“How was one to treat alike insulting, insolent and corrupt officials, co-workers of yesterday raising meaningless opposition, and men who had always been good to one?”
Share this quote
About this quote
The hard part of even-handedness isn't the people who are kind to you — it's holding the same steady courtesy toward those who insult, obstruct, or cheat. When your manner stops depending on how others behave, their provocations lose the power to yank you around.
When to use it
- A nurse gives the rude, demanding patient the same careful attention as the grateful one.
- A shopkeeper stays civil with the customer who haggles cruelly, just as with the regulars.
- A manager reviews the work of a colleague who undermined her by the same fair standard as an ally's.