The Art of War by Sun Tzu

It’s fascinating how Sun Tzu managed to write a manual over 2,500 years ago that still reads like a modern guide to high-stakes problem-solving. While the book covers everything from fire attacks to terrain, the truly “brilliant” strategies are the ones that deal with the psychology of competition.
– “The art of war teaches us to rely not on the likelihood of the enemy’s not coming, but on our own readiness to receive him.” – “When you surround an army, leave an outlet free. Do not press a desperate foe too hard.”

“Be extremely subtle, even to the point of formlessness. Be extremely mysterious, even to the point of soundlessness.”
“The onset of troops is like the rush of a torrent which will even roll stones along in its course.”
“Whoever is first in the field and awaits the coming of the enemy, will be fresh for the fight; whoever is second in the field and has to hasten to battle will arrive exhausted.”