Category: 3 – SHELF it (All Categories are 1 – Read ASAP!, 2 – BUY it!, 3 – SHELF it, 4 – SOMEDAY it)
Comments: I am guessing the original (Chinese) version is one with stories behind the principles. My audio book was a short 1 hour 2o minute listen with a summary of principles. Thanks to the absence of stories, they didn’t really stick. Age old war wisdom though.
Top 3 learnings:
1. You only move as a general when your odds are favorable. Bravado is foolish. At every point, it’s about staying rational and improving your odds. A general is not the same as warrior..
2. Everything in life is about a few basic things. 3 basic colors give rise to a whole spectrum of colors – similarly, war (and, as an extension, everything else) has a few very basic principles. Ensure you know them well.
3. Control of communication and discipline is incredibly important if managing large groups. “Never attack an army whose banners are upright.”
Marler's Observatory 