In our age of oversharing, TMI, and the quest for external validation of every inner thought, this next law of power will be anathema to those beyond the Boomer.
By concealing true intentions, it is more likely to achieve the ultimate goal. Everyone likes to be a spoiler, but one cannot spoil the unseen, the unknown, or the unsuspected.
Otto von Bismarck, a young deputy in Prussia’s mid-19th century parliament, had the public persona of a warhawk; Austria, Prussia’s neighbor to the south (why is it always the South? Oh yeh – hell is that way), was saber-rattling with threats of war. Von Bismarck preferred to go to battle but knew the Prussian king wanted to avoid the conflict, and suspected that Prussia might lose to Austria’s superior military might. So he gave a speech, supporting and encouraging peace that completely contradicted his reputation, confounded his colleagues, and garnered an elevated position of power in the king’s cabinet. Over time, he was able to fortify the Prussian army and ultimately defeat Austria in 1866. By concealing his motives, von Bismarck achieved his objective: the decisive defeat of Austria.
The lesson? Concealing one’s intentions is simple, albeit not easy. Most people trust in appearances. Visibly supporting an idea or a cause that contradicts the actual desire or result functions as an effective red herring, and distracts others from your ultimate goal. Hide your desires and goals by talking endlessly about them – just not the genuine ones. In this manner, people will think:
1. That you are open;
2. That you are honest; and
3. That they know what you want, so that if they wish to disrupt your plans, they can/will.
Nearly 900 years before the birth of CHRIST, a king of Israel named Jehu asked that all the worshippers of Ba’al in Samaria come to the house of Ba’al for a “great sacrifice” and told them, “Ahab served Ba’al a little; but [I] will serve him much.” Jehu had already ordered the sons of Ahab beheaded – 70 in all – and piled their heads at the gates of Jezreel, so Jehu was quite gangster.
Jehu had all those who worshipped Ba’al congregated in one place — “the house of Ba’al was full from one end to another” — and placed 80 men around the spot, and told them to kill everyone inside.
“Thus Jehu destroyed Ba’al out of Israel.” {2 Kings 10:28}
Effectively, Jehu convinced all the Ba’al worshippers that he, too, was like-minded, and that he was planning a great celebration in honor of Ba’al, when in fact he was planning to exterminate them like bugs.
Which he did.
Ethiopia is the only ancient African nation that has never been conquered/colonized by the Europeans. The Italians/Brits/Russians occupied it for a bit but were never actual owners.
Good all over it/them.
However.
Early in the 20th century the country was divided and ruled by warlords, with one young man – Ras Tafari / Halie Selassie – emerging as the leader who could potentially unify the nation.
However.
One by one, the warlords were summoned to Addis Adaba to declare their loyalty to Emperor Selassie, but one continued to resist. Rather than threaten the holdout, Emperor Selassie invited the man to a banquet in his honor; the man agreed, but only after insisting 600 of his best men accompany him and secreting an army 10,000-strong three miles outside of the city. During the banquet, the emperor made a point of appealing to the warlord’s vanity, appearing to defer to his might and having songs sung in the man’s honor. The warlord was beguiled, and as he made his way back to his army hidden outside the city he congratulated himself on his dominance and fomented plans to unseat Selassie and seize power.
However.
When he arrived back at the encampment, his army was gone. Apparently, Emperor Selassie had bribed the warlord’s army with gold and cash, purchased their weapons, and sent the men to the four winds. When the man tried to march back to Addis Adaba with his 600 men, Emperor Selassie used his army to block the way, and the warlord was forced to surrender, and spent the remainder of his life in a monastery.
Checkmate.
A notorious, 17th-century French courtesan named Ninon de Lenchos summarized it best:
Win the victory before declaring the war.
Eeewwww. Deception is exhausting. Yet necessary.
Unless you’re a honey badger, in which case your intentions are plain, incontrovertible, and consistent.
Kill everything. Just don’t announce your plans to do so.