The Chopping Metaphor

Before enlightenment, chop wood and carry water. After enlightenment, chop wood and carry water. The work remains.

Published: 2025-12-04 · 4 min read

There's a Zen saying worth thinking about:

"Before enlightenment, chop wood and carry water. After enlightenment, chop wood and carry water."

The work doesn't change

Success doesn't eliminate the work. It changes the context, maybe. The stakes, perhaps. But the daily practice remains remarkably similar.

Before users: write code, fix bugs, respond to feedback.

After users: write code, fix bugs, respond to feedback.

Before revenue: show up daily, make decisions, ship.

After revenue: show up daily, make decisions, ship.

Why this matters

When you're starting out, you imagine success will feel different. You'll have "made it." The grind will end. Things will be easier.

They won't. They'll be harder in different ways.

This isn't discouraging, it's liberating. If the work is the same either way, you can stop waiting for success to enjoy it. The practice is the point.

What successful builders say

Talk to anyone who's "made it" and you'll hear the same thing. The daily work looks almost identical to when they started. The tasks are the same:

• Deep work on the most important thing
• Communication and smaller tasks
• Learning and recharging

The only difference is the stakes. And maybe the confidence.

The only question

Not "have I succeeded?" but "did I do the work today?"

The chopping continues. The water needs carrying. The enlightenment, if it comes, doesn't change the wood or the water.

It only changes how you see them.