Mediocrity Quotes

“Only the mediocre are always at their best.”

“There’s only one real evil in the world: mediocrity.”

“What else, indeed, should mediocrity be but widespread, anywhere?”

“We mistrust anything that too strongly challenges our ideal of mediocrity.”

“mediocrity”

“Wikipedia: Mediocrity”

“The appearance of a single great genius is more than equivalent to the birth of a hundred mediocrities.”

“Some men are born mediocre, some men achieve mediocrity, and some men have mediocrity thrust upon them.”

“Don’t set out to raze all shrines—you’ll frighten men. Enshrine mediocrity—and the shrines are razed.”

“Never were abilities so much below mediocrity so well rewarded; no, not when Caligula's horse was made Consul.”

“I wouldn't say I'm normal, but I'm relatively stable. When I think of normalcy I think of mediocrity and mediocrity scares the fuck out of me.”

“[to Father Vogler] I will speak for you, Father. I speak for all mediocrities in the world. I am their champion. I am their patron saint.”

“Those who aim at faultless regularity will only produce mediocrity, and no one ever approaches perfection except by stealth, and unknown to themselves.”

“She’s a little bit below mediocre, isn’t she? And the worst kind of below-par personality at that: the kind who believes herself destined for great things.”

“Nothing is more ingenious, more obstinate, nastier—indeed, in a sense, more clear sighted, than mediocrity harrying every form of superiority that offends it.”

“Our democratic dogma has leveled not only all voters but all leaders; we delight to show that living geniuses are only mediocrities, and that dead ones are myths.”

“There is plenty of room at the top because very few people care to travel beyond the average route. And so most of us seem satisfied to remain within the confines of mediocrity.”

“You have the army of mediocrities followed by the multitude of fools. As the mediocrities and the fools always form the immense majority, it is impossible for them to elect an intelligent government.”

“Even if he were mediocre, there are a lot of mediocre judges and people and lawyers. They are entitled to a little representation, aren't they, and a little chance? We can't have all Brandeises, Frankfurters and Cardozos.”

“Organisation is, after all, only a means to an end. When it becomes an end in itself, it kills the spirit and the vital initiative of its members and sets up that domination by mediocrity which is the characteristic of all bureaucracies.”