The thirty-six stratagems: A modern-day interpretation of a strategy classic

by Peter Taylor

Overview

Approximately three-hundred years ago an unknown scholar compiled The Thirty-Six Stratagems, a strangely seductive meditation on deception. The stratagems to be used depend on whether you are currently winning or losing your particular battle. However, the stratagems can be combined in various ways as they are not intended to be used alone, nor are they only applicable in purely a winning or purely a losing situation! So how can the complex three-hundred-year-old ideas of an unknown Chinese scholar provide help with the strategic challenges we face today? In this brilliant interpretation Peter Taylor transforms this ancient text into a practical guide for the twenty-first century business executive or politician. Here the timeless wisdom in The Thirty-Six Stratagems is brought to life through modern business case studies. In this interpretation readers discover how to: • Kill with a borrowed knife; • Defeat the enemy by capturing its chief; • Feign madness but keep their balance; • Let the enemy’s own spy sow discord in the enemy camp; • Inflict injury on themselves to win the enemy’s trust. Taylor’s handy, authentic, realistic approach shows how we can defeat the opponents we face in our business and personal lives. But beware, there is no ‘win win’ scenario: in The Thirty-Six Stratagems winner takes all!

Product Details

ISBN-13:	9781908474971
Publisher:	Infinite Ideas Ltd
Publication date:	05/01/2013
Series:	Infinite Success
Sold by:	Barnes & Noble
Format:	eBook
Pages:	138
File size:	845 KB

About the Author

Peter Taylor is the Head of PMO at Kronos. He is dynamic and commercially astute and is an accomplished communicator, leader and professional speaker, popular around the world for keynotes and as an event host. He has focused on writing and lecturing with over 200 presentations around the world in over 25 countries and has been described as ‘perhaps the most entertaining and inspiring speaker in the project management world today’.

Table of Contents

Introduction Stratagems for when you are winning Stratagems for advantageous situations 1. Sneak across the ocean in broad daylight 2. Besiege wèi to rescue zhào 3. Kill with a borrowed knife 4. Wait at leisure while the enemy labours 5. Loot a burning house 6. Make a sound in the east, then strike in the west Stratagems for opportunistic situations 7. Create something from nothing 8. Openly repair the gallery roads, but sneak through the passage of chencang 9. Watch the fires burning across the river 10. Hide a knife behind a smile 11. Sacrifice the plum tree to preserve the peach tree 12. Take the opportunity to pilfer a goat Stratagems for attacking situations 13. Stomp the grass to scare the snake 14. Borrow a corpse to resurrect the soul 15. Entice the tiger to leave its mountain lair 16. In order to capture, one must let loose 17. Tossing out a brick to get a jade gem 18. Defeat the enemy by capturing their chief Stratagems for when you are losing Stratagems for confused situations 19. Remove the firewood from under the pot 20. Disturb the water and catch a fish 21. Slough off the cicada’s golden shell 22. Shut the door to catch the thief 23. Befriend a distant state while attacking a neighbour 24. Obtain safe passage to conquer the state of guo Stratagems for deception situations 25. Replace the beams with rotten timbers 26. Point at the mulberry tree while cursing the locust tree 27. Feign madness but keep your balance 28. Remove the ladder when the enemy has ascended to the roof 29. Deck the tree with false blossoms 30. Make the host and the guest exchange roles Stratagems for desperate situations 31. The beauty trap 32. The empty fort strategy 33. Let the enemy’s own spy sow discord in the enemy camp 34. Inflict injury on oneself to win the enemy’s trust 35. Chain stratagems 36. If all else fails, retreat Appendices i. Countering the thirty-six stratagems ii. Further reading

