Who should read The Art of War by Sun Tzu?
If you are interested in business strategy, military strategy, personal dynamics, or leadership, read this book.
When should you read The Art of War by Sun Tzu?
Early in your career. I recommend reading this in college or early into your first post-college job.
Why should you read The Art of War by Sun Tzu?
You can learn a lot about positioning yourself in your company, your group of friends, and even within your family.
Best Quote
Because it seems particularly relevant to current times:
No long war ever profited any country: 100 victories in 100 battles is simply ridiculous. Anyone who excels in defeating his enemies triumphs before his enemy’s threat becomes real.
Review
The Art of War by Sun Tzu is an ancient military treatise. As such, it uses the language of battle to impart lessons that apply to many of life’s situations. The text itself is thirteen chapters, each focusing on a different style of military engagement. In the version that I read, ancient stories highlighting the strategies from each chapter break up Sun Tzu’s original text. If you are like me, this helps significantly because it is not particularly easy to relate to Sun Tzu’s text by itself, and the stories help you to work out the value of each of Sun Tzu’s teachings.
The Art of War can teach you a lot about business strategy and workplace dynamics, but the things that really stuck out were:
- Choose your battles.
- Find where others are weak and exploit that.
- Don’t fight someone head to head if you can help it.
- A little bit of brain is worth quite a bit more than a lot of brute force.
You’re not going to sit down for an afternoon and lazily thumb through The Art of War. Sun Tzu does not give a lot of explanation for his strategies and approaches, and the copy can feel very dispassionate so it’s also not going to be something that you can sit down and understand without really focusing.
Final word
I recommend that anyone interested in improving their personal or professional relationships or in working on leadership skills read this book. If you are like me, you won’t find it to be the most thrilling, but it is worth your time if you apply what it teaches you.
