Sun Tzuâs 5 Essentials for Victory
Sun Tzu said these are the five conditions that determine victory:
- He will win who knows when to fight and when not to fight.
- He will win who knows how to handle both superior and inferior forces.
- He will win whose army is animated by the same spirit throughout all its ranks.
- He will win who, prepared himself, waits to take the enemy unprepared.
- He will win who has military capacity and is not interfered with by the sovereign.
Knowing when to fight and when not to fight may sound simple, but it marks a profound distinction. Sun Tzu cautions to be selective with engagements.
AVOID FIGHTING
- Superior business strategists arenât eager to fight at every opportunity. Instead, they only engage when the opportunity is right and there is real benÂefit to be gained. They realize that itâs often best to avoid conflict altogether.
- It may seem counterintuitive for a general to value the opportunity to gain victory by not fighting. But Sun Tzu knows that, whenever possible, victory should be pursued without fighting:
Therefore the skillful leader subdues the enemyâs troops withÂout any fighting; he captures their cities without laying siege to them; he overthrows their kingdom without lengthy operations in the field.
- Business Application: There are many ways for you to capture your competitorsâ cities without laying siege to them. You can make your movements in ways that are undetected by your competitors, buy your competitors out, hire their best performers, or create exclusive relationships with the top suppliers and vendors in your industry. The options are many. Study this principle carefully and you will stand to gain. How can you subdue competitorsâ troops without fighting?
KNOW WHEN TO ENGAGE & WHEN TO STAND DOWN
- Itâs not always easy to know when to advance and escalate, or when to change course or cancel an action. But luckily for us, Sun Tzu makes it clear:
Move not unless you see an advantage; use not your troops unless there is something to be gained; fight not unless the position is critical.
- Donât make an action unless there is something worth the gain. Motion withÂout advancing your position is wasted effort, and it keeps you from putting your resources where they can be most effective. Conflict should be avoided unless the objective to be gained is of critical importance:
If it is to your advantage, make a forward move; if not, stay where you are.
- Business Application: Think about some of the most difficult movements youâve made in the past year. Have they provided an advantage, or have they simply cost you? What have you learned from them?
AVOID ADVERSARIESâ STRENGTHS
- Sun Tzu tells us never to attack strength for strength:
In war, the way is to avoid what is strong and to strike at what is weak.
- Itâs a mistake to pit your strength against that of your competitor. Instead, think about how to apply your strength to their weakness. Even the strongest adversary has a weakness. Itâs up to you to identify it and take advantage.
- Core to knowing when to fight is an awareness of the condition of your adverÂsary. Knowledge of the enemy is a fundamental principle of The Art of War. Sun Tzu advises battle only if the enemy is vulnerable:
If we know that our own men are in a condition to attack, but are unaware that the enemy is not open to attack, we have gone only halfway towards victory.
- The Art of War is about far more than engaging military forces. Battle should not be a first resort, or even a second:
- âThe best policy in war is to attack the enemyâs strategy. The second best way is to disrupt his alliances through diplomatic means. The next best method is to attack his army in the field. The worst policy is to attack walled cities. Attacking cities is the last resort when there is no alternative.â (Gerald A. Michaelson and Steven Michaelson, The Art of War for Managers: 50 Strategic Rules, Avon, MA: Adams Media, 2010, 25)
If you lay siege to a town, you will exhaust your strength.
- The questions you must ask are, What are the most effective ways for you to attack your competitorâs strategies? What about disturbing their alliances, business partnerships, and relationships?
- Never attack unless there is real opportunityâthat is, unless the enemy is âundefendedâ:
You can be sure of succeeding in your attacks if you only attack places which are undefended.
USE THE FEW, OUT-STRATEGIZE THE MANY
- The only way to take on and defeat bigger, more powerful competitors is to do so with superior strategy.
- In one well-executed engagement at a time, Sun Tzu used his smaller number to defeat a larger force. How can you out-strategize the larger competitors in your world?
Superior and inferior speaks to having armies that are larger and smaller than that of your adversary. This is essential for victory, because knowing how to apply power in managing both large and small forces is critical. Itâs not enough for a successful general to have the skill to lead large, powÂerful forces. He must also be able to succeed with smaller units. Itâs not enough for business leaders to be able to win only with large and ...
