About this quote

Wording can be tightened endlessly and still bend under the weight of self-interest, because interpretation tends to follow desire. This is why the letter of a promise matters less than the honesty of the person keeping it — good faith, not airtight phrasing, is what actually holds an agreement together.

When to use it

• An executive exploits a contract loophole to deny a bonus everyone understood had been earned.
• A teenager insists a curfew about 'being home' doesn't count because they're technically in the driveway.
• Two departments read the same policy in opposite ways, each landing on the version that spares them work.