--- title: "Meaning & Key Takeaway of: Unless you are actually a ninja, a guru…" description: "\"Unless you are actually a ninja, a guru, or a rock star, don't ever use any of those terms in your bio. Ever.\" — Austin Kleon" image: "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/3cd/austin-kleon-1835_bios_unless-you-are-actually-a-ninja-a-guru-o_1928391.png" --- # Unless you are actually a ninja, a guru, or a rock star… ![“Unless you are actually a ninja, a guru, or a rock star, don't ever use any of those terms in your bio. Ever.” quote by Austin Kleon](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/3cd/austin-kleon-1835_bios_unless-you-are-actually-a-ninja-a-guru-o_1928391.png) [Download](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/3cd/austin-kleon-1835_bios_unless-you-are-actually-a-ninja-a-guru-o_1928391.png) [Open image](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/3cd/austin-kleon-1835_bios_unless-you-are-actually-a-ninja-a-guru-o_1928391.png) > “Unless you are actually a ninja, a guru, or a rock star, don't ever use any of those terms in your bio. Ever.” [Austin Kleon](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/austin-kleon/) ## About This Quote This interpretation was drafted with AI assistance. It is one reading of the quote, not the author's own explanation. Advice warns against using inflated titles in personal branding, urging authenticity over hype. **In simple terms:** Avoid bragging with titles like ninja or guru. Key Takeaway Be genuine in how you present yourself. Themes authenticity branding humility Mood playful direct Type advice motivational When to use this quote - resume writing - social media profiles - networking events - personal websites - public speaking Key Concepts personal identity marketing self‑presentation Questions to Reflect On - Do titles ever help credibility? - How can you convey skill without hype? A Different Perspective Some may view it as dismissive of expertise. ★ ★ ★ ★ ★ No ratings yet [Guru](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/guru/) [Ninja](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/ninja/) [Rock star](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/rock-star/) [Rocks](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/rocks/) [Stars](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/stars/) ## Related quotes > [The mind is a mechanism. It has no intelligence. The mind is a bio-computer. How can it have any intelligence? It has skill, but…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anonymous/the-mind-is-a-mechanism-it-has-no-intelligence-the-mind-is-a-bio/) [Anonymous](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anonymous/) > [Americans in all places and levels of government have begun to consider the areas where we need to prepare ourselves from future threats, including…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/paul-gillmor/americans-in-all-places-and-levels-of-government-have-begun-to/) [Paul Gillmor](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/paul-gillmor/) > [Marijuana makes the best bio-diesel fuel on the planet, so it can make you energy. It grows 15 feet a summer, so it's a…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jesse-ventura/marijuana-makes-the-best-bio-diesel-fuel-on-the-planet-so-it-can-make/) [Jesse Ventura](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jesse-ventura/) > [Following bio-medical treatment - which is basically changing the diet, giving vitamins and supplements and detoxing the body from metals or candida - and…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jenny-mccarthy/following-bio-medical-treatment-which-is-basically-changing-the-diet/) [Jenny McCarthy](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jenny-mccarthy/) > [If the Bush Administration cannot ensure Americans that they will be safe from the flu, how will they protect our country against a possible…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jon-corzine/if-the-bush-administration-cannot-ensure-americans-that-they-will-be/) [Jon Corzine](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jon-corzine/) > [As a bio major, I figured "free will" meant chemicals in your brain telling you what to do, the molecules bouncing around in a…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/scott-westerfeld/as-a-bio-major-i-figured-free-will-meant-chemicals-in-your-brain/) [Scott Westerfeld](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/scott-westerfeld/) > [The official bio is the wrongest thing you've ever seen in your entire life.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/vincent-kartheiser/the-official-bio-is-the-wrongest-thing-you-ve-ever-seen-in-your/) [Vincent Kartheiser](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/vincent-kartheiser/) > [Take a good long look at human beings in their actual practices and motives; bring the utmost psychological and bio-economic factors to bear on…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/kenny-smith/take-a-good-long-look-at-human-beings-in-their-actual-practices-and/) [Kenny Smith](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/kenny-smith/) > [Just updated my bio!!:) I like it!! Hahaha:D](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/rachel/just-updated-my-bio-i-like-it-hahaha-d/) [Rachel](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/rachel/) > [ \[In my bio\] is no drunk driving, there's no DUI's, there's no possession of cocaine, none of that stuff so you know, I don't… ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jeff-dunham/in-my-bio-is-no-drunk-driving-there-s-no-dui-s-there-s-no-possession/) [Jeff Dunham](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jeff-dunham/) > [Sometimes I feel people think I live on a commune but I don't. We are all solar, though. There are no power lines. It's…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/woody-harrelson/sometimes-i-feel-people-think-i-live-on-a-commune-but-i-don-t-we-are/) [Woody Harrelson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/woody-harrelson/) > [The worst potential bio-terrorist is nature itself.