Authors
This is a story of a gen z and a gen x exchanging
perspectives of the same stratagem. Picture this, Art of
War re-written in two different time zones. With this
copy you get a nice blend of a generation preceding
another, showing you how the same principle gives you
a different outcome.
A little more of the author individually, Edward and Z
Qing.
Edward, born in Malaysia, piqued his interests in
writing in 2019, when he realized how much more can
be expressed through words than voice. He currently
lives in Selangor, and spends his days exploring new
jobs
and
endeavors.
Although growing up in Malaysia, Edward grew up not
learning his mother tongue, making him more
susceptible to different cultures - especially his
secondary study in Singapore. Sun Tzu of War 36
Stratagem Book is his first graphic novel, where he
expresses
his
diversity.
Reading countless of self-help books, this is Edward's
version
of
self-help.
Satire.
Despite being a student, he found himself dabbling in
jobs that amounted to working with even big-time
clients. That was when he realized this is something
worth
sharing.
The art of being better, is to first, be bad in a lot of
things....
An experience person in the recruitment industry
A
season
traveler
to
multiple
countries
An advocate of technologies for organizational
changes, without forgoing traditional values / items
Know the importance of goals, planning to get things
done
Likes to look at things from a different a perspective,
hence
is
always
public
enemy
no.
1
Has a Bach in Commerce and an MBA
Collection of quote, jokes from years of travel, and
always know laugh is the best medicine
Forward
The Thirty-Six Stratagems is a Chinese essay used
to illustrate a series of stratagems used in politics, war,
and civil interaction.
Its focus on the use of cunning and deception both on
the battlefield and in court have drawn comparisons to
Sun Tzu's The Art of War.
In this book, the authors would like to illustrate how
these stratagems can applicable in our daily life
(although not suggested, a different perspectives in life
in their own funny and weird ways.
General Sun Tzu and the Art of War
Sun Tzu (孙子/ 孫子) was a Chinese military general,
strategist, philosopher, and writer who lived during
the Eastern Zhou period. Sun Tzu is traditionally
credited as the author of The Art of War, an influential
work of military strategy that has affected
both Western and East Asian philosophy and military
thinking. It focuses much more on alternatives to battle
and even to war than on war itself, such as stratagem,
delay, the use of spies, the making and keeping of
alliances, the uses of deceit, and a willingness to
submit, at least temporarily, to more powerful foes. Sun
Tzu is revered in Chinese and East Asian culture as a
legendary historical and military figure.
His birth name was Sun Wu (孙武 / 孫武) and he was
known
outside
of
his
family
by
his courtesy
name Changqing (長卿). The name Sun Tzu by which
he is more popularly known is an honorific which
means "Master Sun".
Sun Tzu's historicity is uncertain. The Han dynasty
historian Sima Qian and other traditional Chinese
historians placed him as a minister to King Helü of
Wu and dated his lifetime to 544–496 BC. Modern
scholars accepting his historicity place the extant text
of The Art of War in the later Warring States
period based on its style of composition and its
descriptions of warfare. Traditional accounts state that
the general's descendant Sun Bin wrote a treatise on
military tactics, also titled The Art of War. Since Sun
Wu and Sun Bin were referred to as Sun Tzu in
classical Chinese texts, some historians believed them
identical, prior to the rediscovery of Sun Bin's treatise
in 1972.
Sun Tzu's work has been praised and employed in
East Asian warfare since its composition. During the
twentieth century, The Art of War grew in popularity
and saw practical use in Western world as well. It
continues to remain an indelible influence in many
contemporary competitive endeavors across the
modern world beyond military strategy and warfare,
including culture, politics, business, and sports.
Chapter
Winning
(勝戰計)
1:
Stratagems
Deceive
the
heavens
to
cross
the
sea
(瞞天過海)
Mask one's real goals from those in authority who lack
vision by not alerting them to one's movements or any
part of one's plan.
Life Application:
How to park your car at a female designated parking
space? Cross dress yourself as a female and park
there or get your girlfriend to exchange driver seat
while
parking.
When to say, “I identify as a non-binary”?
