Strategy power plays: Winning business ideas from the world's greatest strategic minds: Sun Tzu, Niccolo Machiavelli and Samuel Smiles

Strategy power plays brings together some of the greatest ideas on business success from three classic books. Karen McCreadie, Tim Phillips and Steve Shipside bring together the greatest political and military strategic concepts from their interpretations of Niccolo Machiavelli’s The Prince, Sun Tzu’s The Art of War and Samuel Smiles’ Self-help in a themed compendium. These bestsellers, written respectively in ancient China, Renaissance Florence and Victorian Britain, have inspired readers through the ages with simple yet effective ideas, and continue to drive today’s ambitious readers. In Strategy power plays these influential writings have been reinterpreted using modern business examples. The 100 short, entertaining chapters, which include practical tips and inspiring quotations, are designed to help twenty-first century readers make a success of their businesses and their careers alike.

Table of Contents:
Introduction QUALITIES OF A SUCCESSFUL LEADER 1. All or nothing 2. Winning over resistance 3. Big business and big businessmen 4. Nastiness works too 5. Get real 6. Caress or crush 7. Cometh the hour 8. Buy a big hat 9. Be a practical dreamer 10. Toughen up 11. Stop being so nice 12. Mercy is overrated 13. Be beastly 14. It’s your time now 15. Nothing fails like success 16. Strategic rigidity Is dangerous 17. Run with the opportunities 18. Into the unknown 19. You make your own luck 20. Say what you mean 21. Foster leadership virtues 22. Do the maths 23. Risky business 24. Be decisive 25. Turn misfortune Into gain 26. Getting back on the horse 27. Avoid the five faults of leadership 28. Beware the ego DEALING WITH THE OPPOSITION 29. Be prepared to change your strategy 30. Use it or lose it 31. Stand up for yourself 32. Share power to get power 33. Your enemy’s enemy 34. Not invented here 35. You make the difference 36. Learn to deceive your audience 37. Bait the trap 38. Remove emotion from strategy 39. Size does matter 40. Go where there is no competition 41. Conceal your plans 42. Unite in adversity 43. Choose your alliances carefully 44. When the enemy falters go for the jugular 45. Go for the throat 46. Do your due diligence 47. Gather information carefully GETTING THE MOST OUT OF YOUR WORKFORCE 48. Get out there 49. Aim high 50. They do it your way 51. We hate suckers 52. It’s a dirty job 53. Cut out the middle man 54. The buck stops here 55. If you want something done well, do it yourself 56. Leaders lead 57. Lead from the front 58. Better feared than loved 59. The common touch 60. It’s a wonderful world 61. They work for you 62. Get over yourself 63. Yes or no 64. Your philosophy matters 65. Integration is essential 66. Ensure your ‘big picture’ is possible 67. Employ the right people for the job 68. Control through division 69. Harness the power of teams 70. Reward your people 71. Talk to each other 72. Unite as one 73. Stop the whispers 74. Excesses spell trouble 75. Balance reward and punishment 76. Show confidence in your people 77. Instill some order 78. Regard your employees as your children 79. Don’t be too soft 80. Study the well-being of your people 81. Strength and strength of character 82. Put your back against the wall 83. Acknowledge emotions THE PUBLIC FACE 84. Never again 85. People power 86. The establishment rules 87. Put It away 88. Be a miser 89. Lie to me baby 90. Keep your mouth shut 91. Pants on fire 92. The mug’s eyeful 93. The voice of authority 94. Know your environment 95. Act fast 96. Pick your battles 97. Never be afraid to admit when you’re wrong 98. Never underestimate your opponent 99. Silence is not always golden 100. It’s your story Index

About the Author :
Karen McCreadie has written books for business executives and international speakers on topics ranging from sales, coaching and wealth creation to the mind/body connection and psychological profiling. She is the author of Adam Smith’s The Wealth of Nations, Frank Bettger’s How I Raised Myself From Failure to Success, George S. Clason’s The Richest Man in Babylon, Napoleon Hill’s Think and Grow Rich, Robert Collier’s The Secret of the Ages and Sun Tzu’s The Art of War. Steve Shipside is an author, journalist, and blogger. As a trainer with the World Association of News Publishers he has worked in over a dozen newsrooms as a coach for journalists adapting to the digital world and he has worked for some twenty newspapers on ways of using social media to best advantage. Tim Phillips is a freelance journalist, writing about business, technology, social change and innovation. He has written for The Wall Street Journal Europe, The International Herald Tribune, The Times, The Sunday Times, The Observer, The Independent and The Daily Express among others. For two years he was a technology and internet columnist for the Guardian.