce Lee also hints at the power and backbone behind water as well “water can flow or it can crash”. Just because the water can mould itself to its surroundings doesn’t mean it can’t command attention, doesn’t mean it’s weak or can be pushed around. Anyone who has tried to fight the current in a rough ocean can attest to that.

So what can I learn from Bruce’s wise words today?

- to see the people who are like water around me and look to learn this skill from them (and encourage more of them to work with me!)
- to seek to become more adaptable myself (I look forward to becoming a teapot!)
- to learn to empty my mind more often

How can you be more like water today?

By Kirsty Dunphey with 1 comment