Shū dào yòng shí fāng hèn shǎo; (shì fēi jīngguò bù zhī nán).*

書到用時方恨少, (事非經過不知難)。

Lit [One will] not regret having done too little reading until [one is required to] apply [what one has studied, and one will] not know the difficulty of the work until one begins to do it [oneself].

Note [The first half is most commonly used alone.]

Topics DIFFICULTIES EXPERIENCE READING REGRET WORK