A short story is the ultimate close-up magic trick -- a couple of thousand words to take you around the universe or break your heart.
Neil GaimanRead
I will be a wise and tolerant monarch, dispencing justice fairly, and only setting nightmares to rip out the winds of the evil and the wicked. Or just anybody that I don't like.
Interpretation
What this quote means
This quote reflects the balance between justice and personal bias in leadership.
Neil Gaiman's quote humorously highlights the complexities and contradictions often present in leadership roles. While aspiring to be a wise and tolerant ruler, the speaker also acknowledges the temptation of personal bias, suggesting that fairness in dispensing justice can sometimes erode in favor of personal feelings toward individuals deemed 'evil' or 'wicked.' It reflects the challenge leaders face in upholding justice while managing their own emotions and prejudices.
Themes
LeadershipJusticeBiasMonarchFairness
In practice
Example use cases
Use this quote in a discussion about the moral responsibilities of leaders during a panel.
More from Neil Gaiman
All quotes →Jesus. Low-Key Lyesmith," said Shadow. and then he heard what he was saying and he understood. "Loki," he said. "Loki Lie-smith." "You're slow," said Loki, "but you get there in the end." And his lips twisted into a scarred smile and the embers danced in the shadows of his eyes.
Neil GaimanRead
As a teenager I wrote to R.A. Lafferty. And he responded, too, with letters that were like R.A. Lafferty short stories, filled with elliptical answers to straight questions and simple answers to complicated ones.
Neil GaimanRead
The important thing to understand about American history, wrote Mr. Ibis, in his leather-bound journal, is that it is fictional, a charcoal-sketched simplicity for the children, or the easily bored.
Neil GaimanRead
Nothing’s changed. You’ll go home. You’ll be bored. You’ll be ignored. No one will listen to you, really listen to you. You’re too clever and too quiet for them to understand. They don’t even get your name right.
Neil GaimanRead
I like the stars. It's the illusion of permanence, I think. I mean, they're always flaring up and caving in and going out. But from here, I can pretend...I can pretend that things last. I can pretend that lives last longer than moments. Gods come, and gods go. Mortals flicker and flash and fade. Worlds don't last; and stars and galaxies are transient, fleeting things that twinkle like fireflies and vanish into cold and dust. But I can pretend.
Neil GaimanRead
Similar quotes
Self-centered leaders manipulate when they move people for personal benefit. Mature leaders motivate by moving people for mutual benefit.
John C. MaxwellRead
The sublimity of administration consists in knowing the proper degree of power that should be exerted on different occasions.
Baron De MontesquieuRead
A leader is not someone who says: Follow me.......A leader is someone who says: I'll go first.
Neale Donald WalschRead
I don't just try to score. The challenge is elevating my teammates to be able to win a championship.
Kobe BryantRead
Dr. Martin Luther King is not a black hero. He is an American hero.
Morgan FreemanRead
If you look for the best in your employees, they'll flourish. If you criticize or look for the worst, they'll shrivel up. We all need lots of watering.
Richard BransonRead