Sun Tzu
Chinese military philosopher
Sun Tzu was a Chinese military strategist traditionally credited with writing *The Art of War*, an ancient treatise on warfare and tactics from around the 5th century BCE.
His name appears constantly in discussions of strategy, competition, and conflict: Every business student has read Sun Tzu.
Whether he existed as a single historical figure remains debated, but his ideas about deception, preparation, and knowing your enemy have influenced military and corporate thinking for centuries.
Armed military engagement
- combatArmed hostile engagement
- conflictOpposition between parties
- armyOrganized land-based military
- siegeEncirclement forcing surrender
campaign · troops · formations · flanking · ambush · fortification · attack · defense
Long-held profound understanding
- strategistExpert in planning campaigns
- generalWidespread, not specialized
- ConfuciusAncient Chinese ethical teacher
- LaoziTaoism's legendary founder
aphorisms · maxims · deception · Eastern philosophy · sage · master · teachings
Methods to achieve goals
- strategyPlanned approach to goals
- planningArranging for future events
- maneuverDeliberate tactical movement
- deceptionIntentional misleading of others
intelligence · reconnaissance · positioning · terrain · timing · adaptability · flexibility · cunning
Narrow sections of cane
- ancient textVery old written work
- manuscriptOriginal text before publication
- doctrineEstablished body of teachings
- canonAccepted authoritative works
commentary · translation · interpretation · maxims · principles · lessons · guidebook · manual
Plan for competitive advantage
- competitive advantageFactor enabling market outperformance
- leadershipAbility to direct others
- managementOrganizing and directing resources
- sports coachingTraining athletes professionally
game theory · negotiation · politics · diplomacy · West Point · bestseller · self-help · boardroom
battle
Armed military engagement
siege · campaign · troops · formations · flanking · ambush · fortification · attack · defense · advance
ancient wisdom
Long-held profound understanding
- strategistExpert in planning campaigns
- generalWidespread, not specialized
- ConfuciusAncient Chinese ethical teacher
Laozi · aphorisms · maxims · deception · Eastern philosophy · sage · master · teachings
tactics
Methods to achieve goals
- strategyPlanned approach to goals
- planningArranging for future events
- maneuverDeliberate tactical movement
deception · intelligence · reconnaissance · positioning · terrain · timing · adaptability · flexibility · cunning · foresight
bamboo strips
Narrow sections of cane
- ancient textVery old written work
- manuscriptOriginal text before publication
- doctrineEstablished body of teachings
canon · commentary · translation · interpretation · maxims · principles · lessons · guidebook · manual · influence
business strategy
Plan for competitive advantage
- competitive advantageFactor enabling market outperformance
- leadershipAbility to direct others
- managementOrganizing and directing resources
sports coaching · game theory · negotiation · politics · diplomacy · West Point · bestseller · self-help · boardroom · chess
- Ancient Chinese FiguresConfucius, Laozi, Mencius
- Asian classicsI Ching, Analects, Laozi, Monkey King, Bhagavad Gita
- Chinese LiteratureAmy Tan, Pearl S. Buck, Pearl Buck, Confucius, Lao Tzu
- Wade-GilesPeking, Nanking, Chungking, Szechuan, Yunnan
- AuthorsShakespeare, William Shakespeare, Mark Twain, Twain, F. Scott Fitzgerald
- strategystrategy, grand strategy, tactics, tactic, tactical
Sun TzuUlysses S. Grant
William Tecumseh Sherman · attrition warfare · total war · brute force · George Patton
Sun TzuMahatma Gandhi
pacifism · nonviolent resistance · Martin Luther King Jr. · Leo Tolstoy · pacifist