--- title: "Meaning & Key Takeaway of: Putin's an egomaniac, so there are two…" description: "\"Putin's an egomaniac, so there are two ways he can process his ego mania. He can say, \"Oh, I stood up to the U.S.,\" or, \"Hey, I'm essential to the worl..." image: "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/7de/david-brooks-644_ego_putin-s-an-egomaniac-so-there-are-two-wa_3150216.jpg" --- # Putin's an egomaniac, so there are two ways he can process… ![“Putin's an egomaniac, so there are two ways he can process his ego mania. He can say, "Oh, I stood up to the U.S.," or, "Hey, I'm essential to the world order."” quote by David Brooks](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/7de/david-brooks-644_ego_putin-s-an-egomaniac-so-there-are-two-wa_3150216.jpg) [Download](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/7de/david-brooks-644_ego_putin-s-an-egomaniac-so-there-are-two-wa_3150216.jpg) [Open image](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/7de/david-brooks-644_ego_putin-s-an-egomaniac-so-there-are-two-wa_3150216.jpg) > “Putin's an egomaniac, so there are two ways he can process his ego mania. He can say, "Oh, I stood up to the U.S.," or, "Hey, I'm essential to the world order."” [David Brooks](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/david-brooks/) ## About This Quote This interpretation was drafted with AI assistance. It is one reading of the quote, not the author's own explanation. Leaders may rationalize ego‑driven actions as serving larger purposes, masking self‑interest. **In simple terms:** Ego can be hidden behind grand narratives. Key Takeaway Critically assess leaders’ motives beyond their statements. Themes politics leadership ego self‑interest critical thinking Mood analytical skeptical Type political psychological When to use this quote - evaluating political speeches - media literacy - leadership training - public discourse Key Concepts psychology political science media analysis Questions to Reflect On - Why do leaders claim essential roles? - How can we detect ego‑driven narratives? A Different Perspective Complex motives may be harder to discern than presented. ★ ★ ★ ★ ★ No ratings yet [Ego](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/ego/) [Ego Mania](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/ego-mania-5652498/) [Egomaniac](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/egomaniac/) [Egomaniacs](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/egomaniacs/) [Essentials](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/essentials/) [Hey](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/hey/) [Mania](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/mania/) [Order](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/order/) [Process](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/process/) [Putin](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/putin/) [Putin Egomaniac](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/putin-egomaniac-5652497/) [Russia](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/russia/) [Stood up](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/stood-up/) [Two](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/two/) [Two ways](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/two-ways/) [Way](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/way/) [World](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/world/) [World order](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/world-order/) ## Related quotes > [It's much better when I go out with my mates and we stop talking about me like I'm some sort of egomaniac. It's great…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/dido-armstrong/it-s-much-better-when-i-go-out-with-my-mates-and-we-stop-talking/) [Dido Armstrong](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/dido-armstrong/) > [ I'm a complete egomaniac. It makes me feel terrible to say \[being interviewed\] is hard. It's taxing in a way. Just 'cause it's a… ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/rob-corddry/i-m-a-complete-egomaniac-it-makes-me-feel-terrible-to-say-being/) [Rob Corddry](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/rob-corddry/) > [I'm a control freak. I'm defensive. And I'm an egomaniac. That's true about me.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/george-saunders/i-m-a-control-freak-i-m-defensive-and-i-m-an-egomaniac-that-s-true/) [George Saunders](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/george-saunders/) > [A fair share of anything is starvation diet to an egomaniac.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/quentin-crisp/a-fair-share-of-anything-is-starvation-diet-to-an-egomaniac/) [Quentin Crisp](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/quentin-crisp/) > [I was wrong, however, to suppose that Sellers thought the world revolved around him. He thought the cosmos did too, and history, and the…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/clive-james/i-was-wrong-however-to-suppose-that-sellers-thought-the-world/) [Clive James](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/clive-james/) > [I was concerned about doing the right thing when I was a kid. I suppose as a child, youre a massive egomaniac, and you…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/rupert-graves/i-was-concerned-about-doing-the-right-thing-when-i-was-a-kid-i/) [Rupert Graves](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/rupert-graves/) > [Like most authors, I'm a raging egomaniac. I know that about myself. And I know that, if I had internet access, I would waste…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/bentley-little/like-most-authors-i-m-a-raging-egomaniac-i-know-that-about-myself-and/) [Bentley Little](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/bentley-little/) > [Face it, you have to be sort of an egomaniac to write something down and think that anyone is going to want to read…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/cecily-von-ziegesar/face-it-you-have-to-be-sort-of-an-egomaniac-to-write-something-down/) [Cecily von Ziegesar](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/cecily-von-ziegesar/) > [You cannot be an egomaniac on the horse. If you lose your temper and start beating him, either you will destroy him, or he…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jane-smiley/you-cannot-be-an-egomaniac-on-the-horse-if-you-lose-your-temper-and/) [Jane Smiley](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jane-smiley/) > [I'm an egomaniac with an inferiority complex.