--- title: "Meaning & Key Takeaway of: The greater your powers of self-delusion…" description: "\"The greater your powers of self-delusion, the greater will be the apparent efficacy of this untruth.\" — Daniel Day-Lewis" image: "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/ed7/daniel-day-lewis-3575_delusion_the-greater-your-powers-of-self-delusion_804668.jpg" --- # The greater your powers of self-delusion, the greater will… ![“The greater your powers of self-delusion, the greater will be the apparent efficacy of this untruth.” quote by Daniel Day-Lewis](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/ed7/daniel-day-lewis-3575_delusion_the-greater-your-powers-of-self-delusion_804668.jpg) [Download](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/ed7/daniel-day-lewis-3575_delusion_the-greater-your-powers-of-self-delusion_804668.jpg) [Open image](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/ed7/daniel-day-lewis-3575_delusion_the-greater-your-powers-of-self-delusion_804668.jpg) > “The greater your powers of self-delusion, the greater will be the apparent efficacy of this untruth.” [Daniel Day-Lewis](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/daniel-day-lewis/) ## About This Quote This interpretation was drafted with AI assistance. It is one reading of the quote, not the author's own explanation. Self-deception can make false ideas seem effective, but they’re misleading. **In simple terms:** Self‑delusion masks truth. Key Takeaway Question your assumptions critically. Themes psychology truth self‑awareness Mood cautious analytical Type philosophical inspirational When to use this quote - decision making - leadership - personal growth Key Concepts cognitive bias critical thinking Questions to Reflect On - What beliefs might you be deceiving yourself about? - How can you test the efficacy of your ideas? A Different Perspective Overconfidence can still yield results. ★ ★ ★ ★ ★ No ratings yet [Apparent Efficacy](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/apparent-efficacy-6152229/) [Delusion](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/delusion/) [Delusion Greater](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/delusion-greater-854280/) [Efficacy Untruth](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/efficacy-untruth-6152228/) [Self delusion](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/self-delusion/) [Untruth](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/untruth/) ## Related quotes > [I suppose I have a highly developed capacity for self-delusion, so it's no problem for me to believe that I'm somebody else.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/daniel-day-lewis/i-suppose-i-have-a-highly-developed-capacity-for-self-delusion-so-it/) [Daniel Day-Lewis](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/daniel-day-lewis/) > [There exists a black kingdom which the eyes of man avoid because its landscape fails signally to flatter them. This darkness, which he imagines…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/louis-aragon/there-exists-a-black-kingdom-which-the-eyes-of-man-avoid-because-its/) [Louis Aragon](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/louis-aragon/) > [No delusion is greater than the notion that method and industry can make up for lack of mother-wit, either in science or in practical…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/thomas-huxley/no-delusion-is-greater-than-the-notion-that-method-and-industry-can/) [Thomas Huxley](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/thomas-huxley/) > [Love is the self-delusion we manufacture to justify the trouble we take to have sex.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/daniel-s-greenberg/love-is-the-self-delusion-we-manufacture-to-justify-the-trouble-we/) [Daniel S. Greenberg](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/daniel-s-greenberg/) > [The human capacity for self-delusion is boundless, and the effects of belief are overpowering.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/michael-shermer/the-human-capacity-for-self-delusion-is-boundless-and-the-effects-of/) [Michael Shermer](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/michael-shermer/) > [I seek the truth...it is only persistence in self-delusion and ignorance that does harm.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/marcus-aurelius/i-seek-the-truth-it-is-only-persistence-in-self-delusion-and/) [Marcus Aurelius](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/marcus-aurelius/) > [The first-person viewpoint is more enjoyable to write, because it lets me meander more freely, and it can reveal more of the character's self-delusions.…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anne-tyler/the-first-person-viewpoint-is-more-enjoyable-to-write-because-it-lets/) [Anne Tyler](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anne-tyler/) > [Words bend our thinking to infinite paths of self-delusion, and the fact that we spend most of our mental lives in brain mansions built…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/dan-simmons/words-bend-our-thinking-to-infinite-paths-of-self-delusion-and-the/) [Dan Simmons](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/dan-simmons/) > [We cannot move casually into a better future. We cannot casually pursue the goal we have set for ourselves. A goal that is casually…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jim-rohn/we-cannot-move-casually-into-a-better-future-we-cannot-casually/) [Jim Rohn](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jim-rohn/) > [The most foreign fighters in Iraq are wearing British and American uniforms. The level of self-delusion is bordering frankly on the racist. The vast…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/george-galloway/the-most-foreign-fighters-in-iraq-are-wearing-british-and-american/) [George Galloway](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/george-galloway/) > [A direct statement about yourself is considered objective only if it is negative. If it's positive, it is considered subjective. And 'objective' means it…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/barbara-sher/a-direct-statement-about-yourself-is-considered-objective-only-if-it/) [Barbara Sher](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/barbara-sher/) > [People compose the schedules they do out of the priorities they have; and someone who says otherwise is deceiving himself about what he really…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/kenny-smith/people-compose-the-schedules-they-do-out-of-the-priorities-they-have/) [Kenny Smith](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/kenny-smith/) > [No one can genuinely love the world, which is too large to love entire. To love all the world at once is pretense or…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/dean-koontz/no-one-can-genuinely-love-the-world-which-is-too-large-to-love-entire/) [Dean Koontz](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/dean-koontz/) > [I'd actually love to think that I could trust Kerry on national security. But the only way I could do that, at this point,…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/glenn-reynolds/i-d-actually-love-to-think-that-i-could-trust-kerry-on-national/) [Glenn Reynolds](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/glenn-reynolds/) > [I have a theory about marriage, Monsieur Boustouler. And it's that nearly always you will know within two weeks if it's going to work.