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Books > The 48 Laws Of Power > Flashcards

The 48 Laws Of Power Flashcards

1
Q

how to recognize nonplayers?

A

they are the ones who flaunt their morals virtues

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2
Q

what is the most important skill and the greatest barrier?

A

an emotional response

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3
Q

what is the most emotional response?

A

anger

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4
Q

how should u look at the world?

A

u must look to the future and the past

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5
Q

what is the moto for the future?

A

no days unalert, nothing should catch u by surprise u must think about every permuation of your plan of how it might go wrong

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6
Q

what is the moto for the past?

A

i shall never such a mistake and i shall never fall in such a trap again , don’t hold grudges but educate yourself and learn from yourself and the other who came before u

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7
Q

how to judge your opponents?

A

by not their intentions but the effects of their actions

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8
Q

what is the most important skills?

A

patience and deception

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9
Q

what is the half of mastery of power?

A

what do u not do, what you do not allow yourself to get dragged into for this skill u must learn to judge all things of what they cost u

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10
Q

what is the first law?

A

Never outshine the master

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11
Q

judgment of first law?

A

always make those above you feel comfortably superior.
in your desire to please and impress them, do not go too far in displaying your talents or you might accomplish the opposite , inspire fear and insecurity,make your masters appear more brilliant than they are and you will attain the heights of power

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12
Q

transgression of first law?

A

nocolas fouqet the louis the XIV finance minister when he made a lavish party after the king abolished the position of the prime minister which made louis jealous and had him imprisoned and executed

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13
Q

interpretation of the first law transgression?

A

louis was an arrogant man who wanted the center of the attention at all times, at nicolas party everyone talked about nicolas not the king so when he killed nicolas he appointed someone who was dull

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14
Q

Observance of the first law?

A

galileo when he made the medici dynasty shine above every one else by making them the stars when he discovered the moons of jupiter and the 4 moons surrounding it and got appointed as the official court philosopher

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15
Q

interpretation of the first law observance?

A

all masters want to appear more brilliant than other people, he made the medici outshine all others

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16
Q

keys to power of the first law?

A

Everyone has insecurities, when you show yourself in the world and display your talents , u naturally stir up all kinds of resentment , and u can’t spend your life worrying about all these people but those above you need a different approach , when it comes to power outshining the master is the worst mistake of all there are to rules:
1- u may inadvertently outshine them with your natural charm and grace , so u must avoid such monsters or mute these qualities
2 - never imagine that the master loves you , u can do anything you want

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17
Q

how to use the first law to your advantage?

A

1 - flatter your master, but not in an obvious way make it subtle , make him appear more intelligent than you, make a simple mistake and ask for his help

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18
Q

Reversal of first law?

A

you cannot worry about everyone u come across , but you must be selectively cruel , if your superior is a falling star then outshine him and hasten his downfall but if he is too weak , don’t put salt on the wound cuz u might seem spiteful and cruel and if your are more intelligent than your master bide your time and be patient there will come a time when he falls and weakens

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19
Q

what is the second law?

A

Never put too much trust in friends, learn how to use enemies

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20
Q

what is the judgment for the second law?

A

be war of friends , they will betray you more quickly , for they are easily aroused to envy, they also become spoiled and tyrannical, but hire a former enemy and he will be more loyal than a friend because he has more to prove , in fact u have more to fear from friends than from enemies, if you have no enemies find a way to make them

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21
Q

what is the transgression for the second law?

A

michael III the emperor of the byzantine empire and his friend basilius who envied and hated him and thought that what he accomplished was from his own merit

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22
Q

what is the interpretation of the transgression of the second law?

A

michael thought that basilius owed everything to him , his education , his fortune and surely he will see gratitude in his action but he didn’t realize that he created a monster that felt encumbered by the charity he was given and did what most people do in that situation he forgot the favors he had received and michael could have saved himself but he didn’t believe that a friend could betray him until his head ended on a pike

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23
Q

what is the observance of the second law?

