How to better read, understand and apply The Art of War?

“The Art of War” is a military strategy book written by the Chinese author Sun Tzu more than 2,500 years ago. This is a classic and is considered one of the greatest books ever written on the subject. How to understand and use “The Art of War” by Sun Tzu? Without rushing into the answer, let’s first look at the 4 mistakes you need to avoid when understanding and applying Sun Tzu’s Art of War.

1.Distort the original intention

The first and biggest mistake is to misinterpret Sun Tzu’s wishes or graft your own understanding onto Sun Tzu.

For example, Sun Tzu mentioned in Sun Tzu’s Art of War that “conquering the enemy without fighting“, and a Japanese Sun Tzu researcher said that The Art of War does not teach people to fight. Sun Tzu advocates pacifism and non-war doctrine. This view is even pursued by many people.

I don’t think Sun Tzu had much luck; if he had lived, the Nobel Peace Prize would have been awarded to him in the first place.

In fact, this is completely inconsistent with Sun Tzu’s original intention. If Sun Tzu is non-war and pacifist, then why did he write Sun Tzu’s Art of War? Why should the art of war be written so superbly and admirably? Thus the very fact that Sun Tzu wrote the Art of War refutes this argument.

If you want to really understand why Sun Tzu advocates “victory without fighting”, you can read the following article.

Meaning of Sun Tzu win without fighting-Original text, explanations and examples

2.Simplify The Art of War

People tend to reduce The Art of War to a guiding principle on trickery and guile, especially the phrase “All warfare is based on deception”.

The Art of War is indeed about guile, but guile is only part of the Art of War, not the whole of it.

The Art of War is a comprehensive system, an organic system that includes military, political and other considerations.

3.Quoting mechanically regardless of the actual situation

Many people in today’s society associate Sun Tzu’s The Art of War with business and business management, trying to match military principles exactly with business management principles, which is suspected of being a mechanical application, because the Art of War and business have different goals and values.

The Art of War is about the use of troops, an art of life-and-death struggle on the battlefield. The purpose of war is to destroy the enemy and preserve oneself, and war is to win alone.And business should be about integrity, to talk about win-win, multi-win.

Some of the principles in Sun Tzu’s Art of War can indeed shed some light on business or management. We need to consider carefully when linking the Art of War to business; not all principles of the Art of War are applicable to business, but rather we need to judge which principles are applicable and which are not on the specific circumstances.

4.Exaggerate and deify Sun Tzu’s Art of War

The Art of War has sometimes been over-exaggerated, and people even cite some unrealistic examples to make people reverent and mesmerized by The Art of War.

For example, there is a rumor that when George Bush Sr. was in the Gulf War, he kept two books at his bedside, one of which was The Art of War, and he often read a few pages of it, just like George Bush Sr.’s personal bodyguard. This is a completely unsubstantiated rumor.There is also talk of the US Marines each having a copy of Sun Tzu’s Art of War, and the truth is that Sun Tzu’s Art of War is indeed part of the curriculum at something like West Point, like reading Selouswitz’s A Treatise on War. The Art of War is not so mythical.

How to apply Sun Tzu’s Art of War?

Instead of rigidly adhering to dogma, apply the principles flexibly. What you do may deviate from the principles on the surface, but in reality it is still in line with the core spirit of the principles. This means that the principles can be applied flexibly in specific practices without having to stereotypically apply them.

Create new principles and methods based on established principles and laws, and develop new wisdom and strategies with the times.

These principles can be viewed as an advanced application of Sun Tzu’s Art of War, treating them as ancient philosophical principles rather than simple dogmas or labels. This understanding helps to better respond to changing situations and gain an advantage in the competitive modern society.