Thread by @ThyConsigliori

John Minford, #SunTzu 9: 19 "If trees move, he is coming."

Set the scene. Your army is encamped on high ground, as you've been trained by Master Sun. Off in the distance, in the woods below, a careful observation can detect the trees are moving. Not the wind blowing the leaves around, the trees themselves in motion.

The commentators tell us what this means. Armies often cut paths through forests, felling trees as they go. The trees move when one falling tree hits another, and you can know that your enemy approaches. Yet, what vigilance this actually does require.

Why does Master Sun bother to teach us this tactical information? Perhaps, we may speculate, because he's seen so many commanders whose men might hardly notice if the tree was falling on their camp tent, they're so oblivious. How do you train vigilance?

Master Sun doesn't address training so much. He states facts and gives rules, hints, general guidance. Well, not just general guidance, this is pretty specific. But it remains a general rule, trees moving often indicate enemy approaching. Watch out for that.

In my own observation, the leader sets the tone. A vigilant leader shows his men, by example, what it is to pay attention to every slightest detail. He promotes sub-leaders who demonstrate the same care and concern, the same attentiveness.

Certainly, militaries throughout history have punished failures, often in quite extreme manners. But if the negligent watch guard fails to notice the moving trees, you may not survive long enough to punish him. Rather, there is training, training, and more training.

In this post-2016 world, it is now common sense that excited rallies lead to votes. No one seems to question that now. But do you remember how often the pundits back then dismissed Trump's rallies, assuming they would NOT turn out the vote?

I remember. I had that very argument with more than one highly placed executive at the RNC at the time, when I was challenging the established wisdom of door knocking and sign placing. And not only the RNC, but also in several different state level campaigns. Same fight.

There were other aspects of the campaign mission that we fought over, but one of the most important was the rallies. And, I swear, it just like reading Master Sun's verse today. The trees were moving, but they refused to see them fall. Rallies work. We know that now.

But don't let me get too high and self-satisfied. I couldn't begin to count the times in my life when I missed the most obvious things, far more so than distant trees moving down and across a far valley. Do you know the Native American Indian practice of counting coup?

It was one of the most glorious things an Indian might achieve in battle. It was to make your way to your enemy, tap him on the head with your hand, or your bow, or something called a coup stick, NOT killing or wounding him, and getting away unwounded yourself.

I swear life is very, very good at counting coup on me. Yep, the tree can fall right in front of me and I may not even notice. Here's just one ridiculous example. In years past, I sometimes let clients negotiate me into accepting pay after the work, instead of beforehand.

In coaching work, that's basically just dumb, like, really, really dumb. Yet, in my worst case I let a client build up - I'm embarrassed to tell you - almost $80,000 worth of coaching bills before the tree falling hit me, informing me, I was never going to get paid, at all.

Another tree moving thing I learned over the decades was that bad guys often test you to determine your tolerance for bad behavior. If, nervously, you laugh at it, they know they have a mark. They often discuss how they screwed someone else to measure your reaction.

Eventually growing more vigilant, I finally learned to simply not laugh at tales of trickery against others. I learned to simply say, you know, I don't really find that funny. When you respond to bad guys bragging, you send a signal back that you're onto them, back off.

In social media, I've learned that, in addition to following 60 people, and enjoying 6 followers, trolls show up to attack your point, viciously. They have no interest in debate, or honest disagreement. Their sole interest is to weaken or at least distract you.

A slightly more difficult tree movement to detect are false flag trolls, acting like they're on your side, but utterly distracting from your purpose, and opposing it and you at every turn. Some of them can be very sophisticated. Usually not, but some can.

The first tree movement to note is when they begin to grow less patient, more aggressive. Then, a key topic will show up and they'll soon reveal they're really only there to oppose and share no positive purpose with you at all. The faster you note this movement, the better.

I dare not get started discussing all the tree movement my children have signaled, and of course, all the falling trees I completely missed as a parent. I can tell you, some of the hardest trees to notice in movement are the positive ones, when love is the real motivator.

I really am the luckiest of fathers, I live in an ocean of love. But I sure can be dense from either side, negative or positive. Falling trees. Once you start noticing, it's amazing how clear the signals are, how much time they give in advance.

Fortunately for us, in coming verses Master Sun teaches us sign after sign, analyzing the tiniest of movements of men, spirit and battlefield. We'll soon be master of reading signs, just as he requires us to be.

247 verses completed, 191 to go.

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