Manager Reads History (Part 1, 2, 3)

Author: Ding Tong
Publisher:
Publish Date: 2005-09-01
Features:
"Reading history can enlighten wisdom." — (English) Bacon
"To know the great way, one must first know history." — Gong Zizhen
"When we read the Twenty-Five Histories, from the Records of the Grand Historian to the Draft History of the Qing Dynasty, we learn what is worth emulating and what is worth warning against." — Zhang Taiyan
"All Party members must learn some history." — Mao Zedong
"Humans and apes parted ways. Just a few stones have passed by, like a child's time. In the copper and iron furnaces, flames are turned over. Ask when it will be guessed? Only through thousands of cold and heat. In this world, it is rare to meet someone smiling openly. On the battlefield, they bend their bows at each other under the moon. Their blood has flowed, imitating the original. After finishing a chapter, snow flies from the head, but only remembering the spots and traces, a few lines of the past. The sacred deeds of the Five Emperors and Three Sovereigns have deceived countless passersby. How many famous figures have there been. After the robber Zhi and Zhuangzi gained fame, Chen Wang rose and waved his golden hammers. The song was not finished, and the east was already white." — Mao Zedong, Spring 1964, "A New Song · Reading History"
From ancient times to the present, people's behavior (whether political, managerial, or business) may have many ways, and their views may be varied, but from the perspective of strategy, people in any behavior and view ultimately conform to the principle of pursuing profit and avoiding harm. Looking back at the emperors in history, they are the figures at the peak of power in their time. They are not only representatives of power but also manipulators of the times. Without the blood of profound insight into power and the courage to take responsibility, their power will be destroyed, and even their lives. If so, they are at most mere offerings on the altar of the times, regardless of whether their deeds can be hoped for. They are in the midst of splendid palaces, yet they must endure the cold winds that rise from high places. They must find the optimal point of interest convergence between the imperial power, the nobility, and the common people, and maximize the normal order of the class society. All of this proves that the way of the emperors in each dynasty, the theory of (the way of the hegemon), is the source of the theory of strategy and momentum, power and change, clarity and decision-making. In the eyes of every wise person, they are no different from the soul of modern management.