When encountering difficulties, do not bow your head or lie down

Character influences and determines fate. Everyone's character is very important to achieve their life's work, and those with strong character will be fearless to do difficult things; The timid can only avoid difficulties step by step, allowing themselves to cringe in the "singing of birds and flowers". These differences in personality directly lead to success or failure. For Zeng Guofan, his character belongs to the former, when encountering difficulties, he does not bow his head, does not lie down, and can stand up, so he has become a "big man" who dominates the storm. When it comes to the word "Ting", it is synonymous with a strong character. The so-called "upright" means that when encountering adversity and difficulties, do not bow your head or lie down, but straighten your waist and must win the situation. How is this kind of strong character reflected in Zeng Guofan?

When Zeng Guofan talked about the character of "people must be self-reliant and self-reliant, and the spirit of the word 'upright'", he said: The world of snobbery and the world of the strong and the weak are not the beginning today? The cover has been around since ancient times. From the ancient emperors and generals, no one was self-reliant and self-reliant. Even sages have their own ways of self-reliance and self-improvement, so they can be independent and fearless, and they are indeed unfortunate. In the past, Yu was in Beijing, so as to be enemies with all the famous and powerful people, and he did not stand up and not be afraid of the strong and strong. In his later years, Zeng Guofan and his proud disciple Li Hongzhang had a dialogue, and once again talked about the secret of winning and losing in the world by having a strong character:

"Teacher, what do you think is the biggest deficiency of your protégé?"

Li Hongzhang suddenly opened his mind and asked Zeng Guofan this question unexpectedly. With his many years of experience with teachers, he knows that by asking questions suddenly, he can often get the most straightforward mantra in the teacher's heart. Sure enough, Zeng Guofan replied casually: "Your shortcomings are intolerant." I have no other strengths in my life, and I am better than you in this regard. When I was still in Beijing, Shao Huixi saw it, and he said that I would be a husband after my death. It's a joke, but it's to the point. Do you remember the first article of the "Ting Jing" that I told you that year? ”

"Remember, remember." Li Hongzhang replied repeatedly. That year, Zeng Guofan told the story of two countrymen who did not give in to each other on the field, which made a deep impression on him. He had thought about it for a long time, and he had appreciated many of the contents of this little story, but he was not sure what the teacher himself meant. "Mentors, protégés, and other staff members can't guess the meaning of that story when they argue, so enlighten us!"

Looking at Li Hongzhang's pious appearance, Zeng Guofan smiled: "Actually, there is no deep meaning, just a small thing that can often be seen in the countryside." It's all two tough people, standing up there, seeing which one lasts a long time, and those who can't hold on will naturally lose. But ostensibly losing, his goal was not given up, but achieved. In this regard, it is the form, the bone marrow, the method, and the technique. Although they have different uses, the goal is the same. Personally, when I was younger, I liked to work against adversity, and now that I'm old, I don't do it anymore, and I don't have any achievements. So remind you to pay attention to who wins and who loses in the world, sometimes it depends on whether you can stand up or not. ”

Zeng Guofan's life is indeed deep in the word "Ting", and how many times he has lost his teeth and swallowed blood, all of which are a reflection of this strong character. The meaning of life lies in the transformation from weak to strong, and if you lack the character to be strong, how can you achieve this meaning? At the end of the day, if you're not strong, no one can help you be strong. I hope you can have a strong character and not be defeated by difficulties at any time!

Set big ambitions and win the game in life

What kind of character can decide to achieve great things? To answer this question, we must start with determination. Determination is a person's persistent pursuit of life, but also a kind of desire, but also a kind of character reflection of striving for something in life. People who lack the character of aspiration must do small things, and even small things cannot be done well. Zeng Guofan's life was magnificent and imposing. But this is the result of his life, not the process. What is the process? It is the concrete action to pay for his life goal, that is, to set a big ambition and win the victory in life. Where does this character of Zeng Guofan come from?