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/eric-clapton/i-m-an-egomaniac-with-an-inferiority-complex/) [Eric Clapton](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/eric-clapton/) > [Steve Jobs had his critics. Some saw him as an egomaniac, and others, as a control freak.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/kevin-o-leary/steve-jobs-had-his-critics-some-saw-him-as-an-egomaniac-and-others-as/) [Kevin O'Leary](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/kevin-o-leary/) > [If I talk about what I'm good at, I seem like I'm a conceited egomaniac.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/patrick-rothfuss/if-i-talk-about-what-i-m-good-at-i-seem-like-i-m-a-conceited-egomaniac/) [Patrick Rothfuss](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/patrick-rothfuss/) > [Esther Rantzen, like me, is an egomaniac of the highest order.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/janet-street-porter/esther-rantzen-like-me-is-an-egomaniac-of-the-highest-order/) [Janet Street-Porter](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/janet-street-porter/) > [I think each human being wants to make their mark on the world in whatever way they can, and maybe everyone has a slight…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/marina-and-the-diamonds/i-think-each-human-being-wants-to-make-their-mark-on-the-world-in/) [Marina and the Diamonds](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/marina-and-the-diamonds/) > [I made as many mistakes as anybody else. I sound as if I'm an egomaniac, and I suppose in some ways I'm filled with…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/harlan-ellison/i-made-as-many-mistakes-as-anybody-else-i-sound-as-if-i-m-an/) [Harlan Ellison](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/harlan-ellison/) ## More by David Brooks > [The brain is not the mind. It is probably impossible to look at a map of brain activity and predict or even understand the…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/david-brooks/the-brain-is-not-the-mind-it-is-probably-impossible-to-look-at-a-map/) [David Brooks](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/david-brooks/) > [When you're running for president, you're a guest in the living room for four years. And if people don't think you're going to be…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/david-brooks/when-you-re-running-for-president-you-re-a-guest-in-the-living-room/) [David Brooks](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/david-brooks/) > [“I’ve come to think that flourishing consists of putting yourself in situations in which you lose self-consciousness and become fused with other people, experiences,…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/david-brooks/i-ve-come-to-think-that-flourishing-consists-of-putting-yourself-in/) [David Brooks](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/david-brooks/) > [We have rapidly increasing technology, which is making life very good for people who are good at using words, and not so good for…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/david-brooks/we-have-rapidly-increasing-technology-which-is-making-life-very-good/) [David Brooks](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/david-brooks/) > [I think Barack Obama's foreign policy will be regarded more failure than success.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/david-brooks/i-think-barack-obama-s-foreign-policy-will-be-regarded-more-failure/) [David Brooks](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/david-brooks/) > [If you know that most processing is below the level of awareness, you learn the value of sleep. You're brain is working on the…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/david-brooks/if-you-know-that-most-processing-is-below-the-level-of-awareness-you/) [David Brooks](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/david-brooks/) > [Trade has suddenly become massively unpopular. I think that's massively unjust. I think free trade has been wonderful for America on balance.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/david-brooks/trade-has-suddenly-become-massively-unpopular-i-think-that-s/) [David Brooks](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/david-brooks/) > [Politics is based on social identity, and so, again, there is going to be differences between rural and urban and between left and right.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/david-brooks/politics-is-based-on-social-identity-and-so-again-there-is-going-to/) [David Brooks](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/david-brooks/) > [Pain now is better than pain deferred.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/david-brooks/pain-now-is-better-than-pain-deferred/) [David Brooks](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/david-brooks/) > [It’s worth noting that you can devote your life to community service and be a total schmuck. You can spend your life on Wall…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/david-brooks/it-s-worth-noting-that-you-can-devote-your-life-to-community-service/) [David Brooks](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/david-brooks/) > [If it feels all right for you, it's probably OK.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/david-brooks/if-it-feels-all-right-for-you-it-s-probably-ok/) [David Brooks](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/david-brooks/) > [I do think Donald Trump is a fundamentally unstabilizing force and that the people who swore to uphold the Constitution are going to have…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/david-brooks/i-do-think-donald-trump-is-a-fundamentally-unstabilizing-force-and/) [David Brooks](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/david-brooks/) > [Tim Kaine has been obviously a governor. He's been a senator. He's one of the smartest rising stars in the Democratic Party. He is…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/david-brooks/tim-kaine-has-been-obviously-a-governor-he-s-been-a-senator-he-s-one/) [David Brooks](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/david-brooks/) > [“Women, in general, are less visually aroused than men, a trait that has nearly cut the market for pornography in half.