The Controlled Chaos Strategy
People often look for strategies in life because they fear independent thinking. They seek out a fixed formula that they can apply with success. They want to eliminate uncertainty, but unfortunately, no such strategy exists. Instead, the lesson from history is that it is better to always have options, to never be married to a single way of doing things.
Napoleon Bonaparte managed to defeat an army of tens of thousands of people by diving his soldiers into many smaller groups. Instead of concentrating his forces, the way traditional armies fought, he broke the rules. The Austrians were caught off guard and could not comprehend how quickly the French encircled them. They were paralyzed, they could not move in any direction without Napoleon’s unconventional groups cutting off their paths.
Before Napoleon, Genghis Khan divided his army in a similar way. They seemed to fight with such great coordination and purpose that some remarked that his army was possessed by demons. But Genghis Khan trained his men to fight in this way. He divided them into small groups and had them battle wild animals. The training exercise was known as the Great Hunt – it was a three-month operation that was spread along the Steppes of Central Asia, and involved intricate coordination to trap and eventually kill animals.
Patton’s philosophy of command was: “Never tell people how to do things. Tell them what to do and they will surprise you with their ingenuity.”
PATTON: A GENIUS FOR WAR, CARLO D’ESTE, 1995
In war, speed and adaptability are critical. And in the modern world, it is difficult to achieve either. When information is abundant, and things are moving fast, it becomes more difficult for you to match its speed, to find useful information quickly, and to manage and coordinate teams. Delegation is necessary, when you entrust more responsibility to others, you can expect better results from them. Don’t underestimate the potential of teamwork, you don’t have to do everything on your own.
If you’re interested in exploring the darker or hidden parts of human psychology that most people ignore, check out The Dichotomy of the Self.