Zeng Guofan realized such a truth about character from the success or failure of his life: mortals are superior and their interests are regarded. The lowly are becoming more and more polluted by the vulgar and mediocre rules, and the high are becoming more and more sophisticated by admiring the track of Zheshenglong. Virtuous or not, wise and foolish, the reason is different. In the early years, Zeng Guofan, when he had not yet achieved success, often used poetry to express his interests, comparing himself to Li Si, Chen Ping, Zhuge Liang and other "cloth clothes", fantasizing about "a thunderbolt falling from the sky in the middle of the night", and uprooted him, a great man who grew up in a secluded mountain village, and used it as a pillar of the country. He said very confidently in the poem: "Once the lonely phoenix roared in the clouds, it shook the Wufan Township of Kyushu. The rainbow beam is decorated with jade belts, and the pillars are ten thousand stone wood from the golden bell. ”

He believes that one day, he will be like a lone phoenix soaring in the clouds, if it does not sing, it will be enough, and if it sounds, it will cause the vibration of Kyushu; Like a giant that grows deep in the mountains, it will one day become the pillar of the national building.

It is this lofty character that made Zeng Guofan step by step out of the mountains and become a "lonely phoenix" who "shook the Wufan Township of Kyushu".

He also said: If people can make their own determinations, then what can sages and heroes not do? Why bother with people. "I want to be benevolent, and I want to be benevolent." If I want to be Confucius and Mencius, I will diligently study Confucius and Mencius day and night. If you don't make up your mind, then even if you live with Yao Shunyu soup every day, you will also be self-conscious, so what is it for me?

It is in line with this understanding that if you can aspire, you can do it to sages and heroes, Zeng Guofan believes that everything must be ambitious. There must be three kinds of aspiration character: life should have the ambition of life, there should be the ambition of learning for learning, and self-cultivation should have the ambition of self-cultivation. Regarding the ambition of life, Zeng Guofan has the self-confidence from "pheasant eggs turning into dragons" to "the fence of the country", and has the heroism of "unbelieving that the mountain is uneven", so Zeng Guofan has become the so-called "Zhongxing Famous Minister".

Regarding the ambition to learn, Zeng Guofan said: Scholars must first have ambition, the second must have knowledge, and the third must be constant. If you have ambitions, you will never be willing to be lewd. Therefore, Zeng Guofan's academic skills have created a successful life that he can "not be willing to be obscene".

Regarding the ambition of self-cultivation, Zeng Guofan focused on emulating role models in history throughout his life. In the ninth year of Xianfeng, it was the time of the life-and-death duel between Zeng Guofan and the Taiping Army, but he calmly copied it, re-estimated the thinkers, philosophers, writers, and writers in China for thousands of years, and obtained a total of 32 people (in fact, 33 people), and made the article "Portrait of the Sage", and ordered his son Zeng Jize to draw his image and hang it between the walls, as a standard person to follow for life, so that his personality could be more perfected.

Zeng Guofan himself has a deep understanding of this, he said: If you want to change the law, you must first establish a strong will. That is, for the rest of his life, it is best to eat cigarettes before the age of 30, and never leave for a moment, until the twenty-first day of November in Daoguang Renyin, he decided to quit smoking, and he has not eaten anymore. Before the age of 46, there was no constancy in doing things, but in the past five years, I have taken it as a warning, and now there is still constancy in all things. That is, at these two ends, it can be seen that nothing is immutable.

Zeng Guofan believes that there is a lofty goal in life, and a person's actions, such as advancing or retreating, going or following, or taking or giving, will not be blind or futile.

This is in line with the principle of life in an ancient Chinese fable, which tells of an owl who wants to move away because the locals are disgusted by its call. At that time, someone asked him, "Can the Son be more loud?" "Does that mean you can change your voice? Otherwise, wouldn't you be opposed to moving to a new place?! The same is true of determination, as Zeng Guofan said: "If you don't have the ambition to break the cauldron and sink the boat, why travel hundreds of miles?!" ”

Only when a person has established a lofty character and practiced it diligently can he become an outstanding, unconventional person, or an accomplished person.

From a personal point of view, whether a person can have an aspiring character is closely related to his expectations and positioning for himself. A person who thinks highly of himself but is arrogant will not have a better chance of success than a person who has a lofty personality and can work hard. If a person is self-indulgent, short-sighted, and self-conscious, he will undoubtedly become a failed ordinary man.

