The Art of War: Warrior Rules - winning by comparing positions

Four rules on why openings must be created by the environment instead of our own actions.

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This article describes how when we think we can create our own opportunities, we are confusing internal control with external openings. Within our span of control, we can always improve ourselves and our operations in terms of efficiency and effectiveness. The problem is that these improvements may or may not have any affect upon our external position, which is realm of opportunity. Only external conditions make our internal improvements valuable to others. The problem is that we do not create or control these conditions in our competitive environment. We especially cannot control the "openings" in the environment that represent opportunities. Whether we think about these openings as open spaces or as unfulfilled psychological needs, efforts to create opportunities always waste resources. They are driven by the illusion of control.