.jpg)
Principle 1: Confusion
Your enemy should not know which way to go, nor be able topredict your next move
Confusion begets hesitation, making him wonder what could happen and what he should do will exhaust resources. There are many written and unwritten rules of conversation and interpersonal communication.
People expect you to follow those rules. If you break them, they will quickly become confused. Confusion is invoked when the enemy expects a particular thing to happen but something else happens instead. This includes nothing happening when, for example, an attack was expected. Unpredictability invoked confusion just as much. Let him second-guess you as often as possible. T
he most common way of confusing someone is simply to overload them. Just keep striking until they crack. It is especially effective if what you are saying/doing is of interest and makes them think & want to respond. 'Gaslighting' in social situations is a very powerful way to confuse people and gain power.
Subthread on gaslighting:
Gaslighting subthread
Break your past patterns, so that his predictions turn wrong. Let him study your past moves, but not use them against you. Making his counter-attacks, counter-productive.
Principle 2: Demoralization
Drain the enemy of morale, encourage surrender
Morale in warfare is instrumental. Smaller, weaker players can and have, many times, defeated much stronger enemies that have been carefully demoralized beforehand. Overload is multiplied when what is being communicated is complex or difficult to understand. This effectively shortens the time to the point where the other person becomes overloaded and needs to stop and process the information given to them.
Soldiers who lose spirit will be either indisposed to put up a worthy fight or drop their arms altogether. Demoralized officers will equally elude battle. Demoralization also works with the population of the countries at war. If they support the war, then there will be numerous volunteers and a lot of support for a belligerent authority.
Conversely, if the population believes the war is unjustified or insurmountable, then any political party supporting the war will be seen as arrogant and out of touch with its electorate. There's many ways of demoralizing the opposition. The trick is to inflict a sort of 'death by a thousand cuts' here, by constant attacks on their confidence.
Unpredictable defeat is a major demoralizing force. When a weaker enemy outmaneuvers you with a smarter strategy you'll feel like shit. Similarly, a superior opponent who keeps you guessing can lead you to fear humiliation or terrifying defeat at any time.
Do not let the opposing party rest for a single moment in argument, let them think they are winning, sure, but snatch victory from them at the last instant. Show them your intellect and let them think you can beat them at any time.
Principle 3: Debilitation
Gain advantage by disabling key capabilities
Removing ability creates weakness, which can be taken advantage of in numerous ways. It also removes threats and can result in the enemy losing strategic advantages.
Strike your enemies deaf, dumb and blind. Eliminate their communication. Attack aerodromes and artilery positions to hinder long-distance defenses & air capabilities, blockade ports & roads, keep their transport trapped.
Practical
In negotiation prevent them from using particular arguments, for example by gaslighting (mentioned above in Principle 1: Confusion).
Principle 4: Discipline
Your men ought to be strictly disciplined
A disciplined army is efficient on the march and in camp. They follow orders with promptness and are sharp in action. Courageous in battle, effective and coordinated. Know the importance of rest & appropriately utilize relaxation. Prepare them to always be alert, so that they can snap into full action at a momen'ts notice.
Practical
Prepare your arguments before the debate. Know the likely actions of the other side and have counters ready to their moves. Do not be aroused by their trickery and stick to your plans. As necessary, pull back and rethink.
Principle 5: Disintegration
The good old Divide and Conquer
Large, coordinated forces are difficult to defeat. Therefore separate your enemy, pick them off one-by one. Separation cuts them off from one another, making communication and coordination difficult. Units which are cut off cannot even call for help. Dividing them also could deprive them of supply if they relied on allies for certain resources, two birds one stone. Use propaganda and misinformation to sow dissention in their ranks (and population), dividing their thinking from within. Thus driving a wedge into the main force, separating parts of their main battlefield army.
You could also take risks and divide your own forces, attacking enemies on several fronts so they have to divide their attention to counter your action. Luring away focus from your main force. By disintegrating yourself, you can attract their attention in the direction you want them to look. Move your army along unexpected routes, attack from unexpected angles, make noise, create explosions.
Practical
In negotiation, push multiple demands/arguments, forcing them to divide their attention. In a presentation to a group, talk to individuals beforehand to get them each on a different side. In the group setting it should then be just a matter of rubber-stamping your request.
Principle 6: Distraction
Distract them so you can act as you wish
Procrastination is a form self-distraction. You move yourself away from things you do not want to do in that moment, and do more 'important' or pleasant things instead. Life is constant war. That's not all it is, but it is always that. Be wary of being at war with yourself. When you distract your opponent's attention, you are free to slip around his guard. People have limited attention, especially in the 21st century. When something attracts attention, it means another area is being neglected, leaving opening for attacks.
Make the area where you want to hide (something), uninteresting or 'too common' so that they may not care to look there. Involve stealth & camouflage. Distraction is used by everyone and no one. A classic physical method often used by pickpockets, where they apply sharp pressure to one part of your body, distracting your (very localised) attention whilst slipping another gentle hand into your pocket.