The mention of the word "lofty" means winning the situation and accomplishing it. This is an ideal goal for most people, and under the stimulation of this goal, there is hope and hope in life. The reason why Zeng Guofan's life can win the game is because he knows that "being outstanding, not being vulgar" is the biggest goal of life, that is to say, he can stand on a high place to see life, and through a series of effective means, to achieve the goal of winning the game. In retrospect, a person's determined character is often the beginning of success.

Be prepared to outdo others at any time

There are all kinds of people in the world, and the most of them are mortals. Why? Because they don't have the ability to acquire a successful character! If you want not to become a mortal, you must be determined not to be vulgar, and hope to achieve the goal of acquiring a successful character through your own practical actions. Zeng Guofan's gradual ascension is determined not to be vulgar and ready to surpass others at any time.

Mencius once said, "Do not talk to him if you harm yourself; He who gives up his own cannot associate with him. Speaking rudely and not speaking morally is what is called "self-violence", and doing things unkindly and unjustly is what is called "self-abandonment". A person who is clumsy is at ease with clumsiness and does not want to make progress, so it is not worth talking about things with him. If you are not willing to be clumsy, love to learn and work hard, and expect to achieve the realm of broad knowledge, then "I want benevolence, I will achieve 'benevolence'", how can I have ambition and things not succeed? Zeng Guofan said that determination is a golden pill to change temperament, and Liang Qichao also said that "the most valuable thing in his life is to be determined not to be a layman". This is exactly what he got to the root.

Zeng Guofan also said when talking about the reason why he can do something: The practice of a true gentleman and saint lies in loyalty, and advocates the world with loyalty. The reason why the world is chaotic is because from top to bottom it is full of all kinds of bad desires, traitors and hypocrites cheat and fight with each other, and in order to get their own comfort and pleasure, they bring harm to others, they are afraid of disaster, they run away from everywhere, and they are not even willing to do something to save the world. So those who are loyal stand up to change these bad phenomena, restrain their desires to care for others, and advocate loyalty against evil. Stand up to bear all kinds of difficulties, do not ask others to take on the difficulties together, generously donate money and give their lives, just like a traveler who returns to the countryside without scruples and reservations. So everyone imitated their behavior, and they all regarded it as a shameful thing to live and a shameful thing to avoid. Ah! What is the reason why our gentlemen have been able to inspire people and put down the great chaos after nine years, but their loyalty? "Loyalty" here is also a kind of noble ambition that is free from customs.

Xue Fucheng believes that the reason for Zeng Guofan's achievements is his magnificent personality. He said: "During the Daoguang and Xianfeng periods, the country has been peaceful and stable, and many courtiers and staff think that there is nothing to do, so they are strict in clerical laws and regulations, and live honestly and step-by-step there. Suddenly, an insurgent army rebelled, and no one could stop it. Those high-ranking officials will just fall to the ground when the matter comes, looking at each other and doing nothing. Zeng Guofan was only ordered to treat the funeral at home in the name of Qing, and immediately organized the township soldiers to go out after receiving the order. Break the shackles of the old rules, create your own army, and fight the rebels alone. At that time, the rebel army was like a river bursting its embankment, and like a fire on the grassland, the momentum was fierce, and people were helpless, only Zeng Guofan resisted and fought everywhere. As a result, they are isolated and in a dilemma. But even so, Zeng Guofan still adhered to the discipline, was not affected by all kinds of difficulties, his confidence was not frustrated at all, he silently endured hardships, calmly commanded, regardless of the military generals and famous and virtuous, all those who had talent were recommended and appointed, and entrusted with important tasks, until finally the lost territory was recovered, the rebellion was quelled, the society was stabilized, and the cause was prosperous. In the past, Zeng Zi talked about the heavy responsibility of a scholar, and he must talk about his great perseverance. Like Zeng Guofan, who supports the troubled times, the achievements are indeed heavy and far-reaching, and he can be called a person in Hongyi. The "Hongyi" here is actually an unconventional ambition.