When applying for a job never say that money is your
priority, say that the opportunity to learn is.
As seen from the movie, “The Founder”, McDonald’s
doesn’t make money from selling Happy Meals. They
make money by selling properties. It is a franchise
game.
Besiege
Wèi
to
rescue
Zhào
(圍魏救趙)
When the enemy is too strong to be attacked directly,
attack something they cherish. The idea is to avoid a
head-on battle with a strong enemy, and instead strike
at their weakness elsewhere. This will force the enemy
to rethink his offence, and most likely, retreat to
defense. Battling against a tired and dispirited enemy
will give a much higher chance of success.
Life Application:
In life, sometimes we just need to let both titans fights
it off and tiring themselves, before you move in and
defeat them in one go, reaping the benefits after.
When you want change in a company, don’t do it
yourself, convince the manager to do it.
Kill
with
a
borrowed
knife
(借刀殺人)
Attack using the strength of another when in a situation
where using one's own strength is not favorable. For
example, trick an ally into attacking them or use the
enemy's own strength against them. The idea is to
cause damage to the enemy via a third party.
Life Application:
In truth fact, when someone breaks in to your house
and you would like to defend yourself. Why not, get a
knife from your neighbor first and injure the “thief” while
pinning the blame to your neighbor as the knife belongs
to them.
Never try to date your crush. Date her friend first to
introduce yourself.
Wait
at
leisure
while
the
enemy
labors
(以逸待勞)
It is advantageous to choose the time and place for
battle while the enemy does not. Encourage the enemy
to expend their energy in futile quests while one
conserves their strength. When the enemy is
exhausted and confused, attack with energy and
purpose.
Life Application:
In business and the real world, how do you benefit from
this? Bid your time while saving your resources as your
competitors builds a new product or services by
draining their own resources. With the time is ripe, go
in for a hostile takeover and you will have best of both
companies.
Never go for the popular girl (influencer), let her get
bored with shittier options first.
Loot
a
burning
house
(趁火打劫)
When a country is beset by internal problems, such as
disease, famine, corruption, and crime, it is poorlyequipped to deal with an outside threat. Keep gathering
internal information about an enemy. If the enemy is in
its weakest state, attack them without mercy and
annihilate them to prevent future troubles.
Life Application:
Like being a superhero in real life? Why not and gain
some benefits from it in the meantime. If you see a
burning house, rush in and save people from the
burning house, while you are there, pocket some
valuable items as well.
When it is your friend’s birthday, make sure you get
your friends to chip in. And be the first to present the
gift.
After all, the birthday boy/girl would most likely
remember you.
Make a sound in the east, then strike in the west
(聲東擊西)
In any battle the element of surprise can provide an
overwhelming advantage. Even when face-to-face with
an enemy, surprise can still be employed by attacking
where they least expect it. Create an expectation in the
enemy's mind through the use of a feint. Manipulate the
enemy to focus their resources somewhere before
attacking elsewhere that is poorly defended. Tactically,
this is known as an "open feint".
Life Application:
Live and talk like a politician, which is what they do
anyway, learn from them. Gain public trust by speaking
and giving them the ideology while making deals with
the opposition to enrich yourself in the meantime.
When chasing a girl, always hint a promise that you
would
be
there
for
her.
And when she needs you (as a friend), tell her your
family is jeopardy, and that they like her.
She would crave that validation to be part of something
rather than picking on your traits. “An open feint”
Chapter
Enemy
(
Dealing
敵
戰
2:
Stratagems
計
)
Create
something
from
nothing
(無中生有)
A plain lie. Make somebody believe there was
something when there is in fact nothing or vice versa.
Life Application:
Life is like magic, there are always people who can
make things out of nothing. In a business report,
numbers can always be pluck from the sky without any
sense of analysis or facts to make the “feel good”
sensation although business is bad.
In marketing, people lie that this ad or campaign should
get x results. And in the end, when it fails, they say it is
part of the process. But when they succeed, they make
you believe, only they have the power.
Learn
to
lie
like
a
marketer.
Today’s time, every business guru has a Lamborghini.
