王一菴以格物之「物」為由主體自身（本）到家國天下（末）的逐步外推，再將此外推過程的工夫操作內縮至克己反身的敬修自持，以「身」為「本」而為溝通由天理到「身」（人心、良知）到「物」（百姓、天下萬物）之軸心。更進一步，從誠意之「心之主宰」功能貞定良知現成可能導致的以見聞情識為良知之病，透過「身→心→意」的關聯將「意」提升至本體論層次，成為修身工夫能準確踐履之保證，展現出扼要直捷的工夫理論，與透過工夫踐履所彰顯之天道與人道的自然流行。循此思路，一菴的誠意說成為一種先天易簡之學，顯現出以「易簡」為方法論意識的操作跡象，以此操作方法將工夫拉緊收攝於主體自身。顯現為儒學修身傳統在理學工夫論中展現出的「自然而然」之道。

Wang Yian believes that the “things” of “studying things” is a gradual extrapolation from the subject himself (basis) to the family, the state and the world (end), before reducing such an extrapolation to self-respect and self-control; this is the axis that strings heavenly principles, self (mind, conscience) and things (people, all things and creatures) together with self as the foundation. Furthermore, he employs the sincerity of the will to evaluate the potential faults of the given conscience and raises “will” to the ontological level through the link of “body-mind-will,” while the ontological will guarantees the cultivation of character, displays the succinct and direct theory of cultivation, and highlights the natural popularity of the heavenly way and the human way. As the same token, Wang Yi-an’s doctrine about the sincerity of the will is naturally easy in terms of methodological consciousness, concentrating the efforts of cultivation on the subject himself, and manifests naturalness of the Confucian tradition of character cultivation.