T h e 4 7 K e y P r i n c i p l e s o f S u n Tz u T h e A r t o f Wa r

Below are the 47 key principles from the formulas in Sun Tzu’s The Art of War. These prin-
ciples are taken from the award-winning book The Golden Key to Strategy, (Ben Franklin
Award for Self-Help, 2006) which explains Sun Tzu’s concepts in a simple and entertain-
ing way.
Sun Tzu’s Science of Strategy is designed to give competitors an unfair advantage. It is
based on the idea that most people don’t To get from Sun Tzu’s The Art of War to these
key principles requires years of studying the
understand their position and how posi- original Chinese text. Sun Tzu’s text lists not
tions are advanced. Analyzing and advanc- dozens, but hundreds of formulas and it is an
interaction of all these formulas together. His
ing positions requires understanding the system assumes you understand the relation-
non-intuitive way that competitive systems ships of the five classical elements of Chinese
science and philosophy. In this description of
work. It also requires successfully predict- Sun Tzu principles, we explain his system from
the point of view of positioning. Positioning is
ing the actions of others, who are usually a solution that he comes to in his text, but it
don’t understand what they are doing. requires five chapters of careful explanation for
him to get there.

47 Key Principles 1 2
1. The “Journey of Life” Principle of Advancement
Strategy is the science of advancing positions. All advances must start from your current
position. Your current position has everything in it that you need to advance. The worst
position is, by definition, the easiest to advance. No position is permanent. Each position
is a stepping-stone to future positions. Positions can change through luck alone, but you
can only consistently advance your position in the direction you choose by understanding
the dynamics of competitive systems. When you consistently advance your position, you
open up unforeseen opportunities. Like any work of science or mathematics, the
goal of strategy is to simplify complex situa-
tions with methodology. To this end, a large
portion of Sun Tzu’s work is spent defining
terms clearly.

In our adapations of The Art of War, we apply

Sun Tzu formulas line-by-line so that readers
can get a quick idea of how classical strategy
is applied to sales, management, marketing,
career, martial arts and so on.

13  From Sun Tzu’s Art of War

2. The “Cornering Rabbits and Snakes” Principle of Instinct
Until they learn to respond in more effective ways, people make decisions based solely
on their emotions and habits . Since most people are untrained, you can predict their
behavior by understanding the most common emotional responses and instinctual
habits. The only inborn responses to challenge are the “flight or fight” response. All the
more advanced and effective responses must be learned. Most learn slowly and painfully
through trial and error, but you can learn Our flight and fight instincts get us into trouble.
Once you are trained in the science of strategy
quickly and easily through training. Most you can counter your natural tendencies to act
people, however, choose to make the same on instinct rather than skill.
mistakes over and over again because they Anyone can learn strategy. It requires simply
the development of a new perspective. Strat-
are comfortable with their habits. egy is a specific methodology for automatically
seeing every situation in terms of how you can
improve your position, but many fields have
their own language for describing “position.”
For example, our book 9 Formulas for Busi-
ness Success translates Sun Tzu into simple
business formulas that anyone can use.

47 Key Principles 1 4
3. The “Many Eyes See Clearly” Principle of Perspective
Seeing strategic positions requires the perspective of a broad range of viewpoints. Each
individual has a unique viewpoint, but every viewpoint is inherently limited by its own
position. The result is that people cannot get a useful perspective on their own situations
and surrounding opportunities without getting information from others. Unfortunately,
most people only listen to those whose positions are most like their own. Since there is
an infinite amount of information, you need a system understanding what information is
the most relevant and where you can find it.

The science of strategy was developed to

counter our natural tendencies to act on
instinct rather than analysis.

Strategy is based on the development of

perspective. The natural tendency is to see our
positions from a self-centered, myopic view.
Strategy is the science of developing a broader
perspective.

