Complacency spells loss, while modesty brings benefit.

Complacency spells loss, while modesty brings benefit.

This dictum is from Shang Shu (The Book of History). It means that one loses by complacency and gains by modesty. In the eyes of the ancient philosophers, all things are in a state of constant change, and good and bad and success and failure are interchangeable. So one needs to keep pace with the times and constantly extend oneself, rather than being satisfied with progress already made; one should be modest and cautious, and always review and overcome one's own shortcomings.

At a meeting in December 2012 with foreign professionals working in China, Xi Jinping warned that "Pride goes before a fall." He said: Though China has achieved extraordinary successes, it is still a developing country and faces many real challenges and serious problems. It is neither unconfident nor over-confident, but will learn from the achievements of all countries and draw upon their strengths.

满招损，谦受益

“满招损，谦受益”，语出《尚书》，意为骄傲自满会招致损害，谦虚谨慎会得到益处。“满”即自满、自负；“谦”即“敬”，由衷地恭顺谨慎。古人认为，一切都在不断变化，优劣成败会转化；人需要与时俱进，不断努力，不能满足于已经取得的成绩而裹足不前；要谦虚谨慎、虚怀若谷，时时克服自身的不足。

2012年12月，习近平与在华工作的外国专家座谈时谈到“满招损，谦受益”，指出中国已经取得举世瞩目的发展成就，但仍是一个发展中国家，仍然面临一系列严峻挑战，还有许多需要面对和解决的问题。我们既不妄自菲薄，也不妄自尊大，更加注重学习吸收世界各国人民创造的优秀文明成果，同世界各国相互借鉴、取长补短。