A

kind chiu and the hand dynasty where they were in a loop of betrayal every couple of years an emperor ascended to the throne then he was betrayed by his generals but chiu offered his generals security and wealth in change for their positions in the army and instead of locking up his enemies he won them over with forgiveness

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24
Q

what is the interpretation of the observance of the second law?

A

instead of relying on friends sung used his enemies , one after another , transferring them into reliable subjects , while a friend expects more and more while seething with jealousy these former enemies expected nothing and got everything , a man suddenly spared the guillotine is a grateful man indeed,and will go the end of the earth for the man who pardoned him

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25
Q

what are the keys to power for the second law?

A

it is natural to employ your friends the world is a harsh place and u want comfortable people around you the problem is that you never truly know your friends as they always laugh at your jokes and lie to you because friendships are not built on honesty but an enemy has something to prove so the key to power is the ability to judge people on what they can offer you and who is best to further your interest in all situations keep friends for friendship but work with the competent and skilled

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26
Q

when do you destroy an enemy?

A

when you make a friend out of him

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27
Q

why you should keep an enemy as an enemy?

A

he will keep you on your toes and sharpen your wits

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28
Q

what are the components of constant conflict?

A

1 - be certain that in the long run you will emerge victorious, never pick a fight with someone you are not sure you can defeat
2 - if you have no apparent enemy you must sometimes make one ,even turning a friend into an enemy
3 - you such enemies to define your cause to the public make it as good vs evil

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29
Q

should the presence of an enemy upset you?

A

no you are far better off with a declared opponent than not knowing where your real enemies lie, the man of power welcome conflict , using enemies to enhance his reputation

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30
Q

what is the reversal of the second law?

A

sometimes as a man of power you want some dirty work to be done and friends can do that the best as they have affection for you and when you are about to fall u can use your friends as a scapegoat as the public would never believe that you would sacrifice your friends

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31
Q

what is the third law?

A

conceal your intentions

32
Q

what is the judgment of the third law?

A

keep people off-balance and in the dark by never revealing the purpose behind your actions, if they have no idea what you are up to , they cannot prepare a defense . guide them far enough the wrong path, envelope them in enough smoke, and by the time they realize your intentions,it will be too late

33
Q

what is the first part of the third law?

A

use decoyed objects of desire and red herrings to throw people off the scent
if at any point of the deception you practice people have the slightest suspicion as to your intentions all is lost . do not give them the chance to sense what you are up to: throw them off the scent by dragging red herrings across the path, use false sincerity, send ambiguous signals, set up misleading objects of desire. unable to distinguish the genuine from the false, they cannot pick out your real goal

34
Q

what is the transgression of the law of the first part of the third law?

A

ninon and the marquis where the marquis wanted to seduce the young countess he was young and dashing but inexperienced the first thing she told him is to approach indirectly and seem friendly and confide in her
as this would throw her off balance and then make her jealous by attending the party with other young beautiful women with him and seem distant from her now she would see him as desired by others all of that was working until marquis told the countess that he loved her so she left him

35
Q

what is the interpretation of the transgression of the law of the first part of the third law?

A

men and women are different but they are the same when getting seduced deep down inside they want to be led along it’s a pleasure to let go and in seduction u must never be too overt everything is a suggestion throw your targets off balance

36
Q

what is the observance of the first part of the third law?

A

otto von bismark and the prussian empire where otto von bismark was a big believer in war but he gave a speech in the parliment about peace where he opposed everything he believed in and the king made him a cabinet minister and in this role he led war against austria

37
Q

what is the interpretation of the observance of the first part of the third law?

A

bismarck knew that the army was not ready and if he supported war and lost all will be lost and if he blackmailed the king into being a prime minister he wouldn’t have trusted him but he waited and threw people off the scent that made them wait to regain power and then he stricked

38
Q

what are the keys to power of the first part of the third law?

