It does not matter how slowly you go so long as you do not stop.

Often attributed to Confucius, this maxim emphasizes perseverance over speed: steady, continuous effort is more important than rapid progress that cannot be sustained. Read as practical moral advice, it encourages patience in self-cultivation and learning—central concerns in Confucian thought—by valuing constancy, discipline, and refusal to abandon one’s aims. In modern usage it is frequently applied to long projects (education, recovery, skill-building), reframing “slow progress” as legitimate progress so long as momentum is maintained. Its popularity also reflects a broader ethical ideal: character is formed through repeated, ongoing practice rather than sudden transformation.