What can you learn from Machiavelli?

The Prince was not even read by the person to whom it was dedicated, Lorenzo de Medici. If the truth be told, this strange little treatise for which Machiavelli is famous, or infamous, never aided—at least not in any systematic way—anyone in the actual business of governing. The most one can say about The Prince in this regard is that Kissinger and Nixon preferred it as their bedtime reading. 

So why are we still reading this treatise five centuries later?

ROBERT P. HARRISON

 JANUARY 01, 2011

https://insights.som.yale.edu/insights/what-can-you-learn-machiavelli

Sun Tzu & Machiavelli Leadership Secrets: How To Become A Superior Leader Utilizing The Principles Of The Art Of War And The Prince

Sun Tzu’s ‘The Art of War’ and Machiavelli’s ‘The Prince’ both are fundamentally important works related to the areas of strategic leadership and decision making. Although almost every leader has heard of these works, very few have read them in depth and applied the lessons they contain to their own life. This is a huge oversight. Both books contain wisdom and advice which is applicable to almost any situation a leader finds they are in. Both books have a reputation for being dense and difficult to understand. This is due to the fact that both were written in other languages and for other time periods. It can be difficult to know exactly what Sun Tzu and Machiavelli intended to convey with their words - and even less how to take action on the ideas. This has all changed. For the first time ever, the ideas of The Prince and The Art of War have been combined, updated and presented in a way which is easy to understand in our modern era. Previously hard to interpret concepts have been clarified and shown to be as useful in our own era as they were in the one for which they were originally written. By reading and taking action on this book entitled Sun Tzu & Machiavelli Leadership Secrets by author Anthony D. Jensen, you give yourself the chance to become the most effective leader you can be. You will learn how to use timeless principles of leadership, psychology and power to achieve everything you set out to do. Both your private and professional lives will benefit immensely.