The 36 Ancient Chinese Strategies when applied in a Western business environment – Strategy One – ‘Fool the emperor to cross the sea’ means “to act in the open, while hiding your real intensions”

The ancient 36 Chinese Strategies (derived from Sun Tzu’s – The Art of War) have acquired a global reputation of being some of the most effective negotiation strategies in the world.

As well as being fundamental to understanding Chinese thinking, the 36 Chinese Strategies are transferable and can be used successfully by non-Chinese businesspeople. Knowledge of the 36 Chinese Strategies are critical for successful negotiations in any business environment. Understanding how to use the 36 Chinese Strategies will give you a competitive edge in your business negotiations.

Using Strategy One – ‘Fool the emperor to cross the sea in a Western business environment’

You can use Strategy One – ‘Fool the emperor to cross the sea’ in a Western business environment when you are advertising a new product and bringing it into the market for the first time. To apply Strategy One – ‘Fool the emperor to cross the sea’ you disguise your new product inside a familiar environment, so it has the illusion of not looking completely new to the potential consumer. Potential customers are then more likely to feel connected to your product in this familiar environment and therefore may consider purchasing your product.

An example of using Strategy One – ‘Fool the emperor to cross the sea’ is to advertise your product on a morning television segment, where many products are marketed as ‘news’. Products advertised in this kind of television segment often look like regular news. However, morning television is generally more about advertising than news. In this way, it is difficult for potential customers to distinguish between the news and the advertising of a product, and they therefore will not be threatened by a brand new product. Advertising your product through a familiar format means that you are using Strategy One – ‘Fool the emperor to cross the sea’ by “acting in the open, while hiding your true intentions”.  

This is how Strategy One – ‘Fool the emperor to cross the sea’ can applied in a Western business environment. Now try thinking of ways to apply Strategy One – ‘Fool the emperor to cross the sea’ by bringing your new unfamiliar product through a familiar environment to successfully advertise your product to your potential customers.

For more information on the 36 Chinese Strategies read ‘Tame the Tiger – Negotiating from a position of power’, ‘Deceive the Dragon – Negotiating to retain Power’, ‘Lure the Tiger – Negotiating in confronting circumstances’ , ‘Bewilder the Dragon – Negotiating amongst confusion’ and ‘Endure the Tiger – Negotiating to gain ground’.  These books contain practical examples of the 36 Chinese Strategies, which are known to be the essence of Chinese business practices. The books are a great read for people who want to understand how to  confidently conduct business with Chinese people, and who are interested in learning strategies to be better negotiators in any environment.

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