为之于未有

為之於未有

wéi zhī yú wèi yǒu

quotation

Meanings

1 act on a thing before it has taken shape
2 deal with problems before they arise
3 lit. to do it before-it-exists

Characters

(object pronoun) it

Examples

高明的管理者善于为之于未有，防患于未然。

Gāomíng de guǎnlǐzhě shànyú wéizhīyúwèiyǒu, fánghuànyúwèirán.

Skilled managers are adept at acting before problems arise, guarding against trouble before it occurs.

政策制定要为之于未有，不能临时抱佛脚。

Zhèngcè zhìdìng yào wéizhīyúwèiyǒu, bùnéng línshíbàofójiǎo.

Policy-making must address issues before they appear — you cannot grab the Buddha's feet at the last moment.

Tips

history

From 《道德经》 chapter 64 (Laozi): 为之于未有，治之于未乱 — 'Act on a thing before it takes shape; govern it before disorder arises.' The foundational Daoist statement of pre-emptive, minimalist intervention — also a favourite quotation in Chinese policy speeches on risk management.

usage

Always paired with 治之于未乱. 之 is a classical object pronoun; 于 = 'at/in/when'. The terse classical structure is hard to parse — think 'do-it at not-yet-exist'.

Stroke Order

为 wéi

之 zhī

于 yú

未 wèi

有 yǒu