15  From Sun Tzu’s Art of War

4. The “Reach Sky By Embracing Earth” Principle of Position
Your strategic position exists as your span of control in a specific area of your life. The
elements of “climate” and “ground” define the nature of a specific competitive environ-
ment. These two elements define what is changing and what resources are available. The
elements that define your control over your position are called “command” and “meth-
ods.” Command is your ability to make decisions. Methods are your skills in working
with others. The goal of command and direction of advance is defined by another ele-
ment called “mission” or philosophy. The potential of any position in meeting a goal is
determined by its relationship with surrounding and alternative positions. Every position
has both an objective reality in the physical
As an information-based science, strategy
world and a subjective reality in terms of forces us to focus on questioning the quality of
how it is evaluated by others. Understand- information.
ing the five key elements and the objective The good news is that all information is inher-
ently flawed because all people disguise their
and subjective nature of positions is critical true positions. Sun Tzu’s methods factor this
to advancing any position. fact in. Unlike planning, strategy works where
key information is unknown.

47 Key Principles 1 6
5. The “Feet on the Path” Principle of Mission
What people do is less important than why they do it. Actions can be predicted only by
understanding the motivations that sustain and drive them. To foresee your options, you
start by categorizing the motivations that drive those in positions that affect your own.
People operate at one of three levels of motivation: physical, social, or spiritual. Physical
motivations are the most short term, while spiritual motivations are the most long last-
ing. Groups and organizations are united to the degree that they share their mission and
see others within the group as supporting As you develop the warrior’s mind, you will au-
the shared mission as opposed to indi- tomatically use this important rule for analyzing
and subdividing organizations. The strategic
vidual agendas. factor of “mission” creates unity in an organiza-
tion, and that unity is the source of strength.
Division is the source of weakness.

The relationships of “united” versus “divided,”

and "strength" versus “weakness” are well de-
fined in the science of strategy—the first pair in
this chapter and the latter in Chapter 6.

17  From Sun Tzu’s Art of War

6. The “Winter Snow Feeds Summer Heat” Principle of Climate
All positions are affected by forces driving change. We call these forces the climate. All
competitive environments are dynamic, changing with physical movement and changing
opinions of others. These change cannot be controlled because it involves natural forces
and the free choices of others. Many change are chaotic and cannot be predicted. However,
some changes follow cycles and trends that can be predicted. Predictable change is driven
by cycles of opposing forces called “complementary opposites” where the rise of one
force leads inevitably to its weakening and
the rise of its opposing force. When the forces Strategy clarifies what you can and cannot
know about the future. The science offers
driving change can be charted, they can be you a set of rules that create good outcomes
despite the unavoidable uncertainties.
used to leverage your position. Climate exists
on both the objective physical level and the This section provides the basis for ideas
presented later in the work that deal with
subjective emotional level. Patterns of change chaos or complexity. Strategy is designed
for dynamic, unpredictable environments,
strengthen or weaken all existing positions while traditional planning is designed for
over time. controlled, predictable environments.

47 Key Principles 1 8
7. The “Harvest the Planted Field” Principle of Ground
All positions must be grounded in the economic reality of available resources. The ground
provides those resources. When we discuss ground in the context of strategy, we mean
the ground you control and the surrounding ground into which you may be able to move.
Changing positions is a matter of choosing and moving to new ground. The ground is the
physical component of a position that gives it stability over time. The minimum con-
trolled ground is your own body. In classical strategy, many specific conditions affect the
form and utility of the surrounding ground. Strat-
Though translated into the tangible
egy teaches that there are four general types of resources of war—horses, armor,
ground, three dimensions of ground, six extreme helmets, etc.—these items are also a
metaphor for the generic resources that
forms of ground, and nine common ground situ- you cannot afford to lose if you want to
meet competitive challenges.
ations. Where and how we advance a position is
dictated by the form of the ground we are on and You can eliminate the risk of long-term
failure if you protect your resources.
that we are moving to. Every type of ground has This means picking battles where you
know how to prevent your own defeat.
its own rules.

19  From Sun Tzu’s Art of War

8. The “Emperor of All Creation” Principle of Command
Command is the ability to make decisions affecting your span of control. Command is a
creative force. It is the opposite of habit. People are constantly making decisions regard-
ing their positions, but positions are advanced by making decisions that open new possi-
bilities. Everyone makes today’s decisions based upon what they perceive to be the future
direction of change. The more options that people have, the more dynamic the environ-
ment, the less predictable it becomes, and the more
it creates new opportunities. People’s choices are There were no politicians, as we know
them today, in Sun Tzu’s era, but there
constrained by their character. Five components were decision-makers and decision-
determine character: intelligence, courage, trust- influencers who played political roles
within organizations.
worthiness, caring, and discipline. Character flaws
result not only from the absence of this character- In our books and audios teaching strat-
egy, we describe classical strategy's
istics but from their excess as well. The decisions division between “competitive” and
“productive” parts of organizations
of individuals create the group interconnections of and different types of decision-making
methods. within organizations in more detail.