…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/khaled-hosseini/i-have-a-theory-about-marriage-monsieur-boustouler-and-it-s-that/) [Khaled Hosseini](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/khaled-hosseini/) ## More by Daniel Day-Lewis > [You don't merely give over your creativity to making a film - you give over your life! In theatre, by contrast, you live these…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/daniel-day-lewis/you-don-t-merely-give-over-your-creativity-to-making-a-film-you-give/) [Daniel Day-Lewis](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/daniel-day-lewis/) > [I became conflicted in my late teens.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/daniel-day-lewis/i-became-conflicted-in-my-late-teens/) [Daniel Day-Lewis](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/daniel-day-lewis/) > [I spend many months in apparently listless rumination out of which I hope something will emerge.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/daniel-day-lewis/i-spend-many-months-in-apparently-listless-rumination-out-of-which-i/) [Daniel Day-Lewis](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/daniel-day-lewis/) > [Perhaps I'm particularly serious, because I'm not unaware of the potential absurdity of what I'm doing.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/daniel-day-lewis/perhaps-i-m-particularly-serious-because-i-m-not-unaware-of-the/) [Daniel Day-Lewis](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/daniel-day-lewis/) > [Being at the centre of a film is a burden one takes on with innocence the first time. Thereafter, you take it on with…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/daniel-day-lewis/being-at-the-centre-of-a-film-is-a-burden-one-takes-on-with-innocence/) [Daniel Day-Lewis](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/daniel-day-lewis/) > [There must've been some part of me that wanted to make my mark. But there was never a defining moment.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/daniel-day-lewis/there-must-ve-been-some-part-of-me-that-wanted-to-make-my-mark-but/) [Daniel Day-Lewis](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/daniel-day-lewis/) > [For as long as I can remember, the thing that gave me a sense of wonderment and renewal... has always been the work of…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/daniel-day-lewis/for-as-long-as-i-can-remember-the-thing-that-gave-me-a-sense-of/) [Daniel Day-Lewis](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/daniel-day-lewis/) > [The more articulate somebody is, the more suspicious I am of them. I like to feel that the important things remain unsaid.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/daniel-day-lewis/the-more-articulate-somebody-is-the-more-suspicious-i-am-of-them-i/) [Daniel Day-Lewis](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/daniel-day-lewis/) > [I've got a serious-looking head.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/daniel-day-lewis/i-ve-got-a-serious-looking-head/) [Daniel Day-Lewis](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/daniel-day-lewis/) > [I don't know what impression you might have of the way I live. I live in a quiet place. I do not live as…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/daniel-day-lewis/i-don-t-know-what-impression-you-might-have-of-the-way-i-live-i-live/) [Daniel Day-Lewis](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/daniel-day-lewis/) > [I broke things to get attention.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/daniel-day-lewis/i-broke-things-to-get-attention/) [Daniel Day-Lewis](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/daniel-day-lewis/) > [I still relate to my father very much. I mean, I talk to him in a certain way, as we do talk to the…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/daniel-day-lewis/i-still-relate-to-my-father-very-much-i-mean-i-talk-to-him-in-a/) [Daniel Day-Lewis](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/daniel-day-lewis/) > [When I've gone back to work, it's always with that sense of inevitability. That may be a complete delusion, but it's the one that…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/daniel-day-lewis/when-i-ve-gone-back-to-work-it-s-always-with-that-sense-of/) [Daniel Day-Lewis](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/daniel-day-lewis/) > [There are always practical decisions to be made about any character you're playing.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/daniel-day-lewis/there-are-always-practical-decisions-to-be-made-about-any-character/) [Daniel Day-Lewis](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/daniel-day-lewis/) > [My preference is that, that day when someone sticks a tripod in front of you with a camera on the top, it is not…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/daniel-day-lewis/my-preference-is-that-that-day-when-someone-sticks-a-tripod-in-front/) [Daniel Day-Lewis](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/daniel-day-lewis/) [Explore all 127 Daniel Day-Lewis quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/daniel-day-lewis/) ## More Delusion quotes > [Getting rid of a delusion makes us wiser than getting hold of a truth.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ludwig-borne/getting-rid-of-a-delusion-makes-us-wiser-than-getting-hold-of-a-truth/) [Ludwig Borne](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ludwig-borne/) > [If the idea of having to change ourselves makes us uncomfortable, we can remain as we are. We can choose rest over labour, entertainment…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jim-rohn/if-the-idea-of-having-to-change-ourselves-makes-us-uncomfortable-we/) [Jim Rohn](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jim-rohn/) > [ It's \[Los Angeles\] mostly full of nonsense and delusion and egomania. They think they'll be young and beautiful forever, even though most of them… ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/christopher-hitchens/it-s-los-angeles-mostly-full-of-nonsense-and-delusion-and-egomania/) [Christopher Hitchens](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/christopher-hitchens/) > [The Science Delusion is the belief that science already understands the nature of reality in principle leaving only the details to be filled in.