--- title: "Meaning & Key Takeaway of: Arrogance is a veneer -- a thin covering…" description: "\"Arrogance is a veneer -- a thin covering of excuses hiding deep performance deficiencies.\" — Bob Lewis" image: "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/4e9/bob-lewis-65010_arrogance_arrogance-is-a-veneer-a-thin-covering-of_1147416.jpg" --- # Arrogance is a veneer -- a thin covering of excuses hiding… ![“Arrogance is a veneer -- a thin covering of excuses hiding deep performance deficiencies.” quote by Bob Lewis](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/4e9/bob-lewis-65010_arrogance_arrogance-is-a-veneer-a-thin-covering-of_1147416.jpg) [Download](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/4e9/bob-lewis-65010_arrogance_arrogance-is-a-veneer-a-thin-covering-of_1147416.jpg) [Open image](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/4e9/bob-lewis-65010_arrogance_arrogance-is-a-veneer-a-thin-covering-of_1147416.jpg) > “Arrogance is a veneer -- a thin covering of excuses hiding deep performance deficiencies.” [Bob Lewis](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/bob-lewis/) ## About This Quote This interpretation was drafted with AI assistance. It is one reading of the quote, not the author's own explanation. Arrogance masks true shortcomings with superficial excuses, preventing genuine improvement. **In simple terms:** Arrogance hides real flaws. Key Takeaway Recognize and address underlying weaknesses. Themes humility self-awareness performance Mood reflective critical Type advice psychological When to use this quote - leadership - team dynamics - personal development Key Concepts psychology defense mechanisms Questions to Reflect On - What excuses are you using to hide gaps? - How can you confront deficiencies directly? A Different Perspective Excuses may temporarily protect ego but hinder growth. ★ ★ ★ ★ ★ No ratings yet [Arrogance](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/arrogance/) [Arrogance Veneer](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/arrogance-veneer-3227407/) [Covering](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/covering/) [Covering Excuses](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/covering-excuses-3227410/) [Deficiency](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/deficiency/) [Excuse](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/excuse/) [Excuses](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/excuses/) [Excuses Hiding](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/excuses-hiding-3227409/) [Hiding](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/hiding/) [Performance Deficiencies](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/performance-deficiencies-3227408/) [Performances](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/performances/) [Pride](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/pride/) [Veneer](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/veneer/) ## Related quotes > [Drop the veneer periodically and be like "OK, I'm an imperfect human. Let's try to get through this."](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/dennis-miller/drop-the-veneer-periodically-and-be-like-ok-i-m-an-imperfect-human/) [Dennis Miller](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/dennis-miller/) > [There is no short cut to achievement. Life requires thorough preparation - veneer isn't worth anything.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/george-washington-carver/there-is-no-short-cut-to-achievement-life-requires-thorough/) [George Washington Carver](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/george-washington-carver/) > [Knowing is a veneer out minds create and lay over the landscape like a painter's drop cloth set upon a forest floor. Its uniformity…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/greg-kramer/knowing-is-a-veneer-out-minds-create-and-lay-over-the-landscape-like/) [Greg Kramer](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/greg-kramer/) > [Each of us is leading a difficult life, and when we meet people we are seeing only a tiny part of the thinnest veneer…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/derren-brown/each-of-us-is-leading-a-difficult-life-and-when-we-meet-people-we-are/) [Derren Brown](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/derren-brown/) > [I think there is this steely strength beneath this beautiful veneer that a lot of women possess. I can't fathom or understand it.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/bryan-batt/i-think-there-is-this-steely-strength-beneath-this-beautiful-veneer/) [Bryan Batt](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/bryan-batt/) > [...no matter how complex or affluent, human societies are nothing but subsystems of the biosphere, the Earth's thin veneer of life, which is ultimately…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/vaclav-smil/no-matter-how-complex-or-affluent-human-societies-are-nothing-but/) [Vaclav Smil](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/vaclav-smil/) > [People are sad. People are broke. People are worried about money, people are worried that they're not enough and not amounting to anything and…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/eve-ensler/people-are-sad-people-are-broke-people-are-worried-about-money-people/) [Eve Ensler](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/eve-ensler/) > [Quiet book-learning in monasteries and ethereal music, sonnets and courtly lovethat stuff is all fantasyand veneer? You couldn't afford to let the beauty of…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/janice-galloway/quiet-book-learning-in-monasteries-and-ethereal-music-sonnets-and/) [Janice Galloway](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/janice-galloway/) > [People