Steal a March on Someone: To Gain a Sneaky Advantage 🕵️♀️
Comprehensive Dive into the Idiom
Steal a march on someone: To gain an unexpected or surreptitious advantage. This expression comes from medieval warfare, where a march meant the distance that an army could travel in a given time, usually a day. By marching at night, the army could surprise the enemy at dawn or come much closer than was anticipated, thus gaining a substantial advantage. By the eighteenth century, this term found its way into business, social gambits, and competitive endeavors.
Familiar Usage: “She was determined to steal a march on her competitors in the bake-off.”
Related Terms and Phrases that Show You’re in the Driver’s Seat 🚗💨
- Get the drop on: To gain an advantageous position or succeed in doing something before someone else.
- Have the upper hand: To be in a more advantageous position than the other.
- Outfox: To outsmart.
- One-upmanship: The art of outdoing, especially regarding social or competitive matters.
- Head start: To have an advantage in a race or battle.
Inspirational Quote: “To steal a march on your competition, you’ve got to keep moving forward when they think you’re standing still.” - Anastace Strategyfocus
Proverbs and Wisdom of the Ancients 🦉
- “Early bird catches the worm.” 🐦 A heads-up that early action can yield the best rewards.
- “Make hay while the sun shines.” Using optimal moments to gain an advantage.
Untangle This Cliché: Just like ‘gearing up for battle,’ preparation and a bit of cunning can offer the finest caffeinated edge in the game.
Literature, Songs, Poetry & Movies 📚🎬🎶
Feature some whimsical or thought-provoking material embodying this idiom.
- Book: The Art of War by Sun Tzu – Strategic advantage in historical and contemporary contexts.
- Movie: Ocean’s Eleven – Pilfering more sophisticated than medieval soldiers but just as sneaky!
- Song: Eye of the Tiger by Survivor – Strive to gain advantage and prevail.
- Poetry: Robert Frost’s The Road Not Taken – Choosing paths others haven’t even considered.
Logical Conclusion by Sir Issachar Imaginativo: Always stay one step ahead, and just like our feline friends, plan your nocturnal march to surprise your adversaries at sunrise. For in life, as in medieval wagons of war, those awake while others slumber win the spoils.
Alright troops, it’s a strategic farewell until we sidle around the next phrase in our idiom adventure! 🧙♂️ Fare thee well and march forward with stealth!
