A strong man in coarse cloth.(布衣之雄)
During the final years of the Eastern Han
dynasty in China, the central government was extremely corrupt.
In various parts of China, people with
strength, prestige or power began forming their own armed forces to protect
their assets. Some of these armed forces became increasingly powerful and their
leaders later became warlords who ruled various parts of China.
By the end of the dynasty, the king of the
Eastern Han Dynasty had no real power. All power was in the hands of an
influential minister named Cao Cao. A story about him is recorded in history
books.
In 200 AD, he led the government army in an
attack on a warlord named Yuan Shao.
Yuan Shao had more troops than the
government army led by Cao Cao. After many battles between the two armies, both
sides gained ground.
The war gradually reached a stalemate, and
despite using various tactics and methods, the government army led by Cao Cao
could not successfully defeat Yuan Shao's army.
Cao Cao urgently asked an important
military adviser for his opinion.
'The number of soldiers I lead is smaller
than Yuan Shao's. After these days of war, my soldiers are very tired and we
have almost run out of food. I think I should retreat first.'
The military adviser replied,
'The situation on the front line is indeed
very complicated now, but I don’t think you should retreat just yet.'
When two armies fight each other, the
number of people and whether there is enough food are important factors, but
there is another factor that is even more important: who is the leader of the
army.
Based on my long-term observations, I think
Yuan Shao is A strong man in coarse cloth, and a mediocre leader.
He has more troops than you, but they
cannot achieve their maximum combat effectiveness under his command.
He is very rich and can therefore assemble
a large team, but he lacks the vision to recognise talent and doesn’t know how
to encourage his followers to perform to the best of their ability.
Compared to him, you are an exceptional
leader.
Although the situation on the front line is
critical, I don't think we should retreat yet. I believe we should persevere.
We can adjust our strategy and adopt a
defensive approach. I believe time is on our side. If we observe patiently and
quietly, they will reveal their weaknesses and then we can win by surprise.
Cao Cao agreed with the military adviser's
opinion.
The war ended in 202 AD with a final
victory for the army led by Cao Cao.
This idiom literally means 'a strong man
wearing coarse cloth'.
It is used to describe a mediocre leader.
Dear friends, what inspiration or thoughts
have you gained from listening to this story?
Do you think a good leader must be highly
capable? What qualities do you think a good leader needs most?
I hope this story has given you something
new to think about.
布衣之雄(A strong man in coarse cloth.)
中國的東漢王朝的末年，東漢王國的中央政府非常的腐敗。
中國各地的一些擁有實力或聲望或權力的一些人保護自己所擁有的資產就開始組建自己的武裝部隊，其中有些人的武裝力量愈來愈大，這些人後來變成割據中國各地的軍閥。
東漢王朝的國王到末期已經沒有實際的權力，所有的權力掌握在一個重要的大臣手上，這個大臣的名字是(曹操)。歷史書上記載了一個他的故事。。
西元200年，他率領政府軍隊攻打當時一個名字叫做(袁紹)的軍閥。
袁紹所掌控的軍隊人數比曹操領導的政府軍還多，曹操的軍隊與袁紹的軍隊經過很多輪的戰爭後，雙方各有斬獲。
這場戰爭逐漸陷入膠著，曹操所領導的政府軍用了各種不同的戰術與方法無法順利打敗袁紹所領導的軍隊。
曹操緊急詢問他一個重要的軍事參謀的意見，他對這個軍事參謀說。
我領導的士兵數量比袁紹所領導的士兵數量更少，經過這段日子的戰爭後、我所領導的士兵們都已經感到非常的疲憊，我們的糧食也已經快吃完了，我認為我應該先撤退。
這個軍事參謀回答。
現在前線的情況的確非常的複雜，但我認為你現在不應該撤退。
兩支軍隊相互爭戰，除了人數多少與糧食是否充足外，還有一個很重要的因素會影響這場戰爭的結果，這個因素就是誰是軍隊的領導者。
根據我長期的觀察，我認為袁紹是一個穿著粗布衣服的強者，他是一個很平庸的領導者。
他所掌握的軍隊人數比你多，但是這些士兵在他的手上並無法發揮出最強的戰鬥力。
因為他很有錢所以很多人他可以聚集很多人到他的團隊中，但是他缺少了辨別出真正的人才的眼光，他也不知道如何讓每個跟隨他的人都可以發揮出自己最大的能力。
與他相比，你是一個非常卓越的領導者。
現在前線的情況雖然危急，但是我認為情況還不到需要撤退的程度，我認為我們現在應該要繼續堅持下去。
我們可以調整我們的戰略，我們採取防守的策略，我相信時間對我們有利，只要我們有耐心地安靜觀察，他們在不久後就會露出他們的弱點，到時候我們就可以出奇制勝。
曹操認同這個軍事參謀的意見，
這場戰爭於西元202年結束，曹操領導的軍隊取得了最後的勝利。
這句成語直接翻譯的意思是一個穿著粗布衣服的強者。
這句成語被用來形容一個很平庸的領導者。
親愛的朋友，你聽完這個故事有怎樣的啟發或有怎樣的想法呢。
你認為一個好的領導者一定要很有能力嗎?你認為一個好的領導者最需要怎樣的特質呢?
我期待這故事能讓你產生一些新的收穫。
出處為資治通鑑-卷63·汉纪55- 献帝建安四年至五年-51條