47 Key Principles 2 0
9. The “Happy Student of Ancient Master” Principle of Methods
Methods allow groups of people to work together. The methods of an individual are
called skills. The methods of a group are called processes or procedures. Methods use the
resources of the ground and the skills of individuals to defend or advance positions. More
sophisticated methods allow larger groups to work together and individuals to develop
more specialized skills. Skills and processes create regions of internal control, protected
from the chaos of the competitive environment. This internal control allows planning
whereby skills can be organized into more effective processes. Methods arise out of the
creative decisions of command but must be evaluated by their service to mission. Meth-
ods can take on a life of their own, growing apart from the shared mission, and losing
contact with the competitive environment. The larger the organization, the larger their
region of internal control, and the more methods can drift from their external relevance of
serving mission.

21  From Sun Tzu’s Art of War

10. The “Hidden Wheels” Principle of Complementary Opposites
Strategy analyzes systems. Systems are a balance of complementary opposites. These
opposing forces create and control each other. Positions are systems. They balance control
(command and methods) against the environment (climate and ground). Control shapes
the environment and the environment determines what can be controlled. The objec-
tive and subjective nature of positions form a system. Our physical position shapes the
judgment of others. Others’ opinions determine what we control. The environment is
a system. Ground forms the climate and the climate changes the ground. Control is a
system. Command chooses methods and methods allow command. All challenges are
systems. They balance problems and opportunities. Problems create opportunities and
opportunities generate new problems.

47 Key Principles 2 2
11. The “Plant the Empty Field” Principle of Opportunity
Opportunities exist as openings in the environment that allow you to advance your posi-
tion in the direction of your mission. You cannot create opportunities. Opportunities are
created by the changes in climate interacting with the form of the ground. Positions are
advanced by recognizing opportunities and developing new methods to take advantage of
them. Most opportunities are difficult to see because individuals lack perspective on their
position. Command must choose to move into the best openings of opportunities. New
methods must be developed to utilize new opportunities. Your choice of opportunities
defines the direction of your movement.

23  From Sun Tzu’s Art of War

12. The “Endless Bounty of Flowing River” Principle of Creation
New opportunities are constantly created by the natural, ongoing process of change in
the environment. As new methods are discovered to exploit new resources, new valuable
ground is created. Classical strategy teaches that ground and climate are infinite because
whole new environments are constantly being discovered or created by the forces of
change. The creation of cyberspace is only the most recent and dramatic example of the
emergence of a new set of ground resources with its associated new climate. The greater
the rate of change, the more new opportunities are created by expanding the environ-
ment of resources. This rate of change is driven both by the physical climate and by the
psychological climate. Rates of change are increased by the freedom of command and the
flexibility of methods.  

47 Key Principles 2 4
13. The “Breeze Topples Mountains” Principle of Destruction
Existing positions can be defended only temporarily, because they are constantly
degraded by change. The same forces that create opportunities also destroy existing posi-
tions. As new resources are discovered, existing resources are devalued. Human history is
not the story of resources being exhausted, but the story of new resources outmoding old
ones. Methods that try to expand control to prevent destruction also eliminate opportu-
nities for progress. In the long term, all such methods must themselves be destroyed by
the mounting pressures of change. Organizations do not grow indefinitely because the
control demanded by their expanding internal processes eventually overwhelms their
ability to use command to adapt to change. 

25  From Sun Tzu’s Art of War

14. The “Harvesting of All Desire” Principle of Success
Success means advancing a position to better meet a mission. It is not enough simply
to advance a position. The advance must also pay rewards. Since all movement requires
physical, social, and spiritual resources, the reward from an advance must compensate for
its costs. Most advances yield minimal success but can position you for the few advances
that can yield tremendous success. Physical, social, and spiritual costs can counterbalance
one another. Huge physical costs can engender huge spiritual rewards, and vice versa. Nei-
ther the costs nor the rewards of a specific move can be predicted precisely beforehand.

