Tuesday, January 13, 2009

LAW7: GET OTHERS TO DO THE WORK FOR YOU, BUT ALWAYS TAKE THE CREDIT

The book states that you should know how to take advantage of the people around you because this would guarantee you “godlike aura of efficiency and speed”.

Doing everything on one’s own would only get oneself exhausted and impoverished. You should not try to excel in all aspects of your work / task on your own but assign different people who are expert in the parts that you are not talented / knowledgeable of. Pushing yourself to excel in all aspects will only stress you out and will not benefit you. You should never be naïve and try to do everything on your own because there are people who are waiting to take credit of other people, and you are not excused in being their target.

In relation to this law, the story about Nikola Tesla, a Serbian scientist is discussed. Tesla was a brilliant inventor but he is not well-known because he was targeted by other inventors and his inventions were used by them. In other words, although Tesla was the one who invented a lot of things, others got the credits because Tesla was too naïve.

Once again, the essence of this law is that “you should learn to get others to do the work for you while you take the credit, and you appear to be of godlike strength and power”. However, this is just a helping strategy. This law should not be considered as the main basis. Not doing your work and just looking for chances wherein you can take the credits of others would not benefit you at all. This might even lead to total failure.

Yu Chin Hong
Hi18-K

Thursday, January 8, 2009

Law 11: Learn to keep people dependent on you

Everyone wants to have an ultimate power that can control others as one wish to. What makes you powerful is not your skill nor force but your ability to create a relationship of dependence. People can not get rid of you when they need you. When people extremely depend on you, even though they are on the higher position, you hold the power over all of them.

Although you have done something grateful to people and eventually hold power, you can not guarantee the power is totally yours unless you create a relationship of dependence. There are possibilities that you can be replaced by someone who is more skillful, younger, less expensive, and less threatening.

An example of this is the case of Count of Carmagnola. He was the bravest soldier who saved the town of Siena from foreign invasion. As he had grown powerful, he became greedy and threatening. This led him to death because there were so many soldiers who could replace him.

When Bismarck became a deputy in Prussian parliament, he didn’t ally himself with the powerful liberals but with the weak king, Frederick William IV. He made Frederick dependent on him to fight against the powerful parliament. Finally, Bismarck became minister who could control the military and the country.

Thus, in order for you to maintain the power, create a relationship with weak masters not with strong masters because they don’t find you because they are already strong. People usually depend on you whenever they feel that you can secure them. Thus, impress others that you are the only one to secure them and there are no substitutes.

Lee, Hae In
History 18 sec k

Law 22: Use the surrender tactic: transform weakness to power

Surrender is usually a sign of weakness; when someone has had enough and decides that it is best to let him be at the mercy of their enemies rather than face utter annihilation. However, Law 22 states that in surrender one can subtly fall but regroup to fight once again when the tides turn to his favor.

When an aggressor tries to exert power over you, someone whose strength is greater than yours, you often try to fight back regardless of the chance you have against the aggressor. But if one tries to surrender and avoid reacting aggressively, then the aggressor won’t have a reason to use his strength to crush you. Rather, he’ll be apprehensive and be forced to give you time to plot against him and strike in an opportune time.

Metaphorically think of yourself being a rattlesnake, coiling up appearing to surrender but then striking your opponent with venom, killing him slowly.

Same can be thought with the Japanese’s foreign policy around the 1860s. Threatened with the gunboat policy of the Western powers, they decided to open themselves and gain valuable knowledge about the best their rivals have to offer to complement their weaknesses, gradually strengthening their country and thus exerting their own culture in the end without resistance from the West.

The Melians of Melos however decided to wait for their Spartan allies and defy the superior military and naval might of Athens during the Peloponnesian War. The islanders of Melos said that it was the honorable way. This led to their utter demise.

Martyrdom can never bring victory to you, only indirectly through others. Thus this law’s reversal is not a wise option even if the enemy does not respect surrender. Best it is to wait to see the tides of war turn.

Alan Ortiz
HI18 - K