Wisdom Book

Chapter 13

Appropriately display courage and majesty before others
You have to change how you think of others so that you don't elevate them so much that you fear them yourself.Don't let your imagination be magnified infinitely.Associating with those seemingly great people, once a long time, you will be extremely disappointed in him, and you will no longer have the psychology of admiration for him.No one can transcend the limitations of human nature, and everyone has flaws that need to be perfected.A dignified position makes some men look dignified, but this dignifiedness is seldom commensurate with virtue.For those with high positions and weights, fate always makes their talents and virtues not worthy of their positions, so as to balance the height of their positions.Imagination always gets a head start and makes things more perfect than they are.Imagination thinks in terms of human expectations, not in terms of the nature of things.Rationality is based on experience, carefully analyzes things, and corrects excessive imagination.Fools should not be reckless and vulgar, and wise men should not be timid and cowardly. If self-confidence can strengthen fools, it can undoubtedly play a role in adding wings to wise men and warriors.

Don't be too attached to everything
Stupid people are stubborn, and stubborn people are also stupid.When such people make mistakes, they will stubbornly stick to their opinions and refuse to correct them.In fact, even if a person's point of view is correct, it is not impossible to make some concessions, and people will eventually praise your grace because they recognize your correctness.Stubbornness will cost you more than you gain, and you will pay far more than you will gain by winning.You are no longer devoted to truth, but to rudeness.Some people are so stubborn that their thinking is as stubborn as pig iron. At this time, if they add some whimsy, he will become a real fool.A person's firmness should be reflected in the will, not in the judgment of the problem.Of course, there are exceptions to everything. You cannot make concessions one after another. If your judgment changes, your actions will become erratic.

Don't get too attached to etiquette

Don't get too attached to etiquette.Such excesses of affectation would have brought even a king a reputation for eccentricity.Sticking to formalities often makes people disgusted, but some countries actually have this problem throughout the whole country.Rituals and etiquette are worshiped by stupid people, but they are not qualified to do so, because they are so small that even the slightest thing is considered by them to hurt their self-esteem.There's nothing wrong with wanting respect, but it's unwise to overdo it.Of course, to be able to succeed without sticking to the formality at all, you must have extraordinary talent.Understanding should not be overstated, nor should it be underestimated.A man's greatness is not reflected in the details of etiquette.

Don't bet everything

It is not advisable to gamble all on your reputation. If the move fails, it will bring you irreparable losses.It is impossible for a person to succeed in everything all the time, and it is normal to fail once.The key is that after you fail, you have to give yourself a chance to try again, so as to make up for the loss of the previous failure.No matter what things happen, there should be room for improvement and recovery. Whether things can be successful or not depends entirely on various situations. It is very rare for things to be successful at the beginning.

Knowing that something sometimes has shortcomings
Knowing that something sometimes has shortcomings, even if it doesn't appear to be that way.No finery can conceal ugliness, even if it wears a crown of gold, for the upright can see through its disguise.Even if the servility is decorated with a generous salary, it cannot change its humbleness.People with bad qualities can stand on a high ground and exalt themselves, but it will not change their low status.Ordinary people in the world can only see the small flaws in the great man, but they cannot understand that the reason why the great man is great is not because of those flaws.People with high positions and powers can infect the public, attracting people to rush to imitate them, even ugliness.They do not realize that this is because greatness adorns it, and that it is equally odious when it is gone.

What makes everyone happy, do it boldly
Ask others to do things that make everyone unhappy, and do things that can bring happiness to everyone.By doing this you will gain favor and avoid hate.Great men prefer to give favors to receive favors, because they will inevitably feel guilty or remorse for troubling others.When repaying others, you should send it yourself; when retaliation, others should do it for you.You should find a man who, when people are dissatisfied, they turn their anger, their disgust, and their slander against him.The resentment of the mob is like a wounded mad dog. They don't know where the pain comes from, they only know how to bite the tight collar that is on their mouths desperately. The tight collar is not at fault, it is just an innocent scapegoat.

find the good in things and praise
Being good at discovering the advantages of things and praising them can improve your taste and make people believe that your taste is different from ordinary people, so they hope to get your praise.Praise can provide people with something to talk about, make people emulate what is praised, and it is also an elegant way to show respect to the outstanding people around us.Some people, on the contrary, always look for various flaws in things and then blame them.They value some and despise others, thinking that by belittling those who are not there they are flattering those who are present.It works well for those who are superficial, because they fail to notice how insidious and cunning a man must be if he speaks ill of everyone else.There are also those who favor the present over the past, praising the mediocrity of the present and belittling the excellence of the past.A prudent man sees through their gimmicks at a glance, and is neither disheartened by exaggerations nor flattered by flattery.They knew that these people would resort to such shameless tactics no matter whom they were dealing with, but they would use them in different ways according to who they were speaking to.