A

you should master the art of concealing your intentions and dangle an object of desire to the people in front of you that will throw them off
most people are open books they want to say their plans and want to talk about how they feel because two things:
1 - it’s natural for someone to talk about his feelings and plans , it takes effort to control your tongue and monitor what you reveal
2 - many people believe that by being honest they are winning people’s heart but they are doing the opposite honesty is a cruel tool
so what shouldn’t do?
don’t reveal what you think because if you always say what is on your mind people have no reason to respect or fear you and power will not come to someone who can’t inspire such feelings

39
Q

what is a tactic that is most effective in the keys to power of the first part of the third law?

A

setup a red herring, support an idea that you are actually against make people believe that u had a change of heart

40
Q

how should you hide your intentions?

A

not by closing up but by opening and talking about your goals just not your real ones

41
Q

what is it that the best deceivers do?

A

they use false sincerity, they publicize their honesty and they publicly believe in a noble goal, they do everything to cloak they roguish qualities , they cultivate an air of honesty in one area to disguise their dishonesty in another, honesty is just another tool in their arsenal of weapons

42
Q

what is the second part of the third law?

A

Use smoke screens to disguise your actions
Deception is always the best strategy, but the best deceptions require a screen of smoke to distract people’s attention from the real purpose, the bland exterior like the unreadable poker face,is often the prefect smoke screen, hiding your intentions behind the comfortable and familiar. if you lead the sucker down a familiar path, he won’t catch on when u lead him into a trap

43
Q

what is the observance of the second part of the third law?

A

yellow kid and geezle where he setup buying the lodge then he setup a fake fight where the fighter was knocked dead and geezle ran away from the place

44
Q

what is the interpretation of the first observance of the third law of the second part?

A

the familiar, inconspicuous front is the perfect smoke screen. approach ur mark with an idea that seems ordinary enough, a business deal, financial intrigue. the sucker’s mind is distracted, his suspicions allayed. that is when you gently guide him onto the second path, the slippery slope which he slides you helplessly into your trap

45
Q

what is the second observance of the third law of the second part?

A

selsassie and balcha in ethipia where selassie charmed everyone but balcha so he invited him into a party where balcha took 600 of his best soldiers with him as a body guard which allowed selassie to buy his army and like a chess player he trapped him and he had to surrender

46
Q

what is the interpretation of the second observance of the second part of the third law?

A

selsassie created a thick smoke screen by making balcha think that he was going to do something to him at the party but in reality he was planning 3 miles away he made him feel like he was in control,
remember:the paranoid and wary are often the easiest to deceive. win their trust in one area and you have a smoke screen that blinds their view in another, letting you creep up and level them with a devastating blow . a helpful or apparently honest gesture , or one that implies the other person’s superiority these are perfect diversionary devices

47
Q

what are the keys to power of the third law?

A

if you believe that deceivers are colorful folk who mislead with elaborate lies and tall tales,you are greatly mistaken. the best deceivers utilize a bland and an inconspicuous front that calls no attention at themselves . they know that extravagant words and gestures immediately raise suspicion instead they envelope their mark in the familiar , the bland.

48
Q

what happens when u lull you victims into the familiar?

A

they will not notice the deception being perpetrated behind their backs

49
Q

why do people not notice deception of a smoke screen?

A

because they can only focus on one thing at a time

50
Q

what is the difference between the smoke screen and the red herring?

A

the smoke screen lulls it’s victims into the familiar , but red herrings u distract them with other objects

51
Q

what is the better way to conceal your intentions?

A

the smoke screen

52
Q

what is the simplest form of the smoke screen?

A

facial expressions

53
Q

what are the psychological ways to practice the smoke screen?

