Thinker Liang Qichao said:
There are two demi-saints in Chinese history.
One is Confucius and the other is Wang Yangming.
There is also half of it, which is Zeng Guofan, a famous minister in the late Qing Dynasty.
Zeng Guofan's life is like a mediocre counterattack:
When he was young, his qualifications were mediocre and he achieved nothing;
At the age of thirty, he was promoted to the rank of sergeant, but he was ostracized and his official luck was not smooth.
After middle age, he rose to the top, and his official residence was a good thing;
As a scholar, he established the Hunan Army and held great power.
Zeng Guofan looks back on his life and believes that people cannot succeed without the following four points:
The big picture is the pattern
Zeng Guofan believes that if you want to make a difference, you must consider the problem from the overall situation; Take a long-term view.
In the late Qing Dynasty, there were constant internal and external troubles, surrounded by foreign powers, and the Taiping Heavenly Kingdom was in turmoil.
The court officials were sloppy, and the Eight Banners Army was extremely poor in combat effectiveness, and it was defeated and retreated under the attack of the Taiping Heavenly Kingdom.
In desperation, the imperial court could only rely on local armed forces to fight against the Taiping Heavenly Kingdom.
As a result, group exercises were organized in various places.
At that time, Zeng Guofan was guarding the system in his hometown of Xiangxiang, Hunan because of the death of his mother, and he also received instructions to assist Zhang Liangji, the governor of Hunan, and supervise the Hunan regimental training.
Although Tsang was a civil official, he was able to think in the long run.
He felt that the team training team alone was not enough to fight against the Taiping Heavenly Kingdom.
So he fought wits and courage with the imperial court and decided to form an army, which was later the Hunan army.
The Hunan army made great achievements in the war and played a huge role in the process of fighting against the Taiping Heavenly Kingdom, and finally destroyed the Taiping Heavenly Kingdom with the cooperation of the Huai army.
It is precisely because Zeng Guofan proceeded from the overall situation and focused on the big picture that he had a brave and warlike Hunan army to exterminate the Taiping Heavenly Kingdom and turn the tide.
It also caused a qualitative change in the military pattern of the late Qing Dynasty, rewrote the pattern of the Eight Banners Army's monopoly on military power, and made the late Qing Dynasty have a short-term Zhongxing situation.
In case of trouble, we should focus on the big picture, regardless of temporary success or failure, which is the pattern, the vision, and the realm of people.
If you want to think big about everything, you must be ambitious, broad-minded, open-minded, and courageous.
Only in this way can we have a view of the overall situation and not draw on the gains and losses in front of us.
It's the details that start small
Think big, focus on planning, and look at the big picture, and start small to emphasize being down-to-earth when doing things.
Zeng Guofan in the "Heart Sutra. Fame and Fortune wrote:
Those who have achieved great things in ancient times are indispensable for both large-scale and comprehensive and subtle things. ”
The meaning of this phrase is:
Since ancient times, those who can achieve great things have not only focused on lofty intentions and focusing on the overall situation, but also paid attention to meticulousness and prudence to do small things well.
Without either of these two, neither can accomplish great things.
That said, to make a difference, it's essential to think big and start small.
If the big picture is the most far-sighted, then the small start is the nuance.
There's a good saying:
The devil is in the details. ”
When doing things, start small, that is, learn to pay attention to details and do every little thing seriously.
Zeng Guofan himself is a person who pays great attention to details and does every "little thing" well.
When forming the Hunan Army, Zeng Guofan not only had a very grand strategic arrangement, but also a very detailed tactical deployment.
He introduced new foreign styles and made many transformations to make them more suitable for the Hunan army's combat methods.
It also carried out accurate distribution of **, so that the combination of cold weapons and guns, when the war started, long-range strikes with artillery, and near guns with guns to form a firepower network.
The cold weapon team is mainly responsible for escort work, avoiding hand-to-hand combat as much as possible and reducing the ** rate.
Through this configuration, materials and troops are saved to the greatest extent.
It was this meticulous tactical arrangement that made the Hunan army's combat effectiveness stronger and stronger, and gradually became the first combat force of the late Qing Dynasty.
