The 48 Laws Of Power

LAW 27

page

225

PLAYONPEOPLE'SNEEDTOBELIEVETOCREATEACULTLIKEFOLLOWING

People

havean

overwhelming

desiretobelievein

something.

Becomethe

focalpointof

suchdesire

byojj‘m'ng

thema

cause,

a

nemfaith

to

follow.Keepyour

wants

vague

but

fullofpromise;emphasize

enthusiasmover

rationality

andclear

thinking.

Give

your

new

disciples

ritualsto

perform,

askthemtomake

sacrifices

on

your

oehaqf

Intheabsence

oforganizedreligion

and

grand

causes,

your

new

beliefsystem

will

bringyou

untold

power.

LAW 28

page

227

ENTERACTIONWITHBOLDNESS

Ifyou

areunsure

of

a

course

of

action,

donot

attempt

it.Yourdoubtsandhesitationswill

infectyour

execu-

tion,

Timidity

is

dangerous:

Bettertoenter

with

boldness.

Any

mistakes

you

commit

throughaudacity

are

eas»

ily

correctedwithmore

audacity.

Everyone

admiresthe

bold;

noonehonorstheléfllid.

LAW

29

page

236

PLANALLTHEWAYTOTHEEND

The

ending

is

everything.

Planallthe

way

to

it,

taking

intoaccountallthe

possibleconsequences,

obstacles,

andtwists

offortune

that

might

reverse

your

hardworkand

give

the

glory

toothers.

Byplanning

totheend

you

willnotbeoverwhelmed

by

circumstancesand

you

willknowwhento

stop.Gentlyguidefortune

and

help

determinethe

fittunebythinkingfar

ahead.

LA‘/V 30

page

245

MAKEYOURACCOMPLISHMENTSSEEMEFFORTLESS

Youractionsmustseemnaturalandexecutedwithease.Allthetoiland

practice

that

go

into

them,

andalso

alltheclever

tricks,

mustbeconcealed.When

you

act,

act

eflortlessly,

as

zfyou

coulddomuchmore.Avoidthe

temptationof

-revealing

howhard

you

wurk—it

only

raises

questions.

Teachnoone

your

tricksor

they

willbe

used

againstyou.

LAW 31

page

25-?

CONTROL

THEOPTIONS:GETOTHERSTOPLAYWITHTHECARDSYOUDEAL

Thebest

deceptions

aretheonesthatseemto

give

theother

person

achoice:Yourvictims

feel

they

arein

control,

butare

actuallyyourpuppets.

Give

peopleoptions

that

someoutin

yourfavor

whicheverone

they

choose,

Force

themtomakechoices

between

thelesser

of

twoevils,

both

of

whichserve

yourpurpose.

Putthemonthe

horns

of

adilemma:

They

are

gored

wherever

they

turn.

LAW

3 2

page

263

PLAYTOPEOPLESFANTASIES

Thetruthis

often

avoided

because

itis

ugly

and

unjbleasant.

Never

appeal

totruthand

reality

unless

you

are

preparedfor

the

anger

thatcomes

from

disenchantment.

Life

issoharshand

distressing

that

people

whocan

manufacture

romance

or

conjurenpfarztasy

arelikeoasesinthedesert:

Everyoneflocks

tothem.Thereis

great

power

in

tapping

intothe

fantasiesof

themasses.

CONTENTS xiii