14 Tips from “The Art of War” To Help You Become a Winner

The ultimate guide to a successful life.

“Ultimate excellence lies not in winning every battle, but in defeating the enemy without ever fighting.”

― Sun-Tzu, The Art of War

The Art of War was written 2,500 years ago by a legendary figure known as Sun Tzu.

Composed during the tumultuous Warring States period of China, it was the first book of its kind, a tome totally dedicated to the study of warfare. It found instantaneous success upon release and was even formalized during the Song Dynasty as a must-read classic.

However, what is most remarkable is that The Art of War has also become one of the most popular self-help books of all time. Sun Tzu’s teachings, originally meant for the eyes of emperors, commanders and generals, are now read and revered by an incredible range of people. Its fans include A-list celebrities to businessmen and professional athletes seeking a competitive edge.

The reason for its transcendental popularity is because, at its core, The Art of War isn’t really about war — it’s about how to use strategy to overcome all of life’s obstacles. I have compiled 14 of the best lessons found in Sun Tzu’s Art of War here. If applied, these lessons will teach you more than just the subtle art of strategy.

They will help you find success in all areas of life.

1. Only Fight if There Is No Other Choice.

It is telling that Sun Tzu begins the premier book of warfare by cautioning against war itself. He writes,

“The wise warrior avoids the battle.

He who wishes to fight must first count the cost…there is no instance of a country having benefited from prolonged warfare.”

These are wise words. In the throes of anger, we often make rash and regrettable decisions. A harsh rebuke that leaves our lips said cannot be unsaid, nor can a punch thrown be retracted. In hindsight, it is blatantly obvious that history is chock full of senseless feuds and needless wars. Don’t add to that.

The next time you find yourself in a tense situation, refrain from acting with anger. Instead, excuse yourself from the situation. Cool off, then analyze the situation logically. 99% of the time, you will be glad that you didn’t react with a violent outburst. Like Sun Tzu wrote,

“Anger may in time change to gladness; vexation may be succeeded by content. But a kingdom that has once been destroyed can never come again into being; nor can the dead ever be brought back to life.”

Think thrice before you choose violence.

2. The Ability to Defend Yourself is of Utmost Importance.

That being said, we must be pragmatic. Although one should not engage in needless fighting, Sun Tzu nevertheless maintains that the study of warfare is of the utmost importance to the state. This view is echoed by Machiavelli, who wrote,

“A prince must have no other objective, no other thought, nor take up any profession but that of war. The only thing a prince needs to study is the art of war. This is the primary discipline of the ruler.

There is no avoiding war; it can only be postponed to the advantage of others.”

We live in an imperfect world. A world where even if we do not wish to hurt others, there will always exist others who are more than willing to inflict violence on us. This is an unfortunate but indisputable fact of life. Thus, Sun Tzu advocates striking a delicate balance between war and peace, writing:

“He who relies solely on warlike measures shall be exterminated; he who relies solely on peaceful measures shall perish.”

If you want to go far in life, diplomacy and martial prowess must go hand-in-hand. To paraphrase Jordan Peterson, a good man is not one who is harmless. A good man is a man who is capable of great violence but keeps his aggression in check.

Remember to defend yourself at all times.

3. Treat People Right to Succeed at All Endeavours.

No matter how phenomenal a lone individual is, his talent pales before the efficacy of a well-oiled team. Sun Tzu is a great believer of teamwork and good leadership. He consequently spends a large portion of The Art of War extorting their values, saying,

“He will win whose army is animated by the same spirit throughout all its ranks.

Treat your men as you would your own beloved sons. And they will follow you into the deepest valley.

Rewards for good service should not be deferred a single day.”

The last one struck a chord with me. Too often, we are too quick to condemn but too slow to praise. To succeed, we would be wise to take the opposite approach.

The next time somebody does something nice for you, thank them right away! Let them know how much you appreciate their effort. A clap on the shoulder and a kind word of praise mean more than you think – according to a recent study, Millenials will happily take a more supportive workplace over a fatter paycheque.

To be a good leader, lead by example, not by force. Treat your subordinates like you would your closest kin. Above all, be firm but not harsh. Give out rewards when rewards are due, but never stray into the realm of indulgence.

That is how you win the hearts of men.

