Maria Konnikova Quotes

I'm not into power for the sake of it.

Men want power in order to do something. Boys want power in order to be something.

Power in itself has never attracted me, nor has position been my goal.

Power gravitates to the man who knows how.

People desire power. I don't know why they want it so. It seems to me it implies a hugely superior intellect which separates them from most of the populace.

Like most animals, we're wired to associate height with power.

Power says if you are a committee chairman, your idea is good only because you have got power.

I surpassed all others in authority, but I had no more power than the others who were also my colleagues in office.

What strikes me most singular in you is, that you are fonder of Power than of Fame.

The influence of the leaders is due in very small measure to the arguments they employ, but in a large degree to their prestige. The best proof of this is that, should they by any circumstance lose their prestige, their influence disappears.

To make sense of bossiness, we need to tease apart two fundamental aspects of social hierarchy that are often lumped together: power and status. Power lies in holding a formal position of authority or controlling important resources. Status involves being respected or admired.

I have no interest in the trappings of power.

When superiors are fond of showing their humanity, inferiors try to outstrip one another in their practice of it.

They all want to be me. They do! What everybody else says they will do, I've already been doing. They all want to be me. It's become a joke in Congress how Dr. Gingrey and Mr. Kingston have been following my votes. They've even changed votes to what I voted, multiple times. Members of Congress are laughing about it.

Many people around the President have sizeable egos before entering government, some with good reason. Their new positions will do little to moderate their egos.

Authority doesn't work without prestige, or prestige without distance.

Not my power, but the power of the position, a power which could be used to help.

The most powerful men were those who most effectively used the power of adult competence to enforce childish agreements.

I was allowed to ring the bell for five minutes until everyone was in assembly. It was the beginning of power.

The power to define the situation is the ultimate power.

The wisest have the most authority.

You have no power at all if you do not exercise constant power.

To some people, power is a noun. To others, it's a verb.

The only prize much cared for by the powerful is power.

I like power and I like to use it.