Method notes
This is not a magazine about winning revenue wars. The notes practice one job: is the conflict worth entering, can it end at plan and relationship, where do you stop, and what would make the next cycle better.
The notes cover five jobs: whether to enter, whether force is needed, whether the map is false, how subtraction works, and when to stop the burn. After reading, keep three lines: the judgment, one thing to verify, and when you will review.
Choose by the question, not by the score
Worth entering?
If the five factors are unclear, stay out. Write the burn and the stop date first.
Without force?
Resolving without fighting is the highest good. Change the plan, then the relationship.
Next cycle better?
One judgment, one action, one review. You do not need an enemy to destroy.
Where to start
Already spending? Read Waging War for the stop date. Clash not started? Read Attack by Stratagem. Fact missing? Read the know-yourself note. Five Factors is a stay-out checklist. Subtraction and restraint are in the Tao note.
Crossing the Chasm and Sun Tzu: do not treat the chasm as a city you must take
Heard "cross the chasm or die" and want to force a push to the mainstream? Variation in Tactics asks refuse first. Three checks before you decide.
Moats and Sun Tzu: do not treat your moat as a base for an endless siege
Heard "build a moat" or "AI has no moat" and want to dig wider every quarter? Tactical Dispositions asks hard to defeat first. Three checks first.
Jobs to be Done and Sun Tzu: do not treat every labeled job as a siege
Heard JTBD and job stories, and want to map every job then fight each one? Laying Plans asks stay out first. Three checks before you decide.
Product-led growth and Sun Tzu: do not treat the product as a siege engine
Heard product-led growth and PLG, and want the product itself as the engine? Energy first asks whether you spend fewer. Three checks before you decide.
Network effects and Sun Tzu: do not mistake lock-in for a moat
Heard network effects and lock-in, and want to race for size? The Terrain chapter first asks whether the ground fits. Three checks before you decide.
Found their weak point? That is not a license to strike
Found a gap in a rival, a market, or an argument? Weak Points and Strong first asks who is moving whom. Three checks before you strike it.
Sun Zi or Sun Tzu? Refuse the spelling war and use one reading rule
Search "sun zi", "suntzu", or 孫子 and you often land in a spelling fight first: Sun Tzu or Sun Zi, who got it wrong. Do not treat it as a war. One reading rule: pick a stable label and add the characters once, check the line in the original, then ask Laying Plans whether the fight is worth entering. The default is to stay out.
Sun Tzu quotes in Chinese: find the chapter before you post, print, or tattoo one
Search "sun tzu quotes in chinese" and you get long lists with no chapter numbers. Before you share, print, or tattoo a line, run three checks: match it character by character, find the chapter and read the whole sentence, and if it is not in the thirteen chapters, do not sign Sun Tzu's name to it.
Sun Tzu the philosopher: refuse the quote-card as the default reading
Search "sun tzu philosopher" or "is sun tzu a philosopher" and rooms often treat a biography stub plus a quote card as the default reading — fifty lines and you are done. The Use of Spies asks you to get clear first: a clear fact lowers uncertainty before you commit; once you know, you may not need to enter. Refuse the philosopher-quote-card as the default reading — not a second who-is page, and not a quote encyclopedia.
Product-Market Fit vs Sun Tzu: refuse whatever-it-takes as still siege
Search "product-market fit" or PMF and rooms often treat the Andreessen 2007 / a16z "only thing that matters" / "do whatever is required" frame as the default reason to open a fight — rewrite, pivot, raise until fit arrives. Terrain asks whether the ground fits first: the same force changes outcome when the ground changes; if the ground does not fit, do not fight. Refuse whatever-it-takes-until-PMF as still siege — not a prettier pivot manual.
Red Queen vs Sun Tzu: refuse running in place as still siege
Search "Red Queen effect" and rooms often treat the Van Valen 1973 / Carroll Looking-Glass keep-running-to-stand-still frame as the default reason to open a fight — they moved, so you must. Maneuvering asks you to preserve first: seizing a prize can spend you; coordination and path often preserve more than a grab. Refuse running in place as still siege — not a faster arms-race manual.
Flywheel vs Sun Tzu: refuse momentum as still siege
Search "flywheel" and rooms often treat the Jim Collins / Amazon keep-pushing frame as the default reason to open or continue a fight — faster means add more force. Energy asks spend fewer: momentum exists to shorten conflict, not to license another push. Refuse momentum as still siege — not a prettier flywheel manual.