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anonymous/the-worst-potential-bio-terrorist-is-nature-itself/) [Anonymous](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anonymous/) > [Smart art galleries know it's not the words on paper but the emotion in the piece that makes clients pull out the credit card…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jack-white/smart-art-galleries-know-it-s-not-the-words-on-paper-but-the-emotion/) [Jack White](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jack-white/) > [I used to make up stuff in my bio all the time, that I used to be a professional ice-skater and stuff like that.…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/stephen-colbert/i-used-to-make-up-stuff-in-my-bio-all-the-time-that-i-used-to-be-a/) [Stephen Colbert](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/stephen-colbert/) > [ In the past, \[medicalization\]has been portrayed as something that doctors inflict on a passive and un-suspecting world - an expansion of the Medical Empire.… ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ben-goldacre/in-the-past-medicalization-has-been-portrayed-as-something-that/) [Ben Goldacre](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ben-goldacre/) ## More by Austin Kleon > [“The thing is, you can cut off a couple passions and only focus on one, but after a while, you’ll start to feel phantom…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/austin-kleon/the-thing-is-you-can-cut-off-a-couple-passions-and-only-focus-on-one/) [Austin Kleon](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/austin-kleon/) > [Don't think of your website as a self-promotion machine, think of it as a self-invention machine.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/austin-kleon/don-t-think-of-your-website-as-a-self-promotion-machine-think-of-it/) [Austin Kleon](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/austin-kleon/) > [“We want you to take from us. We want you, at first, to steal from us, because you can’t steal. You will take what…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/austin-kleon/we-want-you-to-take-from-us-we-want-you-at-first-to-steal-from-us/) [austin kleon](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/austin-kleon/) > [“Validation is for parking.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/austin-kleon/validation-is-for-parking/) [Austin Kleon](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/austin-kleon/) > [“If you want fans, you have to be a fan first. If you want to be accepted by a community, you have to first…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/austin-kleon/if-you-want-fans-you-have-to-be-a-fan-first-if-you-want-to-be/) [Austin Kleon](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/austin-kleon/) > [“Social media sites are the perfect place to share daily updates. Don’t worry about being on every platform; pick and choose based on what…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/austin-kleon/social-media-sites-are-the-perfect-place-to-share-daily-updates-don-t/) [Austin Kleon](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/austin-kleon/) > [“Writing a page a day doesn't seem like much, but do it for 365 days and you have enough to fill a novel.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/austin-kleon/writing-a-page-a-day-doesn-t-seem-like-much-but-do-it-for-365-days/) [Austin Kleon](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/austin-kleon/) > [Be boring. (It’s the only way to get work done.)](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/austin-kleon/be-boring-it-s-the-only-way-to-get-work-done/) [Austin Kleon](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/austin-kleon/) > [It sounds a little extreme, but in this day and age, if your work isn't online, it doesn't exist.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/austin-kleon/it-sounds-a-little-extreme-but-in-this-day-and-age-if-your-work-isn-t/) [Austin Kleon](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/austin-kleon/) > [“Don't wait until you know who you are to get started. If I'd waited to know who I was or what I was about…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/austin-kleon/don-t-wait-until-you-know-who-you-are-to-get-started-if-i-d-waited-to/) [Austin Kleon](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/austin-kleon/) > [Your brain gets too comfortable in your everyday surroundings. You need to make it uncomfortable. You need to spend some time in another land,…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/austin-kleon/your-brain-gets-too-comfortable-in-your-everyday-surroundings-you/) [Austin Kleon](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/austin-kleon/) > [Nothing is more paralyzing than the idea of limitless possibilities.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/austin-kleon/nothing-is-more-paralyzing-than-the-idea-of-limitless-possibilities/) [Austin Kleon](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/austin-kleon/) > [“Whenever Picasso learned how to do something, he abandoned it.