One meditation teacher describes the impact of each small contribution as a "trim-tab effect." When an ocean liner is under way, its momentum is so great that it cannot be steered by moving its rudder. Instead, a series of adjustments is made in the flaps at the edge of the rudder — the trim tabs. These small changes begin to shift the direction of the ship until the rudder itself can be turned and the ship takes another course. Like trim tabs, our deliberate actions, however small, can change the course of life around us. To use our life to move the world toward compassion and away from suffering is the only thing that matters.
— Jack Kornfield, After the Ecstasy, The Laundry