6.4

"One who marches a thousand li and is not troubled marches where the ground has no people. One who attacks and is certain to gain attacks [the enemy] where he is not guarded. One who guards and is certain to be strong guards himself where he cannot be attacked."
- Sun Tzu

In this passage, Sun Tzu outlines three key aspects of battle: movement (marching), attack, and defense. As you can see, Sun Tzu's primary concern is always with maintaining security and protection. This is, after all, the primary objective of the general - not to seek glory or wealth, but to keep the nation secure.

 Thus, in moving, the army must travel through unoccupied grounds. In attacking, the enemy must be unguarded. In guarding, one must occupy a place that deters the enemy from attacking you . Although these objectives seem like common-sense, Sun Tzu's point is that these must be top of mind for the general.

So in war, also in life. In a competitive situation, move to where your competitors are not. Take action on low-hanging fruit and other undefended territories. Secure a position where competitors will not want to compete with you - either because the barrier to entry is too high or because you are too highly skilled at defending that position for the enemy to take the risk.

The more you go through this process (moving to uncontested territory > attacking easy, unguarded targets > securing an unassailable position), the stronger you'll become and the more likely a) your competitors will not want to compete with you, or b) you'll more easily overcome the competition.