Line by Line - Verse 22, Lines 11-12

from self-assertion, and therefore he is distinguished;
~ James Legge translation, from The Sacred Books of the East, 1891 ~

Not justifying themselves,
They are distinguished.
~ Gia-fu Feng and Jane English translation, published by Vintage Books, 1989 ~

Without presuming themselves – and so are distinguished
~ Derek Lin translation, from Tao Te Ching: Annotated & Explained, published by SkyLight Paths, 2006 ~

She's not out to prove anything
so people take her at her word.
~ Ron Hogan rendition, from Beatrice.com, 2004 ~

In his book that combines the Taoist philosophy with contemporary leadership strategies, John Heider writes:

When I give up trying to impress the group, I become very impressive. But when I am just trying to make myself look good, the group knows that and does not like that. My best work is done when I forget my own point of view; the less I make of myself, the more I am.

Put another way, when we concentrate on our own image, our focus becomes divided between our desires and the matter at hand. However, when we cast desire aside and give our total attention to what we are working on, others end up being genuinely impressed; not that we care!
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