The Art of War the Battle Is Won Before It Is Fought

In The Fine art of War, Sun Tzu says, "Every battle is won before it is ever fought." What does Tzu mean by this? How can you win a battle earlier you lot fight it?

We'll cover how preparation is the key to victory. Learn Tzu'south recommendations for setting the stage for victory.

Every Battle Is Won Before It Is Always Fought

In order to set the stage for victory, yous need to manage both your resources and your forces wisely. Preparation matters: Every battle is won before it is e'er fought.

Wise Resource Management

One fashion a mishandling of resources leads to defeat is through extensive and exhaustive battles. All-encompassing and lengthy operations deplete your reserves. Thus, an intelligent leader will non keep his troops in the field for lengthy periods.

Waging war is like igniting a fire. If the flame burns too hot for too long, it volition burn down itself out.
Similarly, engaging in extended battles without proceeds volition frazzle your resources, including weapons, coin, energy, and food. This will weaken your troops and atomic number 82 to loss.

Therefore, battles should exist swift. Be large and bold, attacking quickly and ferociously, then retreating.

Tactics for Ensuring Aplenty Resources

Utilise your enemy's resource when possible to sustain your troops. Build your armor from your habitation stores, but when y'all win the battle, nourish your bodies with the enemy's food. Feeding off the enemy's food supply has three benefits:

You save your resources for when they are really needed, such as during a lengthy campaign.
You reduce the resources of the enemy, leaving them vulnerable to an attack.
Yous don't have to take food from your homeland, which leaves zilch left for the people and leads to poverty.

Also, have into account that costs of goods near a place of boxing volition inflate, which causes a strain on the locals' finances. This scenario tin can go out a land impoverished equally goods are depleted and spending increases.

For case, if the battlefield is close to dwelling house, local proprietors of goods will raise their prices to do good from the military presence.
As nutrient prices increment, many locals will be unable to afford those goods or overextend their finances to afford them.
Further impacting locals, the supply of goods will be used upwardly quickly past the military. When there is no more than food, the locals volition suffer.
They will have no money available for the procurement of goods from other sources.
Without nutrient and coin, the quality of life for the locals will subtract.

Lengthy campaigns create a negative situation for the homeland, whether the battlefield is nearby or far away.

When resources are depleted through lengthy battles, the people, besides as the military, go exhausted and suffer.
If your country is left in peril without resources or money, at that place will be no ane to support your leadership anymore.
If the armed services acts intelligently, everyone involved, including those at domicile, will benefit.

Taking all of these factors into account, you will testify that every battle is won before information technology is ever fought.

Managing Your Force

You should gather your troops only after an cess of yourself and your enemy has been fabricated and victory is determined the likely upshot. Remember, every battle is won before it is ever fought. If you gather troops also presently and have to redo the activity downward the line when you lot actually need them, the public will be weary and less supportive.

However, gathering the troops is not all that is required to build a strong and successful force. Ensuring that the troops are rewarded for their efforts will breed motivation.

Rewards should exist intentional and earned.
They should be delivered without bias of rank.

Rewards given smartly will encourage the troops to behave in a manner that reaps rewards. On the other hand, rewarding everyone equally or arbitrarily will generate no motivation and deplete your resources.

Likewise, punishments are only as useful equally rewards in edifice the constitution of your force.

Historical Example: Rewards

General Cao Cao was a well-respected and renowned military leader in Chinese history who avidly abided past Sun Tzu's Art of War. Toward the end of the Han dynasty (206 B.C.E. to 220 C.E.), Cao Cao often invaded enemy territories. During these raids, he would learn a trove of valuable treasures, whether rare objects or gilt. Whenever these spoils were retrieved, he would divvy them out to those who showed incredible strength and effort. He was generous with his rewards. Those who did not show infrequent prowess or attempt received nothing. In this style, his soldiers were motivated to work hard, and he was able to be successful in most of his battles.

Historical Instance: Punishments

General Yang Su commanded during the Sui Dynasty (558 to 617 C.E.). He was known for his decisive leadership and swift executions of those who disobeyed his command. In training for boxing, Yang would seek out troublemakers or those who'd erred for execution. This number could be as depression equally 12 men or as high every bit 100.

When it was time to appoint in combat, he would send out hundreds of men to set on the enemy. If they failed, he would execute them and send another group. If they failed, the procedure was repeated. Everyone under his command understood the stakes of failure, and every bit a consequence, they ever fought hard and were oftentimes successful in overtaking their opponents.

A Thoughtful Plan of Assail

Victory is not just winning the boxing. Killing is not the most important thing. Destabilizing your opponent is. If the boxing is won but the opponent'south forces and country are obliterated, that is a lesser victory than if you are able to overcome them and force a surrender.

