Sun tzu quotes

A leader leads by example not by force.

Engage people with what they expect; it is what they are able to discern and confirms their projections. It settles them into predictable patterns of response, occupying their minds while you wait for the extraordinary moment - that which they cannot anticipate.

However desperate the situation and circumstances, don't despair. When there is everything to fear, be unafraid. When surrounded by dangers, fear none of them. When without resources, depend on resourcefulness. When surprised, take the enemy by surprise.

Plan for what is difficult while it is easy, do what is great while it is small. The difficult things in this world must be done while they are easy, the greatest things in the world must be done while they are still small. For this reason sages never do what is great, and this is why they achieve greatness.

If your enemy is secure at all points, be prepared for him. If he is in superior strength, evade him. If your opponent is tempermental, seek to irritate him. Pretend to be weak, that he may grow arrogant. If he is taking his ease, give him no rest. If his forces are united, separate them. If sovereign and subject are in accord, put division between them. Attack him where he is unprepared, appear where you are not expected.

Ponder and deliberate before you make a move.

These are the six ways of courting defeat - neglect to estimate the enemy's strength; want of authority; defective training; unjustifiable anger; nonobservance of discipline; failure to use picked men.

If the mind is willing, the flesh could go on and on without many things.

All wars are won or lost before they are ever fought.

Opportunities multiply as they are seized.

The true objective of war is peace.

Concentrate your energy and hoard your strength.

In the midst of chaos, there is also opportunity.

To know your Enemy, you must become your Enemy.

Attack is the secret of defense; defense is the planning of an attack.

Those who are victorious plan effectively and change decisively. They are like a great river that maintains its course but adjusts its flow...they have form but are formless. They are skilled in both planning and adapting and need not fear the result of a thousand battles: for they win in advance, defeating those that have already lost.

Prohibit the taking of omens, and do away with superstitious doubts. Then, until death itself comes, no calamity need be feared.

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.

Those who do not know the plans of competitors cannot prepare alliances. Those who do not know the lay of the land cannot maneuver their forces. Those who do not use local guides cannot take advantage of the ground.

In all history, there is no instance of a country having benefited from prolonged warfare. Only one who knows the disastrous effects of a long war can realize the supreme importance of rapidity in bringing it to a close.

There are five dangerous faults which may affect a general: recklessness, which leads to destruction; cowardice, which leads to capture; a hasty temper, which can be provoked by insults; a delicacy of honour, which is sensitive to shame; over-solicitude for his men, which exposes him to worry and trouble.

Keep their friends close and their enemies closer.

In war, numbers alone confer no advantage. Do not advance relying on sheer military power.

Swift as the wind. Quiet as the forest. Conquer like the fire. Steady as the mountain

Know thy self, know thy enemy. A thousand battles, a thousand victories.

What is essential in war is victory, not prolonged operations.

If you fight with all your might, there is a chance of life; where as death is certain if you cling to your corner

The line between disorder and order lies in logistics.

Those who would wage war, should first eliminate all domestic enemies before proceeding to attack the external foe.

Be where your enemy is not.

What is of supreme importance in war is to attack the enemy's strategy.

Wait by the river long enough and the body of your enemy will float by you.

Build your opponent a golden bridge to retreat across.

Great results, can be achieved with small forces.

All men can see these tactics whereby I conquer, but what none can see is the strategy out of which victory is evolved.

Convince your enemy that he will gain very little by attacking you; this will diminish his enthusiasm

Opportunities increase as they are taken.

The clever combatant imposes his will on the enemy, but does not allow the enemy's will to be imposed on him.

If your opponent is of choleric temper, seek to irritate him. Pretend to be weak, that he may grow arrogant.

A warrior who is prepared to fight must also be prepared to die.

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

When I have won a victory I do not repeat my tactics but respond to circumstances in an infinite variety of ways.

If your enemy is superior, evade him

All warfare is based on deception. If your enemy is superior, evade him. If angry, irritate him. If equally matched, fight and if not: split and re-evaluate.

Sweat more during peace: bleed less during war

He who wishes to fight must first count the cost

Invincibility lies in the defense; the possibility of victory in the attack.

If it is to your advantage, make a forward move; if not, stay where you are.

The expert in battle seeks his victory from strategic advantage and does not demand it from his men.

The height of strategy, is to attack your opponent's strategy.

Attack like the Fire and be still as the Mountain

The military has no constant form, just as water has no constant shape - adapt as you face the enemy, without letting them know beforehand what you are going to do.

To ... not prepare is the greatest of crimes; to be prepared beforehand for any contingency is the greatest of virtues.

First learn to become invincible, then wait for your enemy's moment of vulnerability.

The value of time, that is of being a little ahead of your opponent, often provides greater advantage than superior numbers or greater resources.

Humble words and increased preparations are signs that the enemy is about to advance. Violent language and driving forward as if to the attack are signs that he will retreat.

The successful person has unusual skill at dealing with conflict and ensuring the best outcome for all.

Weigh the situation, then move.

