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27Principle · Group 4

Victory without Fighting

Winning without fighting

“The best victory is the one you don’t have to fight for, because you have changed your opponent’s plans, allies or will beforehand.”

Every open fight has a cost, even for the winner.

Group 4: Deception and IndirectionT2 Eastern Strategy
Go to the in-depth section ↓
Two rows of dots face each other; behind the right-hand row, three fine teal lines run to a frame, to two small circles and to a dot in the middle. Instead of the rows colliding, the lines come loose one after another, the right-hand row loosens, and a golden gate opens between the two sides.
In short

The best victory is the one you don’t have to fight for, because you have changed your opponent’s plans, allies or will beforehand.

What it’s about: Every open fight has a cost, even for the winner. It uses up strength and leaves behind wounds and an opponent bent on revenge. That is why the principle asks first about the objective and only then about the means. If you reach your objective without fighting, your victory is better than that of someone who had to fight a battle for it.

In depth

The principle in detail

Three steps through the principle: grasp it, place it, put it to work. Open each topic on its own.

The core messageCore statement and 3 clarifications
In essence

The path to your objective often runs through the other side’s plans, allies or will, not through their strength.

It does not say
That you should avoid every conflict. If you always give in, you win nothing.
It does not say
That restraint works against every opponent. Someone who is prepared to do anything may take it as an invitation.
It also says
If you win without fighting, you often leave the other side behind as a partner rather than an enemy.
The explanationHow the principle works and what matters
  • Victory without Fighting does not attack the other side’s strength but what that strength rests on: their intention, their allies, their willingness.
  • It is not giving in.
  • It requires a credible alternative, patience and often great inner strength.
The question

What foundation supports the resistance you are facing right now?

The signs3 signs when you heed it · 3 when you overlook it
When you heed it
  • You ask about the other side’s interests before you build up pressure.
  • You talk to the people who support them.
  • Conflicts end without losers waiting for their next opportunity.
When you overlook it
  • You seek confrontation because it feels like strength.
  • Or you give in and call it peace.
  • After every dispute you win, working together gets a little harder.
The backgroundFrom the third chapter of “The Art of War,” attributed to Sun Tzu (Sun Wu, 6th or 5th century BC). · T2 Eastern Strategy
  1. 6th/5th c. BC
    OriginSun Tzu

    Chapter 3

  2. 2011
    SupplementedErica Chenoweth and Maria J. Stephan

    The book of the same title

  3. Tradition T2
    TraditionEastern Strategy

    Sun Tzu, Kautilya, the Thirty-Six Stratagems, the Tao Te Ching, Miyamoto Musashi, François Jullien

    See the tradition on the Origin page
Read more: the full background

From the third chapter of “The Art of War,” attributed to Sun Tzu (Sun Wu, 6th or 5th century BC). Supplemented by the study “Why Civil Resistance Works” by Erica Chenoweth and Maria J. Stephan (2011).

The research4 sources: 2 primary studies, 1 classic, 1 review · 2008–2020 · with limitations of the research
4 sources2008–2020 period2 primary studies1 classic1 review
Strength of evidence
  1. weak
  2. moderate
  3. strong

A large data set supports the finding for political campaigns; the claim that Victory without Fighting is the best victory remains a value judgment from the classic.

  1. 6th/5th c. BCtrans. 1910
    Classic
    Sun Tzu

    Chapter 3: “supreme excellence consists in breaking the enemy’s resistance without fighting”; order of priority: plans, the junction of the enemy’s forces, the army, siege.

  2. 2008
    Primary study
    Erica Chenoweth and Maria J. Stephan

    “Why Civil Resistance Works” in International Security: their own data set of major nonviolent and violent campaigns, 1900–2006; nonviolent ones are more successful, among other things because of legitimacy, broad support and shifts in loyalty.

  3. 2011
    Primary study
    Erica Chenoweth and Maria J. Stephan

    The book of the same title: statistics and case studies, including Iran, Burma and the Philippines; nonviolent campaigns were more than twice as effective.

  4. 2020
    Review
    Erica Chenoweth

    “The Future of Nonviolent Resistance” in the Journal of Democracy 31 (3): in the 2010s, nonviolent resistance reached a peak in popularity, but its effectiveness began to decline because states respond better and the movements themselves have changed.

Where the research reaches its limits
  • Victory without Fighting presupposes that the opponent has something to lose and that a credible alternative is on the table.
  • Against an opponent who is prepared to do anything, restraint can become an invitation; many regard the Munich Agreement of 1938 as a warning.
  • The findings of Erica Chenoweth and Maria J. Stephan concern political campaigns, not companies or families.
  • In 2020, Erica Chenoweth showed that in the 2010s nonviolent resistance was more common than ever but had lost effectiveness.
Read more: what research shows

The idea comes from the third chapter of “The Art of War,” attributed to Sun Tzu. There, Sun Tzu writes that “supreme excellence consists in breaking the enemy’s resistance without fighting.” The order of priority is: thwart the opponent’s plans, then prevent their forces from joining up, then attack their army, and last of all besiege walled cities. Erica Chenoweth and Maria J. Stephan compared major campaigns from 1900 to 2006. According to their findings, nonviolent movements achieved their goals more than twice as often as violent ones. As reasons, they cite broader support, greater legitimacy and more frequent defections among the other side’s supporters and security forces. This supports the path through allies and will. The two do not examine whether the finding carries over to conflicts within companies.

