百年树人 bǎi nián shù rén It takes a hundred years to grow a man

Explanation

“百年树人”出自《管子·权修》：“一年之计，莫如树谷；十年之计，莫如树木；终身之计，莫如树人。” 比喻培养人才是长期而艰巨的任务，需要耐心和细心。就像种植一棵树，从幼苗到成长成参天大树需要许多年的时间，培育人才也需要付出长期的努力，才能最终获得成功。

"It takes a hundred years to grow a man" comes from the book "管子·权修": "A year's plan starts with the planting of grain; a ten-year plan starts with the planting of trees; a lifetime plan starts with the cultivation of people." It is a metaphor for the fact that cultivating talent is a long-term and arduous task that requires patience and carefulness. Like planting a tree, it takes many years for a sapling to grow into a towering tree. Similarly, cultivating talent requires long-term effort to achieve success.

Origin Story

很久以前，在一个偏远的小村庄里，住着一位名叫李老先生的老人。李老先生是一位德高望重的教育家，他毕生致力于教育事业，培养了许多优秀的学生。一天，村里来了一个年轻人，名叫王二，他来到李老先生的家中，请求李老先生收他为徒。李老先生问王二：“你想学什么？”王二说：“我想学做生意，希望将来能够赚很多钱。”李老先生听了，笑着说：“做生意虽然可以赚钱，但要学好它也需要时间和耐心。你如果急于求成，最终只会得不偿失。就像种树一样，百年树人，要想长成参天大树，需要多年的精心培育。同样，要想成为一个成功的人，也需要付出长期的努力，不断学习和积累经验。”王二听了李老先生的话，深感惭愧。他明白了，想要成功，不能急于求成，要脚踏实地，一步一个脚印。于是，他下定决心，认真学习，最终成为了一名优秀的商人。

hěn jiǔ yǐ qián, zài yī gè piān yuǎn de xiǎo cūn zhuāng lǐ, zhù zhe yī wèi míng jiào lǐ lǎo xiān sheng de lǎo rén. lǐ lǎo xiān sheng shì yī wèi dé gāo wàng zhòng de jiào yù jiā, tā bì shēng zhì lì yú jiào yù shì yè, péi yǎng le hěn duō yōu xiù de xué sheng. yī tiān, cūn lǐ lái le yī gè nián qīng rén, míng jiào wáng èr, tā lái dào lǐ lǎo xiān sheng de jiā zhōng, qǐng qiú lǐ lǎo xiān sheng shōu tā wéi tú. lǐ lǎo xiān sheng wèn wáng èr: “nǐ xiǎng xué shén me?” wáng èr shuō: “wǒ xiǎng xué zuò shēng yì, xī wàng jiāng lái néng gòu zhuàn hěn duō qián.” lǐ lǎo xiān sheng tīng le, xiào zhe shuō: “zuò shēng yì suī rán kě yǐ zhuàn qián, dàn yào xué hǎo tā yě xū yào shí jiān hé nài xīn. nǐ rú guǒ jí yú qiú chéng, zuì zhōng zhǐ huì dé bù cháng shī. jiàng xiàng zhòng shù yī yàng, bǎi nián shù rén, yào xiǎng zhǎng chéng cān tiān dà shù, xū yào duō nián de jīng xīn péi yù. tóng yàng, yào xiǎng chéng wéi yī gè chéng gōng de rén, yě xū yào fù chū cháng qí de nǔ lì, bù duàn xué xí hé jī lěi jīng yàn.” wáng èr tīng le lǐ lǎo xiān sheng de huà, shēn gǎn cán kuì. tā míng bai le, xiǎng yào chéng gōng, bù néng jí yú qiú chéng, yào jiǎo tà shí dì, yī bù yī gè jiǎo yìn. yú shì, tā xià dìng jué xīn, rèn zhēn xué xí, zuì zhōng chéng wéi le yī míng yōu xiù de shāng rén.

A long time ago, in a remote village, lived an old man named Mr. Li. Mr. Li was a highly respected educator, who devoted his life to the cause of education and cultivated many outstanding students. One day, a young man named Wang came to the village and asked Mr. Li to take him as his apprentice. Mr. Li asked Wang, "What do you want to learn?" Wang said, "I want to learn how to do business, and hope that I can make a lot of money in the future." Mr. Li listened and said with a smile, "Doing business can make money, but to learn it well, it also takes time and patience. If you are eager to achieve success, you will end up losing more than you gain. Like planting a tree, it takes a hundred years to grow a man, to grow into a towering tree, it takes many years of careful cultivation. Similarly, to become a successful person, you need to put in long-term efforts, continue to learn and accumulate experience. " Wang was ashamed when he heard Mr. Li's words. He realized that to succeed, he could not be eager to achieve success, but should be down-to-earth and take one step at a time. So, he made up his mind to study hard and eventually became a successful businessman.

Usage

“百年树人”常用来比喻培养人才是长期而艰巨的任务，需要耐心和细心。也可以用来鼓励人们不要急于求成，要脚踏实地，一步一个脚印，坚持不懈。

“bǎi nián shù rén” cháng yòng lái bǐ yù péi yǎng rén cái shì cháng qí ér jiān jù de rèn wù, xū yào nài xīn hé xì xīn. yě kě yǐ yòng lái gǔ lì rén men bù yào jí yú qiú chéng, yào jiǎo tà shí dì, yī bù yī gè jiǎo yìn, jiān chí bù xiè.

"It takes a hundred years to grow a man" is often used to illustrate that cultivating talent is a long-term and arduous task that requires patience and carefulness. It can also be used to encourage people not to be eager to achieve success, but to be down-to-earth, take one step at a time, and persevere.

Examples

• 百年树人，教育要从娃娃抓起。

  bǎi nián shù rén, jiào yù yào cóng wá wá zhuā qǐ.

  It takes a hundred years to grow a man, education should start from childhood.

• 培养人才需要时间和耐心，要像种树一样，百年树人。

  péi yǎng rén cái xū yào shí jiān hé nài xīn, yào xiàng zhòng shù yī yàng, bǎi nián shù rén.

  Cultivating talents takes time and patience, just like planting a tree, it takes a hundred years to grow a man.

Related Idioms

• 桃李满天下

• 春风化雨

Opposite Idioms

• 急功近利

• 拔苗助长