Long Mengsun believes in "The Case of Zeng Wenzheng Gongxue" that Zeng Guofan's moral, career, and academic achievements are so glorious through the ages, because of his strong character and humility. He said: As a famous figure in modern history, Zeng Guofan has made great achievements in moral cultivation and career learning, and can be called a glorious universe, even women and children admire him. How did he achieve such great things? I read the collections he left behind, and I studied them again and again, and I found that his success was all due to his perseverance and humility. It is precisely because of his strong perseverance that he constantly encourages himself to follow in the footsteps of his predecessors; Be alone and come into your own way, so as not to be vulgar. Although they encounter more difficult situations in the world, they do not waver in their beliefs, even if they encounter a thousand difficulties, they do not change their ambitions. A vain person must not be confident, and the ancients did say that indeed. It is precisely because he is modest and cautious that he always thinks that things are endless, so he does not dare to be arrogant. Treat people and things, be careful, and never dare to slack off. Handle official business and career, but be afraid of negligence. Because things are unpredictable and there is a possibility of mistakes in inference, I always think and ask for the opinions of others. And because there are many things to do in the country's official business, I am afraid that my talents and strength will not be competent, so I recommend talents and talents to discuss together. The reason why his knowledge has advanced by leaps and bounds, the reason why his moral sentiments are noble, and the reason why his meritorious articles are glorious in the world is that the day and the month will be the future, and there is a source. "The strong and humble attitude that Long Mengsun cited, and the Hongyi that Xue Fucheng said, although the wording of the two is slightly different, they are generally the same, and they are almost the same. It's just that Xue Fucheng is only talking about career merits, and Long Mengsun also talked about Zeng Guofan's moral knowledge and meritorious articles, and the two are different in terms of interest. The reason why Zeng Guofan is strong and humble is naturally because he is stubborn and unwilling to be resigned to decadence and depression; is also because of his simple talent and dare not be arrogant. Zeng Guofan said that he had a successful career because he was simple and honest. Of course, this statement is purposeful, but on the other hand, the achievements of his career are inseparable from his determination not to be a layman and his tenacious personality.

Whoever implements a strategy and does a thing will not be smooth sailing, and there will definitely be discussions from the world.

Zeng Guofan once said, "In the past, Jiang Zhongyuan was the first to propose the establishment of a navy; In the matter of the siege of Anqing, it was Hu Linyi who proposed. After that, I handled the navy, the first defeat at Jingjiang, the second defeat at Hukou, the officers and men were willing to give up the water war and go to the land war, and then seek to revitalize after perseverance; When Anqing was not encircled, Qimen and Huang De were also in danger, and everyone suggested that the siege of Anqing be withdrawn, rescue those two places, and change everyone's opinions only after perseverance. When the lone army surrounded the hundred-mile city of Jinling, everyone's discussion was to avoid repeating the mistakes of Hechun and Zhang Guoliang, and opposed this practice. ”

The Zeng brothers had different opinions on the siege of Tianjing, and the Hunan army was also divided over it. By extension, the Qing court also had different strategies for this. At the beginning, Zeng Guofan wrote a letter to Zeng Guoquan, proposing a plan to completely withdraw from Yuhuatai and re-determine the offensive strategy in the name of pursuing Li Xiucheng's army: this overall situation is crucial, and the military situation of one year and two years must be determined as early as possible. When the thief comes again, there is no way back, and an ant breaks the embankment. These most dangerous tricks can only be tried again and again, how can they be tried again and again, thinking that the key to a soldier is the key? I hope that my brother will make a plan early. If the thief does not break the siege, he will endure and hold on; If the thief breaks the siege, he will chase and retreat, and there will be no trace. The most important thing for the march is that the machine bureau is young, and the younger brother is in You'an and Anqing, and the machine bureau is not very active, and it is even more dull to Jinling.

Although Zeng Guofan was bitter and tried his best to analyze the pros and cons, Zeng Guoquan was unmoved and resolutely did not withdraw his troops from Tianjing City. In the following month, Zeng Guofan continued to persuade him to withdraw his troops, and even moved out "live soldiers", "light soldiers", "dull soldiers", and "heavy soldiers" to persuade him to withdraw his troops.