All warfare is based on deception. Therefore, when capable, feign incapacity; when active, inactivity. When near, make it appear that you are far away; when far away, that you are to lure him; feign disorder and strike him. When he concentrates, prepare against him; where he is strong, avoid him. Anger his general and confuse him. Pretend inferiority and encourage his arrogance.

He will win who knows when to fight and when not to fight.

If fighting is sure to result in victory, then you must fight.

If the enemy leaves a door open, you must rush in.

So in war, the way is to avoid what is strong, and strike at what is weak.

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

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

One need not destroy one's enemy. One need only destroy his willingness to engage.

When you know both yourself as well as your competition, you are never in danger. To know yourself and not others, gives you half a chance of winning. Knowing neither yourself or your competition puts you in a position to lose.

When the common soldiers are too strong and their officers too weak, the result is insubordination. When the officers are too strong and the common soldiers too weak, the result is collapse.

Attack him where he is unprepared, appear where you are not expected.

He who knows his enemy and himself well will not be defeated easily.

It is more important to outhink your enemy, than to outfight him

When you surround an army, leave an outlet free. Do not press a desperate foe too hard.

Management of many is the same as management of few. It is a matter of organization.

Victory comes from finding opportunities in problems.

The supreme art of war is to subdue the enemy without fighting.

There is an intelligent way to eat a live frog - I just don't know what it is.

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

In conflict, straightforward actions generally lead to engagement, surprising actions generally lead to victory.

The peak efficiency of knowledge and strategy is to make conflict unnecessary.

Keep your friends close and your enemies even closer.

When the general is weak and without authority; when his orders are not clear and distinct; when there are no fixed duties assigned to officers and men, and the ranks are formed in a slovenly haphazard manner, the result is utter disorganization.

If you are strong, appear weak. But if you are weak, appear strong.

In warfare, there are no constant conditions. He who can modify his tactics in relation to his opponent will succeed and win.

Agitate him and ascertain the pattern of his movement.

Do not engage an enemy more powerful than you. And if it is unavoidable and you do have to engage, then make sure you engage it on your terms, not on your enemy's terms.

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.

Attack the enemy's strategy.

Begin by seizing something which your opponent holds dear; then he will be amenable to your will.

All war is based on deception.

The nature of war is constant change.

The greatest victory is that which requires no battle.

Kill one, terrify a thousand.

When the leader is morally weak and his discipline not strict, when his instructions and guidance are not enlightened, when there are no consistent rules, neighboring rulers will take advantage of this.

To fight and conquer in all our battles is not supreme excellence; supreme excellence consists in breaking the enemy's resistance without fighting.

You can prevent your opponent from defeating you through defense, but you cannot defeat him without taking the offensive.

If a battle can not be won do not fight it.

Weak leadership can wreck the soundest strategy

The opportunity of defeating the enemy is provided by the enemy himself.

Correct your mistake as soon as you have found it.

If you know both yourself and your enemy, you can win a hundred battles without a single loss.

Those who are victorious plan effectively and change decisively. They are like a great river that maintains its course but adjusts its flow.

Plan for what is difficult while it is easy, do what is great while it is small.

Set the troops to their tasks without imparting your designs.

You cannot know if you will be successful or not. You can only prepare for battle and it must be done with all of your heart and with all of your consciousness. In that manner, you will have an edge.

Regard your soldiers as your children, and they will follow you into the deepest valleys; look upon them as your own beloved sons, and they will stand by you even unto death.

Strategy without tactics is the slowest route to victory. Tactics without strategy is the noise before defeat.

A battle avoided cannot be lost.

Pretend to be weak, so your enemy may grow arrogant.

A military operation involves deception. Even though you are competent, appear to be incompetent. Though effective, appear to be ineffective.

Appear weak when you are strong, and strong when you are weak.

Unless you enter the tiger's lair, you cannot get hold of the tiger's cub's.

Military tactics are like unto water; for water in its natural course runs away from high places and hastens downwards... 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. Therefore, just as water retains no constant shape, so in warfare there are no constant conditions. He who can modify his tactics in relation to his opponent and thereby succeed in winning, may be called a heaven-born captain.

The skilful employer of men will employ the wise man, the brave man, the covetous man, and the stupid man.

Victory is reserved for those who are willing to pay its price.

If you follow the enemy's shifts and changes, you can always find a way to win.

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.

Hold out baits to entice the enemy. Feign disorder, and crush him.

When torrential water tosses boulders, it is because of its momentum. When the strike of a hawk breaks the body of its prey, it is because of timing.

Let your plans be dark and impenetrable as night.

Don't flail against the world, use it. Flexibility is the operative principle in the art of war.

What the ancients called a clever fighter is one who not only wins, but excels in winning with ease.

So the principles of warfare are: Do not depend on the enemy not coming, but depend on our readiness against him. Do not depend on the enemy not attacking, but depend on our position that cannot be attacked.

If you know the enemy and know yourself, you need not fear the result of a hundred battles. If you know yourself but not the enemy, for every victory gained you will also suffer a defeat. If you know neither the enemy nor yourself, you will succumb in every battle.

In desperate position, you must fight.

Be subtle! be subtle! and use your spies for every kind of business.