who think of themselves as tough-minded and realistic, among them influential political leaders and businessmen as well as go-getters and hustlers of smaller…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/s-i-hayakawa/people-who-think-of-themselves-as-tough-minded-and-realistic-among/) [S. I. Hayakawa](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/s-i-hayakawa/) > [But you know, eventually that does kind of veneer, chemical veneers that you apply, they sink in. For better or for worse, so it's…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/surya-das/but-you-know-eventually-that-does-kind-of-veneer-chemical-veneers/) [Surya Das](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/surya-das/) > [Since the days of Peter the Great, Russians have been maybe Europeans who didn't share in the enlightenment and the reformation, or are they…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/brent-scowcroft/since-the-days-of-peter-the-great-russians-have-been-maybe-europeans/) [Brent Scowcroft](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/brent-scowcroft/) > [“Some people’s elegance was only skin-deep, scrape off a little bit of the veneer and you got the real wood—common”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/d-e-stevenson/some-people-s-elegance-was-only-skin-deep-scrape-off-a-little-bit-of/) [D.E. Stevenson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/d-e-stevenson/) > [It's the spirit within, not the veneer without, that makes a man.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/baden-powell-de-aquino/it-s-the-spirit-within-not-the-veneer-without-that-makes-a-man/) [Baden Powell de Aquino](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/baden-powell-de-aquino/) > [The scary truth is, you have to scratch some veneer off to gauge where the moral fiber really is in certain pockets of society.…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ani-difranco/the-scary-truth-is-you-have-to-scratch-some-veneer-off-to-gauge-where/) [Ani DiFranco](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ani-difranco/) > [Wearing a veneer of perfection never did me any good.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/liz-phair/wearing-a-veneer-of-perfection-never-did-me-any-good/) [Liz Phair](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/liz-phair/) ## More by Bob Lewis > [To win the Kentucky Derby is the goal of every trainer, every hot-walker, every backside person. They may be just rubbing on a horse,…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/bob-lewis/to-win-the-kentucky-derby-is-the-goal-of-every-trainer-every-hot/) [Bob Lewis](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/bob-lewis/) > [Contentment is wanting what you have. Ambition is wanting what another has. Progress comes from wanting what nobody has.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/bob-lewis/contentment-is-wanting-what-you-have-ambition-is-wanting-what-another/) [Bob Lewis](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/bob-lewis/) > [Pessimists, we're told, look at a glass containing 50% air and 50% water and see it as half empty. Optimists, in contrast, see it…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/bob-lewis/pessimists-we-re-told-look-at-a-glass-containing-50-air-and-50-water/) [Bob Lewis](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/bob-lewis/) > [The technology life cycle has three stages: Hype, disillusionment, and application.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/bob-lewis/the-technology-life-cycle-has-three-stages-hype-disillusionment-and/) [Bob Lewis](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/bob-lewis/) [Explore all 5 Bob Lewis quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/bob-lewis/) ## More Arrogance quotes > [Perhaps no order of mammals presents us with so extraordinary a series of gradations as this \[step by step, from humans to apes to…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/thomas-huxley/perhaps-no-order-of-mammals-presents-us-with-so-extraordinary-a/) [Thomas Huxley](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/thomas-huxley/) > [wishes for sons by Lucille Clifton i wish them cramps. i wish them a strange town and the last tampon. I wish them no…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/lucille-clifton/wishes-for-sons-by-lucille-clifton-i-wish-them-cramps-i-wish-them-a/) [Lucille Clifton](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/lucille-clifton/) > [The structure of the Swiss ruling class is rock-hard, and unchanged since the time of Napoleon. They sit on their mountains and lecture the…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jean-ziegler/the-structure-of-the-swiss-ruling-class-is-rock-hard-and-unchanged/) [Jean Ziegler](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jean-ziegler/) > [What you see of me on TV and all of that, that is me - that's truly how I feel. I'm just multiplying it.…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/baron-corbin/what-you-see-of-me-on-tv-and-all-of-that-that-is-me-that-s-truly-how/) [Baron Corbin](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/baron-corbin/) > [I don't join the New Atheists. So, for example, I wouldn't have the arrogance to lecture some mother who hopes to see her dying…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/noam-chomsky/i-don-t-join-the-new-atheists-so-for-example-i-wouldn-t-have-the/) [Noam Chomsky](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/noam-chomsky/) > [Never mistake someones quietness for their arrogance as you can surely miss out on an awsome personality.