Hypnothic suggestion
Distraction is often used in hypnotherapy. The hypnotherapist talks about some triviality with the client or otherwise gets their conscious mind engaged in some problem while they put the real message through to the subconscious mind. Illusionists do the same visually, providing movement and color where they want you to look, whilst palming the coin or doing the real business with the other hand.
This principle of suggestion can be used without deep trance and in ordinary conversation. By emphasising key words, you can give two meanings at once: the apparent meaning and the subtle meaning.
Practical
In negotiation, conceal your true goals. Put a lot of attention on a particular area, distract them to pay attention there and make them 'bargain you down' on this unimportant area. Then slip in what you really want as an 'acceptable compromise'. The harder arts, like Karate and Kung Fu will deliberately distract you for a moment, such as with a noisy foot-stamp or sudden movement to your face, whilst speeding through with the real power punch.
Generals use this principle often; there are many classic military strategies based on distraction. E.g. striking at a weak point, making the other side rush support to the even more weakened one, then applying the main force to the point the enemy has just abandoned.
Martial artists do it too. At least in the softer arts, such as Tai Chi and Aikido. Like the pickpockets, they apply sharper pressure at one point to make you resist, and then move you where they want with a gentle palm.
Principle 7: Erosion
Wear them out
Drain their energy until they no longer want to fight.
Invoke erosion by making your adversary move large distances, force their moves over difficult terrain. Attack subjects that they don't know much about, dismiss the subjects they know more about (see gaslighting).
We all have a limited amount of energy, both physical and mental. When you are surprised and when you have to act, you expend energy. When your hopes are dashed and expectations confused, your spirit is drained. Eventually you become tired, you just want to give in and go home.
Practical
In negotiation, use nibbling and any of the many other tactics to keep them on their toes and wear them down. Let sales people invest time with you so they become desperate to get a payoff in terms of a sale that they give you a better deal.
Principle 8: Fear
Create fear such that they seek to avoid you
Fear in warfare is a most debilitating condition that leads to abject flight, paralysis and suing for peace. It can also lead to a nothing-to-lose all-out last stand, and thus needs to be managed carefully. One way of invoking fear is through display of overwhelming might. If the enemy sees that you can destroy him utterly with little loss, then he will fear you. Showing a predilection for using that might, multiplies the fear.
Sudden fear can invoke the Fight-or-Flight response. More effective can be the cold, gnawing fear that erodes and saps the will to fight. If the adversary believes you will show no mercy or actively enjoy harming and torturing them, they will fear you more. Uncertainty will also create fear. If they cannot predict what you will do next then their imagination will work overtime, dreaming up all kinds of horrors.
Practical
In negotiation or argument you could throw a fit of anger about something they would not expect you to be angry about, teach them to fear your ire. We all know someone who can become angry in an instant for seemingly no reason. It is uncomfortable to be around.
And if they cannot predict when or where you will strike, they will constantly look over their shoulder, growing deeply weary in the process.
Principle 9: Generosity
If you are generous towards you enemies, their experience of you may turn out to be the opposite of what they were told, where you may have been portrayed as a heartless barbarian.
In the face of your concern, it is likely they develop good feelings towards you, and in doing so will tell others on their side, spreading the word of your good name. As a result, they may fight with less vigor and give in more easily, confident that you will treat them fairly. In victory, be magnanimous, sparing lives and tending to the injured. When you capture them, be civil and treat them well, with dignity. With care, you can use brainwashing techniques to convert them to your version of the truth. Generosity is its own propaganda. The Mongols (after Genghis) seemed to do well with this, allowing multiple religions, sparing artisans, craftsmen, and hiring them to prosper in their cities.
Practical
In negotiation, concede on a point that is of moderate importance to them, but not necessarily to you. Watch them give back. Reciprocity.
Principle 10: Intelligence
The side that knows most (usually) wins
Intelligence about your opponent's strategy, plans, weapons, positions, movements etc. enables you to make effective tactical and strategic decisions & avoid fatal moves.
Managing intelligence also includes the supply of disinformation to the other side in order to trick them into making the wrong decisions. This one I can personally assure you of. In fact, this was of bigger importance than intel gathering in the KGB.
Military Intelligence is a critical principle. Wartime decisions play with the lives of thousands of soldiers and eventually millions of citizens and the fate of nations. The truth of facts and observations on which decisions are made has a highly significant effect.
In WW2 enormous efforts went into gathering information through spies across Europe, local resistance movements, intercepted messages, etc. This activity, coupled with clever disinformation tactics & massive public encouragement to protect information, this unquestionably also led to the final outcome.
Practical
Before negotiations and arguments begin, do your research about the other party, what motivates them, what they want and how they might react to your arguments. In the discussions, test your understanding and update it with your discoveries about them.
