Chinese historians credit Sun Tzu for writing one of the oldest military treatises on record. He concerned himself with the laying of plans in the waging of war that included terrain analysis, attacking by fire, and the use of spies. Not exactly cutting edge by today’s standard, yet it may come as a surprise that more than 2,400 years later there are base camps on the Web that are dedicated to SunZi art of war and its accompanying business application. Even more unexpected is that Stanley Bing would write the exposé Sun Tzu Was a Sissy.

Stanley Bing leads off his argument using several current day celebrities to plug holes in the Sun Tzu treatise. Martha Stewart’s attitude of perfection gave way to her downfall because she missed her opportunity to admit she made a mistake; her power irrationality ruled out reason. Too much yang is not a good thing.  Bing suspects Enron’s Ken Lay was everything that Sun Tzu would have required in a leader. Sun Tzu stated, “Tao is what causes people to have the same purpose as their superior.” Consider how many friends and associates fell on the grenade that had the name Ken Lay on it. The Enron fiasco had widespread implications for its employees, the stock market and ultimately the economy. In being true to himself, Howard Dean killed his political aspirations with his passionate “I have a scream” speech. Then there is the absolutely truculent Arnold Schwarzenegger. Think about it—Arnold is the governor of California with 32 percent rating his job performance as excellent in a recent poll. He pretty much does whatever he sets his mind to. The reinvented Arnold keeps coming back as promised.

One Sun Tzu doctrine states “no nation ever benefited from a prolonged war.” Everyone appreciates the fine art of diplomacy. Sun Tzu advocates the use of restraint and the wisdom behind negotiation. Bing believes that you can never count on a war to be brief and that business wars are never short term. Business warfare tends to be more like a marathon, and marathons are no place for a sprinter. Bing also takes issue with those that “order other people into battle … while they sit a safe distance away.” That’s being a sissy.

According to Sun Tzu, all warfare is based on deception. Bing feels a little deception goes a long way in this world, because too often people fall victim to their deceptions and that becomes their own private prison. Deceivers have a hard time acquiring the loyalty of others because essentially they lie. Liars eventually get caught because they are not smart enough to coordinate all the misinformation they spew. Lying is a sissy trait. Bing shoots straight from the hip with “truth is the best weapon.” So many sashay around in the shades of a gray zone that few recognize plain black and white. It brings to mind the movie scene when Jack Nicholson, addressing Tom Cruise, stated, “You can’t handle the truth.” Everyone would be better at handling the truth if more truths were told.

Stanley Bing is a senior officer at a multinational corporation. He is recognized for the contributions he makes to Esquire and Fortune magazines, in addition to being the author of several books. Sun Tzu Was a Sissy is not the first time Stanley Bing has teamed up with a historical philosopher for Harper Business. His book What Would Machiavelli Do? was released in 2000 and became a national bestseller. The debate still lingers as to whether Nicolo Machiavelli was merely a peon trying to hold position with Lorenzo Di Medici, a would-be savior for Italy from foreign invasion, or an amoral cad of “fate is a woman” renown. There is no debate that Stanley Bing will get you thinking about choosing your battles wisely or choosing not to battle at all. Whatever you do—don’t be a sissy.

		A veteran of the publishing industry, Sandra Guinness Lupini is a freelance writer.