Deceiving himself well is the first quality of the statesman.
About this quote
- What does it mean?
- Self-deception is a key trait for political leaders.
- In plain terms
- Politicians often must believe their own lies to succeed.
- What can you take from it?
- Be aware that leaders may deceive themselves as much as others.
Where it applies
Putting it to work
Questions to consider
- When have you seen this in leaders?
- Do you practice self-deception?
Another view
Not all effective leaders rely on self-deception.
More from Fernando Pessoa
Smell is a strange sight. It evokes sentimental landscapes through a sudden sketching of the subconscious.
Permalink to quote #116 It's certain that, when hearing from any of those people the story of their sexual marathons, a vague suspicion pervades us, at about the seventh deflowering.
Permalink to quote #118 Tedium is the lack of a mithology. To whom has no beliefs, even doubt is impossible, even skepticism has no strength to suspect.
Permalink to quote #115
Related quotes
All political parties die at last of swallowing their own lies.
John ArbuthnotJohn Arbuthnot quote #1 [The writer] warns the heads of parties against believing their own lies.
John ArbuthnotJohn Arbuthnot quote #5 'Clearly, [President Bush] lied. Now if he is an unconscious liar, and doesn't realize when he's lying, then we're really in trouble.'
Al SharptonAl Sharpton quote #1