Expertise Quote by David Herbert Donald
“At the beginning, Lincoln was so inexperienced he had reverence for military expertise, not realizing that there wasn't any military expertise, that the most anybody had commanded up to that point had been somebody, some troops in the Mexican War, and it had been years ago.”
About This Quote
Source Book: Lincoln, The Biography of a Nation's Founder by David Herbert Donald, 1995
Lincoln initially trusted military leaders despite their lack of experience, highlighting the danger of assuming expertise without evidence.
In simple terms: Lincoln trusted inexperienced military leaders.
Key Takeaway
Question expertise before relying on it.
Themes
leadership
trust
expertise
history
politics
Mood
cautious
reflective
Type
historical
analytical
When to use this quote
- political decision making
- military planning
- leadership selection
- public expectations
Key Concepts
overconfidence
authority
historical analysis
Questions to Reflect On
- How do you verify expertise before trusting?
- What are the risks of overvaluing reputation?
A Different Perspective
Assuming expertise can lead to poor decisions.
![“In the absence of expert [senior military] advice, we have seen each successive administration fail in the business of strategy - yielding a United States twice as rich as the Soviet Union but much less strong. Only the manner of the failure has changed. In the 1960s, under Robert S. McNamara, we…” quote by Edward Luttwak](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/img-quotes/b55/edward-luttwak-63709_art-of-war_in-the-absence-of-expert-senior-military_133876.jpg)
![“The beginning [of Lincoln in the Bardo] is strange, and I did a lot of work calibrating that so that a reader with a certain level of patience would get through it and in the nick of time start to figure out what was going on. In a short book, you can do that.” quote by George Saunders](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/img-quotes/9f9/george-saunders-317_beginning_the-beginning-of-lincoln-in-the-bardo-is_3025267.jpg)
![“From the beginning [of the Lincoln in the Bardo], I actually had it in mind not to write a novel. I'd kind of gotten past that point where I felt bad for never having written a novel, even to where I felt really good about it, like I was a real purist.” quote by George Saunders](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/img-quotes/843/george-saunders-317_books_from-the-beginning-of-the-lincoln-in-the_3136511.jpg)