North Star Metric vs Sun Tzu: refuse one number as still siege
Search "North Star Metric" and rooms often treat the Sean Ellis / Amplitude one-number frame as the default reason to open a fight — who aligned that figure wins. Variation in Tactics asks refuse first: some roads and some fights should be refused. Refuse one number as default — not a prettier metrics-warfare manual.
OKR vs Sun Tzu: refuse stretch goals as still siege
Search "OKR" or stretch goals and rooms often treat John Doerr / Measure What Matters cascading as the default reason to open a fight — who stretched key results higher wins. Laying Plans asks stay out first: staying out is the default unless the aim is worth the cost. Refuse stretch goals as default — not a prettier goal-warfare manual.
Lean Startup vs Sun Tzu: refuse fail-fast as still siege
Search "lean startup" or fail fast and rooms often treat Eric Ries / Lean Startup as the default reason to open a fight — who ran more experiments wins. Waging War asks stop date first: consumption itself is harm; set a stop before you spend the force. Refuse fail-fast as default — not a prettier experiment-warfare manual.
Blitzscaling vs Sun Tzu: refuse scale-at-all-costs as default
Search "blitzscaling" or grow at all costs and rooms often treat Hoffman / blitzscaling as the default reason to open a fight — who burns and hires fastest wins. Energy asks spend fewer first: shape force to shorten conflict without adding bigger destruction. Refuse scale-at-all-costs as default — not a prettier hypergrowth warfare manual.
Disruption vs Sun Tzu: refuse disrupt-or-die as default
Search "disruptive innovation" or disrupt or die and rooms often treat Christensen / innovator's dilemma as the default reason to open a fight — who breaks the category wins. Tactical Dispositions asks whether you are hard to defeat first: complete yourself before racing to break the other side. Refuse disrupt-or-die as default — not a prettier disruption manual.
Blue Ocean vs Sun Tzu: refuse whitespace as still siege
Search "blue ocean strategy" or uncontested market and rooms often treat category creation as the default escape from the red ocean — who owns whitespace wins. Attack by Stratagem asks whether the fight is worth it: highest is without fighting. Refuse whitespace as default escape — not a prettier category-creation manual.
Never surrender vs Sun Tzu: refuse no-stop-date as default
Search "never surrender" or never quit and rooms often treat endless grit as virtue — stay until you win. Waging War asks for a stop date first: no-stop-date as the win is already an endless fight. Refuse no-stop-date as default — not a prettier grind manual.
Thucydides Trap vs Sun Tzu: refuse inevitable war as default
Search "Thucydides Trap" or Destined for War and rooms often treat rising-meets-ruling conflict as nearly inevitable — prepare to win that contest. Laying Plans asks whether to enter: Stay out. Refuse trap as default — not a prettier great-power war manual.
Musashi vs Sun Tzu: refuse duel as default
Search "Sun Tzu vs Musashi" or Book of Five Rings and rooms often crown win-the-duel as the scoreboard. Attack by Stratagem asks whether the fight is worth it: highest is without fighting. Refuse duel as default — not a prettier combat license.
Liddell Hart vs Sun Tzu: refuse indirect as still siege
Search "Sun Tzu vs Liddell Hart" or indirect approach and rooms often crown go-around as smarter fighting. Attack by Stratagem asks whether the fight is worth it: highest is without fighting. Refuse indirect as still siege — not a prettier contact license.
Boyd vs Sun Tzu: refuse faster as the default
Search “Sun Tzu vs Boyd” or OODA and rooms often crown cycle faster. The Army on the March asks whether signals say stop: read first; contact last. Refuse faster as the default — not a who-wins speed board.
Clausewitz vs Sun Tzu: refuse decisive battle as the default
Search “Sun Tzu vs Clausewitz” and rooms often crown decisive battle. Attack by Stratagem asks whether the fight is worth it: plan and relationship first; force last. Refuse the default — not East-vs-West scorekeeping.
Sun Tzu vs Machiavelli: 5 Differences in Strategy
Sun Tzu vs Machiavelli is not kindness versus ruthlessness. Compare goal, uncertainty, power, force order, and stop conditions — then protect the whole aim, not the throne.
Nine situations: on dispersive ground, do not force a fight
Different situations demand different commitments. On dispersive ground, do not fight; last-resort ground is last resort. Too deep a pledge locks the next cycle—a judgment essay, not a nine-grounds encyclopedia.
Refuse useless strife (無用な争い): when the fight has no aim
Useless strife — 無用な争い — is a clash empty of aim. Before you spend force, ask whether the fight itself should be refused. Peace technology from 谋攻: judgment, not a war manual.
