Paralysis of leadership is due in part to the unseen grip of the special interests.
John W. GardnerRead
An excellent plumber is infinitely more admirable than an incompetent philosopher.
Interpretation
What this quote means
This quote emphasizes the value of practical skills over theoretical knowledge when competency is lacking.
John W. Gardner's quote highlights the importance of practical expertise and skill in comparison to abstract thinking. It suggests that a talented tradesperson, like an excellent plumber, contributes more positively to society than a philosopher who lacks the ability to think or act competently. In essence, it stresses that the value of someone's contribution is determined not merely by their profession or field of study, but by their actual ability to perform their work effectively.
Themes
SkillCompetencePracticalityWisdomPhilosophy
In practice
Example use cases
A quote to inspire students choosing vocational training over traditional academics.
More from John W. Gardner
All quotes βMore and more Americans feel threatened by runaway technology, by large-scale organization, by overcrowding. More and more Americans are appalled by the ravages of industrial progress, by the defacement of nature, by man-made ugliness. If our society continues at its present rate to become less livable as it becomes more affluent, we promise all to end up in sumptuous misery.
John W. GardnerRead
Storybook happiness involves every form of pleasant thumb-twiddling; true happiness involves the full use of one's powers and talents.
John W. GardnerRead
Leaders come in many forms, with many styles and diverse qualities. There are quiet leaders and leaders one can hear in the next county. Some find strength in eloquence, some in judgment, some in courage.
John W. GardnerRead
We pay a heavy price for our fear of failure. It is a powerful obstacle to growth. It assures the progressive narrowing of the personality and prevents exploration and experimentation. There is no learning without some difficulty and fumbling. If you want to keep on learning, you must keep on risking failure-all your life.
John W. GardnerRead
I think that all human systems require continuous renewal. They rigidify. They get stuff in the joints. They forget what they cared about. The forces against it are nostalgia and the enormous appeal of having things the way they always have been, appeals to a supposedly happy past. But we've got to move on.
John W. GardnerRead
Similar quotes
Meditation is to be aware of every thought and of every feeling, never to say it is right or wrong, but just to watch it and move with it. In that watching, you begin to understand the whole movement of thought and feeling. And out of this awareness comes silence.
Jiddu KrishnamurtiRead
It is dangerous to be right in matters where established men are wrong.
VoltaireRead
I have found that words that are loaded with pathos and create a seductive euphoria are apt to promote nonsense.
Gunter GrassRead
I think us here to wonder, myself. To wonder. To ask. And that in wondering bout the big things and asking bout the big things, you learn about the little ones, almost by accident. But you never know nothing more about the big things than you start out with. The more I wonder, the more I love.
Alice WalkerRead
Most of us follow our conscience as we follow a wheelbarrow. We push it in front of us in the direction we want to go.
Billy GrahamRead
Anyone can battle for pride, power, vanity, greed, or hate, but war should always be approached with an equal measure of wisdom and strength. It's not just enough to know when to fight, but to know when to lay down the sword and negotiate. Not everything in the world is worth fighting for.
Sherrilyn KenyonRead