Themes: Leadership And Soldiering
Purpose, Trust, Empathy, Self Awareness
- 一曰道，二曰天，三曰地，四曰将，五曰法。 — 始计
- 道者，令民与上同意也，
故可以与之死，可以与之生，而不畏危。 — 始计
The stakes in war are high. It involves the security of states and the lives of soldiers who risk death in combat. An effective leader rallies her followers behind a moral purpose, a cause bigger than themselves that they are willing to sacrifice their lives for.
- 将者，智、信、仁、勇、严也。 — 始计
The general is one of the five determinants of success in war, and entrusted in its affairs, should possess qualities befitting this responsibility. In war, one’s primary objective is to outwit and overcome her enemy. Intelligence or competence ranks first in the five critical qualities of a general. The second and third of these qualities, however, relate to emotional intelligence — trust (信) and empathy (仁).
- 视卒如婴儿，故可与之赴深溪；
视卒如爱子，故可与之俱死。 — 地形 - 厚而不能使，爱而不能令，乱而不能治，譬若骄子，不可用也。 — 地形
A general’s bond with her soldiers, built on trust (信), form the foundation of her leadership. When she is sincere and values the soldiers as her own children, they will give their loyalty and entrust their lives to her in battle. She knows however not to spoil her soldiers.
- 卒未亲附而罚之，则不服，不服则难用也。
卒已亲附而罚不行，则不可用也。 — 行军 - 令素行以教其民，则民服；令不素行以教其民，则民不服。
令素行者，与众相得也。 — 行军
Without trust, soldiers will doubt the general’s commands and she will fail to discipline them, rendering the soldiers ineffective in battle.
- 九地之变，屈伸之利，人情之理，不可不察。 — 九地
- 将军之事：静以幽，正以治。 — 九地
- 投之无所往，死且不北，死焉不得，士人尽力。
兵士甚陷则不惧，无所往则固。深入则拘，不得已则斗。 — 九地 - 犯之以事，勿告以言；犯之以利，勿告以害。 — 九地
The general should have a keen understanding of human nature (仁). She knows how to galvanise her troops in different situations, and while her soldiers trust in her leadership, she is careful to manage information that could affect their morale or overall effectiveness in battle.
- 故进不求名，退不避罪，唯人是保，而利合于主，国之宝也。 — 地形
- 故将有五危：必死，可杀也；必生，可虏也；
忿速，可侮也；廉洁，可辱也；爱民，可烦也。 — 九变 - 夫惟无虑而易敌者，必擒于人。 — 行军
- 主不可以怒而兴师，将不可以愠而致战 。 — 火攻
A leader puts the interest of the state before herself. She is cautious of her human weaknesses that could cause her to make tactical errors to the detriment of her state and army.
