Thick Face, Black Heart: The Warrior Philosophy for Conquering the Challenges of Business and Life

[What follows is Chin-Ning Chu's representation of Li ZongWu's Thick Black Theory, a Chinese text about how success depends on shamelessness and ruthlessness. That text, which is translated here, was published in China in 1911. It caused an uproar, apparently, because it was so directly disrespectful of tradition and ritual and decorum. It is profoundly cycnical, to use a Western word. If you look at Li ZongWu's text you will see that it is, as Chin-Ning asserts, difficult to understand. Thus I'm suggesting you read Chin-Ning's representation of it. Wiki has an entry you might find helpful.] Full text download (pdf)

Introduction

  • Thick Black Theory ... is a relatively modern work and is still virtually unknown outside of China.... an erratic, difficult book. Lee's writing is obscure. His chaotic style makes Lee difficult to understand even for learned Chinese. ... brief, disconnected epigrams that are meaningless to anyone not deeply immersed in Chinese literature. ... bluntly honest vision of the world.
  • There is the superficial aspect: learning the methods and practices by which you can get what you want by imposing your will on others. And there is the deeper, spiritual understanding of Thick Face, Black Heart as the natural and proper state of your soul.

    1: The Essence of Thick Face, Black Heart

  • each one of us will discover the destiny to which we must be true.
  • Understanding how to surmount pain, doubt, and failure is a vital component in winning the game of life.
  • Thick Face: a shield to protect our self- esteem from the bad opinions of others. A person adept at Thick Face creates his own positive self- image despite the criticism of others.
  • The thick- faced person has the ability to put self- doubt aside. He refuses to accept the limitations that others have tried to impose on him and, more importantly, he does not accept any of the limitations that we commonly impose on ourselves. By his absolute self- confidence, the thick- faced person instills confidence in others. A Thick Face need not be assertive or aggressive. He may be humble and submissive. Thick Face is the ability to adopt whatever manner the situation calls for without regard for what other people think of you.
  • Adopt the thick face of a man with a strong sense of his own worth.
  • Black Heart is the ability to take action without regard to how the consequences will affect others. ... ruthless, but it is not necessarily evil. The black- hearted person is above shortsighted compassion. He focuses his attention on his goals and ignores the cost. A black- hearted person has the courage to fail.
  • Ignore the criticism and disapproval of the masses.
  • Ignore criticism, ridicule, and vilification from others, while simultaneously carrying out his duties as he sees fit.
  • Detachment and dispassion that enables the warrior to face life's challenges with calm and grace.
  • Our objective in practicing Thick Face, Black Heart is to be able to defend ourselves against others' aggression. ... neither seeks nor needs external approval.

    2: Preparation for Thick Face, Black Heart: Eleven Principles of Unlearning

  • I am not advising you to become an amoral, self- centered person, but to recognize the difficulties that are involved for a naturally caring, sensitive person such as yourself to pursue your own legitimate self- interest. ... gradually replace the beliefs you were taught with the truths you discover.
  • Self- knowledge is a more reliable guide to behavior than adherence to arbitrarily imposed standards, though both are susceptible to error. ... the false and arbitrary nature of many of the standards under which you are laboring. ... success means change and the risk of failure.
  • Success also requires the courage to risk disapproval.
  • MASTER THE DISTINCTIONS BETWEEN VIRTUE AND VANITY
  • Perform your duty without attachment or aversion
  • Creation and destruction are not opposites,

    3: Dharma: The Wish-Fulfilling Tree

  • Dharma is often defined as that which supports life. People who practice Dharma accept life as it comes and perform their duty accordingly. Dharma is a natural law that guides us to recognize at any given moment the role each one of us is playing in life. Being true to the duty of that particular role at any given time. The opposite of Dharma is Adharma, which is defined as going against one's proper duty in life. Dharma, the natural law that guides the rightness of our actions, is the foundation of Thick Face, Black Heart.

    5: Winning through Negative Thinking

  • If You Have Chicken Manure, Sell Fertilizer. As the Tibetans say, "If you are lying on the ground, you must use the ground to raise yourself."
  • Only the mediocre are always at their best.—JEAN GIRAUDOUX

    6: The Magical Power of Endurance

  • The Chinese word for crisis is made by combining two characters: crisis and opportunity.
  • Have you ever noticed that you are frequently quite good at solving someone else's problems?
  • The person who lives in our head is not our true self.

    7: The Mystery of Money

  • The Chinese character for wealth— the accumulation of money and other assets— is composed of two symbols: one is a seashell, the other is the symbol for the unique ability or talent that each of us has

    12: Acquiring the Killer Instinct

  • finish the job quickly and cleanly--that is the killer instinct,
  • To sacrifice the smaller for the larger is natural in Asian culture, whereas to Westerners this is barbaric and inhumane.
  • he abandoned his objective and took refuge in a false image of his own nobility, masking his weakness as the "noblesse oblige" of one great warrior to another. ... neither was he encumbered by Xiang Yu's concept of honor.
  • The greater your ambition, the more able and willing you must be to exercise your killer instinct. You have to ignore totally whatever your mind is telling you and whatever you're feeling. Just focus wholeheartedly on your task: "Whatever state of mind you are in, ignore it. Think only of cutting."
  • A totally focused state of mind is the essential driving force behind the perfect killer instinct.
  • The killer instinct is the power that propels us to take proper actions in spite of ourselves, keeping us on the path to our objectives. ... The lesson of acquiring the perfect killer instinct is not only in the drama of bullfights and the high finance of the business world; it also exists in its entirety in the flipping of a pancake.