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anonymous/never-mistake-someones-quietness-for-their-arrogance-as-you-can/) [Anonymous](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anonymous/) > [Most of us think of pride as self-centeredness, conceit, boastfulness, arrogance, or haughtiness. All of these are elements of the sin, but the heart,…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ezra-taft-benson/most-of-us-think-of-pride-as-self-centeredness-conceit-boastfulness/) [Ezra Taft Benson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ezra-taft-benson/) > [“I was consumed by a selfishness and arrogance that I didn't dare let go of until I found a new persona to hide behind.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/dorothy-koomson/i-was-consumed-by-a-selfishness-and-arrogance-that-i-didn-t-dare-let/) [Dorothy Koomson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/dorothy-koomson/) > [Arrogance is the outgrowth of prosperity.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/plautus/arrogance-is-the-outgrowth-of-prosperity/) [Plautus](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/plautus/) > [Timing and arrogance are decisive factors in the successful use of talent.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/marya-mannes/timing-and-arrogance-are-decisive-factors-in-the-successful-use-of/) [Marya Mannes](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/marya-mannes/) > [Some say work smarter, not harder, but the wisest are both. Whether you're more of a hard worker or a smart worker, if you're…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/colby-tatem/some-say-work-smarter-not-harder-but-the-wisest-are-both-whether-you/) [Colby Tatem](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/colby-tatem/) > [Closed some doors, not because of pride, incapacity or arrogance, but simply because they no longer lead somewhere.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/frenz-jeffrey/closed-some-doors-not-because-of-pride-incapacity-or-arrogance-but/) [Frenz Jeffrey](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/frenz-jeffrey/) > [My success isn't a result of arrogance - it's a result of belief.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/conor-mcgregor/my-success-isn-t-a-result-of-arrogance-it-s-a-result-of-belief/) [Conor McGregor](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/conor-mcgregor/) > [“...a great man who is vicious will only be a great doer of evil, and a rich man who is not liberal will be…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/miguel-cervantes/a-great-man-who-is-vicious-will-only-be-a-great-doer-of-evil-and-a/) [Miguel Cervantes](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/miguel-cervantes/) > [An increasing number of people are growing uncomfortable with the gulf between the world's rich and the poor. Ostentatiously splashing your money around simply…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/kalle-lasn/an-increasing-number-of-people-are-growing-uncomfortable-with-the/) [Kalle Lasn](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/kalle-lasn/) [Browse all 1,418 Arrogance quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/arrogance/) ```json { "@context": "https://schema.org", "@graph": [ { "@type": "Quotation", "text": "Arrogance is a veneer -- a thin covering of excuses hiding deep performance deficiencies.", "creator": { "@type": "Person", "name": "Bob Lewis" }, "isPartOf": { "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/#website" }, "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/bob-lewis/arrogance-is-a-veneer-a-thin-covering-of-excuses-hiding-deep/", "about": { "@type": "Thing", "name": "Arrogance" }, "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/bob-lewis/arrogance-is-a-veneer-a-thin-covering-of-excuses-hiding-deep/#quotation", "image": { "@type": "ImageObject", "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/4e9/bob-lewis-65010_arrogance_arrogance-is-a-veneer-a-thin-covering-of_1147416.jpg", "contentUrl": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/4e9/bob-lewis-65010_arrogance_arrogance-is-a-veneer-a-thin-covering-of_1147416.jpg", "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/4e9/bob-lewis-65010_arrogance_arrogance-is-a-veneer-a-thin-covering-of_1147416.jpg", "width": 1080, "height": 1080, "caption": "“Arrogance is a veneer -- a thin covering of excuses hiding deep performance deficiencies.” — Bob Lewis", "creditText": "SMS4Smile Quotes", "creator": { "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/#organization" } } }, { "@type": "BreadcrumbList", "itemListElement": [ { "@type": "ListItem", "position": 1, "name": "Home", "item": "https://sms4smile.com/" }, { "@type": "ListItem", "position": 2, "name": "Quotes", "item": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/" }, { "@type": "ListItem", "position": 3, "name": "Bob Lewis", "item": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/bob-lewis/" }, { "@type": "ListItem", "position": 4, "name": "Arrogance is a veneer -- a...", "item": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/bob-lewis/arrogance-is-a-veneer-a-thin-covering-of-excuses-hiding-deep/" } ], "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/bob-lewis/arrogance-is-a-veneer-a-thin-covering-of-excuses-hiding-deep/#breadcrumb" }, { "@type": "WebSite", "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/#website", "name": "SMS4Smile Quotes", "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/", "publisher": { "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/#organization" } }, { "@type": "Organization", "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/#organization", "name": "SMS4Smile Quotes", "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/", "logo": { "@type": "ImageObject", "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/wp-content/themes/sq/assets/icons/icon-512.png", "width": 512, "height": 512 } } ] } ```