47 Key Principles 2 6
15. The “Four Legs of Fast Horse” Principle of the Progress
You must complete a cycle of four steps to make any successful advance. These steps
can be described as listen, aim, move, and claim. The Progress Cycle balances the forces
of input and output. Aiming and moving are the output part of the cycle. Listening and
claiming are the input part of the cycle. To build up or advance a position, input must
exceed output. The Progress Cycle also balances intellectual and physical forces. Listening
and aiming are the subjective and intellectual part of the cycle. Moving and claiming are
the objective and physical part of the cycle. If any step is missing in this cycle no advance
is possible. Working the Progress Cycle
is like riding a bicycle. You must press on As you learn, you master more of the con-
nections in strategic thinking which are often
one peddle then shift to the other in order based on number. For example, “four” always
connects to the four skills in advancing a posi-
to move forward, alternating input and tion. “Five” connects to the five key factors.
output, decisions and actions. You cannot “Six” connects to the six dimensions of an op-
move forward if you press on just one pedal portunity, and so on. This tradition goes back
to the I Ching and the ba gua as we explain on
no matter how hard you work. our science of strategy site.

27  From Sun Tzu’s Art of War

16. The “Small Steps Up High Mountain” Principle of Repetition
The Progress Cycle gains power with repetition. A number of quick, small cycles of
advance are more powerful and unstoppable than a single big advance. The most impor-
tant form of speed is cycle time: the time between the knowledge gained by listening
and the claim made possible by moving. Each advance in the same direction yields more
progress with less cost. Repetitions in the same direction gain power from climbing the
learning curve. Continual movement opens up more opportunities and makes encounter-
ing a large opportunity more likely. Another advantage in the repetition of small, quick
steps is that they allow you to change directions more easily, taking advantage of new
opportunities. You can instantly recognize when you are
making expensive decisions. These state-
ments are simple mathematical equations.
For example: large = slow = expensive

The purpose of www.ScienceOfStrategy.

com and our books and training in strategy
is to give you the ability to use these equa-
tions in very practical ways.

47 Key Principles 2 8
17. The “Raindrops Fill Oceans” Principle of Scalability
The Progress Cycle is a standard model both for large-scale advances (generally referred
to as “campaigns”) and for smaller-scale advances. Each step in the Progress Cycle (listen,
aim, move, claim) can be broken down into a number of separate smaller progress cycles.
This technique of breaking steps into parts is especially useful for overcoming obstacles.
For example, when listening, you should first just listen. Then decide where you need to
aim the conversion. Then move to take the conversation in that direction by making a
claim. This claim sets up a new cycle of listening. Like the scientific method, the Progress
Cycle is a generic model that is adapted to most specific strategic responses.

29  From Sun Tzu’s Art of War

18. The “Voyage to Golden Shore” Principle of Campaigns
Campaigns are large-scale advances in a specific direction. Campaigns are undertaken to
make major readjustments in position, especially circumventing a large obstacle. Gen-
erally speaking, success in terms of a payoff is only possible at the end of a campaign.
Campaigns require a large investment of time and resources before they can be success-
ful. This makes them inherently risky. Campaigns commonly pass through nine specific
stages, each of which requires a specific response.

47 Key Principles 3 0
19. The “Five Notes in Song” Principle of Listening
Listening is necessary to gain a perspective on your situation and especially your oppor-
tunities. Most people rely on too few resources for their information. While more sources
are better than fewer sources, having different types of sources is more important than
having more contacts who largely share the same perspective. You need five different
types of information sources for a well-rounded
The pattern of the five sources of infor-
perspective on your position. We describe these mation ties closely to the five factors in
resources as old hands, new eyes, insiders, guides, analysis, which, in turn, tie to the five
classical elements of Chinese science
and missionaries. and philosophy. After some training,
you understand these connections
automatically.

Part of the power of strategy is that

only the wisest people take the time
and effort necessary to master its les-
sons. For live events on Sun Tzu, visit
www.seminarsonstrategy.com.