My brother has been in the army for a long time and has read a lot of things, so it is advisable to use live soldiers in the future, less dead soldiers, more light soldiers, and less heavy soldiers. Advance and retreat, unpredictable, live soldiers; Staying in one place, the old man is stubborn, and the soldiers are also stupid; More cannons are used to carry heavy loads, the clerks are too numerous, the vehicles and ships are difficult to gather, and the heavy soldiers are also; The equipment is light and agile, the burden is heavy, there is no need for a car or boat, the wind is galloping and the electric shock, the light soldier is also, the younger army has a deep habit, and now if you want to change it to a live soldier and a light soldier, it is bound to be impossible. Wangdi's strength has become a big plan, with Jinling and Jinzhu as dull soldiers and heavy soldiers, and to attack Dongba and Erli as active soldiers, there is a lot of care!

Zeng Guoquan is still stubborn, and Yang Zaifu also feels that he should not withdraw his troops. Zeng Guofan wrote a letter to discuss with Zuo Zongtang, who believed that although Zeng Guoquan's soldiers could not fight in the field, "they did not take it for granted that they would withdraw from the army." However, the people around him thought that Zeng Guoquan's rash advance was beyond his own strength, and "everyone despised Yuan Fu as a person who was not capable." They all suggested that Zeng Guofan forcibly order the troops to withdraw and find another way. This made Zeng Guofan in a dilemma and had no plan. In the end, Zeng Guofan agreed that Zeng Guoquan would not withdraw his troops from Tianjing, and it was Zeng Guofan who was convinced that Zeng Guoquan could do what he could after personal investigation.

Only when you are motivated by great goals and persistently pursue a meaningful life can you make a great achievement in the world. The size of the achievement and the achievement itself depends to a large extent on your initiative and decisiveness. If you haven't been fully prepared for these two aspects by now, then you have to work hard to develop these qualities from now on, otherwise you won't achieve anything. There is no accomplished person who does not achieve his goals through unremitting efforts. Once the aggressiveness fades, we lose the motivation to move forward; Once the momentum is gone, we go with the flow.

A young man is either looking up and going uphill, or looking down and going downhill. If you lack an upward spirit, you will surely fall. As a young person, the less capable you are, the more you should use this quality as much as possible to improve yourself. If you have only one talent to earn a living from, you should work harder than someone who has ten talents and make fuller use of that only talent, so that you can prevent yourself from showing weakness!

Start from scratch and build your own life platform

There are two types of mindset, positive and negative. A positive mindset can unleash its potential, attract wealth, achieve great things, be happy and healthy; Negative mentality rejects these things, takes everything in life, and makes people fall to the bottom for life, even if they climb to the top, they will be dragged down by it.

Zeng Guofan's "Miscellaneous Works" has an article "Juye", which means that to fight the country and create a career, you must have a positive attitude as the foundation. He said: "The deeds of ancient heroes must have a foundation: for example, Liu Bang, the ancestor of the Han Dynasty, was in Guanzhong, Emperor Guangwu was in Hanoi, Wei was in Xuzhou, and Tang was in Jinyang. Tsang summed up the foundation of a positive mindset as two necessary conditions, namely, scale and honesty in words.

He explained that if a house is as grand as a house, it will occupy a vast homestead and shelter many people. If integrity is strong, the structure will be strong. "Yi" says: "Lenient dwelling", which is grand; "Rhetoric stands on the word sincerity, and it can be lived in", which refers to integrity. Da Chengzi said: "Dao Zhihao, where to start? Only by establishing sincerity can there be a place to live. Honesty is faithfulness, and to refine one's words is to establish this faithfulness. If the mouth does not choose what to say, and if it is said in every matter, then the faithfulness will be buried and shaken, and it will not be able to stand. "The state feudal clan can stand, that is, the so-called "residence industry"; Now as the saying goes, "build a family" means just that. Zizhang said: "The virtue mastered is not grand, and the way of faith is not single-minded, can it still be called there?" Can it still be called none? That is to say, if I can't be grand and honest, then my knowledge is floating and turbulent, saying that I can't do it, and saying that I can't do nothing; In this way, there is no livable business for life, this is what Cheng Zi called "untenable". Zeng Guofan almost started from scratch to respond to every call, and it was with the help of playing and doing things that changed. He talked about the "bureau" many times, despised those who shouted and discussed outside the bureau, and advocated standing up and being responsible, bowing down to the game, believing that only in this way can there be the possibility of success. At the beginning of Zeng Guofan's beginning, he had no power or power in his hands, so there were not many people who followed him. Before leaving from Changsha, he invited Zuo Zongtang to consult on military affairs, but was refused. But soon after Zuo Zongtang refused to enter the scene, he joined Luo Bingzhang's shogunate, which embarrassed Zeng Guofan. Li Hongzhang came to vote for the first time, and Zeng Guofan also said: "Shaoquan (Li Hongzhang) is Hanlin, amazing!" Ambitious and talented. As for me here, the situation has not yet opened, and I am afraid that a huge ship like him cannot be accommodated by the babbling stream here of me. Why didn't he go back to Beijing to get a good job? On the surface, he refused, but in fact, he was worried that the shallow water would not be able to raise big fish, and Li Hongzhang would not be able to endure this hardship.

