Comments on Sun Tzu’s The
Art of War, edited by Dick Cooledge, Comptche Press, 1927.
Sun Tzu: “Therefor
measure in terms of five things, use these assessments to make comparisons, and
thus find out what the conditions are. The five things are the way, the
weather, the terrain, the leadership, and discipline.”
Raven: “The act
of measuring is the making of an analogy. When we know what we need to know, we
can ask for the right information to make good analogies. Because we have lived
and shared our stories we can make comparisons between them and thus appear
wiser even if we know very little. Accepting that we know little is the first
step in preparing for success.”
Poor Richard: “Since
customers’ likes and dislikes can shift as fast as New England weather, the
prudent merchant learns the landscape, studies trends, and gets to know his
customers before he invests in inventory or hires help. Using foresight, he sleeps soundly
rather than waking in panic.”
© Phyl Speser, December
29, 2013