zhī jǐ zhī bǐ: 知己知彼 - Know Yourself, Know Your Enemy

• Keywords: 知己知彼, zhī jǐ zhī bǐ, know yourself know your enemy, Sun Tzu Art of War, Chinese strategy, Chinese idiom, competition, business strategy, negotiation, understanding your opponent, 百战不殆
• Summary: Originating from Sun Tzu's ancient military treatise “The Art of War,” the famous Chinese idiom 知己知彼 (zhī jǐ zhī bǐ) translates to “know yourself, know your enemy.” This powerful principle is a cornerstone of Chinese strategic thinking, advising that true victory in any competition—from business and sports to personal challenges—comes from a deep and honest understanding of both your own strengths and weaknesses and those of your opponent.

• Pinyin (with tone marks): zhī jǐ zhī bǐ
• Part of Speech: Chengyu (成语) - Idiom
• HSK Level: N/A (Advanced, but culturally essential)
• Concise Definition: To know one's own capabilities and situation as well as those of one's opponent.
• In a Nutshell: This isn't just a military command; it's a philosophy for life. It means that success depends on two equally important parts: first, a clear-eyed, honest assessment of yourself (your resources, skills, and limitations), and second, a thorough investigation of your competitor or the challenge you face. To neglect either part is to risk failure. The core idea is that preparation and intelligence are superior to brute force.

• 知 (zhī): To know, to understand, to be aware of. It implies a deep, not just superficial, knowledge.
• 己 (jǐ): Oneself, self. Refers to your own person, team, or company.
• 知 (zhī): (Same character) To know, to understand.
• 彼 (bǐ): That, the other party, the opponent. It's the counterpart to “己” (oneself).

The structure is a perfect parallel: “Know Self, Know Other.” This symmetry emphasizes that both pieces of knowledge are equally critical for success.

The phrase 知己知彼 (zhī jǐ zhī bǐ) is inextricably linked to its source, 《孙子兵法》 (Sūnzǐ Bīngfǎ) - “The Art of War” by Sun Tzu. The full, original line is: 知己知彼，百战不殆 (zhī jǐ zhī bǐ, bǎi zhàn bù dài), which means, “Know yourself and know your enemy, and in a hundred battles you will never be in peril.” This proverb reveals a core value in Chinese strategic thought: the emphasis on intelligence, psychological insight, and meticulous preparation over raw power. While a Western approach might be to “play to your strengths,” the Chinese perspective, colored by this idiom, is to first analyze the entire competitive landscape—including your own weaknesses and your opponent's mindset—before making a move. Comparison to Western Concepts: A similar Western idea is “due diligence” or “doing your homework.” However, 知己知彼 is more profound and adversarial. “Due diligence” is often a neutral process of data collection. 知己知彼 implies an active, ongoing analysis within a competitive, often zero-sum, context. It's not just about knowing what your competitor does, but why they do it, how they think, and how their weaknesses can be exploited while protecting your own.

This ancient idiom is alive and well in modern China, frequently used in contexts far beyond the military.

• Business and Negotiation: This is arguably its most common modern usage. A company entering a new market must 知己知彼: understand its own product-market fit (知己) and analyze local competitors, consumer behavior, and regulations (知彼). In negotiations, it means understanding your counterpart's goals and limits as well as your own.
• Sports: Coaches and athletes live by this. They study tapes of their own team's performance (知己) and scout opposing teams to understand their plays and star players (知彼).
• Academics and Exams: A student preparing for the gaokao (高考), China's intense college entrance exam, must 知己知彼. They need to know their own academic strengths and weaknesses (知己) and thoroughly understand the exam's format, question types, and scoring criteria (知彼).
• Personal Development: It can be used as advice for personal challenges, like a job interview. You need to know your own resume and skills inside and out (知己) and research the company, the interviewer, and the role's requirements (知彼).

Its connotation is almost always positive and wise, carrying a tone of strategic foresight. It is formal enough for a CEO's speech but common enough to be used as advice between friends.

