Transcription
The 48 Laws of Power, Law 1: Never Outshine the Master. Always make those above you feel superior. Do not draw attention to your skills, lest you awaken their insecurities and fears. Always make your superiors seem more brilliant than they are. Robert Greene, a scholar of power dynamics, wrote this book.
The book's structure first presents an example of breaking the rule, then an example of applying it. The first rule, I believe, is something people familiar with Chinese culture would generally understand. It's about not openly showing off, right? The author uses the example of Louis XIV and his finance minister. Louis XIV, the "Sun King," was always the center of attention. Therefore, he could not tolerate anyone outshining him or appearing more extravagant. His finance minister made this mistake. He staged a magnificent, opulent display, intending to express the king's magnificence. However, he ended up stealing Louis XIV's thunder. Ultimately, he violated the king's vanity. Consequently, Louis XIV found an excuse to remove this unsettling finance minister.
The positive application of this law is exemplified by Galileo. Galileo was a scientist during the early 17th-century Renaissance. In that era, if you wanted to continue receiving funding and support for your research, you had to use certain tactics and gifts. For instance, he presented his invention of the military compass to the Duke of Tuscany. This was something people of that era did. While this approach could secure continued support and more students, or gifts, it still meant being subservient. So, Galileo devised a method to continue his work.
In 1610, Galileo discovered the moons of Jupiter. This time, instead of distributing his attention broadly, he focused his efforts on a specific family. That family was the Medici. After Cosimo I de' Medici established the Medici dynasty in 1537, he designated Jupiter as the symbol of the Medici family. This was a symbol that transcended political and economic power. Thus, Galileo's "little world" declared that Jupiter's discovery was a gift to the Medici family and to the universe. During the reign of Cosimo II de' Medici, Galileo publicly announced that he had seen bright stars through his telescope. These were, in fact, Jupiter and its moons appearing in the night sky. He stated that the number of moons was four, representing Cosimo II and his three brothers. The moons orbiting Jupiter were like four sons, circling the founder of the dynasty, Cosimo I. This was not a coincidence. It symbolized the Medici family's rule as divinely ordained. The Medici even commissioned a painting of Jupiter seated on clouds with four stars around him, and presented it to Cosimo II. This depicted the relationship between the ruler and the stars in the heavens.
Thus, in 1610, Cosimo II appointed Galileo as his official court mathematician and astronomer. The astronomer would help him fund his inventions and present them to patrons. Finally, there was a recipient. In fact, all superiors, including emperors, want to appear more brilliant than others. These individuals are not concerned with science or truth, nor with the latest inventions. Their focus is on their own fame and glory. Galileo connected the Medici family with the power of the universe, bestowing upon them unparalleled glory. For them, the value of new instruments was far greater. The author states that for rulers who wish to create, they do not want to merely provide funding or be ordinary supporters. They hope to be remembered in posterity as creative, memorable, and powerful individuals. Therefore, you must give them glory, not a sense of crisis or unease.
The author summarizes this by saying, "Never think that the eras of Louis XIV and the Medici are over." In reality, in any era, those in high positions are always like kings and queens. They want their status to be secure and stable, and they want to be wiser, more brilliant, and more powerful than those around them. This law contains truths that we must recognize. First, it may be natural to reveal yourself, but you might inadvertently outshine your superiors. Second, never become arrogant and think that because your superiors are accommodating, you can do as you please. We must always remember not to take our position for granted. Never let success go to your head.
However, applying this law is not simple. Open flattery might have some effect, but it also carries great risks because it is too obvious, too direct, and too blatant, easily provoking others' resentment. If you can flatter subtly and seamlessly, its effect and power will be much greater. For example, if you are smarter than your superior, you should make them appear more brilliant and capable than you. You can consult them for their opinions and ideas. Sometimes, you can deliberately make minor, irrelevant mistakes, giving you an opportunity to ask for their help. Superiors enjoy such situations. If a superior cannot use you to demonstrate their talent and experience, they may develop resentment and hostility towards you.