Principle 11: Overwhelm
Show & use far greater force than the enemy
If you have superior power than your enemy, then by simple application of that power, you can overwhelm them, as an avalanche overwhelms a forest in its path. Power can be held in several dimensions, so it is important to use your superiority directly against the opposing weakness.
Overwhelming the enemy is one of the simplest approaches, where the pitched battle between troops of roughly equal ability and motivation is won by the largest army. Quite simply, the last man standing determines the victor, even though this may still be a Pyrrhic victory. If you have superior power than your enemy, then by simple application of that power, you can overwhelm them, as an avalanche overwhelms a forest in its path.
If you have more soldiers, engage them in battle. If you have greater firepower, fire upon their artillery. If you have superior technology, use this to attack them with greater accuracy from afar. Sometimes the best way of using overwhelming power is in display, a bluff of sorts. When your enemy hears your swords beating your shields and sees the mass of your troops, they may quail in their boots and concede without fighting.
Practical
One way of using overwhelming power in argument is to demonstrate a high level of intellect, for example in a comprehensive dismemberment of their argument, showing in excruciating detail how they are intellectually inferior.
Another form of overwhelm is simply in energy. As you put forward your points with great enthusiasm and question every detail they portray, they may well give up in the realization that your terrier personality will exhaust them before they persuade you of their arguments. BDE.
Principle 12: Provocation
Make them angry so they act impetuously
When a person is angry, they will seek to fight, and the more enraged they become, the greater will that desire for battle be. Especially if they're low IQ, as @TellYourSonThis mentioned once, the lower IQ, the quicker the resort to violence. When a person is insulted or their sense of identity is otherwise damaged, they become angry and triggered. A smaller force can easily inflict defeat on a larger force The commander of the larger force may well become enraged and seek revenge.
Insults may also be delivered by various means, for example seducing an adversary's trustee, calling them out on dirt in their past, identifying cracks in their narrative etc. The greater the ego of your opponent, the easier it is to shatter them, enrage and manipulate them. In everyday argument, anger is also often a losing strategy and winding up the other person can be an easy way to derail them.
Principle 13: Sacrifice
Do whatever it takes, including loss of life
When your opponents show themselves ready to make sacrifices, it can be both bewildering and terrifying. Sacrifice in the form of giving up territory or other gains is confusing as the other side wonders. 'Is it weakness, or a ploy?' 'Perhaps a lure or to attack elsewhere?' Sacrifice in terms of giving up life in exchange for military gains shows an ultimate determination that is both fearsome and demoralizing. Think strategically and be ready to expend life in order to get military gain. Sometimes losing life now saves more lives later.
When fighting, do so with great ferocity. Face firing with determination and no signs of fear. Encourage pawns to die for the cause. Promise reward in the afterlife and good support for those left behind. Acclaim those who went on suicide missions as heroes. For example During the second world war the Japanese kamikazi pilots terrorized not only American ships but all those who opposed Japan. 9/11 attacks were very effective in drawing America and its allies into war and hence polarizing and radicalizing certain target groups.
Practical
In argument, be prepared to capitulate on some point and situations if you can use this for a greater future gain.
For this you need to think and see multiple moves ahead.
Chess.
Principle 14: Seamlessness
Show no cracks
You are as strong as the weakest link in your defense. The enemy will probe your defenses to test their efficacy and seek out the weak points and attack these with vigor. You are also as strong in offense as the weakest part of your attack. When besieged, ensure to cover all angles with sufficient firepower to repel all potential attacks. In offense use a layer of defense to defend the advancing troops. Keep appropriate defenses on the sides and behind in readiness for the enemy's flanking attacks.
In attacks advance with a consistent wall of weaponry and troops so, as you tighten the noose, there is no escape for your enemy.
Practical
In argument, present only evidence with a consistent level of evidence to back it up. Beware of the other side destroying your position by attacking weak minor points.
Principle 15: Speed
Be quicker, react faster
No matter how powerful you are, if you cannot land a punch or the other person gets in first, you're doomed. Speed conquers might. Avoiding the attacks of others & also getting effective attacks in and then getting out again before the other person can respond is equals victory.
Speed multiples the damage of an attack. Newton noted that force equals mass times acceleration. It increases emotional shock, as the suddenness of your attack causes surprise and fear. Train rigorously so you can react at maximum speed. Use small group numbers who can move quickly. Sheer speed makes up for many weaknesses. If you can react in time to unexpected attacks, then you need less defensive power.
If you can read the other side's moves before they move, then you can move before they do with the illusion of lightning reflexes. Martial artists often appear to be quick merely because they read the intent of others beforehand. Armies can also appear fast when they pre-empt the enemy. If you give the other person no time to think and argue then they will not be able to think and argue, and your points will stand unchallenged. If you respond immediately and powerfully to their comments, they will be left reeling and impotent.
Practical
Speed in argument, just as speed in war can disempower and confuse the other side, and sometimes may not even need to make sense as the psychological impact suffices to win the day.
.jpg)
