3 quotes for Jan 22, 2021

Start where you are.
Use what you have.
Do what you can.

-- Arthur Ashe

The time is right and the stars align when we start doing things. It almost never happens BEFORE we start. There always seem to be so many things missing - more research to be done before you can launch your new idea, more bugs to be sorted out in your new product, more editing to be done before you finish that book.

But being ready to go with what you have - not half-assing it but not being crippled by lack of a perfect scenario seems to make things happen.

The harder you try to change, the worse it can get.
...
You always empower the demons you fight.

– Anthony De Mello

In a recent conversation with a student of mine who is a meditation teacher, I was told the word "try" is a poor way of thinking about things. When we try, we are already offering ourselves an out - it is okay if it goes poorly or fails. Now, while there's nothing wrong with failure, there's definitely things wrong going in expecting to fail. This means we do half-ass it. This means we are not fully committed.

That's rather tangential to what Anthony De Mello is saying here though. Maybe instead of trying to change, we should just change a little bit of the behaviour. Instead of fighting idiots, maybe we should just ignore them or teach them.

Learning is a constant process of discovery – a process without end.

– Bruce Lee

Finally, a non-cryptic Bruce Lee quote eh.

Hope you enjoyed these. Have a great weekend!