31  From Sun Tzu’s Art of War

20. The “One Arrow, One Target” Principle of Aiming
You can move in only one direction at a time. The purpose of aiming is to find the best
possible direction for the current move in light of future potential moves and to pick the
right time to move. All the paths you can choose are unique because only you can choose
a path from your current position to a new position. Your decision must be made only on
the basis of potential success. Success is unpredictable because you cannot know exactly
the true costs and rewards before making any given move. Because of this, you must be
prepared for a move to fail. Therefore, most of the techniques of aiming focus on mini-
mizing risk.

47 Key Principles 3 2
21. The “Snake Strikes Instantly” Principle of Moving
In order to move successfully, you must immediately recognize and respond to traffic con-
ditions. Traffic conditions are those factors that facilitate or resist movement in a given
direction at a given time. All movement is controlled by the ground you must traverse and
changes in climate during the move. Only by moving can you discover the current traffic
conditions. Since all routes from your current position are unique, all traffic conditions
are also unique, both in place and in time. There are nine common traffic conditions that
you can encounter. Each requires a specific appropriate response. The goal of every move
is to reach the best available defendable position in the direction of the move with the
minimum expenditure of resources in the fastest possible time.

33  From Sun Tzu’s Art of War

22. The “Flag over Watchtower” Principle of Claiming
A position cannot be rewarding unless it is claimed. Positions must be clearly claimed
in order to defend them, to reap their rewards, and to use them as stepping-stones for a
future advance. The process of claiming identifies the potential, the boundaries, the own-
ership, and the methods for utilizing a given position. New positions must be evaluated
for potential. Their boundaries must be defined. Ownership must be established. Meth-
ods for using them must be put into place. In the end, how you communicate your claim
defines the perceptions of others regarding the new position. In some situations, you
want to limit information about your new position because your best defense is secrecy.
Other times, you can only get the rewards from a given position by promoting it broadly.

47 Key Principles 3 4
23. The “Questions Like Rain” Principle of Asking
Good strategy depends upon asking others for information and commitment. In con-
trolled environments, you can plan effectively because you can control the environment.
In competitive environments, competing plans collide, creating situations that no one
plans. Only by asking others what they know and what others plan can you avoid poten-
tial conflict. Only by asking others can you win the commitments necessary to coordinate
activities. The only vital weapon in strategy is the human mind. Only by asking the right
questions can you get other people’s minds working for you. By definition, you cannot
see these opportunities and barriers from your own limited perspective. You cannot learn
the terrain, identify opportunities, coordinate your movements, or make your claims
without asking others for their support.

35  From Sun Tzu’s Art of War

24. The “Clap of the Thunder” Principle of Selective Hearing
Information is the basis for all strategy, but information depends on communication,
which is a subjective process. Thoughts are not perfectly transferred to words. Words are
not perfectly communicated by sound. Sounds are not perfectly interpreted by listeners.
People use words to hide and mislead as often as they use words to communicate. Com-
munication is as much about filtering information as it is about transmitting it. The three
barriers to movement (obstacles, dangers, and distances) are also obstacles in communi-
cation, but the motivations of the speakers and listeners trump everything. When we hear
the words of others, we have to consider the motivations behind them. When we speak,
we must consider what people want to hear.

47 Key Principles 3 6
25. The “Day Follows Night” Principle of Reversal
Extreme conditions tend to reverse themselves over time. Conditions are characteristics
that affect decisions. Big, small, hot, cold, fast, slow, hard, soft, dark, light, open, closed,
far, near, and so on are all conditions. Though often stated in terms of their extremes,
conditions are not complementary opposites but effects that range between extremes
along a continuum. Reversal is more than regression to the mean, that is, the tendency of
an extreme condition to become less extreme. Extreme conditions have a tipping point at
which the extreme itself creates the opposite extreme. For example, extreme overpopula-
tion of an animal must eventually create an extreme depopulation of the same animal.
This shift to depopulation can be caused by a depletion of food resources, an increase
in predators, the spread of diseases, or other reasons. When looking at a situation, the
balancing mechanisms at work in a system (complementary opposites) are often hidden.
The principle of reversal says that even when the balancing mechanism is unknown, you
must suspect that it is still at work.

