Original Text(~189 words)
Sun Tzu said: In the operations of war, where there are in the field a thousand swift chariots, as many heavy chariots, and a hundred thousand mail-clad soldiers, with provisions enough to carry them a thousand li, the expenditure at home and at the front... will reach the total of a thousand ounces of silver per day. Such is the cost of raising an army of 100,000 men. Sun Tzu addresses the economics of competition. Raising and maintaining a large force is enormously expensive—not just in money but in exhaustion, morale, and opportunity cost. Extended campaigns drain the treasury, exhaust the people, and invite opportunistic attacks from others. The chapter's key insight: 'There is no instance of a country having benefited from prolonged warfare.' Even victors are weakened by long fights. Therefore, the goal should be quick, decisive victory—or avoiding the engagement entirely. Sun Tzu offers a practical solution for sustained campaigns: use the enemy's resources. Foraging from opponent territory is worth twenty times the equivalent brought from home. Capture equipment rather than destroy it. This principle of leveraging opponent resources transforms a draining competition into a self-sustaining one.
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Summary
Sun Tzu addresses the economics of competition. Raising and maintaining a large force is enormously expensive—not just in money but in exhaustion, morale, and opportunity cost. Extended campaigns drain the treasury, exhaust the people, and invite opportunistic attacks from others. The chapter's key insight: 'There is no instance of a country having benefited from prolonged warfare.' Even victors are weakened by long fights. Therefore, the goal should be quick, decisive victory—or avoiding the engagement entirely. Sun Tzu offers a practical solution for sustained campaigns: use the enemy's resources. Foraging from opponent territory is worth twenty times the equivalent brought from home. Capture equipment rather than destroy it. This principle of leveraging opponent resources transforms a draining competition into a self-sustaining one.
That's what happens. To understand what the author is really doing—and to discuss this chapter with confidence—keep reading.
Terms to Know
Prolonged warfare
Extended campaigns that drain resources faster than they can be replenished
Modern Usage:
Price wars, legal battles, talent bidding wars—any competition that bleeds both sides
Foraging on the enemy
Using opponent resources to sustain your campaign
Modern Usage:
Acquiring competitor talent, leveraging their infrastructure, or using their market presence to your advantage
Characters in This Chapter
Sun Tzu
Strategist calculating the economics of competition
Shows that strategy isn't just about winning battles—it's about sustainable victory
Modern Equivalent:
A CFO who understands that winning the wrong way can still destroy a company
Why This Matters
Connect literature to life
Understanding the economics of competition—recognizing when extended fights will drain you regardless of outcome, and finding ways to compete that don't exhaust your resources.
Practice This Today
Audit your current competitive engagements. Which ones are sustainable? Which are draining you? What opponent resources could you leverage instead of building your own?
You have the foundation. Now let's look closer.
Key Quotes & Analysis
"There is no instance of a country having benefited from prolonged warfare."
Context: Warning against extended campaigns that drain resources
Even victory in a prolonged fight leaves you weakened. The winner of a war of attrition is still damaged.
In Today's Words:
Long competitive fights hurt everyone involved—even the 'winner' often loses in the larger picture.
"In war, then, let your great object be victory, not lengthy campaigns."
Context: Emphasizing speed and decisiveness over thoroughness
Efficiency matters more than completeness. A quick win is better than a thorough one that takes too long.
In Today's Words:
Get to the result. A quick 80% victory beats a slow 100% victory.
"Hence a wise general makes a point of foraging on the enemy."
Context: Using opponent resources to sustain your campaign
The genius of using what the opponent has built rather than building your own.
In Today's Words:
Use your competition's investments against them—their talent, their infrastructure, their market awareness.
Intelligence Amplifier™ Analysis
The Road of Sustainable Competition
Structuring competitive engagements so they don't drain you faster than you gain—using opponent resources, seeking quick resolution, or avoiding unsustainable fights entirely.
Thematic Threads
Strategy
In This Chapter
Strategy isn't just about winning—it's about winning sustainably
Development
This economic awareness underlies all of Sun Tzu's tactical advice
In Your Life:
Are you in any competitions that are draining you more than the potential victory is worth?
Wisdom
In This Chapter
The wise general knows when NOT to fight as much as how to fight
Development
This wisdom theme builds toward Chapter 3's emphasis on winning without fighting
In Your Life:
What fights are you in that you should exit?
Modern Adaptation
The Talent War
Following Maya's story...
Maya's startup needs senior engineers. Her competitors—companies with 10x her funding—are offering signing bonuses she can't match. The obvious play is to try to outbid them. But Maya remembers Sun Tzu: 'There is no instance of a country having benefited from prolonged warfare.' A bidding war she can't win will just drain her limited resources. Instead, she changes the game. She recruits from the big companies differently—not by offering more money, but by offering what they can't: ownership, autonomy, meaningful work. She times her recruiting to their post-acquisition integration periods, when talented people are most frustrated. And she 'forages on the enemy': she hires people the big companies have already trained. They paid for the education; she gets the benefit. Within a year, her engineering team includes three senior leaders from much larger competitors. She spent a fraction of what a bidding war would have cost.
The Road
Maya avoids the Road of Prolonged Competition—refusing to fight battles that drain more than they gain
The Map
Her map is Sun Tzu's economics: use opponent resources, avoid unsustainable fights, find asymmetric advantages
Amplification
Sustainable competition means fighting only battles you can afford to win, and using others' investments when possible.
You now have the context. Time to form your own thoughts.
Discussion Questions
- 1
Why do companies still engage in price wars even though everyone knows they're destructive?
analysis • medium - 2
What 'prolonged campaigns' are you currently in—at work or in life? Are they worth the cost?
reflection • deep - 3
How could you 'forage on the enemy' in your current competitive situation?
application • medium
Critical Thinking Exercise
The Cost of Competition
Identify a competitive situation you're engaged in—for a job, a client, a goal. Calculate its true costs.
Consider:
- •What resources (time, money, energy, relationships) is this competition consuming?
- •How long has it been going on? How much longer might it continue?
- •Is the potential victory worth these ongoing costs?
- •What opponent resources could you leverage instead of building your own?
Journaling Prompt
Describe a competition you should exit, and what you'd gain by redeploying those resources elsewhere.
Coming Up Next...
Chapter 3: Attack by Stratagem
What lies ahead teaches us the highest victory is winning without fighting, and shows us the hierarchy of strategic approaches—from worst to best. These patterns appear in literature and life alike.