In our life and work, it is equally important to do the little things well.
If you accidentally lose all the games. ”
A small mistake can also ruin the overall situation.
No accumulation of steps can lead to thousands of miles. ”
Only by doing every little thing in a down-to-earth manner can we achieve a big thing.
To be alone is to be introspective
In Zeng Guofan's "Book of Commandments", there is a very good sentence:
The way of self-cultivation is not difficult to nourish the mind;
It is difficult to nourish the heart, and it is cautious and alone. ”
The so-called cautious independence means that when we are in a state of "solitude" without supervision, we must keep the bottom line of our inner principles.
And to keep your heart, you have to be a person who is good at self-reflection.
Zeng Guofan is such a person.
Zeng Guofan insisted on keeping a diary all his life.
In his diary, he reflects on his words and actions throughout the day.
When he finds that he has done something wrong, he will reflect on it in time and refuse to let go of even a small mistake.
Zeng Guofan has a friend who has many wives and concubines at home.
Once, Zeng Guofan was a guest at this friend's house. During the banquet, there were several beautiful concubines on the side to persuade wine.
Zeng Guofan couldn't hold back, and secretly glanced at the beauty a few more times.
After returning home, Zeng Guofan recalled his words and deeds at his friend's house, and felt that his behavior of peeking at the beauty was very inappropriate, so he reprimanded himself in his diary:
He is really not a human being, and his shame is lost. ”
When he was alone, not only did he not relax himself, but he seriously reflected on his words and deeds and kept the bottom line in his heart.
It is this kind of strict self-examination mind that has made Zeng Guofan gradually become a generation of great sages from an ordinary person with many small problems.
To be alone and keep your heart is not only to behave well in front of others, but also to be strict with yourself when you are alone.
Only in this way can we truly improve our pattern and cultivation.
Keeping one's mouth shut in the group is self-cultivation
The crowd is tight-lipped. ”
It means that when you get along with others, you should keep your mouth shut and be careful with what you say and do.
When Zeng Guofan was young, he was also an open-mouthed person.
Once, he criticized Emperor Xianfeng for only being clever, not having great wisdom, not doing practical things, being stubborn and self-serving, and not believing in his words, etc.
As a result, Emperor Xianfeng was furious and almost lost his life.
Zeng Guofan thus reminded himself to be a person who is cautious.
Zeng Guofan not only kept his mouth shut, but also tried every means to stop the other party when he encountered someone with inappropriate words in the officialdom.
On one occasion, Zeng Guofan had a party with several colleagues.
During the banquet, a ** talked exaggeratedly, had his own opinions on many things, and his words were quite flamboyant and sharp.
When talking about the recent events in the court, this colleague wants to make a lot of nonsense.
Zeng Guofan noticed that this person was unrestrained, and lest he said the wrong thing and provoked right and wrong, so he immediately changed the topic and did not let this person continue.
In his letters to his sons and nephews, Zeng Guofan also emphasized the importance of careful words many times.
The reason why Zeng Guofan pays attention to keeping his mouth shut is because he knows that if he speaks inappropriately, he may not only bring disaster to himself, but also may hurt others.
As the saying goes:
Good words are warm in three winters, and bad words are hurtful and cold in June. ”
Speaking ill of others not only makes others uncomfortable, but also a manifestation of a person's lack of self-cultivation.
Think twice before you speak, and say every word.
It is not only to respect others, but also to cherish one's own feathers.
Throughout Zeng Guofan's life.
Thinking big forged his lofty goals;
The small start made him brilliant;
Being alone and guarding his heart allows him to keep moving forward in introspection;
Living in groups and keeping his mouth shut allows him to show everyone's demeanor and cultivation.
These four sentences will also be of great benefit to you and me in our conduct and work.
I hope that you and I will strive to become a person who focuses on the big picture and has a pattern, can start small, can reflect when he is alone, and keep his mouth and cultivate in a group.
Author|Curtain lamp Blue Feather, teacher, new ** creator, rational work, sensual secular woman.
|Curtain light photography enthusiast post.