Chapter 31 take a low profile

Edmund S. Muskie demonstrated this technique in a speech to the American Debating Association in Boston when he was Senator from Maine. "I was hesitant to take up the task of giving this speech this morning," he said. "First of all, I know that the audience here is all professional people, so I can't help but ask myself: How can I be so stingy with everyone's sharp eyes? Is it wise to expose my stupidity in front of me. Second, this is a breakfast meeting, usually when people are least alert, so if I behave badly, the consequences for a politician are very serious. Again , the topic I want to talk about today is: What influence does being a public servant really have? On this point, as long as I continue to be active in politics, my voters seem to make a significant difference in whether this influence is good or bad. Opinion. Faced with these doubts, I feel a lot like a mosquito that has inadvertently intruded into the celestial kingdom, and I don't know where to start."

Senator Muskie went on, and the whole speech turned out to be a great success. Adlai E. Stevenson also showed great humility in his commencement speech at Michigan State University.In his opening remarks, he said: "I always have a sense of inadequacy on these occasions, and it reminds me of Samuel Butler's answer when someone asked him how to make good use of his life. I think his answer was: 'I can't even make good use of the following Don't know for 15 minutes.' I feel the same way now for the next 20 minutes." Henry and Dana Thomas commented on Confucius in their book "Modern Religious Leaders": "He never showed off his unique knowledge to others. He just tried to enlighten people with his tolerant sympathy." If we can also have this kind of inclusive sympathy, we have already mastered the key to open the hearts of the audience.