Quotes from Robert Greene

When you are weaker, there is nothing to be gained by fighting a useless fight. No one comes to help the weak—by doing so they would only put themselves in jeopardy. The weak are alone and must submit. Fighting gives you nothing to gain but martyrdom, and in the process a lot of people who do not believe in your cause will die.

We have learned the rules so well that we can now be the ones to break or rewrite them.

Ask more of them. Expect them to work like adults. Quietly alter the spirit with which things are done. Emphasize efficiency: anybody can be efficient (it isn't a question of talent), efficiency breeds success, and success raises morale. Once the spirit and personality of the group start to shift, everything else will fall into place.

If you can get other people to dig their own graves, why sweat yourself? Pickpockets work this to perfection. The key to picking a pocket is knowing which pocket contains the wallet. Experienced pickpockets often ply their trade in train stations and other places where there is a clearly marked sign reading BEWARE OF PICKPOCKETS. Passersby seeing the sign invariably feel for their wallet to make sure it is still there. For the watching pickpockets, this is like shooting fish in a barrel.

When you reveal the inner workings of your creation, you become just one mere mortal among others. What is understandable is not awe inspiring

la importancia de mantener las relaciones más estrechas posible con los clientes; la necesidad de conservar las ideas en el nivel más simple y realista posible; el valor de crear un producto superior y de ganar por habilidad, en oposición a hacer que todo apunte a ganar dinero.

Great courtiers throughout history have mastered the science of manipulating people.

You are one of a kind. Your combination of skills and experience is not replicable. That represents true freedom and the ultimate power we humans can possess.

Anything that is alive is in a continual state of change and movement. The moment that you rest, thinking that you have attained the level you desire, a part of your mind enters a phase of decay.

Better to have others depend on you out of fear of the consequences of losing you than out of love of your company.

Remember: In the beginning, make yourself not scarce but omnipresent. Only what is seen, appreciated, and loved will be missed in its absence.

But it's not what you have that brings you victory, it's how you use it.

People trying to make a show of their authority are easily deceived by the surrender tactic. Your outward sign of submission makes them feel important; satisfied that you respect them, they become easier targets for a later counterattack

There may be no more Sun Kings but there are still plenty of people who believe the sun revolves around them.

If you want to make people with low self esteem feel better about themselves, praise has a superficial effect. Instead prod them into accomplishing something tangible, giving them a real experience. That will translate into a much deeper feeling of confidence.

the tendency to mistake appearances for reality—the feeling that if someone seems to belong to your group, their belonging must be real.

Understand: the greatest impediment to creativity is your impatience, the almost inevitable desire to hurry up the process, express something, and make a splash.

When the great lord passes, the wise peasant bows deeply and silently farts. Ethiophan proverb

Make people depend on you. More is to be gained from such dependence than courtesy. He who has slaked his thirst, immediately turns his back on the well, no longer needing it. When dependence disappears, so does civility and decency, and then respect.

In the evolution of species, protective armor has almost always spelled disaster. Although there are a few exceptions, the shell most often becomes a dead end for the animal encased in it; it slows the creature down, making it hard to forage for food and making it a target for fast-moving predators. Animals that take to the sea or sky, and that move swiftly and unpredictably, are infinitely more powerful and secure.

Los seductores prefieren seleccionar sus posibilidades. Tanto como sea posible, persiguen a gente que delata alguna vulnerabilidad a ellos, y evitan a la que no pueden emocionar. Dejar en paz a quienes son inaccesibles a ti es una senda sensata; no puedes seducir a todos. Por otra parte, busca activamente a la presa que reaccione de la manera correcta. Esto volverá mucho más placenteras y satisfactorias tus seducciones.

We don't say what we feel even when it would be appropriate, and we fail to set boundaries to people's harmful behavior. We find it hard to ask for a raise or a promotion or the respect due to us. Losing our bold spirit, a positive form of aggression, is losing a deep part of our self, and it is inevitably painful.

What gets us into trouble in the realm of power is often our own overreaction to the moves of our enemies and rivals.

The essence of strategy is not to carry out a brilliant plan that proceeds in steps. It is to put yourself in situations where you have more options than your enemy does...True strategy is being able to do strategy A, B, or C, depending on the circumstances.