If you can weaken your opponent'south resolve and force them to concede with their nation intact, your victory is more than successful.
The people will have greater respect for a boxing won with integrity than i won through total destruction.

If you set up your forces and testify your prowess in the v traits, you volition have won the psychological boxing and may avoid a physical i. If the give up comes before a battle is fought, all the improve. Killing should only exist a matter of necessity to survive, not the goal of the mission.

Strike Preemptively to Avoid Battle

Striking preemptively is the best way to win before the battle is always fought. The best time to strike an enemy is when they are involved in preparations. Strike before the enemy is fully mobilized, and they will be unable to fight back. This may prevent a boxing. This strategy involves using intelligence, rather than brawn, to win.

If intelligent strategies don't work, the next strategy is to win through intimidation.

Form alliances to increase your strength to a point where fighting would be ill-brash for your opponent.
Course alliances with the enemy's allies to disrupt the enemy's power.

Ultimate victory is when battle has been thwarted through intelligence or intimidation, in that location has been no destruction, no cities have been seized, and no blood has been shed. Every battle is won before it is always fought, especially those that avoid boxing.

Historical Instance: Every Battle Is Won Earlier It Is Ever Fought

During the Leap and Autumn Era (722 to 481 B.C.E.), when the Zhou dynasty was kickoff to collapse, the state of Jin wanted to overtake the state of Qi, a much smaller state. The Jin sent an emissary to scope out the Qi. The emissary, feigning drunkard aggression, insulted the Qi'due south ruler and tried to force the Qi to condone etiquette. When the Qi did non react to the insult and did not abide the aggressive demand, the emissary returned home and told the Jin leadership that the Qi were alert, cautious, and prepared. Therefore, they should not be attacked at this time. The Qi were able to thwart armed battle through intelligence.

Set up Fairly

However, if strategic, psychological warfare does non pb to an early on solution, then you may be chosen upon to physically attack enemy forces. Attacks should be on enemy forces only, not territories, cities, or civilians.

Prepare alee of time to avoid catastrophe in the field. Sun Tzu says half-dozen months are required to prepare the materials for an assail, including weapons and shelters, to avoid malfunctions and casualties. Don't rush into boxing without starting time ensuring that you're adequately prepared. If yous fight from a place of anger and don't take time to prepare, yous volition be sending your troops to their deaths. Preparing is primal: Every battle is won earlier it is ever fought.

A strategic siege is 1 where your forces are still strong, your resources still ample, and your casualties are nil.

The Rules for Approaching Enemy Forces

If all traits are equal betwixt you and your enemy, in that location are rules for how to go along.

If yous take ten times the troops, you should surround the enemy.

A big differential is needed if you are to enclose them without gaps in the formation.

If your numbers are not big enough to attack, such as only five times larger than those of the enemy, divide your troops into groups.

Apply several groups to broach an attack, and keep a few dorsum to bar against surprise attacks and exploit whatsoever enemy weaknesses you detect every bit the attack progresses.

If you are simply slightly larger, such as a 2-to-1 ratio, divide your troops into two groups.

Utilize one group to depict out the opponent, and employ the other to attack them unexpectedly.

If you are equal in size and ability, deploy strategies to avoid direct combat.

Employ strategies of division to disrupt the enemy's power, so engage in ambushes and surprise attacks.
If this strategy is not possible, go along the defensive and stand up your footing.
Don't get pulled into battle if y'all are not sure of victory.

If you are smaller or weaker, avert conflict and flee.

Again, engaging in battle without the assurance of victory is a foolish strategy.
Later on retreating, build up your defenses and run into to the nourishment of the troops.
Wait for a gap in the enemy's strategy or for the enemy to relax, then strike.

Agreement Advisable Strategy

The strategy of your troops must be malleable based on circumstances. If yous attempt to control the troops merely after conflict has begun, y'all will be thwarted or outmaneuvered. This is one of the reasons that every battle is won earlier it is ever fought.

If y'all know your strengths and abilities and measure them as effective against your opponent, yous can enter disharmonize prepared for anything. If you lot only know your strength and non your opponent's, you will enter conflict blindly.

When you lot understand the essence of your enemy, you will know how to arroyo battle confronting them.
When yous understand your essence, you will know where you are vulnerable and how to mitigate impact.

Historical Case: Knowing When to Fight

At the beginning of the new Tang dynasty (618 to 905 C.E.), the founding ruler wanted to wipe out rebel armies from the quondam Sui dynasty withal on the attack. When the ruler and a beau warrior scouted the rebel ground forces, they saw they were at a disadvantage sizewise. The warrior cautioned that attacking the rebels head on would exist impossible. He suggested fortifying their position to tire them out and deplete their resources. The rebels expended much free energy to instigate a boxing with the Tang and ran out of food past nightfall. When they started to retreat, the Tang regular army followed and overpowered them.

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