The principle of 'nonaction' (wu-wei) is not to be considered inertia, laziness, laissez-faire or mere passivity. Thus, wu-wei as "not forcing" is what we mean by going with the grain, rolling with the punch, swimming with the current, trimming sails to the wind, taking the tide at its flood, and stooping to conquer. Wu-wei is thus the life-style of one who follows the Tao, and must be understood primarily as a form of intelligence - that is of knowing the principles, structures, and trends of human and natural affairs so well that one uses the least amount of energy in dealing with them.
Unfortunately, despite the undeniable seduction of such explanations, they are still incomplete. Because the nondoing is not a method that can be applied in any circumstance. Usually, nondoing has to be connected with doing, if we want to follow the Taoist logic. The adjustment to the demands of time has the exigency of a sort of behavioral flexibility that does not remain stuck in its position, but emulates the requirements of the moment. Thus, at the same time, one may have to bend over in order to succeed, or, on the contrary, to remain firm in order to win. We can find many examples in this respect in the old Taoist literature. For instance, in I-ching, hexagram no 25 - Innocence (the Unexpected) - the second line, we find that if our doing is according to the requirements of time, it will be successful even if we do not explicitly target success. In other words, it is not necessary to push for the results of an action if it is performed in due time. After all, it is like doing nothing, or like having the feeling that "everything goes smoothly". The spontaneous, instinctive action is not always suitable. The action has to be according to the Heaven (the Will of Heaven or the Mandate of Heaven, in the Confucian terms) in order to have the chance of success. Lao-tzu himself is not an unconditional partner of the nondoing if we take into account the historical fact that he held an official position at the sovereign's court. Later on, he left his work and withdrew from the mundane world, but not because he followed the principles of a fully spiritual lifestyle, but because he was disgusted with the decay of the morality at the court. Lao-tzu's reaction confirms in fact: nondoing (here in the sense of withdrawal from the public life) has to be according to the requirements of time and not an absolute principle of life. So, nondoing should be regarded as a complement of doing and not as a virtue or as an absolute model of life!
If one does not count on the harvest while plowing,
Nor on the use of the ground while clearing it,
It furthers one to undertake something.
We should do every task for its own sake as time and place demand and not with an eye to the result. Then each task turns out well, and anything we undertake succeeds.