Zeng Guofan also sent several other invitation letters at the same time, but there were few responders, and even his past friends Feng Zhuohuai and Guo Songtao refused to accompany him. Chen Shijie is Junchen, a native of Guiyang Prefecture, Hunan, who took the Xiaojing official examination with Bagong, distributed the household department, and returned home by his father. Because of the suppression of the local party by holding a group practice at home, Zeng Guofan was appreciated by Zeng Guofan, and he was recruited in Hengzhou. Li Yuandu is a native of Pingjiang, Hunan, and is a native of Pingjiang, Hunan. Li Yuandu once wrote to Zeng Guofan about military affairs, which was appreciated by him, and entered the curtain around February 1854. Zeng Guofan felt the pain of isolation and helplessness. In his letter to his younger brothers, he said with emotion: "In dangerous and dangerous places, no one tends to avoid them, and those who are friends like Feng Shutang and Guo Songtao on weekdays still refuse to come, so what else can be said!" He also said: "When Mr. Zhen Fu was in Hubei last year, there was only one old servant by his side, and all the officials, friends, family members, and Goshha were gone. It's not a strange thing. Brother's current situation is still promising, and it will not be as depressed as Zhen Fu. However, if you think that this is a place of pleasure, and that everyone is willing to obey each other, it is not true. The dismal business situation of Zeng Guofan at that time can be seen from this.

Zeng Guofan realized that his situation had not yet been opened, the table was small, and he did not easily recommend people to the imperial court, and the environment was bad at that time, and there was a danger of dying at any time, so of course people were unwilling to follow him with all their hearts. Therefore, when Zeng Guofan went out of the mountain again, he asked the Qing government to grant him the real power of one or two provinces, and for those who had a little talent, he continued to play and recommend, and fought several victories, so there was a situation of "the heroes are rising, the clouds are taking pictures, like a dragon getting rain, like a fish getting water".

After Zeng Guofan served as the governor of Liangjiang, he established Zuo Zongtang's army and Li Yuandu's army; Soon after capturing Anqing, Zeng Guoquan was ordered to return to his hometown to recruit 6,000 Hunan troops; Later, Li Hongzhang's Xianghuai Army and two water divisions of Huaiyang and Taihu Lake were established, and so on. The generals were also well aware that they could gain a lot of benefits and gain high rank and power because they had a large number of troops and many military achievements, so they often raised their own salaries and recruited new battalions without being on standby.

At the same time, when Zeng Guofan was both the governor of Liangjiang and the minister of the Qin Mission, the situation was even more different from what it used to be. Not only did the southern provinces seal the generals, and whenever there was a promotion, Zeng Guofan "all praised the painting", and the imperial court had to solicit Zeng Guofan's opinion whenever there was a big move. At this time, the subordinates were naturally very excited. "My generation is also inspired by the wings, and I am willing to sharpen with my comrades." Guo Songtao also said, "The recent measures of the imperial court are really from a big picture, which is unprecedented. ”

The bigger Zeng Guofan's "table" is, the more hopeful and motivated his subordinates will be. No wonder Zeng Guofan sang the song of advance when he went to Liangjiang.

Anyone who has acquired a successful personality has the experience of being able to stand on a high place, look around, and control everything in their hands. Zeng Guofan can have the idea of making the scene bigger, and knows that if you want to get a successful character, you must have a big hand.