This post continues our project explaining each stanza of Sun Tzu’s work. The English translation and Chinese transliterations are from my award-winning book, The Art of War and The Ancient Chinese Revealed.
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This article discusses the third section of Chapter 10 of The Art of War. This chapter’s general topic is the six types of terrain on which we compete. This section’s first stanza compares managing those on the front-line of competition to managing children. The second stanza compares being too generous with them to spoiling children. It is interesting that the concept of spoiling children has been around for over twenty-five hundred years and spans such a variety of cultures.
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Working on the front-lines of competition is among the most emotional challenging forms of work. This includes the roles of a soldier or policeman, but it also includes salespeople and any other job responsible for “fighting” for competing positions. We are all on the front-lines when we are seeking a new job. All these jobs must produce tangible, measurable results that decision-makers can use in order to compare their organization. If the the front-line of competition fails, the whole organization fails.
<Consider> <as> <soldiers> <comparable> <to> <infant> <son>
Think of your soldiers as little children.
These front-line jobs are the most emotional. When the organization comes out second-best in a comparison, these front-line people feel this rejection personally. It is their work that is being judged as second-rate. Most jobs on the front-lines of competition meet a lot more failure than other types of work. This failure is like that of children who constantly try and fail to live up to the expectations of the adults around them.
<Make> <can> <give> <of> <attend> <deep> <brook>
You can make them follow you into a deep river.
The goal is to train those facing competition on the front lines to do difficult things. People fear change and failure, but those on the front-lines face constant change and frequent failure. They must still do their jobs.
<Consider> <as> <soldiers> <comparable> <to> <love> <child>
Treat them as your beloved children.
We must care about the emotions of those on the front lines. Selling, for example, is one of the most emotionally demanding jobs because it involves constant rejection. Salespeople stand at the interface between largely indifferent potential customers and the immediate needs of their organizations. Closing a sale is asking for validation in a more emotionally risky way than any other business transaction. It is not merely order-taking. Rejection in sales is personally painful, much like romantic rejection.
<Make> <can> <give> <of> <all> <death>
You can lead them all to their deaths.
Soldiers and policemen face real death in their jobs, but everyone on the front-lines of competition dies a little when they are rejected. Too many rejections and they will lose their jobs and livelihood. The entire organization depends upon those making sales to succeed. If sales falter, jobs throughout the organization are at risk. A salesperson is an easy person to fire because others can see their effectiveness when compared with other salespeople in sales reports.
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<Generous> <and> <yet> <no> <can> <use>
Some leaders are generous but cannot use their men.
Successful organizations should generously reward those who are instrumental in helping the organization win comparisons with its competitors.. Those on the front-lines of competition are often among the best rewarded people within an organization. However, those rewards should be based upon the difficulties of the job. If the base salaries of those on the front-lines of competition are too generous, these people will feel no urgency to win. They must also win these comparisons on the basis of the organization’s real value. For example, to close sales, salespeople must not make unrealistic promises. They must highlight the true value or the organization’s product or service. Their goal should be not just closing the sale but creating happy customers who will buy again.
<Love> <and> <yet> <no> <can> <command>
They love their men but cannot command them.
The entire organization must appreciate the work of those on the front-lines. They should not be jealous of how well such jobs are rewarded. However, everyone must work to create satisfied customers. For example, salespeople that make sales by offering customers more than the organization can deliver are just creating future problems, not only for themselves, but for everyone else, especially the organization’s leaders.
<Disorder> <and> <yet> <no> <can> <govern>
Their men are unruly and disorganized.
Success on the front-lines is never completely predictable, but the process of competitive comparison must make be as orderly as possible to deal with the chaos of competitions. This starts with finding those for whom our organizations can provide value. It then involves collecting information to compare the fit between what we produce and what others need. We must assure ourselves that those people have the ability to reward us for our efforts. Those on the front-lines must portray the fit between the needs of others, their offering, and the reward expected in a realistic way. If this process is not organized correctly, the chaos of competition becomes even more confusing than it already is.
When those on the frontlines of competition are too well rewarded, the organization will be out of balance. These jobs must reward skill and courage. The world of competition will always be emotionally trying, with winners and losers.
<Compare> <seem> <proud> <child>
These leaders create spoiled children.
We learn important lessons from the competition for front-line players. For example, good salespeople will go elsewhere if they are not well compensated. Organizations attract lazy front-line staff if they overpay them. Our process for hiring and keeping front-lines workers must continuously challenge them to produce results.
<No> <can> <use> <also>
Their soldiers are useless.
There are a great many front-line people that are useless in terms of representing their organization. Some present themselves well enough within the organization to hang on for a time, but the proof of success always comes from outside the organization. When an organization attracts weak front-line representatives, it cannot succeed in its competitive arena.
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