Law #21: Play a Sucker to Catch a Sucker, Always Seem Dumber Than Your Mark

''No one likes feeling stupider than the next person.The trick, then, is to make your victims feel smarter than you. Once convinced, they will never suspect that you may have ulterior motives''

A THREAD

For example. Smart people use proper grammar. Smarter people strategically use improper grammar to create lapses in the subconscious that open up windows for embedding your ideas.This is a fundamental concept in NLP.

As with all the Laws, use according to the needs of your situation. There could be times when revealing your true intelligence is effective . But more often than not, getting in the habit of downplaying your intelligence will almost always declaw the tigers out to hunt you.

The Chinese invented the analogy of masquerading as a swine to kill the tiger, based on ancient hunting methods in which men disguised themselves as pigs to attract said tigers, whereas the tigers represent people too arrogant and grandiose to suffer blows to their intellect.

Nothing's more threatening in the game of mental judo than somebody we suspect to be smarter than us. Thus, flaunting intelligence arouses resentment and initiates sabotage. Instead, appeal to people’s mental vanity, they will become addicted to their own ego’s confirmation bias

Those who discover your intelligence will respect you more than those upon whom you’ve forced it anyway.

BONUS: Feign stupidity with fogging. The next time somebody calls you stupid, just agree. Say something like, “You’re right, sometimes, I can be very stupid.”Or, even better; apologise. Offer them no resistance. Just fog your way out of their projections. Let them win.

Homage to Robert Greene.

From my notes back in 2017.