Law 19: Know Who You’re Dealing With — Do Not Offend The Wrong Person

48 Laws Of Power Summary Series

Judgement

“There are many different kinds of people in the world, and you can never assume that everyone will react to your strategies in the same way. Deceive or outmaneuver some people and they will spend the rest of their lives seeking revenge. They are wolves in lambs’ clothing. choose your victims and opponents carefully, — then never offend or deceive the wrong person.”

Greene begins this law by identifying five different types of people we see in our culture and society. The point of these is to illustrate how to “distinguish the wolves from the lambs, the fox's from the hares and the hawks from the vultures”. By understanding how to make that distinction you will learn to communicate effectively without making the mistake of crossing someone you shouldn’t.

Opponents, Suckers & Victims: Preliminary Typology

We see this type of person frequently in our culture: people who are very sensitive in their own pride and ego, they often take jokes and subtle comments personally perceiving them to be shots at their character. To effectively communicate with this type of person execute Law 4: Always Say Less Than Necessary.

To reiterate, do not become a target for this type of person. More often than not suspicious people can often be quite dangerous in their action to rid those they suspect.