Terrain: if the ground does not fit, do not fight
The same force changes outcome when the ground changes. If the ground does not fit, do not fight. Name the mismatch before you move—a judgment essay, not a six-terrain encyclopedia.
Variation: if you should refuse the path, refuse it
When conditions change, tactics change. Some roads and some fights should be refused. The aim is preservation, not pride—a judgment essay, not a nine-variations encyclopedia.
Sun Tzu in Chinese: check the original line before you quote it
Sun Tzu, Sun Zi, Sun Wu, 孙子兵法 — one book, many spellings, and a pile of quotes that are not in it. Nine famous lines with the Chinese original, plus the one check to run before you quote him in a room.
The Army on the March: read the signals before you make contact
While moving, read the signals first; if they say stop, stop. Contact is the last step, not the first. A judgment essay—not a recon encyclopedia or ambush SOP.
Maneuvering: preserve the force before you race to be first
When the room races you to be first, ask whether the prize spends you—not whether you look fast. Maneuvering is advantage and danger. Preserve before you race.
谋攻: Attack the Plan First — Do Not Spend Force Before the Relationship
Sun Tzu's Attack by Stratagem (谋攻) ranks 伐谋 and 伐交 above force. Change the plan and the relationship before you spend people, lead time, or goodwill.
兵势: Use Momentum to Spend Fewer People
Sun Tzu's Energy (兵势) is a spend-fewer checklist. Use momentum to shorten conflict. Ordinary force is enough when timing and coordination line up.
军形: Make Yourself Hard to Defeat Before You Attack
Sun Tzu's Tactical Dispositions (军形) is a hard-to-defeat checklist. Make yourself hard to defeat first — not to crush someone, but so you need not rely on a hard fight.
虚实: Solve the Problem at the Empty Place
Sun Tzu's Weak Points and Strong (虚实) is an empty-place checklist. Solve the problem where it is empty; leave the solid alone. Head-on is the expensive road.
Variation in Tactics: one open move from OpenAI or Claude you should refuse to copy
Open-weight posture, rapid release cadence, and safety-narrative escalation are public moves. Variation in Tactics asks which road you refuse — 途有所不由 — not which headline you reproduce.
Attack by Stratagem: refuse “who wins OpenAI vs Claude,” read 伐谋 and 伐交 first
“Who wins” is already siege scorekeeping. Read publicly verifiable 伐交 and 伐谋—distribution partners, product and safety narratives—then write your object, goal, and resistance.
Fire Attack: anger is not a reason, a broken state does not return
When the room escalates on anger, ask whether advantage exists—not whether you feel right. Anger can become gladness; a destroyed state cannot return. Keep a way out.
Use of Spies: name the missing fact before you move
When the deck looks ready and you still want to enter, write the one missing fact first. Foreknowledge comes from people and evidence, not spirits or analogy alone. If the blank remains, stay out.
作战: Write the Stop Date Before You Enjoy the Order
Sun Tzu's Waging War (作战) is a stop-date checklist. Consumption itself is harm. Write what a day burns, then write the day it must stop.
始计: Do Not Enter When Sun Tzu's Five Factors Are Unclear
Sun Tzu's Laying Plans (始计) is a stay-out checklist. If 道, 天, 地, 将 and 法 are unclear, do not enter. A quote sent into fog is already a small war.
Sun Tzu five factors | Stay out
The five factors test whether to enter — not how to press a customer. Terrain, morale, information, timing, and adaptation.
Attack by Stratagem (Sun Tzu) | Without fighting
The highest good is to change the plan and the relationship so a fight never starts — not a clever way to beat a rival.
Know yourself (Sun Tzu) | Once you know
Knowing self and other exists so you start fewer false fights. Acting without knowing is usually more expensive than finding out.
Lao Tzu vs Sun Tzu | Restraint, not more force
Lao Tzu’s subtraction and Sun Tzu’s examination are one job: fewer wasteful moves, and a next cycle that is better than this one.
Lao Tzu vs Sun Tzu: fewer fights, not a softer war
Lao Tzu’s subtraction and Sun Tzu’s examination are one job: stay out of wasteful moves, change the plan before force, and leave the next cycle cheaper. Soft teaching for teams that want fewer fights.
Waging War (Sun Tzu) | Stop date
Chapter 2 is about whether you can afford the burn: what each day costs, when to stop, and how not to eat the next cycle.