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/rupert-sheldrake/the-science-delusion-is-the-belief-that-science-already-understands/) [Rupert Sheldrake](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/rupert-sheldrake/) > [The world is a wonderfully weird place, consensual reality is significantly flawed, no institution can be trusted, certainty is a mirage, security a delusion,…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/tom-robbins/the-world-is-a-wonderfully-weird-place-consensual-reality-is/) [Tom Robbins](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/tom-robbins/) > [“we shouldn’t surrender our real world perception to a false reality too much or we may suffer the inevitable consequences of deluded thinking. Technology…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/m-p-neary/we-shouldn-t-surrender-our-real-world-perception-to-a-false-reality/) [M.P. Neary](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/m-p-neary/) > [Atheism Explained is a gem. It is clear, informative, well-argued, provocative, often witty, and unfailingly interesting. David Ramsay Steele ranges over so many issues…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jeremy-shearmur/atheism-explained-is-a-gem-it-is-clear-informative-well-argued/) [Jeremy Shearmur](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jeremy-shearmur/) > [It is a great delusion to suppose that flesh-meat of any kind is essential to health. Considerably more than three parts of the work…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/catherine-booth/it-is-a-great-delusion-to-suppose-that-flesh-meat-of-any-kind-is/) [Catherine Booth](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/catherine-booth/) > [The religions of mankind must be classed among the mass-delusions of this kind. No one, needless to say, who shares a delusion ever recognizes…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/sigmund-freud/the-religions-of-mankind-must-be-classed-among-the-mass-delusions-of/) [Sigmund Freud](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/sigmund-freud/) > [I suffer from the delusion that every product of my imagination is not only possible, but always on the cusp of becoming real.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/sean-parker/i-suffer-from-the-delusion-that-every-product-of-my-imagination-is/) [Sean Parker](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/sean-parker/) > [I have a theory about marriage, Monsieur Boustouler. And it's that nearly always you will know within two weeks if it's going to work.…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/khaled-hosseini/i-have-a-theory-about-marriage-monsieur-boustouler-and-it-s-that/) [Khaled Hosseini](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/khaled-hosseini/) > [“Someone who has the delusion Glass, is made of, does not literally believe herself to be made of glass but rather feels fragile and…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/scarlett-thomas/someone-who-has-the-delusion-glass-is-made-of-does-not-literally/) [Scarlett Thomas](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/scarlett-thomas/) > [Paranoia is a state of heightened awareness. Most people are persecuted beyond their wildest delusions.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/claude-steiner/paranoia-is-a-state-of-heightened-awareness-most-people-are/) [Claude Steiner](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/claude-steiner/) > [Women are women, and so are men, and the delusion that we are spiritually separate from or are about to spiritually separate from the…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anohni/women-are-women-and-so-are-men-and-the-delusion-that-we-are/) [Anohni](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anohni/) > [I'd actually love to think that I could trust Kerry on national security. But the only way I could do that, at this point,…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/glenn-reynolds/i-d-actually-love-to-think-that-i-could-trust-kerry-on-national/) [Glenn Reynolds](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/glenn-reynolds/) [Browse all 1,172 Delusion quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/delusion/) ```json { "@context": "https://schema.org", "@graph": [ { "@type": "Quotation", "text": "The greater your powers of self-delusion, the greater will be the apparent efficacy of this untruth.", "creator": { "@type": "Person", "name": "Daniel Day-Lewis" }, "isPartOf": { "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/#website" }, "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/daniel-day-lewis/the-greater-your-powers-of-self-delusion-the-greater-will-be-the/", "about": { "@type": "Thing", "name": "Delusion" }, "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/daniel-day-lewis/the-greater-your-powers-of-self-delusion-the-greater-will-be-the/#quotation", "image": { "@type": "ImageObject", "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/ed7/daniel-day-lewis-3575_delusion_the-greater-your-powers-of-self-delusion_804668.jpg", "contentUrl": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/ed7/daniel-day-lewis-3575_delusion_the-greater-your-powers-of-self-delusion_804668.jpg", "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/ed7/daniel-day-lewis-3575_delusion_the-greater-your-powers-of-self-delusion_804668.jpg", "width": 1080, "height": 1080, "caption": "“The greater your powers of self-delusion, the greater will be the apparent efficacy of this untruth.” — Daniel Day-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": "Daniel Day-Lewis", "item": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/daniel-day-lewis/" }, { "@type": "ListItem", "position": 4, "name": "The greater your powers of self-delusion,...", "item": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/daniel-day-lewis/the-greater-your-powers-of-self-delusion-the-greater-will-be-the/" } ], "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/daniel-day-lewis/the-greater-your-powers-of-self-delusion-the-greater-will-be-the/#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 } } ] } ```