37  From Sun Tzu’s Art of War

26. The “Empty Cups Are Filled” Principle of Simplification
A complex array of strategic conditions can be simplified into “emptiness” and “full-
ness.” Emptiness and fullness are the lowest common denominators of all conditions
that exist along a continuum. As we have said, big, small, hot, cold, fast, slow, hard, soft,
dark, light, open, closed, far, near, and so on are all conditions that exist along a contin-
uum. When you simplify these ideas into emptiness and fullness, you are forced to think
in terms of the underlying essences and the systems that create these conditions. Hot and
cold mean full and empty of energy. Far and near near mean full and empty of travel time.
Closed and open mean full and empty of barriers. Empti-
Emptiness and fullness are
ness and fullness are often seen as need and abundance. the engine in Sun Tzu’s
system. If you want to
learn a little more for free,
you might want to go to
warriorclassblog.com the
free blog discussing Sun
Tzu’s concepts.

47 Key Principles 3 8
27. The “Filled Cups Are Emptied” Principle of Inversion
Systems naturally seek to fill empty conditions and empty full ones, but the emptiness
and fullness of seemingly DIFFERENT conditions directly invert into one another. For
example, a fullness of barriers (closed) inverts into the emptiness of ground. The empti-
ness of ground inverts into the fullness of travel (speed). Fullness of size (big) inverts
into the emptiness of travel (slow). The science of strategy defines the specific nature of
these inverted relationships. Strategic leverage Though translated here in terms of “inver-
comes from working with this inversion force sion,” it is often easier to explain classical
strategy in terms of “leverage.” Certain spe-
rather than against it. cific types of decisions require the presence
of leverage. When leverage is missing, the
opposite course must be chosen.

This depends on knowing the specific defi-

nition of terms. For example, battle doesn’t
mean fighting, but “meeting an enemy or
challenge.” In our books teaching strategy,
we explain these choices in the context of
specific areas of business and life.

39  From Sun Tzu’s Art of War

28. The “Water Takes Any Form” Principle of Openings
Openings are a form of emptiness that you have the resources to fill and that others will
reward you for filling. These openings are a challenge. From the perspective of emptiness,
the challenge is a problem. From the perspective of fullness, the challenge is an oppor-
tunity. Openings always exist because people always have needs (emptiness) in one area
and a surplus of resources (fullness) in another area. Leverage seeks to find the proper
inversion to change one into another.

47 Key Principles 4 0
29. The “Hidden Sword Stays Sharp” Principle of Secrecy
Ultimately, all resources exist primarily as information. An all-knowing being has infinite
resources. All individuals have extremely limited resources because they have extremely
limited information. Groups have more information and therefore more resources, but for
any group, no matter how large, the amount of unknown information is virtually infinite.
While some leverage is gained by using secrecy to protect proprietary information, all
such secrets are temporary. The larger the group that shares the secrets, the shorter its life
span. The most important secrets are those that can be discovered by being the first to
explore the unknown.

41  From Sun Tzu’s Art of War

30. The “Perfect Word is the Purest Gold” Principle of Control
The least expensive way to control others is to change their perceptions and feelings.
Working with subjective information is less expensive than working with physical
resources. You can leverage your position by working first on the perceptions of others.
However, because of the balancing nature of systems, you must eventually reinforce sub-
jective perceptions with the objective proof of actions.

47 Key Principles 4 2
31. The “Paddling With the Current” Principle of Ease
You must make the easiest and lowest-cost move that advances your position. The path
of absolute least resistance always leads to degrading your position. However, in choosing
among paths that advance your position, there is always one path that allows the most
movement with the least resistance. Your progress along this path is leveraged by the
opposing forces of complementary opposites seeking to rebalance conditions of empti-
ness and fullness.

43  From Sun Tzu’s Art of War

32. The “Traveling Without Baggage” Principle of Less Is More
Fast, short moves are always more powerful than long, large moves. Smaller, faster groups
make more progress than larger, slower groups. For every benefit of fullness, there is an
opposing (though often very different) benefit of emptiness. You create strategic leverage
by putting a small amount of the right resources in exactly the right position to create the
maximum advantage. The more often you can leverage the value of minimal resources, the
more successful you will become.

Remember when we said Sun Tzu

works in mathematical terms similar
to the modern ideas of chaos theory?

However, he uses these ideas in a

way that makes good decisions quick
and easy to make once you see how
all the parts fit together.