If your ideas are more creative than your superior's, you should tell others that these creative ideas belong to your superior. This is not enough. You must also make everyone know that your opinions are merely a reflection of your superior's thoughts. For example, if your talents surpass your boss's, you might play the role of a court jester, but you must not make them feel that you are mocking or poisoning them. If this happens, you must lower your profile and find ways to make your superior the protagonist of the story. If you are naturally more talented and capable than your superior, be careful not to become a cloud that obscures your superior's brilliance. They must appear like the sun, and those around them can only bask in its rays. Shine your light on me, boss! Give me some attention! Without your light, I will die!
If you want to win their sympathy, you can appropriately display your weaknesses or embarrassing predicaments. Conversely, if you want to leave a lasting impression with elegance and grace, it may backfire, just like Louis XIV's finance minister. The author states that all these examples are about concealing your brilliance. Ultimately, this may help you gain power and outshine others. It is better than becoming a victim of others' insecurity.
There are a few points to note. You do not need to offend everyone you meet. Sometimes, when necessary, you must selectively show your cold side. If your superior is a falling star, do not be afraid to outshine them. You do not need to be too accommodating. Because when they are climbing towards power, they are also cold and do not have such concerns. We must observe their strengths. If their strength is waning, take measures to accelerate their decline and surpass them at the crucial moment, appearing more charming and intelligent than them. However, if they have already risked surpassing your shaky position, this will make others perceive you as cold and malicious. If your superior's position is still stable and unshakeable, even though you clearly know you are more capable, you must patiently wait for the opportunity. Power will eventually decline and weaken. This is a natural law. Your time will come. As long as you are patient and do not make mistakes, you will eventually be able to endure. One day, you will surpass them.
Hmm, does this episode feel somewhat familiar? That's right. Ten months ago, I discussed the first three laws of "The 48 Laws of Power." I haven't talked about it since. To keep my promise, I will continue this series, discussing one law at a time, divided into 48 episodes. This will be simpler. The previous episode discussed the book's content. I think this gives everyone more options to listen to some of my book summaries. Another part will fill in the gaps when I can't think of what book to discuss. In those awkward moments between books, I can talk about this one.
Another book, "We Think," by Adam Grant, I believe will be discussed in a similar manner. The past ten minutes or so were a segment from an episode I recorded a month ago. I will add more details and examples, teaching you how to apply such laws in real life. We have discussed this book before; it is a book of strategy. You could call it modern Sun Tzu or Western Machiavellianism. I will not introduce this book further, as I have already discussed it once. I will directly talk about how we can apply this law in our current lives or situations, and how we understand it.
First, let's discuss how we understand this law. The author's point is that few superiors truly want you to be better than them. Therefore, being outstanding is not an effective survival strategy. Deep down, superiors truly hope that your existence makes them look good. For example, "Wow, I have such a subordinate. Your work ability allows me to... whatever... in front of my boss." What they care about most is not your talent, but how it benefits them. This is why it is important not to make them feel threatened.
Let's do a simple analogy. In psychology, there is a concept called relative deprivation. Relative means that a person may not actually lose anything, but as long as they feel you are about to surpass them, about to take something from them, they will become defensive. On the other hand, the higher a person's status, the more they care about their position and the feeling of being needed. Therefore, if you do something perfectly, so perfectly that even your superior doesn't know how you did it, and your ability is superhuman, your boss will no longer feel admiration for you. They will only feel uneasy and threatened. We must remember that this is human nature. It is not a simple race, but a competition.
For example, when you are doing something, regardless of whether your direct superior is long-lived. If you truly act according to this law, when you sense that everyone buys into your point, you can then earn your boss's favor. "Ah, my boss, they taught me, they guided me." At that moment, I felt it made a lot of sense. They awakened me.
Here is the translation of the provided text:
The idea I'm presenting first, you see, when you do it like this, wow, the whole thing is perfect. But the part I'm warning you to be careful about, why I say when you sense that most, most people understand your point, then you speak. Because if you speak without knowing everyone's reaction, then your attempt will be a war, it will tell you. Wow, if the whole world is against it, then your boss will be in trouble, right?