A

1 - the noble gesture:
people want to believe apparently noble gestures are genuine for the belief is genuine
2 - the pattern:
the establishment of a series of actions that seduce the victims into believe u will continue behaving in the same way
3 - mistaking appearances for reality:
the feeling if someone seems like he belongs to your group their belonging must be real this habit makes the seamless bland very effective

54
Q

what is the reversal of the third law?

A

none of this will work if you already have a reputation of being deceitful , if get caught own up to it and seem like you repented u will be admired for this action

55
Q

what is the fourth law?

A

always say less the necessary

56
Q

what is the judgement of the fourth law?

A

when you try to impress people with words, the more you say, the more common you appear, and the less in control. even if you are saying something banal, it will seem original if you make it vague, open-ended, and sphinxlike. powerful people impress and intimidate by saying less, the more you say , the more likely you will say something foolish

57
Q

what is the transgression of the fourth law?

A

corlianus when every time he spoke in rome he insulted the people and made insults towards them after he was their legendary hero they voted for his execution

58
Q

what is the interpretation of the the transgression of the fourth law?

A

had he said less he would have never insulted the people but when he spoke he appeared like a common soldier. the human tongue is a beast that few can master.it strains constantly to break out of it’s cage and if it’s not tamed it will run wild and cause you grief . power cannot accrue to those who can’t squander their treasure of words

59
Q

what is the observance of the fourth law?

A

in the court of louis the XIV everyone would squabble and fight and argue in some matter and when they have come to a decision they would choose two of them to present the matter to louis and then they would argue some more about how to present the issue, when and how and then they would talk to him and he would listen in silence and node his head and they would later see the result he would never talk about that matter ever again

60
Q

what is the interpretation of the observance of the fourth law?

A

louis was not like that when he was younger but as he grew old he learned to never speak because then people couldn’t deceive him as they never knew what he wanted to hear ,everything was valuable about him , his glances , his words

61
Q

what are the keys to power of the fourth law?

A

power in many ways is a game of appearances , and when you say less than necessary , you inevitably appear more greater and more powerful than you are. your silence will make other people uncomfortable . humans always want to know what you are thinking and when you carefully control what you reveal , they cannot pierce your intentions as your short answers will put them on the defensive and they will jump in trying to fill the silence with all kinds of comments revealing things about themselves

62
Q

what is the reversal for the fourth law?

A

silence can make you up for interpretation for your superiors that you haven’t bargained for and it’s sometimes better to play the jest of the court as by talking more you appear less intelligent and unsophisticated and then you can practice deception with more ease

63
Q

what is the fifth law?

A

so much depends on reputation guard it with your life

64
Q

what is the judgement of the fifth law?

A

Reputation is the corner stone of power, through reputation alone you can intimidate and win, once it slips, however you are vulnerable, and be attacked on all sides. make your reputation unassailable.always be alert to potential attacks and thwart them before they happen. meanwhile , learn to destroy your enemies by opening holes in their own reputations. then step aside and let public opinion hang them

65
Q

what is the first observance of the fifth law?

A

during china’s was of the three kingdoms the great general chuko liang was in a small town when he heard that sima yi caught up to him and will arrive soon at the city gates ,without hesitation he ordered his troops to hide and went on the wall and chanted and played his lute , when sima yi saw him he ordered the troops to immediate and speedy retreat

66
Q

what is the interpretation of the first observance of the fifth law?

A

chuko liang AKA the sleeping dragon had cultivated an air of deception and intelligence around himself which made sima yi afraid as he senesed that chuko liang was actually taunting him to enter the gates, such as the power of reputation as it can hold off an entire army and put them on the defensive

67
Q

what is the second observance of the fifth law?

A

P.T barnum and paele where barnum was going to make a museum but the business men decided to go for paelae , then barnum noticed that he had no reputation and for that he decided to attack paelae’s reputation by calling him a business man and not knowing how to entertain people and when paelae tried to recover by making a hypnotism show barnum made the show a laugh by mocking it

68
Q

what is the interpretation of the second observance of the fifth law?

