Category:books

Law 33 Everyone has a weakness, a gap in the castle wall. That weakness is usually an insecurity, and uncontrollable emotion or need; it can also be a small secret pleasure. Either way, once found, it is a thumbscrew you can turn to your advantage. –{{Robert Greene}}, {{The 48 Laws of Power}} (review)

Law 32 The truth is often avoided because it is ugly and unpleasant. Never appeal to truth and reality unless you are prepared for the anger that comes from disenchantment. Life is so harsh and distressing that people who can manufacture romance or conjure up fantasy are like oases in the desert: Everyone flocks to …
Continue reading play to people’s fantasies – law 32 – #48laws by robert greene

Law 31 The best deceptions are the ones that seem to give the other person a choice: Your victims feel they are in control, but are actually your puppets. Give people options that come out in your favor whichever one they choose. Force them to make chocies between the lesser of two evils, both of …
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Law 30 Your actions must seem natural and executed with ease. All the toil and practice that go into them, and also all the clever tricks, must be concealed. When you act, act effortlessly, as if you could do much more. Avoid the temptation of the revealing how hard you work – it only raises …
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Law 29 The ending is everything. Plan all the way to it, taking into account all the possible consequences, obstacles, and twists of fortune that might reverse your hard work and give the glory to others. By planning to the end you will not be overwhelmed by circumstances and you will know when to stop. …
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Law 28 If you are unsure of a course of action, do not attempt it. Your doubts and hesitations will infect your execution. Timidity is dangerous: Better to enter with boldness. Any mistakes you commit through audacity are easily corrected with more audacity. Everyone admires the bold; no one honors the timid. –{{Robert Greene}}, {{The …
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Law 27 People have an overwhelming desire to believe in something. Become the focal point of such desire by offering them a cause, a new faith to follow. Keep your words vague but full of promise; emphasize enthusiasm over rationality and clear thinking. Give your new disciples rituals to perform, ask them to make sacrifices …
Continue reading play on people’s need to believe to create a cultlike following – law 27 – #48laws by robert greene

Law 26 You must seem a paragon of civility and efficiency: Your hands are never soiled by mistakes and nasty deeds. Maintain such a spotless appearance by using others as scapegoats and cat’s-paws to disguise your involvement. –{{Robert Greene}}, {{The 48 Laws of Power}} (review)

Law 25 Do not accept the roles society foists on you. Re-create yourself by forging a new identity, on that commands attention and never bores the audience. Be the master of your own image rather than letting others define it for you. Incorporate dramatic devices into your public gestures and actions – your power will …
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Law 24 The perfect courtier thrives in a world where everything revolves around power and political dexterity. He has mastered the art of indirection; he flatters, yields to superiors, and asserts power over others in the most oblique and graceful manner. Learn and apply the laws of courtiership and there will be no limit to …
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Law 23 Conserve your forces and energies by keeping them concentrated at their strongest point. You gain more by finding a rich mine and mining it deeper, than by flitting from one shallow mine to another – intensity defeats extensity every time. When looking for sources of power to elevate you, find the one key …
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Law 22 When you are weaker, never fight for honor’s sake; choose to surrender instead. Surrender gives you time to recover, time to torment and irritate your conqueror, time to wait for his power to wane. Do not give him the satisfaction of fighting and defeating you – surrender first. By turning the other cheek …
Continue reading use the surrender tactic: transform weakness into power – law 22 – #48laws by robert greene

Law 21 No one likes feeling stupider than the next person. The trick, then, if to make your victims feel smart – and not just smart, but smarter than you are. Once convinced of this, they will never suspect that you may have ulterior motives. –{{Robert Greene}}, {{The 48 Laws of Power}} (review)

Law 20 It is the fool who always rushes to take sides. Do not commit to any side or cause but yourself. By maintaining your independence, you become the master of others – playing people against one another, making them pursue you. –{{Robert Greene}}, {{The 48 Laws of Power}} (review)

Law 19 There are many different kinds of people in the world, and you can never assume that everyone will react to your strategies in the same way. Deceive of outmaneuver some people and they will spend the rest of their lives seeking revenge. They are wolves in lambs’ clothing. Choose your victims and opponents …
Continue reading know who you’re dealing with – do not offend the wrong person – law 19 – #48laws by robert greene

Law 18 The world is dangerous and enemies are everywhere – everyone has to protect themselves. A fortress seems the safest. But isolation exposes you to more dangers than it protects you from – it cuts you off from valuable information, it makes you conspicuous and an easy target. Better to circulate among people, find …
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Law 17 Humans are creatures of habit with an insatiable need to see familiarity in other people’s actions. Your predictability gives them a sense of control. Turn the tables: Be deliberately unpredictable. Behavior that seems to have no consistency or purpose will keep them off-balance, and they will wear themselves out trying to explain your …
Continue reading keep others in suspended terror: cultivate an air of unpredictability – law 17 – #48laws by robert greene

Law 16 Too much circulation makes the price go down: The more you are seen and heard from, the more common you appear. If you are already established in a group, temporary withdrawal from it will make you more talked about, even more admired. Your must learn when to leave. Create value through scarcity. –{{Robert …
Continue reading use absence to increase respect and honor – law 16 – #48laws by robert greene

Law 15 All great leaders since Moses have known that a feared enemy must be crushed completely. (Sometimes they have learned this the hard way.) If one ember is left alight, no matter how dimly it smolders, a fire will eventually break out. More is lost through stopping halfway than through total annihiliation. The enemy …
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