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/austin-kleon/whenever-picasso-learned-how-to-do-something-he-abandoned-it/) [Austin Kleon](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/austin-kleon/) > [“The writer Jonathan Lethem has said that when people call something “original,” nine out of ten times they just don’t know the references or…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/austin-kleon/the-writer-jonathan-lethem-has-said-that-when-people-call-something/) [Austin Kleon](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/austin-kleon/) > [“Stock and flow” is an economic concept that writer Robin Sloan has adapted into a metaphor for media: “Flow is the feed. It’s the…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/austin-kleon/stock-and-flow-is-an-economic-concept-that-writer-robin-sloan-has/) [Austin Kleon](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/austin-kleon/) [Explore all 204 Austin Kleon quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/austin-kleon/) ## More Bios quotes > [The mind is a mechanism. It has no intelligence. The mind is a bio-computer. How can it have any intelligence? It has skill, but…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anonymous/the-mind-is-a-mechanism-it-has-no-intelligence-the-mind-is-a-bio/) [Anonymous](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anonymous/) > [I used to make up stuff in my bio all the time, that I used to be a professional ice-skater and stuff like that.…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/stephen-colbert/i-used-to-make-up-stuff-in-my-bio-all-the-time-that-i-used-to-be-a/) [Stephen Colbert](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/stephen-colbert/) > [Smart art galleries know it's not the words on paper but the emotion in the piece that makes clients pull out the credit card…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jack-white/smart-art-galleries-know-it-s-not-the-words-on-paper-but-the-emotion/) [Jack White](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jack-white/) > [The worst potential bio-terrorist is nature itself.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anonymous/the-worst-potential-bio-terrorist-is-nature-itself/) [Anonymous](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anonymous/) > [Sometimes I feel people think I live on a commune but I don't. We are all solar, though. There are no power lines. It's…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/woody-harrelson/sometimes-i-feel-people-think-i-live-on-a-commune-but-i-don-t-we-are/) [Woody Harrelson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/woody-harrelson/) > [ \[In my bio\] is no drunk driving, there's no DUI's, there's no possession of cocaine, none of that stuff so you know, I don't… ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jeff-dunham/in-my-bio-is-no-drunk-driving-there-s-no-dui-s-there-s-no-possession/) [Jeff Dunham](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jeff-dunham/) > [Just updated my bio!!:) I like it!! Hahaha:D](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/rachel/just-updated-my-bio-i-like-it-hahaha-d/) [Rachel](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/rachel/) > [Take a good long look at human beings in their actual practices and motives; bring the utmost psychological and bio-economic factors to bear on…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/kenny-smith/take-a-good-long-look-at-human-beings-in-their-actual-practices-and/) [Kenny Smith](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/kenny-smith/) > [The official bio is the wrongest thing you've ever seen in your entire life.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/vincent-kartheiser/the-official-bio-is-the-wrongest-thing-you-ve-ever-seen-in-your/) [Vincent Kartheiser](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/vincent-kartheiser/) > [As a bio major, I figured "free will" meant chemicals in your brain telling you what to do, the molecules bouncing around in a…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/scott-westerfeld/as-a-bio-major-i-figured-free-will-meant-chemicals-in-your-brain/) [Scott Westerfeld](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/scott-westerfeld/) > [If the Bush Administration cannot ensure Americans that they will be safe from the flu, how will they protect our country against a possible…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jon-corzine/if-the-bush-administration-cannot-ensure-americans-that-they-will-be/) [Jon Corzine](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jon-corzine/) > [Following bio-medical treatment - which is basically changing the diet, giving vitamins and supplements and detoxing the body from metals or candida - and…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jenny-mccarthy/following-bio-medical-treatment-which-is-basically-changing-the-diet/) [Jenny McCarthy](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jenny-mccarthy/) > [Marijuana makes the best bio-diesel fuel on the planet, so it can make you energy. It grows 15 feet a summer, so it's a…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jesse-ventura/marijuana-makes-the-best-bio-diesel-fuel-on-the-planet-so-it-can-make/) [Jesse Ventura](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jesse-ventura/) > [Americans in all places and levels of government have begun to consider the areas where we need to prepare ourselves from future threats, including…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/paul-gillmor/americans-in-all-places-and-levels-of-government-have-begun-to/) [Paul Gillmor](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/paul-gillmor/) > [ In the past, \[medicalization\]has been portrayed as something that doctors inflict on a passive and un-suspecting world - an expansion of the Medical Empire.… ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ben-goldacre/in-the-past-medicalization-has-been-portrayed-as-something-that/) [Ben Goldacre](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ben-goldacre/) Browse all 48 Bios quotes ```json { "@context": "https://schema.org", "@graph": [ { "@type": "Quotation", "text": "Unless you are actually a ninja, a guru, or a rock star, don't ever use any of those terms in your bio. 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