And yet they are happy to teach you, their secrets.
Has any rich guy stopped to give you advice?
Is the Lambo owned, not rented? Is the story a fact or
made-up, how would you know it’s true?
Openly repair the gallery roads, but sneak through
the
passage
of Chencang
(明修棧道，暗渡陳倉)
Deceive the enemy with an obvious approach that will
take a very long time, while ambushing them with
another approach. It is an extension of the "Make a
sound in the east, then strike in the west" tactic, but
instead of merely spreading misinformation to draw the
enemy's attention, physical decoys are used to further
misdirect the enemy. The decoys must be easily seen
by the enemy to draw their attention while acting as if
they are meant to do what they are falsely doing to
avoid suspicion.
Today, "sneaking through the passage of Chencang"
also has the meaning of having an affair or doing
something that is illegal.
Life Application:
In many countries, openly drinking alcohol is illegal. So,
you like to drink? Just pour the content to another bottle
with a different label such as orange juice, and
continue enjoying your well deserve “juice”.
Question, who needs a phone at the size of an iPad? It
could be content creator or for little kids to play. But
who was it made for in its first generations?
It was the older generation. They needed bigger
buttons and gadgets that were easy to hold.
Everyone thought it was for kids, but 10 years ago,
content creation was not as popular as it is today. On
top of that, kids didn’t have the buying power. Apple
fooled everyone…
https://www.marketingweek.com/the-yougov-takeipad-the-mass-market-niche-product/
Watch
the
fires
burning
across
the
river
(隔岸觀火)
Delay entering the field of battle until all other parties
become exhausted by fighting amongst each other. Go
in at full strength and finish them off.
Life Application:
In fighting a battle, always ensure you fire up the
enemy’s camp so they exhaust themselves putting out
the fire while you wait. Go in and win the battle after.
Go for the girlfriends that have just broken up.
They are most vulnerable.
Hide
a
knife
behind
a
smile
(笑裏藏刀)
Charm and ingratiate oneself with the enemy. When
their trust is gained, move against them in secret.
Life Application:
People say, an apple a day keeps the doctor away, and
genuine smile makes people unwary. Practice on your
smile daily and make it look and feel genuine, you
would gain a lot of friend and supported in the long run.
When the time is right, it’s payback!
Be friends with the club ambassadors.
You never know when you get a free entry.
Sacrifice the plum tree to preserve the peach tree
(李代桃僵)
There are circumstances where short-term objectives
must be sacrificed in order to gain the long-term goal.
This is the scapegoat strategy where someone suffers
the consequences so that the rest do not.
Life Application:
In life, you must always have a back-up plan or fall
person in order to achieve you long term goals. Identify
the fall person and throw him into the pit as soon as
things goes south.
Take
the
opportunity
to
pilfer
a
goat
(順手牽羊)
While carrying out one's plans, be flexible enough to
take advantage of any opportunity that presents itself,
however small, and avail oneself of any profit, however
slight.
Life Application:
When you are in a good run, do more and push more
for your clients or customers to buy more from you no
matter what the times.
An opportunity is always an opportunity- big or small.
You don’t control what the pay-out is, but you control
how to capitalize it.
In business, give before you take.
Provide that world-class service before you enforce
minor fees (service fee, application fee).
Chapter
Offensive
(
3:
Stratagems
攻
戰
計
)
Stomp
the
grass
to
scare
the
snake
(打草驚蛇)
Do something unaimed, but spectacular ("hitting the
grass") to provoke a response from the enemy ("startle
the snake") to have them give away their plans or
position. Do something unusual, strange, and
unexpected to arouse the enemy's suspicion and
disrupt their thinking. It is more widely used as a
warning: "[Do not] startle the snake by hitting the grass".
An imprudent act will give one's position or intentions
away to the enemy.
Life Application:
Do know what the other party is thinking? Well, just do
something crazy then, say in a meeting or catching up
with someone and to know what they are thinking or
doing, just pour a cup of water over them and see what
happens, they might leak out some secrets for you.
