Strategy Quotes

I need you to be clever, Bean. I need you to think of solutions to problems we haven't seen yet. I w...

The only teacher that's worth anything to you is your enemy.

The Warrior knows that no man is an island.He cannot fight alone; whatever his plan, he depends on o...

Many problems can be solved by a man not frightened by them.

If your enemy offers you two targets, strike at a third.

Always leave a way out, unless you really want to find out how hard a man can fight when he’s nothin...

It is a good thing to make a bridge of gold to a flying enemy

A successful economic development strategy must focus on improving the skills of the area's workforc...

Those moments when we learn that mothers rage and fathers kill, that friends betray and authority is...

If he is taking his ease, give him no rest. If his forces are united, separate them.

The art of war is the art of deception.

If equally matched, we can offer battle; if slightly inferior in numbers, we can avoid the enemy; if...

All men can see these tactics whereby I conquer, but what none can see is the strategy out of which ...

If he sends reinforcements everywhere, he will everywhere be weak.

When one treats people with benevolence, justice, and righteoousness, and reposes confidence in them...

Thus, what is of supreme importance in war is to attack the enemy's strategy.

In the midst of chaos, there is also opportunity

For should the enemy strengthen his van, he will weaken his rear; should he strengthen his rear, he ...

If, on the other hand, in the midst of difficulties we are always ready to seize an advantage, we ma...

You can be sure of succeeding in your attacks if you only attack places which are undefended.You can...

Do not swallow bait offered by the enemy. Do not interfere with an army that is returning home.

It is the rule in war, if our forces are ten to the enemy's one, to surround him; if five to one, to...

To begin by bluster, but afterwards to take fright at the enemy's numbers, shows a supreme lack of i...

the opportunity of defeating the enemy is provided by the enemy himself.

Hold out baits to entice the enemy. Feign disorder, and crush him.

Standing on the defensive indicates insufficient strength; attacking, a superabundance of strength.

Whoever is first in the field and awaits the coming of the enemy, will be fresh for the fight; whoev...

The good fighters of old first put themselves beyond the possibility of defeat, and then waited for ...

Know the enemy, know yourself and victory is never in doubt, not in a hundred battles.

When the common soldiers are too strong and their officers too weak, the result is INSUBORDINATION.

There are roads which must not be followed, armies which must be not attacked, towns which must not ...

When the officers are too strong and the common soldiers too weak, the result is COLLAPSE.

The principle on which to manage an army is to set up one standard of courage which all must reach.

If your opponent is of choleric temper, seek to irritate him. Pretend to be weak, that he may grow a...

We are not fit to lead an army on the march unless we are familiar with the face of the country -- i...

Conceal your dispositions, and your condition will remain secret, which leads to victory;  show your...

He wins his battles by making no mistakes.Making no mistakes is what establishes the certainty of vi...

it is better to recapture an army entire than to destroy it, to capture a regiment, a detachment or ...

Danger has a bracing effect.

These military devices, leading to victory, must not be divulged beforehand.

5,6. The Moral Law causes the people to be in complete accord with their ruler, so that they will fo...

The rising of birds in their flight is the sign of an ambuscade. Startled beasts indicate that a sud...

5,6. The Moral Law causes the people to be in complete accord with their ruler, so that they will fo...

If we wish to wrest an advantage from the enemy, we must not fix our minds on that alone, but allow ...

So long as victory can be attained,  stupid haste is preferable to clever dilatoriness.

If we wish to fight, the enemy can be forced to an engagement even though he be sheltered behind a h...

first lay plans which will ensure victory, and then lead your army to battle;  if you will not begin...

mystify, mislead, and surprise the enemy

Be stern in the council-chamber, [Show no weakness, and insist on your plans being ratified by the s...

Therefore the clever combatant imposes his will on the enemy, but does not allow the enemy's will to...

The whole secret lies in confusing the enemy, so that he cannot fathom our real intent.

Success in warfare is gained by carefully accommodating ourselves to the enemy's purpose.

Great results, can be achieved with small forces.

There are roads which must not be followed, armies which must not be attacked, towns which must not ...

Therefore, just as water retains no constant shape, so in warfare there are no constant conditions.

When the outlook is bright, bring it before their eyes; but tell them nothing when the situation is ...

Attack him where he is unprepared, appear where you are not expected.

who wishes to fight must first count the cost

If his forces are united, separate them.

To win one hundred victories in one hundred battles is not the acme of skill. To subdue the enemy wi...

When you surround an army, leave an outlet free. Do not press a desperate foe too hard.

Rewards for good service should not be deferred a single day.

If your enemy is secure at all points, be prepared for him. If he is in superior strength, evade him...

All warfare is based on deception. Hence, when we are able to attack, we must seem unable; when usin...

Let your plans be dark and impenetrable as night, and when you move, fall like a thunderbolt.

The supreme art of war is to subdue the enemy without fighting.

You can be sure of succeeding in your attacks if you only attack places which are undefended.

the worst calamities that befall an army arise from hesitation

If there is disturbance in the camp, the general's authority is weak. 

When your army has crossed the border, you should burn your boats and bridges, in order to make it c...

If you do not take opportunity   to   advance and reward   the   deserving,   your subordinates will...

Knowing the enemy enables you to take the offensive, knowing yourself enables you to stand on the de...

A clever general, therefore, avoids an army when its spirit is keen, but attacks it when it is slugg...

At first, then, exhibit the coyness of a maiden,  until the enemy gives you an opening; afterwards e...

If those who are sent to draw water begin by drinking themselves, the army is suffering from thirst....

Through you we learn to be invisible, through you inaudible; and hence we can hold the enemy's fate ...

Ground on which we can only be saved from destruction by fighting without delay, is desperate ground...

Victorious warriors win first and then go to war, while defeated warriors go to war first and then s...

Bravery without forethought, causes a man to fight blindly and desperately like a mad bull.  Such an...

When an invading force crosses a river in its onward march, do not advance to meet it in mid-stream....

If you know the enemy and know yourself, you need not fear the result of a hundred battles. If you k...

There are not more than five primary colors  (blue, yellow,  red, white, and black), yet in combinat...

do many calculations lead to victory, and few calculations to defeat

Whether in an advantageous position or a disadvantageous one, the opposite state should be always pr...

Rouse him, and learn the principle of his activity or inactivity. Force him to reveal himself, so as...

who does not know the evils of war cannot appreciate its benefits

We cannot enter into alliances until we are acquainted with the designs of our neighbors.

He will win who, prepared himself, waits to take the enemy unprepared.

You can ensure the safety of your defense if you only hold positions that cannot be attacked.

If your opponent is of choleric temper,  seek to irritate him.  Pretend to be weak, that he may grow...

if you fight with all your might,  there is a chance of life; where as death is certain if you cling...

Travel becomes a strategy for accumulating photographs.

That should have been my strategy! By the time I’ve worked through the emotions of surprise, admirat...

It is a long-cherished tradition among a certain type of military thinker that huge casualties are t...

Make foes of bowmen if you must,Never of penmen.

I find that the harder I work , the more luck I seem to have.

Sometimes, sitting here in the dark, slowly slowly creating strategy, she wondered if she was only f...

If someone offer you an opportunity to get closer to your enemy, you always take it.

Who asks whether the enemy was defeated by strategy or valor?

There's only one growth strategy: work hard.