Welcome to MALICIA AS A GAME OF POWER, a blog series that delves deeply into the intricate strategies of human interactions, encompassing a wide range of topics including communication, conflict resolution, negotiation, and manipulation. This series not only discusses the nuances of leadership and personal branding but also explores the crucial aspect of online reputation management in today’s digital landscape. By providing a rich collection of practical strategies aimed at enhancing influence and fostering meaningful relationship-building, it equips readers with the tools necessary to navigate complex interpersonal dynamics. Moreover, through thorough analysis and a diverse array of examples drawn from real-life scenarios, the series aspires to empower readers, enabling them to master the art of successfully navigating interpersonal relationships and emerging stronger in their personal and professional lives.
In this installment, we will explore the 35th law of power in the book, the 48 laws of power by Robert Greene. You can buy a copy by clicking HERE.
Law 35: Master the art of timing.
Never seem in a hurry, always seem patient. In a world that often rushes forward without considering the consequences, embracing a calm demeanor can set you apart from the crowd. Sniff out the spirit of the times, find the trends that’ll give you power; it’s essential to be in tune with the shifting paradigms around you, as they hold the key to future opportunities.
Learn to stand back when not ready, observing the landscape before you with a keen eye and an open mind, allowing yourself to absorb all the nuances that may influence your choices. Take the time to reflect on the possibilities and potential outcomes, gathering insights that will inform your next move. Only then should you strike with precision and confidence when the moment is right, fully aware of the implications of your actions.
This strategic approach not only enhances your decision-making but also positions you as a thoughtful leader in your field, capable of navigating complexities with ease and grace. By fostering a sense of patience and awareness, you cultivate an environment where informed decisions lead to greater success, inspiring others to adopt a similar mindset and elevating the overall standard of leadership.
How to Use the 35th Law of Power Ethically: Mastering the Art of Timeliness
The 35th Law of Power, often summarized as “Master the Art of Timing,” is a double-edged sword. When wielded unethically, it can lead to manipulative maneuvering, exploiting others’ vulnerabilities, and seizing opportunities through deceit or harmful haste. However, when approached with a commitment to integrity and foresight, this law transforms into a powerful tool for ethical leadership, strategic patience, and positive influence.
To utilize the 35th Law ethically, one must focus not just on when to act, but on why and how that action will impact all stakeholders.1. Ethical Foresight: Understanding the Ripples of Time
Ethical mastery of timing begins with foresight. This involves a deep, honest assessment of the potential consequences—both positive and negative—of your actions or inactions on all involved parties.
- Avoid Exploitation: Never use superior knowledge of timing to exploit an opponent’s weakness, fear, or ignorance. For example, knowing a competitor is in a temporary financial bind should not be used to demand an unfairly low price for a necessary asset.
- Prioritize Stability over Gain: While the law encourages seizing the kairos moment, ethical application dictates that a sudden, massive personal gain that creates chaos or serious detriment for others should be avoided in favor of a stable, mutually beneficial trajectory.
- Calculate Long-Term Health: Ethical timing considers the long-term health of a relationship, project, or organization. A quick, decisive move might win the day, but if it destroys trust or morale, it was timed poorly from an ethical standpoint.
2. Strategic Patience: The Ethical Power of Delay
The 35th Law is not just about speed; it’s often about strategic patience—knowing when not to act. Ethical patience is about waiting for the right moment to ensure fairness, clarity, and maximum positive impact, rather than waiting for an advantage through manipulation.
- The Wait for Clarity: Ethically, it is often better to delay a major decision until all necessary information is gathered and all relevant voices have been heard, ensuring a just outcome. Rushing a decision to meet a personal deadline is an abuse of timing.
- The Wait for Readiness: If you are leading a team, ethical timing means waiting until your team members are adequately prepared, trained, or mentally ready for a significant undertaking, even if a slightly earlier move seems strategically tempting for you personally.
- Avoid Emotional Timing: Never use timing to strike back in anger or react defensively. Ethical timing requires a cool head, allowing the emotional intensity of a situation to subside before making a reasoned, fair response.
3. Decisiveness with Diligence: Action at the Peak Moment
When the moment for action arrives, ethical application of the 35th Law demands decisiveness coupled with diligence and transparency (where possible and appropriate).
- Act to Resolve, Not to Ambush: Use perfectly timed action to resolve a long-standing issue, bring clarity, or launch a beneficial initiative, rather than to surprise or ambush an unsuspecting rival or colleague.
- The Announcement Moment: If an action affects others, the ethical moment is not just the moment of the act itself, but the moment of the communication regarding that act. Timely, honest, and comprehensive communication mitigates fear and resentment.
- Integrity in Execution: When the critical moment arrives, execute your plan with integrity, ensuring that any promises made during the waiting period are honored and that the action adheres to all established ethical guidelines and legal frameworks.
By subordinating immediate, self-serving gain to the principles of fairness, transparency, and long-term well-being, the 35th Law of Power can be transformed from a cynical tactic into a foundation for ethical and highly effective leadership.
The 35th Law of Power, “Master the Art of Timing,” through the eyes of an Angoleiro:
In the roda (circle) of Capoeira Angola, power is not merely brute strength, but a sophisticated understanding of tempo and malícia. For the Angoleiro, the 35th Law of Power—to know when to act, when to wait, and when to retreat—is the very heartbeat of the game.
O Jogo (The Game) as Timing:
- Waiting for the Right Moment (A Espera): An Angoleiro rarely attacks immediately. They move slowly, low to the ground, with a deceptive fluidity. This is not slowness, but a profound patience. They wait for the moment when the opponent is least expecting it, when their balance is compromised, or when their mind wanders for a fraction of a second. This waiting is an active form of observation—a deep reading of the other player’s rhythm, breath, and intention. The power lies in withholding action until the most critical, unguardable instant.
- The Counter-Clock (O Contra-Tempo): True mastery is acting against the rhythm the opponent is trying to impose. If the opponent speeds up, the Angoleiro slows down, creating a vacuum that draws the opponent into a mistake. If the opponent hesitates, the Angoleiro strikes with sudden, explosive speed. This use of contra-tempo is the essence of malícia—the cunning intelligence that dictates when a move is a feint, when it is a setup, and when it is the final, decisive blow.
- Knowing When to Withdraw (A Saída): Just as important as the attack is the retreat. An attack that fails to land, or one that leaves the player vulnerable, must be instantly abandoned for a defensive esquiva (escape/dodge) or a positional reset. An Angoleiro knows that holding onto a failed action is an invitation to defeat. Power is preserved by knowing when to let go, when to move out of range, and when to regroup to fight another minute, another day. This strategic withdrawal is not a sign of weakness, but a calculation for long-term dominance.
In Capoeira Angola, the clock is not external; it is carried within the body, driven by the berimbau (musical bow). The Angoleiro who successfully masters the 35th Law of Power controls the flow of the jogo, making the opponent dance to a timing they never chose.
Jogo Corpo Fechado 