Borrow
a
corpse
to
resurrect
the
soul
(借屍還魂)
Take an institution, a technology, a method, or even an
ideology that has been forgotten or discarded and
appropriate it for one's own purposes.
Life Application:
In life, there are many examples especially in the
fashion world. Dress code for the game of golf in the
1920s is used by rickshaw “uncles” in the 1970s and
nowadays is a fashion trend among young.
Lure
the
tiger
down
the
mountain
(調虎離山)
Never directly attack an opponent whose advantage is
derived from their position. Instead, lure them away
from their position to separate them from their source
of strength.
Life Application:
Competing for life right? Well, how can you remove the
competition before a big game to ensure victory for
your team? Well, if you competitors like to feast, treat
them to a full buffet before the game, let them feast until
having stomachache. Lure them out with good food
and hence you win without playing.
In
order
to
capture,
one
must
let
loose
(欲擒故縱)
Cornered prey will often mount a final desperate attack.
To prevent this, let the enemy believe they still have a
chance for freedom. Their will to fight is hampered by
their desire to escape. The enemy's morale will be
depleted and they will surrender without a fight when
the illusion of escape is revealed.
Life Application:
This can be applied in a football game, if your team
score is leading and the clock is still counting down for
a while till the end. Just waste some time by letting the
other team gain some grounds, by letting them pushing
the line while you slowly lose it while defending until the
end.
Tossing
out
a
brick
to
lure
a
jade
gem
(拋磚引玉)
Bait someone by making them believe they gain
something or to just make them react to it ("toss out a
brick") to obtain something valuable from them in return
("get a jade gem").
Life Application:
Life is full of choices, and advertisement. People will
always fall for a good tag line,
“Buy 2 and get 30% off”
“This deal is only for 3 days”
“Buy 1 and get 1 FREE”
Defeat
the
enemy by capturing
their
chief
(擒賊擒王)
If the enemy's army is strong but is allied to the
commander only by money, superstition, or threats,
target the leader. If the commander falls, the rest of the
army will disperse or join one's side. If they are allied
to the leader through loyalty, beware, as the army can
continue to fight on after their death out of vengeance.
Life Application:
Well, want to win in any game or business? It a very
easy thing to do in this time, people are always looking
for new opportunity, just buy over their best people or
their leaders, and the organization will crumble in the
long run.
Chapter
Melee
(
4:
Stratagems
混
戰
計
)
Remove
the
firewood
from
under
the
pot
(釜底抽薪)
Take out the leading argument or asset of someone;
"steal someone's thunder". This is the essence of
the indirect approach: instead of attacking enemy's
fighting forces, direct attacks against their ability to
wage war. Literally, take the fuel out of the fire.
Life Application:
In real life, do what the politician do, there are many
plays involve in their bid to stay as an elected
representative. In order to get “votes” and support, they
will cut off people life line such as increase “cost of
living” or something, then will come out as their savior
to give “subsidies” to ensure support.
Disturb
the
water
and
catch
a
fish
(渾水摸魚／混水摸魚)
Create confusion and exploit it to further one's own
goals.
Life Application:
Surprise is the best strategy. Just make people
confuse with what you are doing by doing things
differently, while conserving your energy or ideas until
time is ripe to introduce them to shock the world.
Slough
off
the
cicada's
golden
shell
(金蟬脱殼)
Mask oneself. Either leave one's distinctive traits
behind and become inconspicuous or masquerade as
something or someone else. This strategy is mainly
used to escape from a stronger enemy.
Life Application:
In life, never disclose your true self in any occasion.
Always wear a mask, the mask can be your practice
“genuine smile” where if anything happens, you would
not be the suspect. Or in some cases, the “I don’t know”
look always helps.
Just like poker, no matter how experienced your
opponent is, never fold when calls his first bluff.
Shut
the
door
to
catch
the
thief
(關門捉賊)
To capture one's enemy, or more generally in fighting
wars, to deliver the final blow to the enemy, plan
prudently for success; do not rush into action. Before
"moving in for the kill", first cut off the enemy's escape
routes and any routes from external aid.
