Episode 44 - Review and Summary of The Art of War by Sun Tzu

Today’s modern life is a constant battlefield. We fight with ourselves to extract the best versions of ourselves, we compete with others in business for market share, we are constantly problem-solving in order to be successful.

Sun Tzu advised the King of the state of Wu, Ho Lu, and eventually becoming his most trusted military strategist and general. Using psychology, deceit, strategy, and diplomacy, he developed these principles of warfare that we can learn from today.

It could be our war on procrastination, unhealthy habits, the war against complacency and even a war against our own mind. We need to understand that everything we do to achieve a positive change is a constant battle or war.

One of my favorite quotes from this book is this.

“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

The lessons of this book talks to us about the universal laws of war and its how we can apply these strategies to our modern life that will what I took away from the lessons

So let's dive into my key takeaways.

My favorite quote from Sun Tzu is this.

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.

Allow me to leave you with this.

We can apply the lessons taught by Sun Tzu in our business and in everyday life, in order to win our modern wars today.

We need to understand that meticulous planning and preparing is critical.

To be the best leaders or generals, we need to choose to fight only when we know we can secure victory for yourself and team and prepare when we are not ready to fight.

We need to be observant, resourceful and adaptable in our strategies to overcome obstacles.

And impose our will on our enemies, irritate him to drive him to make fatal errors so that we can use our weapons and information to overcome him, even if this enemy is our own self.