Sun Tzu

All men can see these tactics whereby I conquer, but what none can see is the strategy out of which victory is evolved.

If our soldiers are not overburdened with money, it is not because they have a distaste for riches; if their lives are not unduly long, it is not because they are disinclined to longevity.

For them to perceive the advantage of defeating the enemy, they must also have their rewards.

To capture the enemy's entire army is better than to destroy it; to take intact a regiment, a company, or a squad is better than to destroy them. For to win one hundred victories in one hundred battles is not the supreme of excellence. To subdue the enemy without fighting is the supreme excellence.

Wait by the river long enough and the body of your enemy will float by you.

So it is that good warriors take their stance on ground where they cannot lose, and do not overlook conditions that make an opponent prone to defeat.

Victorious warriors win first and then go to war, while defeated warriors go to war first and then seek to win.