Sun Tzu Quotes
Can you imagine what I would do if I could do all I can?
A leader leads by example not by force.
To know your Enemy, you must become your Enemy.
Opportunities multiply as they are seized.
If your opponent is of choleric temperament, seek to irritate him.
The best victory is when the opponent surrenders of its own accord before there are any actual hostilities... It is best to win without fighting.
Management of many is the same as management of few. It is a matter of organization.
Invincibility lies in the defence; the possibility of victory in the attack.
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.
Know thy self, know thy enemy. A thousand battles, a thousand victories.
Now the reason the enlightened prince and the wise general conquer the enemy whenever they move and their achievements surpass those of ordinary men is foreknowledge.
There is no instance of a nation benefitting from prolonged warfare.
One defends when his strength is inadaquate, he attacks when it is abundant
Build your opponent a golden bridge to retreat across.
For 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.
Strategy without tactics is the slowest route to victory. Tactics without strategy is the noise before defeat.
A skilled commander seeks victory from the situation and does not demand it of his subordinates.
It is said that if you know your enemies and know yourself, you will not be imperilled in a hundred battles; if you do not know your enemies but do know yourself, you will win one and lose one; if you do not know your enemies nor yourself, you will be imperilled in every single battle
He who knows when he can fight and when he cannot will be victorious.
A military operation involves deception. Even though you are competent, appear to be incompetent. Though effective, appear to be ineffective.
Pretend inferiority and encourage his arrogance.
All warfare is based on deception.
To a surrounded enemy, you must leave a way of escape.
Victorious warriors win first and then go to war, while defeated warriors go to war first and then seek to win.
Confront them with annihilation, and they will then survive; plunge them into a deadly situation, and they will then live. When people fall into danger, they are then able to strive for victory.
Subtle and insubstantial, the expert leaves no trace; divinely mysterious, he is inaudible. Thus he is master of his enemy's fate.
For them to perceive the advantage of defeating the enemy, they must also have their rewards.
When the enemy is at ease, be able to weary him; when well fed, to starve him; when at rest, to make him move. Appear at places to which he must hasten; move swiftly where he does not expect you.
To fight and conquer in all our battles is not supreme excellence; supreme excellence consists in breaking the enemy's resistance without fighting.
And therefore those skilled in war bring the enemy to the field of battle and are not brought there by him.
If words of command are not clear and distinct, if orders are not thoroughly understood, the general is to blame. But if his orders ARE clear, and the soldiers nevertheless disobey, then it is the fault of their officers.
Thus, what is of supreme importance in war is to attack the enemy's strategy.
Speed is the essence of war. Take advantage of the enemy's unpreparedness; travel by unexpected routes and strike him where he has taken no precautions.
