Sun Tzu’s Art of War
According to historians, the exact date of the publication of the book, The Art of War, is not known. In fact, they don’t even know who wrote it. However, it is believed that It was written by a Chinese military leader named Sun Tzu and that he lived in an era where China is at war with nations aiming to conquer their territory and overthrow them, hence creation of the book can be attributed to such situation.
When we think of war, the first ideas that would come into our mind are chaos, pandemonium, disorder, and other words that could be attributed to destruction. Also, wars occur often because parties are fighting over something. In a business setting, same goals can be indicated. That is, to gain profits and subsequently overthrow or defeat competitors. Although it appears to be a simple goal, such objective can be achieved in different ways. Sun Tzu’s Art of War mentions 13 principles, which are originally intended to serve as guidance in wars but can also serve as guide in making strategic plans and decisions. One principle is that one must capture the market without destroying it. This means that entities must think of a strategy that will capture the market in a way that leaves the industry healthy. Such can be achieved by using low-key approaches that will not draw a competitor’s attention or response. The second principle, which I think can be applied to businesses, is to avoid strength and attack weakness. This means that instead of making direct attacks on competitors, one must first find the weakness of the competition and capitalize on attacking those. One example is when big companies take out or eliminate smaller companies instead on focusing on its big rival company. By doing so, the company gets to take out competitors while growing stronger at the same time. Another principle from Sun Tzu’s Art of War is that entities must use speed to overcome their competition. In the business world, speed is essential. Companies must learn to quickly adapt to respond to quick market changes. By doing so, they will be able to take advantage of fleeting opportunities and keep the competition off balance.
Aside from what have been mentioned, a lot of principles from Sun Tzu’s Art of War can still be applied and attributed to the strategic planning in the business world. This is probably the reason why even after thousands of years, the book remains to be a hit to everyone in the business world. Of all that was mentioned by Sun Tzu, however, the most important lesson of all is that you have to believe in yourself.