47 Key Principles 4 4
33. The “Free the Hidden Tiger” Principle of Momentum
Since perceptions create reality and reality creates perceptions, the least costly way to
overcome resistance is by doing what is completely unexpected at a critical time. Expec-
tations are set by consistent performance. Consistent performance is made possible by
standard methods. Standards make progress predictable but unremarkable. At a criti-
cal turning point, standard practices are abandoned and replaced with an innovative
approach.Innovation alone creates surprise and can overcome specific obstacles. Suc-
cessful innovations are repeated and eventu- The science of strategy connects the
ally become standard practice. Innovation and rules of basic physics to the rules of
human psychology, especially the
standard practices form a system of comple- psychology of groups. This makes
mentary opposites that, used correctly, creates it easier to predict the most likely
momentum. course events will take.

In classical strategy, the same rules

defined physical and psychological
momentum.

45  From Sun Tzu’s Art of War

34. The “Walls Sharper Than Spears” Principle of Defense
Positions that are the source of your resources must be defended. Others will challenge
you for those positions to win their resources. You must defend any existing position
until it becomes more profitable to abandon it.   The most important decisions in matters
of defense and advance are decisions about timing. Over the long term, all positions must
be advanced, but in the short term it is often more rewarding to defend an existing posi-
tion. Some positions can be advanced in minor ways without abandoning existing posi-
tions. However, since resources are limited, old positions must often be abandoned to free
up resources to develop new positions. In every case, any existing position on which you
depend for resources must be defended until those resources are better used elsewhere.

47 Key Principles 4 6
35. The “Eagle Strikes Bird In Flight” Principle of Decision
All decisions should be made consciously and quickly. Even the decision not to act must
be a choice rather than the result of indecision. You must quickly choose the best imper-
fect available alternative rather than waiting indefinitely for a perfect alternative. It is
better to choose nonaction if all available actions are too expensive and risky. All deci-
sions have consequences, but most people suffer much more from the consequences of
indecision. Strategy teaches you how to make much
better decisions. This starts by putting your
decisions into the framework of advanc-
ing or defending positions. When do you
defend your position? When do you try to
advance it? Do you ever abandon it?

Much of classical strategy is based on

making basic either/or choices between two
opposite courses—here, attacking (advanc-
ing) and defending. We call these elements
complementary opposites: two sides of the
same situation.

47  From Sun Tzu’s Art of War

36. The “Rich Man Counts Pennies” Principle of Parsimony
You must control your costs because you can never accurately predict your rewards. In
competitive environments, neither the costs of a move nor the results of that move can be
known in advance. Since many advances do not succeed, you must always retain enough
resources to defend your existing position. Each investment in an advance is a type of
gamble. You can never bet more than you can afford to lose, but you must make bets in
order to eventually win.  
Learning strategy naturally makes you more
financially successful even if that is not your
primary goal. Classical strategy treats all
challenges as fundamentally economic: finite
resources must be applied to meet an unlim-
ited number of needs.

The concept of “an invader” is critical in strat-

egy. The assumption is that all positions must
be advanced into new areas over time. You
must “invade” new areas to make progress in
advancing your position.

47 Key Principles 4 8
37. The “Road Reaches Beyond Sight” Principle of Opportunism
A path in the right direction always exists, but you cannot know where that path leads
until you try it. Many attempted advances fail. Most successful advances yield small
payoffs, but when you continually advance in the right direction, it is only a matter of
time until you find yourself in the proper position to take advantage of a big opportunity.
When that opportunity arrives, it will not take the form you expect. It may not even take
you in the direction that you thought you were headed. However, when you recognize
such an opportunity, you must seize it and follow where it leads.

49  From Sun Tzu’s Art of War

38. The “Plow to Fit the Seed” Principle of Preparation
Rewards can be magnified with a little preparation. Preparation creates the expectations
of others. You create expectations that highlight the value of your actions. You must keep
secrets when the value comes from creating a surprise. You must tell secrets when the
value comes from closer relationship. You must make clear commitments in controlled
situations when the value comes from being dependable. You must avoid clear commit-
ments in competitive situations when a specific result is unpredictable. You must let
others know only enough of your plans so that they can reward you.