• Example 1:
  • 在商场上，我们必须知己知彼，才能百战不殆。
  • Pinyin: Zài shāngchǎng shàng, wǒmen bìxū zhī jǐ zhī bǐ, cáinéng bǎi zhàn bù dài.
  • English: In the world of business, we must know ourselves and know our competitors to be invincible.
  • Analysis: This is a classic, almost textbook usage, directly applying the idiom to a business context and even including the second half of the original proverb, “百战不殆” (bǎi zhàn bù dài).
• Example 2:
  • 这次谈判非常重要，我们花了很多时间去知己知彼。
  • Pinyin: Zhè cì tánpàn fēicháng zhòngyào, wǒmen huāle hěnduō shíjiān qù zhī jǐ zhī bǐ.
  • English: This negotiation is extremely important; we spent a lot of time getting to know our own position and theirs.
  • Analysis: Here, the idiom is used as a verb phrase “去知己知彼” (to go and do the work of knowing both sides), highlighting the active process of gathering intelligence.
• Example 3:
  • 足球教练在赛前强调，知己知彼是获胜的关键。
  • Pinyin: Zúqiú jiàoliàn zài sài qián qiángdiào, zhī jǐ zhī bǐ shì huòshèng de guānjiàn.
  • English: Before the match, the soccer coach emphasized that knowing ourselves and the opponent is the key to victory.
  • Analysis: A perfect example of its application in sports. It's used as the subject of the sentence, treated as a strategic concept.
• Example 4:
  • 想要在面试中脱颖而出，你得先做到知己知彼。
  • Pinyin: Xiǎng yào zài miànshì zhōng tuōyǐng'érchū, nǐ děi xiān zuòdào zhī jǐ zhī bǐ.
  • English: If you want to stand out in the interview, you first have to know yourself and know the company.
  • Analysis: This shows the idiom's use in personal, everyday advice. “做到” (zuòdào) means “to achieve” or “to accomplish,” so “做到知己知彼” means to successfully achieve this state of understanding.
• Example 5:
  • 孙子兵法的核心思想就是知己知彼。
  • Pinyin: Sūnzǐ Bīngfǎ de héxīn sīxiǎng jiùshì zhī jǐ zhī bǐ.
  • English: The core philosophy of Sun Tzu's “The Art of War” is to know yourself and know your enemy.
  • Analysis: This sentence explicitly states the idiom's origin and cultural significance. It's a common way to explain the concept.
• Example 6:
  • 我们对竞争对手的了解还不够，远没有做到知己知彼。
  • Pinyin: Wǒmen duì jìngzhēng duìshǒu de liǎojiě hái búgòu, yuǎn méiyǒu zuòdào zhī jǐ zhī bǐ.
  • English: Our understanding of our competitors is still insufficient; we are far from having a complete picture of both sides.
  • Analysis: This example shows the negative form. “远没有做到” (yuǎn méiyǒu zuòdào) means “far from achieving,” indicating a failure in strategic preparation.
• Example 7:
  • 在投资前，你必须对市场和自己的风险承受能力都知己知彼。
  • Pinyin: Zài tóuzī qián, nǐ bìxū duì shìchǎng hé zìjǐ de fēngxiǎn chéngshòu nénglì dōu zhī jǐ zhī bǐ.
  • English: Before investing, you must have a thorough understanding of both the market and your own risk tolerance.
  • Analysis: A great modern example applying the concept to finance. “市场” (the market) is “彼” (the other), and “自己的风险承受能力” (your own risk tolerance) is “己” (oneself).
• Example 8:
  • 他下棋总是赢，因为他每一步都算得很清楚，真正做到了知己知彼。
  • Pinyin: Tā xià qí zǒngshì yíng, yīnwèi tā měi yí bù dōu suàn de hěn qīngchǔ, zhēnzhèng zuòdàole zhī jǐ zhī bǐ.
  • English: He always wins at chess because he calculates every move clearly, having truly mastered knowing himself and his opponent.
  • Analysis: This applies the idiom to a strategic game like chess, showing its relevance in one-on-one intellectual competition.
• Example 9:
  • 这次项目失败的原因是我们只顾着自己的计划，而没有去知己知彼。
  • Pinyin: Zhè cì xiàngmù shībài de yuányīn shì wǒmen zhǐ gùzhe zìjǐ de jìhuà, ér méiyǒu qù zhī jǐ zhī bǐ.
  • English: The reason this project failed is that we only focused on our own plan and didn't analyze ourselves in the context of our competitors.
  • Analysis: This highlights a common mistake: focusing only on “知己” (knowing oneself) without “知彼” (knowing the other), leading to failure.
• Example 10:
  • 古人说“知己知彼，百战不殆”，这个道理今天依然适用。
  • Pinyin: Gǔrén shuō “zhī jǐ zhī bǐ, bǎi zhàn bù dài”, zhège dàolǐ jīntiān yīrán shìyòng.
  • English: The ancients said, “Know yourself, know your enemy, and you will never be defeated”; this principle is still applicable today.
  • Analysis: A reflective sentence that quotes the full proverb and comments on its timeless wisdom. “古人说” (gǔrén shuō - the ancients said) is a common way to introduce a classical proverb.

• Mistake: Forgetting “Know Yourself” (知己)
  • English speakers often latch onto the “know your enemy” part, as it sounds like tactical advice. However, the wisdom of the idiom lies in its balance. Sun Tzu considered an honest, critical self-assessment to be just as, if not more, important. Rushing to analyze a competitor without first understanding your own limitations, resources, and goals is a recipe for disaster.
• False Friend: “Research”
  • While 知己知彼 involves research, it is not a direct synonym. “Research” is the act of gathering data. 知己知彼 is the resulting state of deep, holistic understanding. It's the difference between having a list of your opponent's sales figures and understanding the strategic mindset that produced those figures.
• Incorrect Usage Context:
  • You cannot use 知己知彼 for inanimate objects or non-competitive situations. It requires an opponent or a challenge to overcome.
  • Incorrect: 我想去知己知彼一下这个城市。 (Wǒ xiǎng qù zhī jǐ zhī bǐ yíxià zhège chéngshì.) - This sounds very strange, as if you're going to war with the city.
  • Correct: 我想好好了解一下这个城市。 (Wǒ xiǎng hǎohǎo liǎojiě yíxià zhège chéngshì.) - “I want to get to know this city well.”

• 孙子兵法 (Sūnzǐ Bīngfǎ) - The Art of War; the classical text from which this idiom originates.
• 百战不殆 (bǎi zhàn bù dài) - To never be in peril in a hundred battles; the second half of the full proverb, describing the result of 知己知彼.
• 运筹帷幄 (yùn chóu wéi wò) - Literally “devising strategy within a tent”; a related idiom for high-level strategic planning and masterminding a victory.
• 对手 (duìshǒu) - Opponent, adversary, competitor. This is the “彼” (other) you need to understand.
• 竞争 (jìngzhēng) - Competition. The context where 知己知彼 is most often applied.
• 情报 (qíngbào) - Intelligence, information (especially in a competitive or military sense). This is what you gather to achieve the “知彼” part.
• 优势 (yōushì) - Advantage, strength, superiority. A key element to assess in both yourself (己) and your opponent (彼).
• 劣势 (lièshì) - Disadvantage, weakness, inferiority. The other critical element to assess in your analysis.
• 策略 (cèlüè) - Strategy, tactics. The plan you form after you have achieved 知己知彼.