Takeaway
Marvel at the adaptability of water—perhaps you may be able to embrace, rather than resist change. Accepting that healthcare is continuously changing might allow for less frustration.
Lifelong Learning in Clinical Excellence | February 20, 2025 | 2 min read
By Scott Wright, MD, Johns Hopkins Medicine
In the book “Be water, my friend,” Shannon Lee explores the philosophical underpinnings of her father’s (Bruce Lee) iconic philosophy: “Be water.” Her book offers many insights applicable to the lives of healthcare professionals and the practice of medicine.
Bruce Lee was obsessive about continuous improvement. His commitment to excellence and a dedication to getting better each day make him a role model for many. Here are a few insights from the book applicable not only to medicine, but to life in general.
Be adaptable
“If you put water into a cup, it becomes the cup. You put water into a bottle and it becomes the bottle. You put it in a teapot, it becomes the teapot.”—Bruce Lee
Water adapts to the container that it’s placed in. Because the healthcare system is constantly changing, healthcare professionals who can be adaptable might struggle and suffer less than others.
Be fluid
If water gets too hot or too cold, it changes into another substance (gas and ice). There may be a lesson here for healthcare professionals to avoid extremes and to try and maintain their “center” to be most fluid.
Balancing perfection with well-being
“[Perfection] is an impossibility, you can never live up to it.”—Bruce Lee
There’s some tension between the “pursuit of perfection” and well-being. Because working in healthcare is fraught with challenges, we need to accept that we can’t be perfect. Learning to give up control and to decide when and where ok is good enough, can help healthcare professionals to maintain their sanity and joy in practice.
“If you are cursed with perfectionism, then you are absolutely sunk.”—Bruce Lee
Be relentless and persistent
“A goal is not always to be reached. It often serves simply as something to aim at.”—Bruce Lee
Find a small way to move toward your goal(s) each day. Then you’ll be flowing in the right direction. If you do reach your goal, don’t stop. Water doesn’t stop when it reaches the ocean and becomes part of something larger.
Finally, and unrelated to the book: (i) drink lots of water, (ii) enjoy the beauty of a body of water whenever you see one, and (iii) protect our planet so that the next generation will have the water they need.
This piece expresses the views solely of the author. It does not represent the views of any organization, including Johns Hopkins Medicine.