Always keep your foes confused. If they are never certain who you are or what you want, they cannot know what you are like to do next.

The line advocates strategic ambiguity: by obscuring your identity, motives, and objectives, you deny opponents the information they need to predict and counter your next move. It frames conflict as an information game in which certainty is a weapon; confusion forces adversaries into hesitation, misallocation of resources, and reactive decision-making. Read more broadly, it reflects a Machiavellian view of power—control the narrative others have about you, and you control their expectations. The quote’s emphasis on “who you are” as well as “what you want” suggests that reputation and perceived character can be as exploitable as concrete plans.