Law 25: Recreate yourselfDo not accept the roles that society imposes on you. Recreate yourself by forging a new identity, which attracts attention and never bores the audience. Be the master of your own image instead of letting others define it for you. Incorporate dramatic means into your public gestures and actions – your power will be enhanced and your character will appear larger than life. Never let the presence of enemies bother or worry you – you`re much better off with one or two declared opponents than not knowing where your real enemies are. The man of power welcomes conflict and uses his enemies to bolster his reputation as a safe fighter to rely on in times of uncertainty. Therefore, to become powerful, you need to put yourself at the center of things. The activity should revolve around you. Resist the urge to back down when things don`t feel safe. Instead of turning inward, focus on finding old allies and force yourself into new social circles.
Robert Greene stresses the importance of completely destroying one`s enemies. He argues that it is not enough to defeat them – you must also destroy their reputation and render them powerless. This may seem like an unwise strategy, but Greene argues that it is necessary to protect against future attacks. By completely eliminating your enemies, you eliminate the threat they pose and send a clear message to other potential challengers. Law 7: Ask others to do the work for you, but always accept credit, use the wisdom, knowledge, and work of others to advance your own cause. Such support not only saves you valuable time and energy, but also a divine aura of efficiency and speed. In the end, your helpers will be forgotten and you will be remembered. Never do what others can do for you. Galileo developed a new strategy in 1610 when he discovered Jupiter`s moons.
Instead of dividing the discovery among his patrons – giving one the telescope he had used, dedicating one book to another, etc. – as he had done in the past, he decided to focus exclusively on the Medici. He chose the Medici for a reason: shortly after Cosimo I founded the Medici dynasty in 1540, he had made Jupiter, the mightiest of the gods, the symbol of the Medici – a symbol of a power that transcended politics and banking and was linked to ancient Rome and its deities. Doubt is a powerful weapon: once you pull it out of the bag with insidious rumors, your opponents find themselves in a terrible dilemma. Law 9: Win by your actions, never by your argumentsAny momentary triumph that you think you have won by arguments is in fact a Pyrrhic victory: the resentment and ill will you arouse are stronger and last longer than any momentary change of opinion. It is much more powerful to get others to agree with you by your actions without saying a word. Demonstrate, not explain. Law 13: When you ask for help, appeal to people`s self-interest, never to their mercy or gratitude: If you need the help of someone in a position of power, appeal to their self-interest.
They`ll be happy to help you when they get something back, and you`ll get what you want without looking desperate or irritating. If you want to cause chaos and confusion, target the leader of a group. Without a strong leader, the group will collapse. This law can be used for good or evil – for example, you can use it to overthrow a corrupt leader, or you can use it to create chaos in an organization. Either way, it`s a powerful law that can have big implications. In the middle of the ninth century AD, a young man named Michael III ascended the throne of the Byzantine Empire. His mother, Empress Theodora, had been banished to a convent and her lover, Theoctistus, had been murdered; At the head of the conspiracy to depose Theodora and enthrone Michael was Michael`s uncle, Bardas, an intelligent and ambitious man. Michael was now an inexperienced young leader, surrounded by intrigues, murderers and wasteful agitators.
In this time of danger, he needed someone he could trust as an advisor, and his thoughts turned to Basil, his best friend. Basil had no experience of government and politics – in fact, he was the head of the royal stables – but he had shown his love and gratitude time and time again. Once you`ve won, take a step back and assess the situation. Make sure you`re able to consolidate your power before moving on to your next goal. By knowing when to stop, you will be able to avoid encroachments and maintain your position of power. If, at any point during the deception you practice, people have the slightest suspicion of your intentions, all is lost. Don`t give them the chance to feel what you`re doing: throw them out of the smell by making distractions. Use false sincerity, send ambiguous signals, set up deceptive objects of desire. Unable to distinguish right from wrong, they can`t choose your true goal.
Always keep your intentions in the dark. This way, your opponents won`t be able to defend themselves. Lead them into misconduct, and by the time they carry out your plans, it will be too late. Use humanity`s tendency to trust appearances to your advantage. By dangling a series of intentions in front of your opponents, they will not see what you are really planning. Law 9: Win by your actions, never by arguments: Demonstrate your point of view instead of arguing. Arguing rarely changes someone`s mind, but people believe what they see. They are also less likely to be offended. What are the 48 laws of power? Here are the 48 laws, with explanations: Law 23: Focus your powersMaintain your powers and energies by keeping them focused at their strongest point. You earn more when you find a rich mine and mine it deeper than when you rush from one shallow mine to another – intensity defeats that extend every time.
If you are looking for sources of strength to lift yourself up, you will find the only key boss, the fat cow, which will give you milk for a long time. Your enemies, on the other hand, are an untapped gold mine that you must learn to mine. When Talleyrand, Napoleon`s foreign minister, decided in 1807 that his boss was leading the France to ruin, and that the time had come to turn against him, he understood the dangers of a conspiracy against the emperor; He needed a partner, a Confederate – what friend could he trust in such a project? He chose Joseph Fouché, head of the secret police, his most hated enemy, a man who had even tried to have him assassinated. He knew that their previous hatred would create an opportunity for emotional reconciliation. He knew that Fouché would expect nothing from him and would indeed work to prove that he was worthy of Talleyrand`s election; A person who has something to prove will move mountains for you. After all, he knew that his relationship with Fouché would be based on mutual self-interest and would not be tainted by personal feelings. The selection turned out to be perfect; Although the conspirators failed to overthrow Napoleon, the union of such powerful but unlikely partners sparked great interest in the cause; Opposition to the emperor began to spread slowly.