“It takes a good blacksmith to make good steel.”

“It takes a good blacksmith to make good steel” is a popular Chinese adage. It means that only by conducting yourself honorably can you expect others to do the same, or in other words, only a good example can serve as the best sermon. Xi Jinping quoted this saying when he met the press covering the 18th CPC National Congress at the Great Hall of the People on November 15, 2012 to explain the importance of Party building. The newly elected general secretary of the CPC Central Committee stressed that as the ruling party, the CPC must take a principled and disciplined approach to Party building, as this is the key to the advancement of socialism with Chinese characteristics. Only with a strong CPC, can there be progress towards our goals, prosperity and stability for our country, and happiness and peace for our people.

“打鐵還需自身硬”

“打鐵還需自身硬”，是中國流傳已久的通俗名句，意思就是要從自己做起，以身作則，言傳身教，率先垂范。2012年11月15日，中共中央總書記習近平在人民大會堂同采訪十八大的中外記者見面時，提到了這句話。他引用這句中國俗語，意在強調加強中國共產黨自身建設的重要性。中國共產黨是執政黨，把黨建設好，是推進中國特色社會主義事業的關鍵。黨堅強有力，事業才能興旺發達，國家才能繁榮穩定，人民才能幸福安康。