47 Key Principles 5 0
39. The “Wings Learn Wind” Principle of Resistance
Resistance is inherent in all systems and should never be unexpected. If others know you
are making a specific move, some will try to stop you. So me will try to stop you out of
fear of change. Others will try to stop you because your relative progress reflects poorly
upon their lack of progress. Others will try to stop you simply because they can. Because
resistance is inherent in all systems, you try to keep your moves a secret. When you
cannot keep your moves a secret, make them by a route that makes resistance difficult.
When such a route isn’t available, prepare surprises to derail resistance when it appears.

51  From Sun Tzu’s Art of War

40. The “Move Like Water” Principle of Adaptability
You must adapt your responses to the specifics of your situation in order to move. All
situations consist of a number of specific conditions that are well defined within classi-
cal strategy (the four types of ground, the six ground forms, the nine stages, and so on).
You must know the specific responses necessary to adjust to these specific conditions.
You must also know how to combine these Sun Tzu teaches you how to do the math to
various responses to your combination of pick the right response. The issue is relative lo-
cal strength, but situations get more complicat-
conditions. Inappropriate responses raise ed when you add relative size to other factors
the cost of every move and decrease the such as your field position, the type of terrain,
and so on. We cover these more advanced
chance of success. techniques in Strategy School.

The methods of adapting described here—

”surround,” “attack,” “divide,” “battle,” “defend,”
and “evade”—are very specific and are cov-
ered in several different places in the original
text. It takes training before you see the big
picture automatically.

47 Key Principles 5 2
41. The “Never Fight Fair” Principle of Conflict
All conflict is costly. Success is more certain when conflict is avoided. Threatening conflict
is only cost effective when it decreases the chances of actual conflict. When conflict is
unavoidable, you must control the time, place, expectations, and reports of that conflict. If
you set up fights so that they are unfair, you are less likely to get involved in them.

You use strategy not only to win a conflict. You

use its various forms of leverage to prevent
opponents from contesting your advances.

Chinese is a more precise language for strate-

gy, largely because Sun Tzu defined his terms.
Our terms “fight,” “battle,” and “attack” all
suggest conflict. As you master strategy, you
learn how to use all these different methods
while avoiding conflict. You will automatically
understand the critical difference after going
through our Warrior Class on-line training.

53  From Sun Tzu’s Art of War

42. The “Sharp Lesson for Dull Student” Principle of Recovery.
Mistakes are unavoidable, but you can recover from any mistake as long as you stop
repeating it. On many types of ground, many failed attempts are necessary to find a path
that allows you to advance, but each attempt must try something different. The faster
you can recover from a failed attempt, the quicker your progress will be. In controlled
environments, the analysis of failures can prevent future failures. In dynamic, competitive
environments, conditions change so that each attempt is a new experiment.

47 Key Principles 5 4
43. The “Bright Paper Makes Gift” Principle of Packaging
People make judgments based on what they see. Packaging is a concern with outward
appearances. Everyone judges a book by its cover. A good package is often as important as
a good product. A fearsome-looking army is challenged less often. People judge the value
of what you offer by the care spent in packaging it. Packaging influences the subjective
judgments of positions. Packaging is an important part of preparing expectations.

55  From Sun Tzu’s Art of War

44. The “Lightning In Dark Skies” Principle of Attention
Getting attention, that is, overcoming indifference, is the opposite of overcoming resis-
tance. The formula for getting attention is the opposite of the formula for overcoming
resistance through momentum. To overcome indifference, you must first use surprise to
win attention, then you must use expected behavior to change attention into interest.

47 Key Principles 5 6
45. The “Full Belly Soon Empty” Principle of Dreams
When you win a desired position, your dreams change and new challenges arise.

When you start to master strategy, you

see everything as a matter of position-
ing. You analyze your current position
to understand your best possible
choices. You establish future positions
with the intention of opening up better
choices.

As in chess, you need to understand

how the pieces can move to under-
stand your position. The warrior's mind
has the ability to immediately recog-
nize the critical elements of positions.

57  From Sun Tzu’s Art of War

46. The “Laughing Dragon, Crying Turtle” Principle of Fun
Using good strategy does not ensure that every move will be successful, but it does ensure
that all moves are more enjoyable.  

47 Key Principles 5 8
47. The “Greet the Rising Sun” Principle of Happiness
Happiness comes from looking forward to your next successful move, not from looking
back on your past successes.

59  From Sun Tzu’s Art of War