Zhu Xi
Did I look at one task today, not for its result but for its inner grain?
📝ONGO's Reflection
Zhu Xi held that everything has its own innate grain. Wood has the grain of wood; people, the grain of people. When we follow that grain rather than cut against it, things become natural. We cling each day only to faster, more, bigger, and fail to see the innate grain of our work and our people. The one task Zhu Xi devoted his life to was cultivating "an eye that recognizes the grain." Before reaching for a quick answer, look once more at what grain a thing has, and often the answer appears on its own.
"Today probe the principle of one thing; tomorrow another; over time, a moment of complete clarity comes."Zhu Xi, 大學章句 (Commentary on the Great Learning)
🌱Apply It Today
Pick the most frustrating task you're handling today and spend just five minutes asking, "What is the innate grain of this work?" Sometimes following the direction of the grain is faster than hunting for the right answer.
