Best way to eliminate excess water from a shaving brush

I have 2 questions about eliminating excess water from a shaving brush.

1. After soaking or wetting the brush prior to a shave is it better to squeeze the hairs to eliminate the excess water, or shake the brush? 

2. After the shave when I rinse the brush, is it better to squeeze the hairs to eliminate the excess water, or shake the brush? 

I'm asking because I'm worried if I shake the brush too hard I'll force the hairs out in time.

I give it a very gentle squeeze then a good shake.  I've been doing this for years and I haven't noticed any bristle loss or damage.

I give the soaked knot a few gentle shakes then I begin to face-lather.
I have been doing this for almost nine years without any issues to my brushes.
I highly doubt you'll experience any issues with your brushes even if you were to exert more 'forceful' shakes.
If you really are concerned, then just do as you have stated; wring out the amount of water that you want from the knot with your hand.
Good luck.

Pre shave I wet under running water and gently squeeze the brush dry but keep it damp. I prefer to slowly add water as I go. Post shave I squeeze and flick it several times in the bath tub so it doesn't splatter all over my bathroom. I hang it upside down to dry. Never had an issue.

I give my brush a good shake, then dip the very tips back in the water. Damp bristles with wet tips works best for me.

I give a very light pinch or squeeze and start to the use. Then I can always add more water as I go about lathering, if needed.

I give it a very gentle squeeze then a good shake. I've been doing this for years and I haven't noticed any bristle loss or damage.

+1

Pre lather I give a good soak and then a single shake. This seems to keep enough water around in the hair to get the loading and lathering going. Once finished brushes get a healthy rinsing under a hearty stream of running water with a few cycles of complete flooding of the knot under the water with subsequent gentle squeezes until what comes out is perfectly clear. Most knots I have I need to do this 2-3 times. Follow the final squeeze with a couple of shakes and call it good. Sometimes a gentle strop on a towel but haven’t been doing that lately with my current knot rotation.

Squeeze after soaking by encircling the knot between thumb and index finger forming a circle GENTLY closing the knot without pulling out from the handle. NEVER shake a brush. If putting in stand will paint several strokes on a towel prior to hanging

Some time ago, I read an article on a shaving website about how a wet brush should never be shaken. Personally, I don't think shaking will do harm if done gently. However, I prefer to load a brush that has been squeezed relatively dry after soaking. (Since many soaps won't load if the brush is too dry, I add small amounts of water as I go.)

To me, the thing to remember when squeezing a brush is that the force should never pull the hairs outward. Therefore, when I’m squeezing water out of my brushes, I also very slightly push toward the handle. Just to make sure that the squeezing motion isn’t creating a pulling force on the hairs.