Lose the Battle to Win the War

Some battles aren’t worth fighting

One book I have not read fully is the 33 Strategies of War. It’s a good book (from what I’ve read) that summarizes the laws of how to wage battles in multiple areas of life.

In the sports world, the enemy is clear. The opponent. One that is staring directly at you. But in the game of life, the enemies are more numerous and sometimes hidden. If you develop a strategic mindset, you can identify your enemies no matter where they are.

Robert Greene, the author of this book and his signature book, The 48 Laws of Power, discussed the strategy of looking beyond the present battle and thinking of the overall war.

In football, for example, some NFL teams that have already made the playoffs may have to play another regular season game and choose to rest their starters (the best players on the team) so they can be healthy for the playoffs. The regular season is the battle; the playoffs are the war.

This also applies to life; the war is all about getting your number one objective, your goal. So if you want to lose weight, get out of debt, and start a successful business, that’s the war. You have to conserve your energy for that; the battles along the way can drain you. Someone takes your parking space, cuts you off on the highway, steals your…