See the Series Introduction for Just Tao It, Part I: HERE
See the Just Tao It Series Introduction Tao/It on-ramp, PART II: HERE
See Just Tao It, Chapter 1: HERE

From my interpretation of the Tao Te Ching, Chapter 27 (Unpblished):

Without forcing,
It flows.

Travelers move with It,
and the journey unfolds.

Artists create,
and the work appears.

Scientists inquire,
and clarity comes.

The skillful stay with It,
and change unfolds.

—

A skilled carpenter works with the grain, not against it. The wood still gets cut. The intention doesn’t disappear. But the blade follows what the grain is already doing instead of forcing a line through it. Every carpenter learns this the same way — by cutting against the grain first, and watching the wood split wrong.

I learned it the same way, on a consulting engagement I still think about.

I knew exactly what the client needed. I was certain enough that I pushed my frameworks harder than the system could absorb.

The analysis was accurate. The recommendations were sound. The pacing was catastrophic.

Three key leaders left within six months. Not because the strategy was wrong. Because I’d cut against the grain — forced a line through wood that was already telling me which way it wanted to go. I optimized for speed at the cost of trust.

At the time, I probably called it driving results. The people leaving probably used different language.

I’ve failed the other direction too. After burning out one too many teams by directing too hard, I overcorrected into what I thought was wisdom — got so committed to “allowing things to unfold” that I stopped giving systems the direction they needed. Projects drifted. Decisions softened. Reflection replaced responsibility.

Same mistake. Opposite direction.

That’s wu wei in both directions — the practice of cutting with the grain instead of against it. You still cut. You still decide. You still move things forward. Only the relationship to force changes.

Every version of this — the wood, the client relationship, the system — runs on rhythm. Force the rhythm and something breaks even when you’re right. Match it and the same effort moves twice as far.

AI adds a version of this same test. It can accelerate analysis, workflows, and output faster than any of us. What it can’t tell you is whether the system underneath you is ready to move at that pace. Optimization and wisdom have never been identical.

Authoritarian systems use the same principle in reverse — flooding a system with urgency and certainty until people lose the capacity to sense their own rhythm, until complexity narrows into slogans and reaction. The pace itself becomes the weapon.

Chapter 27 asks for both: Direct AND Allow, Steadiness AND Fluidity — the shape that comes from directing, the space that comes from allowing, held together by rhythm.

The carpenter still has to cut. The consultant still has to advise. Neither gets to skip the work by calling it wu wei. What changes is whether the blade is fighting the grain or moving with it — and you can usually tell which one by what breaks.

Without forcing, It flows.

And reality always gets a vote.

Here’s a Polarity Map for Direct And Allow:

INVITATIONS:

Try the AI-trained “Chat w/Cliff” for Step 1, Seeing, CLICK HERE.

If you want to take a quick self-assessment for Direct And Allow? CLICK HERE – the results include Leveraging Action Steps and Early Warnings (to support maximizing upside benefits and minimizing downside limitations).

Want to go deeper into Polarity Thinking? See our online self-directed Credentialing and Introduction to Polarity Practice, CLICK HERE.