Salomon saith, There is no new thing upon the earth. So that as Plato had an imagination, that all knowledge was but remembrance; so Salomon giveth his sentence, that all novelty is but oblivion.
Francis BaconRead
There is as much difference between the counsel that a friend giveth, and that a man giveth himself, as there is between the counsel of a friend and of a flatterer. For there is no such flatterer as is a man's self.
Interpretation
What this quote means
The advice we give ourselves can often be as biased as flattery, differing significantly from the guidance of a true friend.
This quote by Francis Bacon highlights the inherent bias in self-counsel compared to the counsel received from a friend. It articulates that our own advice can be distorted by self-delusion, much like flattery, making the insights from a true friend far more valuable and realistic.
Themes
AdviceFriendshipSelf CounselWisdomFlattery
In practice
Example use cases
During a motivational speech about the importance of seeking honest feedback from friends.
More from Francis Bacon
All quotes →Nothing doth more hurt in a state than that cunning men pass for wise.
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Truth emerges more readily from error than from confusion.
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Great art is always a way of concentrating, reinventing what is called fact, what we know of our existence- a reconcentration… tearing away the veils, the attitudes people acquire of their time and earlier time. Really good artists tear down those veils
Francis BaconRead
Wise men make more opportunities than they find.
Francis BaconRead
Knowledge and human power are synonymous.
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