    13: Thick Face, Black Heart Leadership (a literal translation from Kung Ming's Art of War)

  • turn disadvantage into advantage
  • Sometimes it is necessary to do some biting and scratching in order to accomplish one's just objectives, ... and these people are also useful for one's own self- defense.
  • Set clear standards of expectations for their performance, and praise or reprimand them accordingly.
  • Notice all the "little right things"
  • If there were no laughter, the Tao would not be Tao.

    14: Thick Within, Black Within

  • remove the barriers and discover that which you already possess.
  • Through our "proper" social upbringing, we have disfigured the intuitive understanding of the natural law of winning that is within each one of us. ... undo the wrongs that have been imposed upon you since your birth. The first step is self- reflection and self- discovery. ... The only reward for being good is good itself. ... You have been denying and depriving yourself, ... By ignoring your individual needs and totally catering to the needs of others in accordance to the role you are playing, you have betrayed your inner nature and sacrificed your well- being. ... It is too painful to live your life without the liberty of self- expression and self- nurturing.
  • be aware that a great courage exists within you, the power of courage that enables you to acknowledge your own existence and your own needs. ... Uproot this limited concept of goodness and embrace the expanded virtue.... Stand up against your automatic, habitual actions and thoughts and venture into new frontiers. ... By breaking through your notion of others' standards and expectations, you find a new surge of inner harmony: The highest code of living is detachment.
  • He is indifferent to pain and struggle. The situation might be devastating, but he is not devastated. He graciously rides the waves of life through glory and disgrace. ... indifferent to human judgments. ... uncompromising ...
  • Freedom and the courage of action. ... free yourself from trivial concerns and find the peace you seek in the "bigger picture." .. get petty-mindedness out of the way and simultaneously master ultimate humility and frailty.
  • East and West may have different metaphors and symbols, but the differences are only in the wrapping, not in the essence.
  • power gives you the strength to stand up to your automatic habitual actions and thoughts and venture into new frontiers.
  • Detachment is the secret key to obtaining everything you "want."
  • Nature is the embodiment of Thick Face, Black Heart.

    15: Paths to Thick Face, Black Heart

  • believe our Maker has forgotten to deliver them a copy of the operation manual. ... We simply do not know where to find this manual or how to ... read it. ... There is no place or time in which this manual is not present.
  • artificial standards encumber and distract us. ... we become what we think. ... The mind is easily distracted; it loses its focus and becomes restless. If it is not directed positively, its power will be diffused. ... When your breathing is short and shallow, your mind is restless.
  • "No matter where you are, make sure you are there." Mahatma Gandhi

    16: How a Piranha Eats the Shark

    As our experience expands, our reality is also altered

    Appendix: Thick Black Theory

  • Lee Zhong Wu was a social philosopher and critic.
  • He described the methods by which men obtain and hold on to power: how they use their power and wealth to accumulate more power and wealth. ... Being banned by the government. It was banned because too many people were made uncomfortable by the truth in Lee's observations. They were not used to seeing the ruthlessness and hypocrisy underlying many Chinese institutions laid bare.
  • The first requirement is to empty your mind of everything that does not pertain to your appointment to the position you seek. You must have no other goals, no other thoughts. ... You must seize every little opportunity to advance your prospects. ... You must constantly seek to bring your qualifications and importance to the attention of those who are in a position to help you. ... You must ingratiate yourself with those who can help you. ... You must be very subtle with your threats, because you may unknowingly threaten people with a great ability to do you harm.
  • There are two kinds of bribery. The first involves small gifts, meals, drinks. Often these small gifts create a sense of obligation far exceeding their cost. ... Large bribes are used to seal the appointment. They should also be given to those who have great influence with the official who has the power to appoint you. ... You should smear yourself with a layer of false benevolence and pretend to be a religious, moral man.
  • You should say and do nothing. Talk about everything, but say nothing. Make an appearance of being very active, but do nothing. You should never take a definite position, because it might turn out to be wrong or might offend some powerful person.
  • Claim credit for anything that might go well and disown responsibility for anything that might go wrong.
  • You must bow and scrape before your superiors.
  • You must cultivate a haughty and disdainful attitude toward your inferiors.
  • You must be ruthless... vulnerable to your will, you must maintain a virtuous image. You must join organizations that have virtuous purposes so that people will not believe you capable of ruthless actions.
  • You must not hear criticism. You must not see the disapproving looks of others.
  • the importance of avoiding accountability for your actions and making your actions seem much more important than they really are. ... Do as little as possible and always try to leave someone else to finish the job. ... if something goes wrong so long as the blame can be laid on whoever gave the final approval or finished the job. ... Oftentimes it is necessary to make the situation a little worse than it actually is in order to ensure the proper level of appreciation for your efforts.

    TWO TYPES OF FOREIGN POLICY: THE THUG AND THE PROSTITUTE

  • The prostitute has a thick face. The thug has a black heart. ... Whenever it became expedient for them to do so, they would break their treaties and make the same promises to another country. ... The thug is a brute without a conscience who will use whatever weapons are available to him in order to beat his victims into submission.
  • Lee maintains ... a man rises in the world exactly to the same degree that he fears his wife.
  • Lee attaches an almost mystical significance to wife fearing. A man's wife is the person to whom he entrusts his whole life. Out of love for her and fear of her, he goes out into the world to make a name for himself.