Tao Te Ching Part Twenty Four 

“He who stands on tiptoe is not steady.
He who strides cannot maintain the pace.
He who makes a show is not enlightened. “

In the current zeitgeist we are constantly encouraged to do more than we think we can. “No pain, no gain” in the gym. To go further than we think we can at work, in business. We admire the people who ‘heroically’ push themselves further than anyone else. The idea of pacing ourselves or having the patience to pick the right timing, and practice self care is not respected.

“He who is self-righteous is not respected.
He who boasts achieves nothing.
He who brags will not endure.
According to followers of the Tao, “These are extra food and unnecessary luggage.”
They do not bring happiness.
therefore followers of the Tao avoid them.”

This is about building our own false self image that is encouraged by society where everyone is judged by their grades, awards, certificates, career, partner and finances. Even we tend to think that’s who we are! Learning about who and what we really are is the secret to understanding life and our place in it.