Through my eyes

"The feeling of having no power over people and events is generally unbearable to us - when we feel helpless we feel miserable. No one wants less power; everyone wants more. In the world today, however, it is dangerous to seem too power hungry, to be overt with your power moves. We have to seem fair and decent. So we need to be subtle - congenial yet cunning, democratic yet devious."

This paragraph drew me to The 48 Laws of Power, a book written by Robert Greene. A modern day classic for people who aspire to achieve power.

Drawing on 3,000 years of history, it provides the reader with a variety of strategies to achieve power status.

If you're looking for a book that provides guidance on how to achieve power in an ethical manner without compromising morals this is not it. It details shamelessly how to achieve and hold on to power with overt ruthlessness or underhanded cunning.

Here are the 48 Laws of Power in a nutshellgo on, be amused.

Law 1: Never Outshine the Master

Law 2: Never put too Much Trust in Friends, Learn how to use Enemies

Law 3: Conceal your Intentions

Law 4: Always Say Less than Necessary

Law 5: So Much Depends on Reputation - Guard it with your Life

Law 6: Court Attention at all Cost

Law 7: Get others to do the Work for you, but Always Take the Credit

Law 8: Make other People come to you - use Bait if Necessary

Law 9: Win through your Actions, Never through Argument

Law 10: Infection: Avoid the Unhappy and Unlucky

Law 11: Learn to Keep People Dependent on You

Law 12: Use Selective Honesty and Generosity to Disarm your Victim

Law 13: When Asking for Help, Appeal to People's Self-Interest, Never to their Mercy or Gratitude

Law 14: Pose as a Friend, Work as a Spy

Law 15: Crush your Enemy Totally

Law 16: Use Absence to Increase Respect and Honour

Law 17: Keep Others in Suspended Terror: Cultivate an Air of Unpredictability

Law 18: Do Not Build Fortresses to Protect Yourself - Isolation is Dangerous

Law 19: Know Who You're Dealing with - Do Not Offend the Wrong Person

Law 20: Do Not Commit to Anyone

Law 21: Play a Sucker to Catch a Sucker - Seem Dumber than your Mark

Law 22: Use the Surrender Tactic: Transform Weakness into Power

Law 23: Concentrate Your Forces

Law 24: Play the Perfect Courtier

Law 25: Re-Create Yourself

Law 26: Keep Your Hands Clean

Law 27: Play on People's Need to Believe to Create a Cult like Following

Law 28: Enter Action with Boldness

Law 29: Plan All the Way to the End

Law 30: Make your Accomplishments Seem Effortless

Law 31: Control the Options: Get Others to Play with the Cards you Deal

Law 32: Play to People's Fantasies

Law 33: Discover Each Man's Thumbscrew

Law 34: Be Royal in your Own Fashion: Act like a King to be treated like one

Law 35: Master the Art of Timing

Law 36: Disdain Things you cannot have: Ignoring them is the best Revenge

Law 37: Create Compelling Spectacles

Law 38: Think as you like but Behave like others

Law 39: Stir up Waters to Catch Fish

Law 40: Despise the Free Lunch

Law 41: Avoid Stepping into a Great Man's Shoes

Law 42: Strike the Shepherd and the Sheep will Scatter

Law 43: Work on the Hearts and Minds of Others

Law 44: Disarm and Infuriate with the Mirror Effect

Law 45: Preach the Need for Change, but Never Reform too much at Once

Law 46: Never appear too Perfect

Law 47: Do not go Past the Mark you Aimed for; In Victory, Learn when to Stop

Law 48: Assume Formlessness

I know this is a long read but man, oh man, some of it makes so much sense, especially Law 40.