Strategy in chaos

"Even in the midst of the turbulence of battle, the fighting seemingly chaotic, they are not confused. Even in the midst of the turmoil of battle, the troops seemingly going around in circles, they cannot be defeated." Sun Tzu

If decisions are made with a flip of a coin, pure randomness can achieve a 50 percent chance of being correct. But it is difficult to be completely random because it is human nature to meddle in situations where too often we have no practical knowledge. So it would not be unusual to be wrong more than 50 percent of the time because the opponent isn't one side of a coin but rather a skilled and experienced competitor.

Therefore, only make a move when there is a gain to be had, and only make that move when we know exactly what we are doing. If not, stop. Take the default position of defense to gather sufficient strength and avoid unnecessary risks. As such, one can operate in a chaotic situation and not fail to secure safety.

The direction and unity of movement are important. If each team member does his or her part, albeit small in comparison to the total, there will be progress toward the goal. If each team member does his or her part, although chaotic in total when compared to the clear individual tasks that must be done, victory will be achieved.

In summary, strategy is the leveraging of randomness where we can actually tip the odds in our favor, if only by a little. If we were to run at 51 percent, and do so consistently over time, who do you think will win the race?