A

there are two tactics he use
1 - he sowed doubts , once u let out of the bag your opponents are in an incredible dilemma they either fight the rumors which make it stronger because why are they defending it so hard or they will ignore the doubts will be unrefuted , and if done correctly it will infuriate your opponents and they will make mistakes , this is the perfect weapon for someone without a reputation

2 - once u have a reputation make a mockery out of your opponent, when you have a solid base of respect ridiculing your opponents will put them on the defensive and will gain you more respect as someone who is harmless and can have a laugh now and then

69
Q

what are the keys to power for the fifth law?

A

u never know people so u judge them on their clothes or their speech or their actions and any slip from the reputation can prove disastrous , so it is most important to make a reputation of your own creation.
the reputation will protect you from probing eyes and make a shield around you
1 - you must work to establish a reputation that is outstanding and sets you apart and make people talk about you
2 - make it known to as many people as you can
3 - take it slow and subtle
4 - make it simple , seductiveness or efficiency and as they say your reputation will always preceed you

but maybe you already have stained your own reputation, then you must associate yourself to someone who counteracts your own stain and using their good name to elevate your own

and after you make a reputation you must protect and never let yourself get angry or defensive if someone attacks your reputation take the high road and don’t get defensive this will show confidence in your own reputation
attacking the reputation of someone who is more powerful than you is always best as he has a small target and u have a bigger one but you must be careful not to appear vengeful or it might hurt your own so never go the direct way always use ridicule and and satire as the lion will play with the mouse but when he takes it seriously no one will fear him anymore

70
Q

what is the reversal of the fifth law?

A

there are no possible reversals, maybe not caring but even then it will give you the reputation of insolence and arrogance but it can be valuable as well so be the master of your own fate

71
Q

what is the sixth law?

A

court attention at all cost

72
Q

what is the judgement of the sixth law?

A

everything is judged by it’s appearances , what is unseen counts for nothing, never let yourself get lost in the crowd or buried in oblivion , stand out , be conspicuous at all cost, at all cost make yourself a magnet of attention by appearing larger, more colorful , more mysterious than the bland and timid masses

73
Q

what is the first part of the sixth law?

A

surround yourself with the sensational and the scandalous:
draw attention to yourself by creating an unforgettable ,even controversial image,court scandal. do anything to seem larger than life and shine more brightly than those around you. make no distinction between kinds of attention. notoriety of any sort will bring you power. better to be slandered and attacked than ignored

74
Q

what is the observance of the first part of the sixth law?

A

pt barnum when he hired a band that was so bad that made people standing outside his museum to buy tickets to enter his museum , and when he hired a man to just put bricks on the side of the road to make people curious to enter his museum cuz he would make a lap and enter the museum then exit from the back

75
Q

what is the interpretation of the observance of the first part of the sixth law?

A

barnum knew that once one person was attracted to you then pother people would come and then he would never let them veer their eyes off him,so in the beginning spend all your energy at attracting attention , most important the quality doesn’t matter , negative or positive it’s all the same,the worst fate in the world for a man who yearns fame, glory and power is to be ignored

76
Q

what are the keys to power of the first part of the sixth law?

A

burning more brightly than those around you is a skill no one is born with, at first you must attach yourself to an image or something that sets you apart from other people around you like a characteristic trait.
it is a mistake to think that you should differentiate between the kinds of attention that you get because in the end all will work.
society craves larger than life figures, people who stand above the general mediocrity so never be afraid of the qualities that set you apart and draw attention to you.
if you find yourself in a position of having little to now opportunity for attention then attack the most powerful,famous person you have.
once you are in the limelight you must constantly renew it by adapting and varying your methods to draw attention so that the public don’t leave you and forget about you, understand this people feel superior to the person whose actions they can predict , if you show them who is in control by playing against their expectations, you both gain their respect and tighten your hold on their fleeting attention

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