Skip to content
quotesby

About this quote

What does it mean?
People who pretend to be strong throughout their lives suffer greatly when they finally show weakness.
In plain terms
Fake strength makes real weakness look terrible.
What can you take from it?
Authenticity is better than pretending to be strong.

Where it applies

  • personal growth
  • public perception
  • leadership

Putting it to work

  • practice vulnerability
  • avoid overcompensating
  • build genuine confidence

Questions to consider

  • How much of your strength is real?
  • What happens when you drop the act?

Another view

Sometimes people need to pretend strength to survive difficult situations.

More from Lillian Hellman

  1. It is best to act with confidence, no matter how little right you have to it.

    Permalink to quote #19
  2. It's an indulgence to sit in a room and discuss your beliefs as if they were a juicy piece of gossip.

    Permalink to quote #21
  3. It is a mark of many famous people that they cannot part with their brightest hour.

    Permalink to quote #18

Related quotes

  1. Nothing is surer than that the people will be weak. (330)

    Blaise PascalBlaise Pascal quote #40
  2. You can pretend to be serious but you can't pretend to be funny.

    Sacha GuitrySacha Guitry quote #1
  3. It is quite enough if a human being has but one thing where he is strong. If a human being were strong in everything it wouldn't be nice for other people, woul…

    Akira KurosawaAkira Kurosawa quote #4