35 Sun Tzu Quotes from The Art of War (The #3 Is So Powerful)

When I was a kid, I was obsessed with Sun Tzu’s ‘The Art of War.’

I started my first company at 13 years old as a game. It was a magazine about video games that quickly grew to be one of the biggest in Italy, my home country.

In the same period, I got interested in self-help.

Stumbling from one blog to another, one of these past versions of Tai Lopez was talking about the importance of books. How much the wealthiest and most influential people in the world were reading.

I got fascinated and started to read more, mostly books about business to apply to my growing company.

Among the others, however, the Art of War has been one of my favorites and influenced my life enormously. I still apply its wisdom to this day.

On this page, I will share my favorite quote from the oldest military treatise that we know of. Read on!

Who Was Sun Tzu?

Sun Tzu, the author of ‘The Art of War’ (roughly 771 to 476 BC), was a military strategist, Chinese general, and philosopher. He lived during the Eastern Zhou period of ancient China.

To date, ‘The Art of War’ is still the most influential strategy treatise in East Asian warfare. It also has a profound influence on both Western and Eastern business tactics, military thinking, and beyond.

It is composed of 13 chapters. Each one is devoted to a different of warfare and how that applies to military strategy and tactics.

Best Sun Tzu Quotes

1. 1. “A leader leads by example, not by force.” – Sun Tzu

   2. “Supreme excellence consists of breaking the enemy’s resistance without fighting.” – Sun Tzu

   3. “If you know the enemy and know yourself, you need not to fear the result of a hundred battles. If you know yourself but not the enemy, for every victory gained you will also suffer a defeat. If you know neither the enemy nor yourself, you will succumb in every battle.” – Sun Tzu

   4. “Appear weak when you are strong, and strong when you are weak.”  ― Sun Tzu

   5. “Let your plans be dark and impenetrable as night, and when you move, fall like a thunderbolt.” ― Sun Tzu

   6. “Regard your soldiers as your children, and they will follow you into the deepest valleys; look on them as your own beloved sons, and they will stand by you even unto death.” – Sun Tzu

   7. “In the midst of chaos, there is also opportunity” ― Sun Tzu

   8. “All warfare is based on deception. Hence, when able to attack, we must seem unable; when using our forces, we must seem inactive; when we are near, we must make the enemy believe we are far away; when far away, we must make him believe we are near.” – Sun Tzu

   9. “When the enemy is relaxed, make them toil. When full, starve them. When settled, make them move.” ― Sun Tzu

   10. “So in war, the way is to avoid what is strong, and strike at what is weak.”  ― Sun Tzu

   11. “Who wishes to fight must first count the cost” ― Sun Tzu

   12. “To win one hundred victories in one hundred battles is not the acme of skill. To subdue the enemy without fighting is the acme of skill.” ― Sun Tzu

   13. “Be extremely subtle even to the point of formlessness. Be extremely mysterious even to the point of soundlessness. Thereby you can be the director of the opponent’s fate.” ― Sun Tzu

   14. “He who is prudent and lies in wait for an enemy who is not will be victorious.” ― Sun Tzu

   15. “Engage people with what they expect; it is what they are able to discern and confirms their projections. It settles them into predictable patterns of response, occupying their minds while you wait for the extraordinary moment — that which they cannot anticipate.” – Sun Tzu

   16. “If your enemy is secure at all points, be prepared for him. If he is in superior strength, evade him. If your opponent is temperamental, seek to irritate him. Pretend to be weak, that he may grow arrogant. If he is taking his ease, give him no rest. If his forces are united, separate them. If sovereign and subject are in accord, put a division between them. Attack him where he is unprepared, appear where you are not expected.” – Sun Tzu

   17. “Move swift as the Wind and closely-formed as the Wood. Attack like the Fire and be still as the Mountain.” – Sun Tzu

   18. “Even the finest sword plunged into salt water will eventually rust.” – Sun Tzu

   19. “Opportunities multiply as they are seized.” – Sun Tzu

   20. “There are not more than five musical notes, yet the combinations of these five give rise to more melodies than can ever be heard. There are not more than five primary colors, yet in combination, they produce more hues than can ever be seen. There are not more than five cardinal tastes, yet combinations of them yield more flavors than can ever be tasted.” – Sun Tzu

   21. “He will win who knows when to fight and when not to fight.” – Sun Tzu

   22. “Invincibility lies in the defense; the possibility of victory in the attack.” – Sun Tzu

   23. “The quality of decision is like the well-timed swoop of a falcon which enables it to strike and destroy its victim.” – Sun Tzu

   24. “Be extremely subtle, even to the point of formlessness. Be extremely mysterious, even to the point of soundlessness. Thereby you can be the director of the opponent’s fate.” – Sun Tzu

   25. “Know yourself and you will win all battles.” – Sun Tzu

   26. “Strategy without tactics is the slowest route to victory. Tactics without strategy are the noise before defeat.” – Sun Tzu

   27. “The whole secret lies in confusing the enemy so that he cannot fathom our real intent.” ― Sun Tzu

   28. “Victory usually goes to the army who has better-trained officers and men.” – Sun Tzu

   29. “The opportunity to secure ourselves against defeat lies in our own hands, but the opportunity of defeating the enemy is provided by the enemy himself.” – Sun Tzu

   30. “If you are far from the enemy, make him believe you are near.” – Sun Tzu

   31. If the mind is willing, the flesh could go on and on without many things. – Sun Tzu

   32. To know your Enemy, you must become your Enemy. – Sun Tzu

   33. Keep your friends close, and your enemies closer. – Sun Tzu

   34. There is no instance of a country having benefited from prolonged warfare. – Sun Tzu

   35. Engage people with what they expect; it is what they are able to discern and confirms their projections. It settles them into predictable patterns of response, occupying their minds while you wait for the extraordinary moment — that which they cannot anticipate. – Sun Tzu

What is your favorite quote from Sun Tzu? Comment below!