Vertex Views

Tag: credit

  • Make Other People Come to You—Use Bait if Necessary

    Make your opponent come to you. When you force others to act, you’re in control. Bait them, then attack. Make other people come to you—use bait if necessary.

    What does it mean to make other people come to you, using bait if necessary? Many people achieve power through aggression, but it has a downside. As you continue to use aggression as the main tactic you have to launch attacks in all directions at a growing number of enemies. This becomes tiring.

    At this point, you’re no longer in complete control — you’re reacting to your enemies without calculating the consequences, rather than planning several moves ahead.

    Power comes from acting effectively, not simply aggressively. Often, it’s more effective to lay traps, then wait for them to work. You win for the long term (the war) rather than the short term (the battle).

    Instead of reacting to your opponents, maintain the initiative by making them react to you — this keeps them on the defensive. Put another way, when you make people come to you, you’re in control of the situation.

    In the realm of power, you must ask yourself, what is the point of chasing here and there, trying to solve problems and defeat my enemies, if I never feel in control? Why am I always having to react to events instead of directing them? The answer is simple: Your idea of power is wrong. You have mistaken aggressive action for effective action. And most often the most effective action is to stay back, keep calm, and let others be frustrated by the traps you lay for them, playing for long-term power rather than quick victory.

    Let me repeat a portion of this quote for emphasis:

    “You have mistaken aggressive action for effective action”.

    Do not become misguided — they are NOT the same thing. Aggressive action does not mean it’s effective. It does not mean it’s efficient. It does not mean, it will work. Just because your aggressive emotions and actions give you the feeling you’re in control, does not make it true in reality. Usually, this is a self-constructed illusion that gives us a false sense of control and security.

    Is there ever a good time to go to your opponent, you ask? Yes, of course, there is an exception to the rule when you should go to your opponent. Depending on the situation, bait and wait is a wise choice but taking the lead to attack your opponent can be advantageous as well. The element of surprise does not give the opponent time to think of a counter-attack. They are left at your mercy and must respond to your terms.

    Your biggest issue is to know what tactic to use and the right time to use it. To bait and wait or to strike with force, that is the dilemma. You can be like the bear hunter who lays the honey bait trap. He doesn’t exhaust himself and risks his life to find the bear he lays a trap and waits patiently for the bear to come to him. Or if time is not on your side, strike quickly to intimidate and control. Choose your approach wisely.

  • Get Others To Do The Work For You But Always Take The Credit

    The world of power has the dynamics of the jungle: There are those who live by hunting and killing, and there are also vast numbers of creatures (hyenas, vultures) who live off the hunting of others. These latter, less imaginative types are often incapable of doing the work that is essential for the creation of power.

    They understand early on, though, that if they wait long enough, they can always find another animal to do the work for them. Do not be naive: At this very moment, while you are slaving away on some project, there are vultures circling above trying to figure out a way to survive and even thrive off your creativity. It is useless to complain about this, or to wear yourself ragged with bitterness, as Tesla did. Better to protect yourself and join the game. Once you have established a power base, become a vulture yourself, and save yourself a lot of time and energy.

    People do this every single day, people will take a video or article, copy it onto their site, re-post it, and find ways to monetize it to make money from it. In certain situations, it could be perceived as immoral or even illegal. Regardless this reality is being lived every single day.

    Francisco Pizarro exemplified the first method of taking from others after they’ve done the work. He was a soldier in the army of the explorer Balboa, who discovered the Incan empire in Peru. After Balboa spent many years searching for it and finally found it, Pizarro turned on Balboa and helped get him executed for treason so he could take the riches and credit for himself.

    The artist Peter Paul Rubens used the second method of getting others to do the work for you: actively enlisting others to do your work. When he received more requests for paintings than he could fulfill, he hired many skilled painters with various specialties and set up a production line, in which multiple paintings could be worked on at the same time. Clients were impressed that he could do so many paintings in a short time.

    When you take credit for a large amount of work by others, people think you have amazing ability. By contrast, if you try to do all the work yourself, you won’t accomplish much, or others will take advantage of your efforts. Be a user of others’ efforts instead. Get others to do the work for you, but always take the credit.