Never let the world plumb your depths. The world disregards and diminishes the clearly known but projects much more than the reality on the implied, on the unknown, and the mysterious. Let people see the surface but not the inner core, the results but not the causes, the accomplishments but never the full capacity, the extent of your skills, or the depths of your insight and wisdom. Much more admiration arises when people have to guess the extent of your skill no matter how great the reality.

Never feel "finished" and slip into complacency. Mistaking a successful conclusion as a signal to relax into a self-satisfied stupor begins an inevitable decline into entropy. Instead, the wise view good luck and unexpected success as a foundation to do more, to become more engaged rather than only take a vacation. Letting go of superficial, personal desires, cultivate a big heart, an insatiable capacity for the kind of good luck that can lead to more and more goodness in the world.

Nature doesn’t make long speeches,
Only simple and quiet words ripen by themselves.
A hurricane doesn’t last all morning,
A sudden cloudburst doesn’t last all day.
If even the greatest forces of nature
Can’t go on and on,
How much less so do people need to?

So whatever you do,
Be one with the Way.
When you succeed,
Be one with success.
When you fail,
Be one with failure.
To be appreciated, appreciate.

Mutability permeates all of life, everything changes, nothing stays the same—so don't count on current successes or advantages to continue. Prepare for the unexpected, double your resources, never depend on only one system of support. As nature duplicates essential body parts—eyes, hands, arms, legs, ears, feet—reserve extra quantities of natural resources, insight, goodwill, personal qualities—all the essentials for success, esteem, profit, and happiness.

Much better to increase the respect of your position than to rely on your occupation for respect. Only artificial self-worth depends on credentials and that dependence just undermines esteem. Instead of worrying about what people think, use that time to increase your skills, excel in your office, perfect your talents. You then become essential to your co-workers and sought after and appreciated by the wise.

Most value highly in collaborators their intelligence, skill, and experience. Attitude, however, often becomes more important. Often mediocre but dedicated people go further than skillfully superior people without the inspiration. In most—even the highest—positions, ability is rarely lacking, most-often the limiting factor becomes attitude. And to achieve any kind of greatness, we need both. It's understandable to prefer a small success in a great endeavor instead of a great success in a small one; but, to prefer a lazy mediocrity to an animated achievement is inexcusable. What requires little effort earns little reward.

Most think of themselves as "free" but live their lives controlled by their passions and desires. Most of our feelings arise from our biological inheritance, most of our thoughts and opinions arise from our family, culture, and friends. To resist the power of these influences and find a more authentic and creative path in life represents the highest realization and quality of mind. There is no greater influence than influence over our own minds.

Most prefer imitation to invention and in that way secure an inferior place in their profession, in their society, and in history. They choose the easier path of copying and find it easier but look to the world like parrots and unknowingly build a glass ceiling they will never be able to rise above. Those with the courage to take chances and try new ventures and ideas, however, immediately gain advantage and invite fame and recognition. If both first and successful, that success becomes twice as impressive.

Most people act out roles based on the desired impression they would like to make. Lies almost always come first but most of us immediately believe and accept the superficial and distorted as the truth it almost never matches. That leads to bad choices, unexpected pitfalls, and often disastrous results. Instead, stop being so easily convinced, believing and liking so easily. Suspend judgment, question first impressions, look under the surface. But do this discretely; don't let your suspension of belief cause insult by implying that your source is either a cheat or has been cheated. And too much disbelief is an indication of a liar who never believes and should also never be believed. A similar dynamic plays out with being impressed by, loving and liking people. Lies come from actions and objects as well as words.

Most often, more wisdom transmits through a joke than through philosophical discourse. Conversation supplies a context, meaning, and openness for insight. By avoiding gossip and prejudiced speculation, the wise become able to apply knowledge and understanding to current events and situational problems; their insight finds an educational openness and creates positive change.

