THE ART of WAR

Five Elements for Comparing Competitive Position

Philosophy:

A competitor with a strong philosophy is a strong competitor. A clear philosophy makes decision-making easier. Understanding your competitor's philosophy allows you to predict them. Heaven: Trends over time that are beyond your control. You must foresee these changes to adjust to them. Ground: It is both where you fight and what you fight for. The Ground is the basis of all competition because it is what people are fighting about. Competitors are distinguished by the position they hold on the ground. You can and must chose the ground over which you battle. Your choice of ground is a key aspect of your success. Leader: The success of the competitive unit depends on five qualities in its leader: bravery, intelligence, strictness, trust in and care about people. Methods: Methods have five qualities the make them effective: systems, organization, learning, support, and standards.

The Four Skills of an Effective Competitor

The five elements that define a competitive position also create the four skills that define the competitor's interaction with the competitive environment:

Knowing: the ability to get hard information.

Vision: the ability to foresee the future.

Action: the ability to move or stay where we are.

Positioning: the ability to use the Ground to find success.

These skills define your external competence in the competitive world.

The Five Things You Must Know To Win

You must know five things to win:

Victory comes from knowing when to attack and when to avoid battle.

Victory comes from correctly using large and small forces.

Victory comes from everyone sharing the same goals.

Victory comes from finding opportunities in problems.

Victory comes from having a capable commander and the government leaving him alone.

You must know these five things. You then know the theory of victory.

The Art of War

Excerpts from the "Art of War", Sun Tzu, app. 500 BC

Planning (more)

Warfare is one thing. It is a philosophy of deception.

When you are ready, you try to appear incapacitated.

When active, you pretend inactivity.

When you are close to the enemy, you appear distant.

When far away, pretend you are near.

Planning an Attack (more)

If you outnumber the enemy ten to one, surround them.

If you outnumber them five to one, attack them.

If you outnumber them two to one, divide them.

If you are equal, then find an advantageous battle.

If you are fewer, defend against them.

If you are much weaker, evade them.

Small forces are not powerful. However, large forces cannot catch them.

Weakness and Strength (more)

O divine art of subtlety and secrecy! Through you we learn to be invisible, through you inaudible; and hence we can hold the enemy's fate in our hands.

Carefully compare the opposing army with your own, so that you may know where strength is superabundant and where it is deficient. Rouse him, and learn the principle of his activity or inactivity. Force him to reveal himself, so as to find out his vulnerable spots. You may advance and be absolutely irresistible, if you make for the enemy's weak points; you may retire and be safe from pursuit if your movements are more rapid than those of the enemy. You must know the battle ground. You must know the time of battle. You can then travel a thousand of miles and still win the battle. The enemy should not know the battleground. He shouldn't know the time of battle. His left will be unable to support his right. His right will be unable to support his left. His front lines will be unable to support his rear. His rear will be unable to support his front. His support is distant even if it is only ten miles away. What unknown place can be close? Control the balance of forces. The enemy may have many men but they are superfluous. How can they help him to win? Be skilled in attacking – give the enemy no idea where to defend. Be skillful in your defense – give the enemy no idea of where to attack. Make war without a standard approach. Manage your military position like water. Water takes every shape. If you follow the enemy's shifts and changes, you can always win. We call this shadowing. Fight five different campaigns without a firm rule for victory. Use all four seasons without a consistent position. Your timing must be sudden. A few weeks determine your failure or success.

Armed Conflict (more)

Divide your troops to plunder villages. When on open ground, dividing is an advantage.

Don't worry about organization: just move.

Be the first to find a new route that leads directly to a winning plan.

This is how you are successful at armed conflict.