I’m sure you’ve heard of Sun Tzu’s The Art of War. 

When Hollywood seeks to dramatize strategy and assertive business action, the title of this book or some variant often gets added to the mix.

We see Gordon Gecko in Wall Street telling Charlie Sheen’s character to read The Art of War. There are popular action movies with the same or similar titles

Mainstream media jumps on the Sun Tzu bandwagon by using the title as a promotional tool for a variety of industries and contexts.  There’s seems to be an “Art of…” almost everything nowadays.

The title is catchy, and I can see why pop culture wants to capitalize on it.  It’s concise – a perfect fit for our fast paced modern-day lifestyle, and it carries a sense of bravado – something that society today tells us we should pursue with gusto.

Entertainment news inundates us with the message that we need to “keep up with the Jones’s” (or the Kardashians), and aligning materialistic pursuits with themes like “Art” makes a person feel like they’re acting in an elevated manner.

Think of chores like washing the dishes, sweeping the floor, and walking the dog.  Associating these with art, strategy, and martial knowledge could make them seem more exciting.  In The Karate Kid, Mr. Miyagi enamored us with the idea of waxing our cars with the admonition to “Wax On, Wax Off”.  

These things are entertaining, but in and of itself, a surface-level, media-inspired awareness of Sun Tzu’s classic title is an unfortunate thing because all this flash, glamour, and gaudiness has caused many to wrongly consider the book gimmicky and cliché.

I think people often view it as less practical than it really is, which perhaps keeps them from reading it in the first place.  This is why I avoided it initially.

But is The Art of War a valid text for learning strategy?  Can we take the lessons taught by a 6th century Chinese general, abstract them from their original context, and apply them in relevant ways under modern-day circumstances?

To an extent, I think yes.  We need to be selective, but there are indeed certain principles here which can help us develop our perspective on strategy and even personal development.

Assess the following logic for yourself, and please remember that these are just some personal thoughts on a book I’ve grown to love – I’m certainly no expert here.

I’ve included a few quotes throughout the bullets to help explain the ideas.  And for clarity of citation, all of these quotes are from the following:

Giles, Lionel, M.A.  The Art of War.  1910

Here we go…

• Sun Tzu leads us to approach strategic encounters with reverence

The first line in the opening chapter of the book speaks directly to this, wherein the author states:

“…The art of war is of vital importance to the State…”

From this line, and additional explanations throughout, Sun Tzu makes us aware of a few key things:

1. Strategic planning is of the utmost importance, and shouldn’t be taken lightly
2. An engagement where our valued resources are at stake needs to be thoughtfully considered
3. It’s important to play to win

He seems to be saying that if the state (our success, happiness, etc.) is to thrive, foresight and goal setting should be given their due consideration

• Sun Tzu encourages us to understand our competition and ourselves

In chapter three Sun Tzu states that “If you know the enemy and know yourself, you need not fear the result of a hundred battles.”

Adapted to our daily lives, what Sun Tzu could mean here is that, although there are many unpredictable things that we can’t control, there are at least a few things that we can (at least partially).  Examples are:

1. Our knowledge about ourselves (skillsets, motivations, etc.)
2. Our industry knowledge
3. Knowledge about the playing field

We can’t control our past decisions.  We can’t control our present circumstances.  We certainly can’t control our height (for instance, some say I’m not even 6’1” with my boots on).

We can, however, control how we invest our time.

A lot of people don’t like to read.  This is surprising because reading is a significant, value added activity that’s directly under our control.

I’ve found that when I regularly allocate time to reading things like industry trends, competition, or human nature in general, I can be confident that my time is being spent productively.

• Sun Tzu directs us to use proper timing

There are a few quotes which capture this point thoroughly, but I will use just one for now.  In chapter seven Sun Tzu says to:

“Let your plans be dark and impenetrable as night, and when you move, fall like a thunderbolt.”

Have you noticed that when you tell your goals to friends or family members, there’s a good change they may dissuade from those things?  It could be because they’re jealous.  It could be for more noble reasons.  Whatever the reason, bottom line is, this weakens our resolve and commitment, and can make a tough goal that much tougher to achieve

From a pure goal-achievement perspective, I’ve found I’m most productive when I don’t discuss my goals with others.  From conversations I’ve had, it seems that many people feel the same.