4. Think for Yourself, Not All instructions Are Meant to Be Obeyed.

Sun Tzu is a proponent of critical thinking, saying:

“He will win who has military capacity and is not interfered with by the sovereign.

There are roads which must not be followed, armies which must not be attacked, towns which must not be besieged, positions which must not be contested, commands of the sovereign which must not be obeyed.”

A sure-fire sign of an effective leader is someone who is willing to delegate. They don’t micromanage, but instead strive to hire well and entrusted experts to complete a task.

On the other hand, if you’re the one taking commands and something doesn’t make sense, be sure to voice out your doubts. Contrary to popular belief, willingness to blindly accept orders does not constitute a good follower — conversely, unquestioning obedience is the very trait that led to unspeakable atrocities like The Holocaust.

The most valuable player in any team is neither a totalitarian dictator nor a lapdog. He is instead a selfless individual, somebody who is willing to do whatever needs to be done for the good of the whole. Sun Tzu writes,

“The general who advances without coveting fame and retreats without fearing disgrace, whose only thought is to protect his country and do good service for his sovereign, is the jewel of the kingdom.”

Not all orders are meant to be given, least of all obeyed. Develop a critical mind and the strength to do what is best for the collective. That is how you become an effective team player.

5. Preparation is The Precursor to Success.

Sun Tzu endlessly stresses the importance of preparation. He writes,

The art of war teaches us to rely not on the likelihood of the enemy’s not coming, but on our own readiness to receive him; not on the chance of his not attacking, but rather on the fact that we have made our position unassailable.

Victorious warriors win first and then go to war, while defeated warriors go to war first and then seek to win.”

There is a common idea — perhaps fueled by overconsumption of action movies, that heroes will somehow magically rise to the challenge when it matters most. Drawing from my 9 years of experience in the martial arts, I can assure you that this is most certainly not the case.

When the fists start flying and stress levels are sky-high, there is barely enough time to act, let alone to think. If the required skills are not drilled into you months prior with constant repetition, then you’re already a goner before the fight began. Like the Greek poet Archilochus wrote, “We don’t rise to the level of our expectations; we fall to the level of our training.”

It’s the nights of quiet toil, the work that no one sees that determine our eventual performance. This thought is supported by perhaps the greatest boxer of all time, Muhammad Ali, who famously said, “The fight is won or lost far away from witnesses — behind the lines, in the gym, and out there on the road, long before I dance under those lights.”

Remember, it’s not the will to win that matters. It’s the will to prepare to win. Make sure you go to any endeavour well-prepared.

6. Mastery Lies in Having Intimate Knowledge of 5–6 Things — and Connecting Them Together.

Some people think that an expert is someone who knows every obscure fact of every archaic subject. This is a half-truth. In reality, experts are oftentimes nothing more than master learners. They understand the interconnected nature of knowledge, and therefore realize that the best way to achieve mastery isn’t through the rote memorization of many disparate subjects, but to “learn 10,000 things from one single thing.”

Sun Tzu concurs, saying that:

“There are not more than five musical notes, yet the combinations of these five give rise to more melodies than can ever be heard.

There are not more than five primary colours, yet in combination they produce more hues than can ever been seen.

There are not more than five cardinal tastes, yet combinations of them yield more flavours than can ever be tasted.”

Simple combinations give birth to great wonders. For example, there are only 26 letters in the English alphabet, but through them, skillful writers are able to compose an infinite amount of literary masterpieces. Genius is often nothing more than the ability to skillfully connect seemingly disparate subjects.

7. Radical Self-Awareness is The First Step to Mastery

“Know yourself, know your enemy. A hundred battles, a hundred victories.”

This is perhaps the most famous quote from The Art of War. By knowing yourself, you will gain a realistic understanding of your weaknesses and strengths. The next logical step is to buttress the former and wield the latter as a weapon. This is how you make the best of your god-given traits.

As Aristotle said, “Knowing yourself is the beginning of all wisdom.” A person who throws himself into the fray without a firm grasp of his own abilities can be likened to a blind man climbing a mountain. He does not know which way is up or down — indeed, he is not even able to tell if he is at the right mountain in the first place.

Don’t fight blind. Seek first to develop inner wisdom before attempting to conquer others.