Take advantage of the lack of others
In a state of scarcity, a person will have many desires, and the more desires a person has, the easier it is to control.Philosophers say scarcity doesn't matter, politicians say scarcity matters, and the latter is right.Some people see other people's desires as a ladder to their own goals.They use this opportunity to pique the interest of others by showing how difficult it is to satisfy their desires.The sting of lack is far greater than the satisfaction of possession.The greater the resistance encountered, the stronger the desire.A great strategy for achieving your purpose is to satisfy the desires of others and maintain their dependence on you.

Strengths and weaknesses are not absolute
Even useless things have their merits: and last forever.When adversity reaches its extreme, it will transform into prosperity.Stupid people also have the blessings of stupid people, and beauties often envy the happiness of ugly women.The less valuable something is, the longer its lifespan.A cracked mirror is annoying, but it just won't shatter completely.God is always jealous of talented people. He makes talented people die early and mediocre people live long.Talented people often have rough fate and poverty, but mediocre people usually have good things and good clothes.Either that seems to be the case, or it is.For those less fortunate, the gods of death and fortune seem to have conspired to forget him at the same time.

Don't be fooled by the compliments of others
Don't be fooled by compliments from others, it's a trick to cheat.There are those who can make others lose their true nature without the potion of ecstasy, and they can confuse vain fools with just an elegant greeting.They paid off all their debts with nothing but rhetoric, except for owning a shop selling vanities.People who are full of promises are actually the least honest. Their promises are like traps, prepared for fools.Fulfilling one's responsibilities is genuine humility, and behind false humility is deceit.Excessive politeness is not respect, but following others. They are not impressed by the noble character of the other party, but to gain benefits from him.

peace of mind, long life

Not only do you want to live a comfortable life for yourself, but also let others live a comfortable life.A peaceful person is not only living, but managing life.Listen more, watch more, speak carefully.There are few disputes with people every day, so I can sleep peacefully at night.Living a long and happy life is equivalent to having two lives, which is the benefit of a peaceful state of mind.If you can turn a blind eye to the little things that don't matter, you can have everything.It would be foolish to be serious about anything.Worrying when it's not yours, and staying out of it when it's yours, are both foolish.

Beware of those who claim to have your best interests at heart

The best defense against cunning people is vigilance.If the other party is thoughtful, then you should observe his intentions more carefully.Many people are good at making other people's things that should be done by themselves.If you can't see his intentions, you will be used by them, and you will even act stupidly under their instructions.

Think rationally about yourself and your own affairs
Be rational about yourself and your affairs.If you have just stepped into society, this principle of life is especially important.Everyone thinks of themselves as noble, and those who think themselves the highest are often the most mediocre.Everyone dreams of a life of abundance and considers themselves a genius.Some people are full of hope and want to make big plans, but the result is always difficult to achieve.Keeping a clear understanding of reality can make the illusory and unreasonable dreams disillusioned.Wise people can do this, they always have the best wishes and plan for the worst, no matter what the final result is, they can accept it calmly.There is nothing wrong with aiming high, but it is wrong to aim too high.Because of inexperience, you will often make wrong judgments, so no matter what you do, you should adjust your expectations accordingly.Wisdom is the antidote to stupidity, knowing what one is capable of and where one stands so that one can rationally adjust one's imagination to reality.

know how to appreciate others

Everyone will be better than others, and there will be someone stronger than you who surpasses you in this area.Learning how to appreciate everyone is a useful science.A wise man knows how to respect everyone, because he knows that everyone has his own strengths, and he also understands that it is very difficult to obtain this expertise.Fools often despise others, either out of ignorance or because they choose the worst in everything.

(End of this chapter)