Most of us have accepted a one-dimensional social mask and have practiced to perfection performing an externally imposed role. Like an unfinished house with an elaborate, palace-like exterior but shabby, dilapidated interior rooms; superficial personalities often glow while character and integrity steep in a murky darkness. They may fool the undiscerning with their surface facade but the clear-sighted easily see through the deceptions. Conversations start with cheery platitudes but quickly end in an uncomfortable silence. Words soon end when they have no contemplative wellspring. Instead, become a genuine person of substance with deeply rooted but hidden depths of thought, understanding, and realization.

Most associations, partnerships, and social cohesion in general appear to have foundations based on common goals, material reward, and various kinds of advantage. Though enough to initiate a team, it seldom creates meaningful work, happiness, loyalty, or longevity. These grow instead from a more subtle source—a deep and natural like-mindedness based on a non-verbal affinity. The mystery and practical usefulness of this more authentic and genuine foundation evolve a type of respect, esteem, and goodwill that persuades without proposal, accomplishes without effort, and can look almost like magic.

Mediocrity is comforting but cowardly. It can avoid stress but pays by also avoiding success. Fear fools us into mistaking comfort for happiness. By avoiding challenge we only assure our own failure. The great revel in challenge, eschew mediocrity, and excel in the most excellent. They prefer the more difficult, see problems as opportunities, and easily inspire admiration and good will. To be excellent in little, unimportant ways is to be unimportant with little excellence. Much better to pull out the stops and seize the day.

Many tend to automatically take the other side of an opponent or an adversary's opinions—even when it's clear the rivals are in the right. This means losing before beginning. It's almost impossible to find success without good resources. Doing this in words has less detrimental consequence but doing it in action can bring catastrophe. The obstinate and stubborn often make this mistake when they contradict and quarrel with the truth for misguided personal gain. The wise hold fast to reason instead of passion, either focus on finding the best way first or on improving it later if someone else does. This way they lead their foolish competitors into making and letting their own obstinacy undermine their strength.

Many blame bad luck for their own folly, for not choosing wisely. Doing this creates a contagious disease of disinformation while preventing solutions to prevent the mistakes. It opens a door to deeper, more dangerous problems. As in a card game where the greatest skill comes from knowing when and what to throw away, our lives turn on recognizing unlucky directions and changing course before they take over and destroy our reputations. When unsure, follow the lead of those with the most integrity and wisdom—sooner or later, they will prevail.

Many believe that by bragging and showing off they gain approval and respect. However, the opposite normally results. Crowing over accomplishments only invites resentment, even hatred. This becomes more extreme when the victory is over a superior or someone in a high place. Superiority in appearance or personality is more easily accepted but not that of intelligence. Much better to be like the stars, complementing but not rivaling the sun, to take Lao Tzu's advice and have "weak wishes and strong bones." Triumph and superiority over others only makes us a target for competition, criticism, and conflict. Much better to hide our virtues, our achievements, our competence like a person hiding their beauty in old clothes.

Manage a big project
With the same care and attention
As cooking a small fish.

Always follow the Tao
And evil loses strength,
Outside nothing troubles,
Inside, nothing frightens,
Obstacles lose power
And transform into opportunity.

Like water wearing through stone,
The soft and weak become more powerful
Than the strong and hard.
What doesn’t exit finds space anywhere.
This shows the value in not doing.
Beyond the understanding of all but a very few,
This is wordless wisdom,
Accomplishment without effort, without trace.

Like water that "knows no enemies" and absorbs at least a little of everything it passes through, our lives absorb the influences of our nation, culture, family, social position, and era. And all of these have a shadow, particular and shared faults that most blindly inherit. By becoming aware of these shared faults and correcting them in ourselves (or at least learning to hide them), we rise above the status quo and the expected. Because others expect to find a fault and instead see a virtue, the credit expands and esteem grows quickly.

Like the potentially destructive power of water increasing when dammed, doing a careless, bad job on a project creates less harm than lack of determination—not carefully considering, looking ahead, and strategizing that same plan. Most don't see clearly and get stuck. Mired in indecision, they become mindless followers. Some see the problems and ways forward but lack the resolution and determination to accomplish anything. Wise and true leaders not only see the problems and solutions clearly, they also skillfully and without hesitation apply the solution to the problem accomplishing successful outcomes and quickly moving on to the next challenge.