8. Don’t Dehumanise Your Opponents. Seek to Understand Them Instead.

Sun Tzu writes,

“To know your Enemy, you must become your Enemy.

It is easy to love your friend, but sometimes the hardest lesson to learn is to love your enemy.”

Throughout my journey in the martial arts, I have seen two reactions surface time and time again when two fighters face off. They tend to either become:

1. Intimidated by their opponents.
2. Or they become angry at them.

Both reactions are bad. Fear can make even the most skilled opponents shrivel into a shadow of themselves, and on the other hand, fighters who let their emotions govern their heads tend to fight wildly. This leads to silly mistakes. When it comes to heated competition, I have found that it is best to treat the opponent with measured respect. View him as an extension of yourself, a dance partner of sorts.

Keep in mind that your opponent isn’t a god, nor is he the scum of the earth. He is a living, breathing human being, one made of flesh-and-blood, just like you. You are both talking apes engaged in the same contest with the exact same rules of engagement. Nothing more, nothing less.

It is this mindset that Musashi was describing when he philosophically wrote, “To become the enemy, see yourself as the enemy of the enemy.” The sword cuts both ways. If you know yourself, you will at once know your enemy, and if you know your enemy, you will naturally know yourself. This is the highest level of understanding.

9. “Never Attempt to Win by Force What Can be Won by Deception.”

The line above was written by Niccolò Machiavelli in his controversial book, The Prince. Some 2,000 years before Machiavelli was born, however, Sun Tzu was already preaching the value of deceit. He wrote,

“All warfare is based on deception. Hence, when we are able to attack, we must seem unable; when using our forces, we must appear inactive; when we are near, we must make the enemy believe we are far away; when far away, we must make him believe we are near…

“The whole secret lies in confusing the enemy, so that he cannot fathom our real intent.”

Never discount the element of surprise. Many a masterful swordsman has been slain not in open battle, but with a knife in the dark. Likewise, countless great cities have been sacked not due to strength of arms, but by trickery.

Take Troy for example. The legendary city withstood year after year under siege by the Greek coalition. Its walls held off even Achilles, the greatest warrior of his time. Yet all it took was wily Ulysses with a wooden horse to infiltrate Troy and burn it to the ground.

There are some who think that it is immoral to practise deceit. These people have good intentions, but they aren’t realists. Warfare — and to a certain extent any type of destructive conflict itself, is inherently immoral. Our only prerogative should be to end hostilities swiftly, with as little damage on both sides as possible.

Sometimes in life, there are no good decisions to be made. Sometimes, you are stuck between the devil and the deep blue sea, left with only a bad decision versus a worse decision. In cases like this, choose victory by whatever means possible.

10. Discretion is The Hallmark of The Capable.

“Avoid the temptation of showing how clever you are — it is far more clever to conceal the mechanism of your cleverness.” — Robert Greene

My experience in martial arts has taught me that the most dangerous person in the room isn’t the loud, brash braggart. It’s usually the low-key person in a corner oozing quiet confidence. The fatal flaw of capable but insecure people is that they can’t resist the urge to show off. Think of that one annoying kid in class who can’t help but correct the teacher, or Sheldon Cooper from “The Big Bang Theory.”

These people aren’t malicious. They simply haven’t developed the self-awareness or subtlety to keep themselves in check. But by mouthing off, they give up the element of misdirection and surprise — the exact traits so critical to success we were talking about in the previous point. Sun Tzu doubles down on the value of keeping a low profile. He writes,

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

“Be extremely subtle even to the point of formlessness. Be extremely mysterious even to the point of soundlessness. Thereby you can be the director of the opponent’s fate.”

There is no need to flaunt it if you’ve got it. Play dumb if you must. Keep your weapon sheathed until a suitably crucial moment arises. Then — and only then, unleash hell. That is how winning is done.

11. Seize Opportunities. If There Are None, Make Them.

There is a reason why Facebook’s original motto is “Move fast and break things.” That’s because success likes speed, not intelligence. Now, I’m not saying that we should throw caution to the wind and fling ourselves headfirst into action at the first sign of profit.

I’m saying that all plans should be tempered with urgency. It is up to us to hatch the perfect plot, but it is also up to us to strike fast and fierce when the opportunity presents itself. Sun Tzu perfectly sums up this philosophy when he wrote,

“Opportunities multiply as they are seized…In the midst of chaos, there is also opportunity.”

