JKD - Simple by Design Bruce Lee listed Simplicity, Directness and Non-classical as the three cornerstones of Jeet Kune Do. I like to think of these three cornerstones as fundamental design elements, and in this blog I want to look at the design element of “simplicity.” Many people think design means how something look, but if you dig deeper, it’s really about how it works. Design is about solving problems or making a current product or process better – faster, more efficient, smarter, easier to use, etc. To design something really well you have to get into it - you really have to understand and grasp what it’s all about. It takes a passionate commitment to really understand something, and
I read a cool blog the other day written by Henry Akins, a top Brazilian Jiu Jitsu instructor, in which he discussed rolling (sparring) with an opponent on the mat and used the term “moving meditation.” In the blog, he wrote, “When you’re rolling [sparring] with an opponent on the mat who is trying to submit you with a choke or joint lock, you cannot be thinking, ‘Oh man, I had such a shitty day at work.’ You have to fully present with a calm mind.” The blog struck a resonant chord with me because I had never heard another martial artist use the term “moving meditation” before. The first time I heard the term with regard to martial arts was back in the early 1970’s, shortly after I began tra
