Works
- The Art of War, traditionally dated to the late 6th century BCE; the text was probably compiled later, during the Warring States period (475 to 221 BCE)
In Tactics of Organizational Politics
Ideas
Deception. "All warfare is based on deception" (chapter 1, Giles translation): appear unable when able, inactive when active, hold out baits, and attack where the enemy is unprepared. The text also warns against pursuing an enemy who feigns flight (chapter 7).
Winning without fighting. "Supreme excellence consists in breaking the enemy's resistance without fighting" (chapter 3). The best strategy defeats the opponent's plans and alliances before battle is joined.
Foreknowledge and spies. Victory depends on foreknowledge, which comes from people who know the enemy's situation, and the text sets out five classes of spies, including converted spies, the enemy's own spies turned to one's use, and doomed spies, one's own agents allowed to learn false information and carry it to the enemy (chapter 13).
What it explains
The Art of War is a strategist's classic, read for its maxims; it is not a work of research. It supplies the vocabulary for moves that win by timing, misdirection, and the opponent's own exhaustion, and it is the oldest statement that the best victory avoids open conflict.
Tactics that draw on Sun Tzu (Sunzi) (8)
- Befriending the Rival's Deputy
- Bench Strength Erosion
- Burn Rate Trap
- Encirclement by Adjacency
- Fake Job Offer
- False Friend
- Listening Session Intelligence
- Trojan Horse Hire
In Thinking Tools
Known for
The traditional author of The Art of War, a short Chinese treatise on strategy. It holds that the best victory is won without fighting, that all warfare is based on deception, and that a commander who knows the enemy and knows himself need not fear the outcome. It is a strategist's classic, read for its maxims, not a work of research.