The related principles52 Golden Bridge · 54 Soft Power · 69 Best Alternative · 92 The Soft Overcomes the Hard
Golden BridgeSoft Power

To go deeper, see 52 Golden Bridge (an honorable way out makes the fight unnecessary) and 54 Soft Power (attraction and persuasion are the most common means)

Best Alternative

69 Best Alternative names the condition: without a credible alternative, all that is left is giving in

The Soft Overcomes the Hard

Related is 92 The Soft Overcomes the Hard, which lets the other side’s strength come to nothing

Read more: the full text

To go deeper, see 52 Golden Bridge (an honorable way out makes the fight unnecessary) and 54 Soft Power (attraction and persuasion are the most common means). 69 Best Alternative names the condition: without a credible alternative, all that is left is giving in. Related is 92 The Soft Overcomes the Hard, which lets the other side’s strength come to nothing.

The action steps5 action steps: Before any conflict, write down what you want the outcome to be.
  1. Before any conflict, write down what you want the outcome to be. Then check whether there is a way to get there without an open fight.
  2. Ask what is behind the resistance. A no almost always has a cause that can be addressed.

  3. Look at who supports the other side, and talk to those people.

  4. Clarify your alternative before you negotiate. Without it, Victory without Fighting turns into giving in.
  5. Leave the other side a way out that does not shame them. If they can save face, they do not have to keep fighting.
The reflection questions3 questions: What conflict are you preparing for right now, and what do you want the outcome to be?
  1. What conflict are you preparing for right now, and what do you want the outcome to be?
  2. Who supports the other side, and have you already talked to those people?
  3. Where did you last give in and call it peace?

Take your time with one question. Write down your answer – or talk it over with someone you trust.

To finish
The picture to rememberThe animation once more, with an explanation
  1. Two rows of dots face each other
  2. Behind the right-hand row, three fine teal lines run to a frame, to two small circles and to a dot in the middle
  3. Instead of the rows colliding, the lines come loose one after another, the right-hand row loosens, and a golden gate opens between the two sides
Strategy Check

Which fight can you avoid?

Get your profile across all 12 groups in about 10 to 15 minutes.

Start the Strategy Check
In context

Group 4: Deception and Indirection

Guiding question: How do you reach your goal without charging head-on?

Stage 3 of 5: Choose the path

Where the 92 principles come from: eight traditions of strategy, from classical war theory to dealing with uncertainty.

More about the origin

Background: WEGVISOR’s own selection from the strategy literature · More about the origin

Examples

The principle in practice

From the different spheres of society.

FaithMedia

Cardinal Jaime Sin, Radio Veritas and Victory without Fighting

In February 1986, Cardinal Jaime Sin uses the church broadcaster Radio Veritas to call the people of Manila into the streets. Civilians place themselves between tanks and rebel soldiers, and after four days Ferdinand Marcos leaves the country without a battle being fought.

Victory without Fighting
Culture & SportsGovernment

Estonia’s Singing Revolution and Victory without Fighting

In 1988, hundreds of thousands of Estonians gather in Tallinn and sing banned and new patriotic songs. Three years later, Estonia is independent without having fought a war against the Soviet Union.

Victory without Fighting
Government

Thomas Jefferson, the Louisiana Purchase and Victory without Fighting

In 1803, the United States secures access to the port of New Orleans not through war with France but through a purchase. For $15 million, Thomas Jefferson acquires all of Louisiana and doubles the size of his country.

Victory without Fighting
GovernmentEducation

Movie: WarGames

In “WarGames” (1983), a high school student accidentally gets a military computer to prepare for nuclear war. The world is saved only when the machine learns through tic-tac-toe that some games can be won only by not playing.

Victory without Fighting
FAQ

Questions about Victory without Fighting

What does the principle of Victory without Fighting say?

The supreme art lies in reaching your objective without having to fight openly. To do so, you change your opponent’s plans, allies or will before it comes to a fight.

Where does the principle of Victory without Fighting come from?

From the third chapter of “The Art of War,” attributed to the Chinese strategist Sun Tzu. It sets out the order of priority: attack the opponent’s plans first, then their alliances, then their army.

What are some examples of Victory without Fighting?

Examples include the EDSA Revolution in the Philippines in 1986, the Singing Revolution in Estonia and the Louisiana Purchase of 1803.

How well is Victory without Fighting supported by research?

Evidence: moderate – a large data set supports the finding for political campaigns; the claim that Victory without Fighting is the best victory remains a value judgment from the classic.

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