The difference between a reckless man and a military advisor is that the former is brave and the latter is wise. If you have courage but no wisdom, you will inevitably fail; If you have wisdom but no courage, you can plan for success. In fact, the most powerful person in the world is not a reckless man, but a military advisor, because a military advisor can remotely control a reckless man to achieve his own goals. This is the essence of the "Beginning Chapter" of "The Art of War".

【This Guide】

The Art of War has long been revered and applied to many aspects of the world, and has become one of the essences of traditional Chinese wisdom, as can be seen in its opening chapter:

"Initial Planning" mainly talks about five parts: clear planning, knowing planning, using planning, line calculation, and calculation.

The so-called plan, according to Sun Wu's point of view, is a major matter of the soldiers, so it must not be ignored.

The so-called knowledge plan is to check the "Tao", "Heaven", "Earth", "General", "Law" and other strategies according to the "five things".

The so-called use of the plan means that if there is a plan, it must be used, and if it is used, it will win; If you don't use a plan, you will lose. How to use the meter? Sun Wu made detailed statements in terms of fighting and not fighting, using and not using, near and far, luring each other with profit, avoiding the strong and weakness in chaos, provoking the opponent, admiring the opponent, exhausting the opponent, and losing the opponent.

The so-called action plan means that if the good deed is beneficial, you can take advantage of the momentum and take the initiative.

The so-called calculation refers to the fact that the word "calculation" should be given priority in combat, and "more calculations are counted, and less calculations are not won." This reveals the general truth of employing troops.

The theme of this article: know how to use its plan, attack its unpreparedness, unexpected, and win for the soldiers.

【Source of Wisdom】

Sun Tzu said: Soldiers, the major affairs of the country, the place of death and life, and the way of survival, must not be ignored.

Therefore, the scriptures are based on five things, and the school is based on calculations to find out their feelings: one is the Tao, the second is the sky, the third is the earth, the fourth is the general, and the five laws are called. The Taoist makes the people agree with the superiors, so they can die with it, they can live with it, and they are not afraid of danger. The heavens, the yin, the cold and the heat, and the time system. The earth, far and near, dangerous, wide and narrow, dead and alive. Generals, wisdom, faith, benevolence, courage, and strictness. The law, the bend system, the official way, and the main use. All these five will be unheard. Those who know, those who don't know, are invincible. Therefore, the school used a plan to ask for its feelings, saying: Who is the master? Who will be capable? Who has heaven and earth?

What is the law? Which of the soldiers is stronger? Soldiers' training? What is the reward and punishment? That's how I know what to do.

will listen to my plan, use it to win, and keep it; They will not listen to my plan, and they will be defeated if they use it, and they will go away.

Calculating profit to listen is the momentum of the situation, in order to support it. The powerful are also controlled by profit.

Soldiers, treacherous ways. Therefore, it can be shown but cannot, used and shown not to be used, near and far away, far and shown; Profit and temptation, chaos and take, real and prepared, strong and avoid, angry and scratch, humble and arrogant, hard work, kiss and leave. Attack it unprepared, take it by surprise. The victory of this soldier cannot be passed on first.

The husband is the victor without a fight, and he has to count a lot; The temple is not victorious without a fight, and it is considered to be less. More wins, less wins, and nothing counts? I look at it this way, and I can see the victory or defeat.

【Classic Interpretation】

Sun Tzu said: War is a major matter of the state, the master of the safety and death of the military and the people, and the key to the survival of the country.

Therefore, it is necessary to evaluate the situation in the five aspects of the enemy and compare the plans of both sides in order to gain an understanding of the war situation. (These five aspects) one is the Tao, the second is the time, the third is the location, the fourth is the generals, and the fifth is the legal system. The so-called Tao is to make the people agree with and support the will of the monarch, so that they can live for the king in life and die for the king, and fear danger. The so-called time of day refers to the change of day and night, cold and heat, and the four seasons. The so-called geographical advantage refers to the distance of the battle route, the steep or flat terrain, the breadth or narrowness of the combat area, and the advantages or disadvantages of the terrain for attack and defense. The so-called generals mean that generals should be resourceful, reward and punish with trust, caress their subordinates, be brave and resolute, and establish strictness. The so-called legal system refers to the building of the army's organizational system, the management of generals at all levels, and the control of military supplies. With five aspects, as a general, we can't help but fully understand them. If you fully understand these circumstances, you can win the battle. Without these circumstances, the battle cannot be won. Therefore, it is necessary to obtain an understanding of the war situation by comparing the seven situations of the two sides: which side of the monarchy is politically clear? Which side is more talented? Which side has the right time and place? Which side is good enough to enforce the law? Which side is well-armed? Which side is well-trained? Which side rewards and punishes fairly? Based on all this, I can judge who wins and who loses.

If you can listen to my counsel, and fight with my army, you will be victorious, and I will stay; But if you don't listen to my plan, you will be defeated in battle, and I'll depart.

Advantageous strategies have been adopted, creating a posture to complement military operations abroad. The so-called state of affairs means relying on the principle that is beneficial to oneself, flexibly changing circumstances, and grasping the initiative on the battlefield.

Fighting with soldiers is a trick of deceit. can fight, but pretends not to fight; wants to fight, but pretends not to fight; He clearly wants to attack everywhere, but he pretends to attack from afar; is about to attack a distant place, but pretends to attack a near place; The enemy is greedy for profit, so he entices it with profit; When the enemy is confused, they take advantage of the opportunity to attack him; If the enemy is strong, we must be on guard against him; When the enemy is strong, he will avoid his edge for the time being; If the enemy is angry and angry, he will destroy his spirit. When the enemy is cowardly, he seeks to make him arrogant; When the enemy is well rested, he seeks to fatigue him; The enemy is at peace within, and he seeks to divide him. Attack where the enemy is unguarded, and take action when the enemy is unexpected. All these are the mysteries of the art of commanding by military strategists, and they are never prescribed in advance.

Victory was expected before the war began, because of careful planning and sufficient conditions for victory; Those who did not anticipate victory before the start of the war were due to poor planning and lack of conditions for victory. If you plan carefully and have the conditions, you can win, and if you don't plan and the conditions are lacking, you can't win, let alone if you don't plan and have no conditions? If we look at these things, the negative results will be obvious.

【Modern Interpretation】

When it comes to "counting", everyone knows it. For its function, many people can say a few words, but the vast majority of people can't understand it, because they don't know the mystery of the "plan". Sun Tzu said, "You will listen to my plan, use it to win, and keep it." They will not listen to my plan, and they will be defeated if they use it, and they will go away. It can be seen that Sun Tzu has a set of clever plans in his mind to conquer people's hearts. Roughly speaking, he provided the following eight strategies: first, control power for profit; the second is to use it and show it without using it; Third, the near and far are intertwined; Fourth, impress people with interests; Fifth, win in chaos; Sixth, avoid strong opponents; Seventh, he is good at provoking opponents; Eighth, it can attack its unpreparedness. In a word, these are so-called calculations. The so-called "more wins, less wins" shows that calculation should precede action, calculation will win, and failure if not counted. This is true of war, leadership, life, and business.