Now, this is absolutely not something a subordinate should do. When you ensure that 90% of your actions can have a positive impact on your superior, then you do it. Acting in their name to issue work, then the other party will feel very relieved and comfortable after hearing it. They will feel that you know how to act, that you are still under their control.
What else is new? Don't rush to defend, don't argue, don't expose your boss's mistakes. If your boss says something wrong, you don't need to immediately fawn over them. You can subtly hint at it, or perhaps use some indirect questioning to lead them to say the answer themselves. Even if the other party doesn't realize you're helping them, as a subordinate, you should still do it. Because being correct in the workplace is not valuable. What is valuable is retaining your position, especially your position in your boss's heart. Let them win. What do you want to achieve? Do you want to start your own business and be a star? This is not important in the workplace.
What else can we apply? We need to establish an image of someone who makes others feel at ease. You need to let people know that I am capable, but my capability will not threaten you. The feeling you give your superior should be that you are very smart and clever, capable, but 90% of the time, you should also reveal a sense of "Oh, actually, I still really need your guidance." Of course, don't express it so bluntly. You'll make people think this person is not mature enough yet, and still needs my help. It's not about pretending to be ignorant, but about retaining that feeling.
What else should we pay attention to? It's about letting your boss or others know that you've done a lot of work, that it's great. You fundamentally don't need to rely on your own mouth to tell people how much you've done. But people who brag about doing a lot are often disliked. A more sophisticated approach is to design scenarios so that others discover, "Wow, it turns out you did everything." For example, if there's an example? Do I need to constantly tell you that I'm very smart? I rarely say I'm very smart, right? I also rarely say that I'm a very efficient person, that I work very fast. I never... well, not never, I do say it sometimes, but I rarely say it. I won't tell you these things every day. You, who slowly watch my programs, can infer that my efficiency is very high, my time management is very good. When you hear me speak, you can generally guess that my logic is clear, and my insights are readable. Do these things need to be spoken out loud? If you say them, no one will get it, right? People will get it first, right? Think about praising yourself. I can also praise myself in a descriptive way. After praising myself, you still feel, "Right, they really are that kind of person."
So, in the workplace, what can we do? For example, if your neighboring colleague knows that they've finished their entire workload in half a day, and they have free time to help you solve problems that others can't solve. Over time, these people will tell the boss. They'll tell the boss, and the boss will know. Then, in a low-key manner, you'll gain your boss's appreciation. It's not obvious, is it? Is this the correct way to open things? This is the superior way.
There's one more point, I think it's very important, which is that we should not make ourselves too perfect. Don't do everything perfectly. Leave some room for error, leave some carelessness for yourself, leave some harmless mistakes for your boss to find. Why is this so important? If you are so perfect, what do I have to do? If I am your boss, what have I done? Sometimes making a small mistake, a minor one, is endearing. It truly makes you more lovable. So, if you look closely at this point, you'll know that the author is not teaching you to be a perfect person, but to be someone who knows how to be precious. You really shouldn't think that being too perfect is good. This is the best strategy in the workplace, especially when your boss is a petty or jealous person. You should know how to be like this. You know you're too much, right? Try to know, don't close your eyes. Just kidding. True masters don't turn on the light all day, but wait until your boss needs you to turn on the light, then you turn it on.
Okay, let's do a simple reflection. Let's ask ourselves, in our current or past workplace careers, have we unintentionally... have we encountered a situation like this? Second, have you ever designed a way for the other party to see? Third, are you willing to practice this rule to help your boss stand out, to make your boss shine? I think these three questions are worth reflecting on. Of course, finally, let's put on a helmet. The above views are the author's personal opinions and do not represent my views. Today's time is almost up. So, I will also edit the second method and then make a few more videos. Because 10 months ago, I talked about three methods. So, I need to make two more episodes. Therefore, this episode will feature three "fried rice" videos. Everyone, please look forward to it.