Ideal situations don’t exist — there exists only flawed circumstances, and it is up to us to make it work. Remember, regular people wait for opportunity to come knocking. Winners get off their couch and hunt for it — and when they catch it, they seize the opportunity with both hands and carry it all the way to the moon. Winners make the best of things.

12. Successful People Adapt Successfully.

There are no set conditions in war, just like there are no strict rules in business and life. Thus, adaptability is the hallmark of a master tactician. To paraphrase Darwin’s Origin of Species, it is not the strongest nor the most intelligent of the species that survives, it is the one that is best able to adapt and adjust to the changing environment in which it finds itself.

Sun Tzu echoes this thought, writing:

“Water shapes its course according to the nature of the ground over which it flows; the soldier works out his victory in relation to the foe whom he is facing.

The skillful tactician may be likened to the shuai-jan. Now the shuai-jan is a snake that is found in the Ch’ang mountains. Strike at its head, and you will be attacked by its tail; strike at its tail, and you will be attacked by its head; strike at its middle, and you will be attacked by head and tail both.”

Do not fall in love with any set patterns or strategies, to do that would be akin to a warrior falling in love with his sword — the height of foolishness. Just like how the primary purpose of a sword is to cut, plans too are a means to an end. Thus, keep your plans loose and fluid, like water. Let it flow, let it crash, let it constantly take shape according to the ever-changing demands of life. That is how you iterate your way to success.

13. Winners Make the Rules. Losers Follow These Rules.

Another lesson I learned from martial arts is that you need not be better than your competition to best him — you only need to be better at certain aspects of the game. A fish should not challenge a monkey to a climbing contest, but a swimming one. In the same vein, if you’re a great marketer and your competition isn’t, double down on your advantage and engage him in attention-seeking contests. Develop an uncanny ability to lure your opponent into the field where you feel most comfortable, then resoundingly beat him at every turn.

Sun Tzu concurs, saying:

“One mark of a great soldier is that he fight on his own terms or fights not at all.

…the expert in battle moves the enemy, and is not moved by him.”

Winners dance to the tune of their own music.

14. Live and Let Live.

We have come to the last and most important point. In the heady high of combat, it is easy to lose sight of the fact that our original purpose isn’t to hurt the other party, but to win. Sun Tzu is quick to point out that true victory does not mean winning every battle, but in defeating the enemy without ever fighting. He also wrote,

“If you wait by the river long enough, the bodies of your enemies will float by.”

And less brutally,

“When you surround an army, leave an outlet free. Do not press a desperate foe too hard….Build your opponent a golden bridge to retreat across.”

In any altercation, your job is not to inflict as much harm as possible, but to find a win-win situation for both parties. If there is a way you see eye-to-eye with your competition and let him off the hook, do it. Understanding— not conflict, is the cornerstone of prosperity.

In Summary

There is a reason why The Art of War remains a bestseller 2,500 years after it was written. That’s because it contains powerful universal lessons, lessons such as:

1. Only fight if there is no other choice.

2. The ability to defend yourself is of utmost importance.

3. Treat people right to succeed at all endeavours.

4. Think for yourself, not all instructions are meant to be obeyed.

5. Preparation is the precursor to success.

6. Mastery lies in having intimate knowledge of 5–6 things — and connecting them together.

7. Radical self-awareness is the first step to Mastery.

8. Don’t dehumanise your opponents. Seek to understand them instead.

9. Never attempt to win by force what can be won by deception.

10. Discretion is the hallmark of the capable.

11. Seize opportunities. If there are none, make them.

12. Successful people adapt successfully.

13. Winners make the rules. Losers follow these rules.

14. Live and let live.

These lessons teach us to conquer others, yes, but more than that, they teach us to conquer ourselves. They teach us to develop strategical thinking, and to not only love ourselves but our opponents as well, for without dance partners we have no means to improve. Most of all, these lessons teach us to adopt a balanced mind, one that does not seek needless conflict but is at the same time unafraid to defend itself.

Thus we conclude this article just like how we started — on an ironic note. By preaching peace, not war, by advocating mutual harmony, not mutual conflict. Remember, it is only through tranquillity that men can live full, prosperous lives.

To find peace, both within and without, is the true meaning of success.

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