36 secrets in business. Sun Tzu quotes

The supreme art of war is to subdue the enemy without fighting. The greatest victory is that which requires no battle. ― Sun Tzu.

Sun Tzu was a Chinese general, military strategist, writer, and philosopher who lived in the Eastern Zhou period of ancient China. Sun Tzu is traditionally credited as the author of The Art of War, an influential work of military strategy that has affected both Western and East Asian philosophy and military thinking.

1. Appear weak when you are strong, and strong when you are weak. ― Sun Tzu

2. 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. ― Sun Tzu

3. Thus we may know that there are five essentials for 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, had military capacity and is not interfered with by the sovereign.  ― Sun Tzu

4. There is no instance of a nation benefitting from prolonged warfare. ― Sun Tzu

5. Let your plans be dark and impenetrable as night, and when you move, fall like a thunderbolt. ― Sun Tzu 

6. Supreme excellence consists of breaking the enemy’s resistance without fighting. ― Sun Tzu

7. When strong, avoid them. If morale is high, depress them. Seems humble to fill them with conceit. If at ease, exhaust them. If united, separate them. Attack their weaknesses. Emerge to their surprise. ― Sun Tzu

8. In the midst of chaos, there is also opportunity. ― Sun Tzu

9. Who wishes to fight must first count the cost. The wise warrior avoids the battle. ― Sun Tzu

10. Know yourself and you will win all battles. So in war, the way is to avoid what is strong, and strike at what is weak. ― Sun Tzu 

11. If you wait by the river long enough, the bodies of your enemies will float by. ― Sun Tzu

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

13. If the mind is willing, the flesh could go on and on without many things. ― Sun Tzu

14. Victorious warriors win first and then go to war, while defeated warriors go to war first and then seek to win. ― Sun Tzu

15. To win one hundred victories in one hundred battles is not the acme of skill. To subdue the enemy without fighting is the acme of skill. ― Sun Tzu 

16. Engage people with what they expect; it is what they are able to discern and confirm 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. ― Sun Tzu

17. If you know the enemy and know yourself, your victory will not stand in doubt; if you know Heaven and know Earth, you may make your victory complete. ― Sun Tzu

18. 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. ― Sun Tzu

19. If your enemy is secure at all points, be prepared for him. If he is in superior strength, evade him. If your opponent is temperamental, 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. ― Sun Tzu

20. 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 colors, yet in combination;
they produce more hours than can ever been seen;
There are not more than five cardinal tastes, yet combinations of;
them yield more flavors than can ever be tasted. ― Sun Tzu