Life Application:
In real like this is very easily done, it can been seen by
rearing fish in tanks. People rear fish is tank to ensure
the fishes do not escape while you can enjoy the view
of them instead of letting them flourish in the wild.
Befriend a distant state and strike a neighboring
one
(遠交近攻)
Invading nations close to oneself carries a higher
chance of success. The battlefields are close to one's
domain and as such is easier for one's troops to
receive supplies and defend the conquered land. Make
allies with nations far away from oneself, as it is unwise
to invade them.
Life Application:
It is always good to have friends from faraway lands, in
case things goes south, you can escape there or have
them to come assist you in times of needs.
Obtain safe passage to conquer the State of Guo
(假途伐虢)
Borrow the resources of an ally to attack a common
enemy. Once the enemy is defeated, use those
resources to turn on the ally that lent them in the first
place.
Life Application:
Want to score well in any exams or tests? Stick close
to the nerdiest or smarted student in class, borrow their
notes and exercise through their own hard work, learn
it, use it and do as well as them.
Chapter
Combined
(
5:
Stratagems
並
戰
計
)
Replace
the
beams
with
rotten
timbers
(偷梁換柱)
Disrupt the enemy's formations, interfere with their
methods of operations, and change the rules that they
are used to following. In this way the supporting pillar,
the common link that makes a group of men an
effective fighting force, is removed.
Life Application:
This is the most used way to bring down your
competitors in a game, business or anything in life.
What you can do it to feed incompetent people to your
competitors, and let them ruin process internally while
you wait to ripe the benefits.
Point at the mulberry tree while cursing the locust
tree
(指桑罵槐)
To discipline, control, or warn others whose status or
position excludes them from direct confrontation; use
analogy and innuendo. Without directly naming names,
those accused cannot retaliate without revealing their
complicity.
Life Application:
Thinking of teaching a dog on how to behave? Why not
use a puppet or soft toy looking similar to the dog, and
imitate the wrong doing, and the consequences of
misbehaving, it should teach the dog a lesson.
Feign
madness
but
keep
your
balance
(假痴不癲)
Pretend to be incompetent to create confusion about
one's intentions and motivations. Lure the opponent
into underestimating one's ability until they drop their
guard.
Life Application:
Life is always confusing, you can always add into the
confusion like not doing well in school, test and exams,
but secretly work hard to score well in university
entrance test and shock the world after.
Remove the ladder when the enemy has ascended
to
the
roof
(上屋抽梯)
With baits and deceptions, lure the enemy into
treacherous terrain and cut off their lines of
communication and escape routes. To save
themselves, they must fight both one's own forces and
the elements of nature.
Life Application:
One a person is successful and high up in their position,
having the feel good sensation. Just remove the base
support, you know, the higher they are, the harder they
fall. Have the last laugh.
Decorate
the
tree
with
false
blossoms
(樹上開花)
Tying silk blossoms on a dead tree gives the illusion
that the tree is healthy. Using artifice and disguise,
make something worthless appear valuable and vice
versa.
Life Application:
People like beautiful things, decorate a “dead” or fake
Christmas tree with beautiful and eye catching
ordinance and it will attract them for selfies.
Diamonds are not considered rare stones, so what did
DeBeers (monopoly for trading diamonds) do? Make
movies narrating a woman’s dream to be proposed for
her fairytale marriage. Also to inflate the size and
shininess of the diamond.
Make the host and the guest exchange roles
(反客為主)
Usurp leadership in a situation where one is normally
subordinate. Infiltrate one's target. Initially, pretend to
be a guest to be accepted, but develop from inside and
become the owner later.
Life Application:
Party animals, always remember, you are a charmer, if
you are invited to a party as a guest, use your charms
and attractiveness to “take-over” the party and lead the
party. Hence, every attendees will remember you as
the “host” instead of the original organizers.
Chapter
Defeat
(
6:
Stratagems
敗
戰
計
)
The
Beauty
Trap
(美人計)
Send the enemy beautiful women to cause discord
within his camp. This strategy can work on three levels.