Preface

The Thirty-Six Stratagems is a Chinese essay used to illustrate a series of stratagems used in politics and in war, as well as in civilian life, often through unorthodox means. Approximately 300 years ago, either towards the end of the Ming or the beginning of the Qing Dynasties, an unknown scholar compiled these 36 military stratagems. One of the things that makes this classic unique and strangely seductive is its use of deception throughout. The use of the word ‘stratagem’ needs to be understood, this is not a ‘strategy’ (being a long-term plan or outline of activity over a period of time) but something that can be considered a plan, scheme, or trick for surprising or deceiving an enemy or in fact any ruse, or trick devised or used to attain a goal or to gain an advantage over an adversary or competitor. A strategy can comprise a number of stratagems: a series of manoeuvres or stratagems for obtaining a specific goal or result: a strategy for getting ahead in the world. The Thirty-Six Stratagems have variably been attributed to Sun Tzu (1) from the Spring and Autumn Period of China, or Zhuge Liang (2) of the Three Kingdoms Period, but neither are regarded as the true author by most historians. Instead, the prevailing view is that the Thirty-Six Stratagems may have originated in both written and oral history, with many different versions compiled by different authors throughout Chinese history. Typically the Thirty-Six Stratagems are grouped under six main categories. Each category contains 6 stratagems and these 6 categories in turn can be used in two types of situations. The three categories ‘Advantageous Stratagems’, the ‘Opportunistic Stratagems’ and the ‘Attacking Stratagems’ are used when you are in a Winning situation. The other three categories, the ‘Confusion Stratagems’, the ‘Deception Stratagems’ and the ‘Desperate Stratagems’ are used when you are in a disadvantageous or Losing situation. However, the application and usage of these strategies can be combined in various ways as they are not intended to be used alone, nor are they only applicable in purely a winning or purely a losing situation. The possible combination and application of these stratagems are limited only by the imagination and creativity of the person applying them. In fact Stratagem 35, ‘chain stratagems’, recommends the multiple (and non-repetitive) application of a number of stratagems in order to achieve your goal. It should be noted that actually, other than Stratagem 36 ‘If all else fails, retreat’, nobody can be certain of the content of the Thirty-Six Stratagems. The most commonly used version comes from an original hand-copied paperback that was believed to have been discovered in China’s Shaanxi province, of an unknown date and author, and then put into print by a local publisher in 1941. Nevertheless, over the years, the stratagems have been commonly cited and used by many generals as well businessmen. The Thirty-Six Stratagems only came to the general public’s attention after a review of it was published in the Chinese Communist Party’s Guangming Daily newspaper in 1961. It was subsequently reprinted and distributed with ever-growing popularity. It should also be noted that the number 36 is meant to denote numerous stratagems instead of any specific number, again an indication that the modern format and content of the Thirty-Six Stratagems is something that has evolved over the years. Although the Thirty-Six Stratagems is a summary of some of the war techniques used by the ancient Chinese warriors, the name may have actually derived from Yi Jing’s ‘Yin Yang Theory’ (3) where 6 is the number of Yin that shared many characteristics with the dark schemes involved in military strategy. As 36 is the square of six, it therefore acted as a metaphor for numerous stratagems. In this book the Thirty-Six Stratagems are used to identify ways in which you can apply them in your own life but this comes with a serious word of caution. Applying them in an over-enthusiastic way can lead to some real trouble if you are not careful, remember these stratagems are designed to ‘win’ and by winning that means the ‘defeat’ of others, or at least their submission to your will. I will take you through each stratagem explaining the original concept and bringing it all up to date with some modern examples together with suggestions for ways that you can use it to your own personal advantage. But remember, in the aggressive world of the Thirty-Six Stratagems there is no such concept as ‘win-win’, you don’t walk away best friends at the end of all this, you either win or they win. Your conscience will tell you how far you personally wish to take this journey. (1) Sun Tzu was an ancient Chinese military general, strategist and philosopher who is traditionally believed to be the author of The Art of War, an influential ancient Chinese book on military strategy. (2) Zhuge Liang was a chancellor of the state of Shu Han during the Three Kingdoms Period of Chinese history. He is often recognised as the greatest and most accomplished strategist of his era. (3) The Yi Jing is the most ancient of the five prime Confucian classics of China. The earliest extant version was found in 1973 in the Mawangdui tombs in Hunan province. That version dates to the second century BCE, but the book is doubtless much older. At the root of the Yi Jing is the binary system known as yin/yang. According to Taoist cosmology, in the beginning there was only undifferentiated qi (energy), which separated into yin (female) and yang (male). The interaction of these opposing forces gives birth to eternal change. This is expressed in the taiqi symbol, in which yin (dark) and yang (light) are represented as constantly changing into the other; each, moreover, contains within itself the seed of the other.