The primary reason that I teach strategy is to help people make better decisions and to help them understand that they chart the course of their own lives. However, our freedom over our own lives is predicated on freedom. War is but a tool. People can fight to free others but they can also fight to enslave others. The economy is a beautiful alternative to war: allowing people to compete with one another in a productive rather than a destructive way.

Alan, our trainer in S. California, sends a llink to this article about the moves that China is making to position itself for the future. Can you spot which U.S. weakenesses China is targeting and the source of those weaknesses?

An important part of Sun Tzu's strategy is the amplifying effect of growing networks. I call this effect, the "power curve." For Sun Tzu, reputation, innovation, momentum, esprit d'corps, and many other elements of strategy depend on the power curve, which are generally misunderstood among a general population that prefers to think in staight lines.

Sun Tzu list the elements important to a strategic position in their order of priority: 1) philosophy, 2) climate, 3) ground, 4) leadership, and 5) methods. When it comes to conflict, philosophical battles trump climate/ground battles and climate/ground battles trump leadership/methods battles.

While it is often the overreaction to an attack the creates more problems than the initial attack, responding correctly and instantly to an attack will usually defuse the attack. The Art of War lists five targets of attack, five types of attack, and five appropriate responses, but the best action is to strike while your opponent is still laying plans.