First, the ruler becomes so enamoured with the beauty
that he neglects his duties and allows his vigilance to
wane. Second, the group of men will begin to have
issues if the desired women court another man, thus
creating conflict and aggressive behavior. Third, other
females at court, motivated by jealousy and envy,
begin to plot subversions that further exacerbate the
situation.
Life Application:
Every human being likes beautiful things, as beauty in
the eyes of the beholder but cultural and perception
changes with time. Now, you don’t have to use “beauty”,
there are many other items such as money, diamond,
jewels, gold, silver, just provide enough to the other
party and trap them or sometimes you can hook them
up on “drugs” such as soft drinks / sweet drinks and get
them hook to the trap.
A high salary is the quickest bait to hiring graduates,
but quality graduates or not, that is situational. Know
what your enemy’s desires and work around them.
The Empty
Fort
Strategy
(空城計)
When the enemy has stronger forces and one expects
to be overrun at any moment, act calmly and taunt the
enemy, so that the enemy thinks they are walking into
an ambush. This stratagem is only successful if in most
cases one has a powerful hidden force and the
stratagem is seldom used.
Life Application:
Going for a vacation but scared of break-ins and stuff?
Worry not, always act as your home is empty even if
you are in. No lights, less traffic and events, it will
always look empty and run-down. No “smart” people
will know if your home is “empty” or not, hence the
“empty” fort strategy will work. Besides, it will help you
to save on expenses such as electricity, water,
maintenance cost as well.
Let the Enemy's Own Spy Sow Discord in the
Enemy
Camp
(反間計)
Undermine the enemy's ability to fight by secretly
causing discord between them and their friends, allies,
advisors, family, commanders, soldiers, and population.
While they are preoccupied with settling internal
disputes, their ability to attack or defend is
compromised.
Life Application:
Fake news, information is always handy when feed to
your competitors, it helps to sow distrust or mis-leading
directions while you make hay way in the right direction
to secure the win.
Inflict Injury on Oneself to Win the Enemy's Trust
(苦肉計)
Pretending to be injured has two advantages: first, the
enemy is lulled into lowering their guard since as they
no longer consider one to be an immediate threat.
Second, ingratiating oneself with the enemy by
pretending the injury was caused by a mutual enemy
conserves one's strength while one's enemies fight
each other.
Life Application:
We are always competing in life, either to win or to
reach the end goal. Say for a marathon runner, you do
not sprint in the beginning of the race, you can always
“fake” lack of stamina or injury which will affect your
condition for winning, but once you are in the last leg
of the race, speed up with your conserve energy can
reach the finish line before your competitors.
In tests and quizes, always perform the worst. Let your
classmates underestimate you. During exams, give it
your best, after all those are what matters the most
(highest weightage). Use their hate as fuel for your
growth.
Chain
Stratagems
(連環計)
In important matters, one should use several
stratagems applied simultaneously after another as in
a chain of stratagems. Keep different plans operating
in an overall scheme; if any one strategy fails, apply the
next strategy.
Life Application:
Like in a football match, it’s a game between two teams.
You must have multiple different “runs” to confuse the
“enemy” to win the game or score game point.
If
All
Else
Fails, Retreat
(走為上策)
If it becomes obvious that one's current course of
action will lead to defeat, retreat and regroup. When
one's side is losing, three choices remain: surrender,
compromise, or escape. Surrender is complete defeat,
compromise is half defeat, but escape is not defeat. As
long as one is not defeated, there is still a chance. This
is the most famous of the stratagems and is
immortalized in the form of a Chinese idiom: "Of the
Thirty-Six Stratagems, fleeing is best" (三十六計，走為
上計).
Life Application:
In a night football match, if your team is losing badly
and there is no hope of turning the game. Ask a close
confidents to cut off the electricity and then the team
run away, just blame the electrical company for the
faulty system.
Parting words
This book was written over many laughs and
conversations, so we do hope that it would have at
least smiled. And of course take these words with a
pinch of salt.
From discussing how you could weaken and interfere
your “enemies” in a classroom/ corporate setting, to
working smart, <insert our final title> shares how easy
it is to apply the right stratagem.
With that, we hope that you use the stratagems to your
advantage and with caution.