Laurence J. Peter quotes

Laurence J. Peter was a Canadian educator and author, best known for formulating the Peter Principle. This concept explains how people in organizations are promoted until they reach their level of incompetence. He influenced management theory and remains widely cited in discussions about workplace dynamics. Here are 80 of his quotes:

Equal opportunity means everyone will have a fair chance at being incompetent. (Laurence J. Peter)
A philosopher is a blind man in a dark room looking for a black cat that isn't there. A theologian is the man who finds it. View quote
Laurence J. Peter
Originality is the fine art of remembering what you hear but forgetting where you heard it. View quote
Laurence J. Peter
Bureaucracy defends the status quo long past the time when the quo has lost its status. View quote
Laurence J. Peter
If a cluttered desk is the sign of a cluttered mind, what is the significance of a clean desk? View quote
Laurence J. Peter
Every girl should use what Mother Nature gave her before Father Time takes it away. View quote
Laurence J. Peter
In a hierarchy, every employee tends to rise to his level of incompetence. View quote
Laurence J. Peter
Some problems are so complex that you have to be highly intelligent and well informed just to be undecided about them. View quote
Laurence J. Peter
An intelligence test sometimes shows a man how smart he would have been not to have taken it. View quote
Laurence J. Peter
Television has changed the American child from an irresistable force to an immovable object. View quote
Laurence J. Peter
The habitually punctual make all their mistakes right on time. (Laurence J. Peter)
If you don't know where you're going, you will probably end up somewhere else. View quote
Laurence J. Peter
Would the boy you were be proud of the man you are? View quote
Laurence J. Peter
Speak when you are angry - and you'll make the best speech you'll ever regret. View quote
Laurence J. Peter
The devil could change. He was once an angel and may be evolving still. View quote
Laurence J. Peter
You can always tell a real friend: when you've made a fool of yourself he doesn't feel you've done a permanent job. View quote
Laurence J. Peter
A pessimist is a man who looks both ways when he crosses the street. View quote
Laurence J. Peter
A censor is an expert in cutting remarks. A censor is a man who knows more than he thinks you ought to. View quote
Laurence J. Peter
When you see yourself quoted in print and you're sorry you said it, it suddenly becomes a misquotation. View quote
Laurence J. Peter
Don't believe in miracles - depend on them. View quote
Laurence J. Peter
An economist is an expert who will know tomorrow why the things he predicted yesterday didn't happen today. (Laurence J. Peter)
Noblest of all dogs is the hot-dog; it feeds the hand that bites it. View quote
Laurence J. Peter
The man who says he is willing to meet you halfway is usually a poor judge of distance. View quote
Laurence J. Peter
If two wrongs don't make a right, try three. View quote
Laurence J. Peter
The best intelligence test is what we do with our leisure. View quote
Laurence J. Peter

Laurence J. Peter

Laurence J. Peter - Image
Photo: Larry Bessel, CC BY 4.0
Occupation: Canadian Writer
Born: September 16, 1919
Died: January 12, 1990
Quotes count: 80
Wikipedia: Laurence J. Peter

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