Law #3: Conceal Your Intentions — The Quiet Skill That Keeps You Ahead
Power doesn’t usually fail because you’re not talented.
It fails because you were predictable.
Most people think clarity is always a virtue: be open, be direct, share your plan, show your excitement. In friendly environments, that works. But in competitive environments—corporate, business, partnerships, even friend groups—clarity can become a liability.
Because the moment people truly understand what you want, they can do one of three things:
block you
extract from you
beat you to it
That’s why Law #3 from The 48 Laws of Power by Robert Greene is so valuable:
Law #3: Conceal Your Intentions
This law is not about lying for sport.
It’s about not handing people the map to your future.
It’s about understanding a simple principle:
If they can predict your next move, they can control it.
Why your intentions get used against you
When you reveal your plan too early, you create leverage for others.
1) You invite interference
Once people see where you’re going, they can:
lobby against your idea
slow approvals
introduce “process”
redirect credit
position themselves as the owner
2) You invite extraction
Some people ask questions to help.
Others ask questions to steal the blueprint.
They don’t need your whole plan. They only need enough to reproduce the core.
3) You create a target
Ambition triggers competition.
Even friendly people can shift once they know what you’re aiming for.
The modern face of Law 3
Concealing intentions isn’t about being mysterious.
It’s about controlling disclosure.
In modern life, the biggest leaks happen through:
oversharing in meetings
“friendly” conversations with curious people
status updates too early (“we’re launching soon”)
revealing your strategy before your execution is ready
Most people don’t get punished for having a plan.
They get punished for showing the plan before it’s defensible.
The trap: transparency feels like confidence
There’s a subtle psychological trap: when someone asks questions, you feel pressure to prove yourself.
So you explain:
the vision
the logic
the differentiation
the roadmap
the weaknesses
the timing
And it feels like you’re building trust.
But often, you’re just making it easy for someone else.
This is why Law #3 pairs naturally with Law #4:
Always say less than necessary.
Because Law 3 is the strategy—conceal the plan.
Law 4 is the mechanism—don’t leak it through extra words.
How to apply Law 3 without turning into a paranoid person
You don’t need to become secretive. You need to become intentional.
1) Separate “friendly” from “safe”
Friendly people can still be unsafe with information.
A person can be:
warm, social, curious
and still be:
competitive, opportunistic, extractive
Judge safety by behavior patterns, not vibes.
2) Don’t share your “why” and “how” too early
You can share what you’re doing at a high level.
But keep your leverage private:
the real differentiator
the process
the timeline
the partnerships
the key insight that makes it work
3) Use harmless framing
If you must talk, give a surface explanation that doesn’t expose the engine.
Examples:
“I’m exploring a few ideas in that space.”
“Still validating it.”
“It’s a small experiment.”
“Just seeing what sticks.”
It lowers attention. It reduces competition. It buys time.
4) Make people talk first
Ask questions before answering questions.
When someone starts drilling you for details, flip the dynamic:
“Interesting—why do you ask?”
“What are you working on in that space?”
“What would you build differently?”
You learn intent quickly by watching how they respond.
5) Reveal in layers, not dumps
Think of disclosure like permissions:
Layer 1: high-level summary
Layer 2: outcome + benefit
Layer 3: only with proven trust
Layer 4: only when execution is already moving
If it’s not shipped or defensible yet, don’t talk like it’s a press release.
The real point of Law 3
Law #3 isn’t “be mysterious.”
Law #3 is:
Stay unpredictable until the moment your move can’t be easily stopped.
You can be kind. You can be ethical. You can be collaborative.
Just don’t be naïve.
Train the law until it becomes instinct
Knowing Law 3 intellectually is easy.
Using it when you’re excited, proud, or under pressure is the hard part.
That’s why Power Master 48: Laws of Power is built around practice: short scenarios and drills that make the laws stick in your nervous system—so you don’t “remember” them only after you get burned.
Download Power Master 48
Download on the App Store: https://apps.apple.com/app/laws-of-power-power-master-48/id6747139374
Get it on Google Play: https://play.google.com/store/apps/details?id=com.mrc.powermaster48
Law 3: Conceal your intentions
Final thought
If people know your goal, they can block it.
If they see your plan, they can control it.
So give them a harmless reason. Let them relax. Let them talk.
Stay unreadable.
Move in silence.
Arrive first.