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/david-brooks/women-in-general-are-less-visually-aroused-than-men-a-trait-that-has/) [David Brooks](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/david-brooks/) > [I wasn't born with a tie or with Mark Shields stapled to my left hip. I have another life.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/david-brooks/i-wasn-t-born-with-a-tie-or-with-mark-shields-stapled-to-my-left-hip/) [David Brooks](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/david-brooks/) [Explore all 431 David Brooks quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/david-brooks/) ## More Ego quotes > [Most of us are convinced that we are our egos, which is who we think we are. The ego is part of our incarnation.…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ram-dass/most-of-us-are-convinced-that-we-are-our-egos-which-is-who-we-think/) [Ram Dass](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ram-dass/) > [For us who are now in power, we need to be challenged to serve the people and ignore our own egos and personal interests…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/wangari-maathai/for-us-who-are-now-in-power-we-need-to-be-challenged-to-serve-the/) [Wangari Maathai](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/wangari-maathai/) > [I love playing ego and insecurity combined.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jim-carrey/i-love-playing-ego-and-insecurity-combined/) [Jim Carrey](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jim-carrey/) > [“sometimes when everything seems at its worst when all conspires and gnaws and the hours, days, weeks years seem wasted – stretched there upon…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/charles-bukowski/sometimes-when-everything-seems-at-its-worst-when-all-conspires-and/) [Charles Bukowski](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/charles-bukowski/) > [I'm a straight shooter, and most of the time my ego doesn't interrupt my relationships.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/gabriel-macht/i-m-a-straight-shooter-and-most-of-the-time-my-ego-doesn-t-interrupt/) [Gabriel Macht](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/gabriel-macht/) > [Thinking, or more precisely identification with thinking, gives rise to and maintains the ego, which, in our Western society in particular, is out of…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/eckhart-tolle/thinking-or-more-precisely-identification-with-thinking-gives-rise-to/) [Eckhart Tolle](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/eckhart-tolle/) > [Beware of self-indulgence. The romance surrounding the writing profession carries several myths: that one must suffer in order to be creative; that one must…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/david-brin/beware-of-self-indulgence-the-romance-surrounding-the-writing/) [David Brin](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/david-brin/) > [“There are two kinds of people: goal-oriented and ego-oriented. Goal-oriented people work together and get things gone. Ego-oriented people don’t work.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/charbel-tadros/there-are-two-kinds-of-people-goal-oriented-and-ego-oriented-goal/) [Charbel Tadros](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/charbel-tadros/) > [Heart surgeons do not have the world's smallest egos: when you ask them to name the world's three leading practitioners, they never can remember…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/sara-paretsky/heart-surgeons-do-not-have-the-world-s-smallest-egos-when-you-ask/) [Sara Paretsky](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/sara-paretsky/) > [I hate acting when I see it. I don't want to feel it, I don't want to see it, I want to be taken…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/rutger-hauer/i-hate-acting-when-i-see-it-i-don-t-want-to-feel-it-i-don-t-want-to/) [Rutger Hauer](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/rutger-hauer/) > [It's a constant man-ego-check going on in the streets, in this world.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/tupac-shakur/it-s-a-constant-man-ego-check-going-on-in-the-streets-in-this-world/) [Tupac Shakur](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/tupac-shakur/) > [“... a man doesn't like to have his ego popped, especially when he prides himself on his sagacity, and then to be proved wrong…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/e-a-bucchianeri/a-man-doesn-t-like-to-have-his-ego-popped-especially-when-he-prides/) [E.A. Bucchianeri](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/e-a-bucchianeri/) > [Our real nature is not our imaginary, limited ego. Our true nature is vast, all-comprehensive, and intangible as empty space.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anagarika-govinda/our-real-nature-is-not-our-imaginary-limited-ego-our-true-nature-is/) [Anagarika Govinda](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anagarika-govinda/) > [The man of wisdom is devoid of ego even though he may appear to use it. His vacant or fasting mind is neither doing…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ramesh-s-balsekar/the-man-of-wisdom-is-devoid-of-ego-even-though-he-may-appear-to-use/) [Ramesh S Balsekar](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ramesh-s-balsekar/) > [Show me success without ego!](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ivana-trump/show-me-success-without-ego/) [Ivana Trump](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ivana-trump/) [Browse all 3,462 Ego quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/ego/) ```json { "@context": "https://schema.org", "@graph": [ { "@type": "Quotation", "text": "Putin's an egomaniac, so there are two ways he can process his ego mania. 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