There is an exception – a good mentor.  A true mentor is someone we can trust, someone who understands us and someone who wants nothing more than for us to become self-actualized, contributing members of society.

There is tremendous value in discussing goals with a good mentor.  They often help to put things in a positive light, make you aware of blind spots, and show you strengths you never thought you had.

This added insight contributes to your ability to plan the path to your goals.

With the latter half of the quote, Sun Tzu describes moving fast and assertively when the time is right.  This is the most important point here.  If we don’t take action towards our goals, and at the right moment, then they will forever be nothing more than dreams.

• Sun Tzu suggests that we find and use available and perhaps dissimilar resources

This is a general theme throughout a lot of the book, although a few passages in particular really hit home here.

In chapter two, Sun Tzu states that “…a wise general makes a point of foraging on the enemy.”

In our modern day civilized society this is not to be taken literally.  However, I think it could be abstracted to mean that:

1. We should conserve our resources as best we can, while relying on what is readily available in our present circumstances
2. In lieu of wasting finite resources (time, energy, money, etc.) we can look for and be receptive to creative ways of achieving similar or better production with less expenditure

• Sun Tzu presents us with a natural, universal view of strategy from start to finish

Throughout this book you’ll notice a number of examples from nature, as well as ways that natural responses could be interpreted as openings or indicators in terms of positioning

For example, in chapter nine Sun Tzu mentions that:

“The rising of birds in their flight is the sign of an ambuscade. Startled beasts indicate that a sudden attack is coming.”

The author is showing how these natural signs suggest the next logical tactical steps.  In observing crowd responses and individual reactions, I think a strong comparison can be drawn here.  By reading industry news, and observing the actions of key decision makers you can often get an inkling of what’s coming down the pike.

As you read through each of the chapters, you’ll see that Sun Tzu touches upon nearly all aspects of the strategic journey.  The text is written so that as one ponders it he or she may be able to fill in the blanks with their own unique circumstances while gaining greater clarity as to how all the pieces work together.

This is where the universality of the book comes into play.

• Sun Tzu shows his strategy applied under extreme circumstances

If we can learn to perform under the most challenging of circumstances, then, when conditions are easier we will likely excel all the more.

Here’s a random example.  Say you’re a singer.  You prepare to sing at an event where you know there won’t be a microphone.  You practice for months with this being the assumption.  Now, it’s obvious that you sing better with a microphone.  You have that added power to exhibit things like range, dexterity, and vocal control.

Now, say you get to the event you’ve been preparing for, and you find out that they will have a microphone there for you to use.  When you get on stage to sing, it’s much easier than you thought it would be.  You don’t need to push and strain to sing loud enough to fill the venue.  Instead, you can focus on things like intonation and emotional expression

What’s the main reason for this?  You prepared for tougher circumstances than were present when you actually needed to perform.

The Art of War was written in the context of battle preparation.  Now, although we all face our daily challenges and hardships, they are likely not as difficult as those faced during 6^th century warfare.  Sun Tzu’s original intent was to show how to prepare for those extreme circumstances.

If we can train (i.e. study) so as to have a similar degree of strategic knowledge, we’ll likely be that much better equipped to handle our day to day difficulties.

• Sun Tzu demonstrates how it’s better to win without fighting

I think this is the cornerstone of the author’s work.  Let’s look at how he states it, and then see how it can be applied.

In chapter three Sun Tzu says that “…supreme excellence consists in breaking the enemy’s resistance without fighting.”

The theme here is that we should try to not swim upstream against the current.  This is the hard way.

More often than not, if we look for it we can find more than one way of approaching a difficult situation.  Often there is a spectrum of approaches – some are easier, some are tougher.

Sun Tzu advocates the easier way.

This should not to be misinterpreted to mean that we should be lazy, or rest on our laurels.  It does mean that we should actively look for easy openings, and prepare to seize them at the right moment.

When we actively look for the winning path that’s clear of debris, we take a potentially difficult situation and transform it.  Instead of building walls and leaving animosity in our wake, we make friends, save resources, and move toward win-win solutions.

Have you read Sun Tzu?  Have you read other similar strategic texts?  Please comment below, and let me know your thoughts.

And lastly, for reference, I’ve read a lot of translations of this book.  My favorite so far is:

Sun Tzu: The Art of Warfare

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