1500-Year-Old Concept: 4 Tips To Use Wu Wei’s Energy To Fine Tune Your Life

Never downgrade your dream to fit the reality glove.

Have you (ever) heard this phrase?:

“Let it go with the flow.”

The first person to use this phrase was Lao Tzu. He re-named the flow process “Wu Wei.”

Wu Wei in Chinese means: do nothing.

Reading this, I was quite flabbergasted. Going with the flow and doing nothing is tricky.

The subtle reminder of leftover workload taints our souls as we waste our days. “Going with the flow” and sometimes wanting to “do nothing” are signs of following Taoism.

Wu Wei is like a pleasant invitation to:

• Relax
• Become a sloth, and
• Enjoy

Yes. The actual reason for Wu Wei is to stop going against the natural order. Make your lives uncomplicated. Do things with minimal effort, and don’t force yourself.

Wu Wei is a central Taoism concept practiced by the greatly known Lao Tzu and, later, Osho.

“Don’t do it, just be.”

—Osho, an Indian religious teacher impressed with Wu Wei’s concept.

Without further ado, let’s explore the concept of Wu Wei and how to become productive.

1. Draw, paint, and color

Open a self-help book, and you’ll find numerous tips to become productive.

But what about being lazy?

Is there (no) hope for lazy people?

To which Lao Tzu responds: there is.

Wu Wei is a central concept of staying with the rhythm of nature. This means we can make use of our laziness.

You can put your hard days to correct use if you sense:

• Not going to the work
• Taking a day off
• Staying under the covers
• [Insert one here]

How to apply?

Sating lazy and putting in less effort isn’t harmful.

Although, it does become harmful when you do nothing about it.

Wu Wei suggests practices we can apply in our daily lives:

• Painting
• Coloring
• Drawing

If you look closely, drawing and throwing in colors is the soundest practice for using a lazy mind.

Get up your brushes and start drawing anything. Go with the flow, and the flow leads us to clarity.

With the least minimal effort, even if you spent your whole day painting, it’s still worth it.

Tap into your creativity. Now.

2. Go with the flow of the life

There are two types of people:

• Almost carefree
• Very serious

And there’s no in-between.

• If you’re lazy, the downside is that you will miss opportunities.
• If you’re serious, the downside is that you will mess everything up with overthinking.

Going with the flow neither falls into the serious or the lazy category. It is simply a balance of it.

Some people face a hard time sticking with the flow, and hence they want an immediate solution.

However, Wu Wei condemns this habit and wants everyone to stay calm and go hand to hand with the natural forces.

How to apply?

Things never plan out as we want.

Bad news: they never will.

Going with the following, a person should:

• Accept: Bear what is happening. Stay true to yourself and how it makes you feel.
• Realize: After accepting, make sure you deeply understand the happenings.
• Find a solution: Cook a perfect solution gathered with the least minimal effort.

Following this pattern, a person can stay prepared for whatever is happening.

We humans can never predict anything.

Maybe, you will lose your job tomorrow or find your company at a loss. In that matter, go through the simple steps above and find the solution to the problems easily.

Remember to go with the flow.

3. Don’t limit yourself

Reading Daniel Pink’s “When,” I realized we have many initiating days in our lives.

What does it mean?

An average person has almost 86 days each year to start something new. Some of which are:

Copied from the book: “When,” chapter 3, by Daniel Pink:

• First day of the month (12)
• Mondays (52)
• The first day after season break (4)
• Independence Day (1)
• Important religious holiday (1)
• Your birthday (1)
• The first day of a job, school, semester (4)
• The day after graduation and vacation (3)
• Your partner’s, pet, job, parents’ birthday/anniversary (7)
• The day you finish this article (1)

Total= 86

This means an average person can make and review resolutions almost 86 times a year.

How does that make you feel?

We limit ourselves to setting New Year’s Eve goals and revising the plans next year.

A lot can happen in 365 days. Some goals may turn obsolete. Having 80–86 dates by your side guarantees you start over easily.

How to apply?

I can deeply relate Daniel Pink’s method to Wu Wei.

Planning our goals once a year when we’re filled with excitement, alcohol, and hysteria is not a good action.

We sometimes end up making goals we immediately lose interest in. To go with the flow, keeping space for the goals to breathe. Here’s what you should do:

• Set goals and give at least 80–86 times a year to revise them.
• Make short-term goals.
• Don’t place all the tough habits. Take one step at a time!

Edit your goals frequently. Being limited is like ending up in a dungeon with no walls.

Instead, don’t confine yourself—set simple non-action habits such as painting and coloring.

Of course, a new year goal without artistry is even a goal?

4. Move like the water

• I am no water.
• I am a rock.

Most of us are too. Here’s the difference:

Water: smooth, easy to agree with, friendly, always happy.

Rock: perfectionist, always has the problem, doesn’t agree with everything, bad decision maker.

Which one resembles you the most?

When the water is flowing down in the streams (my memory from Niagara falls), it comes in contact with the:

• Rocks

Wu Wei suggests going with the flow like — the water, which flows with zero struggle and penetrates even the hardest rocks.

Take, for example:

• Animals hunt as their nature
• Plants bloom as their nature
• Humans make decisions as their nature

Even if you’re a rock, there’s no reason to arrest the water flow. Poke some holes inside you and let the air breathe.

How to apply?

I am a perfectionist. I hardly flow like water.

But as a rock, I let water pass through me, wash away my feelings.

In other words: I don’t stop the natural order or go against the rhythm of nature. I (do not) block the water.

This balance keeps me sane. Here’s what it looks like:

• Thinking both positively and negatively
• Be your teacher and your student
• Become strict with yourself and also reward yourself.

We are what we have.

Become your savior to become successful. Even if you’re a rock or water, never stop the natural order from happening. And make sure you enjoy every step of your life.

Final thoughts:

In Taoism, Wu Wei is like two layers of the same cake:

• The top layer: natural law
• The bottom layer: follow the flow

This reminds me of Lao Tzu's quote: “To the mind that is still, the whole universe surrenders.

So if you’re having problems in your life’s journey, take a moment and think: are you on the right path?

You still have time!

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