--- title: "Meaning & Key Takeaway of: Being president is as difficult as…" description: "\"Being president is as difficult as writing the perfect poem. And being president is as effortless as writing the perfect poem. Always a Reckoning, my f..." image: "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/b15/jimmy-carter-479_collections_being-president-is-as-difficult-as-writi_1463498.jpg" --- # Being president is as difficult as writing the perfect… ![“Being president is as difficult as writing the perfect poem. And being president is as effortless as writing the perfect poem. Always a Reckoning, my first collection of poetry, was described by Booklist as 'keenly evocative.'” quote by Jimmy Carter](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/b15/jimmy-carter-479_collections_being-president-is-as-difficult-as-writi_1463498.jpg) [Download](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/b15/jimmy-carter-479_collections_being-president-is-as-difficult-as-writi_1463498.jpg) [Open image](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/b15/jimmy-carter-479_collections_being-president-is-as-difficult-as-writi_1463498.jpg) > “Being president is as difficult as writing the perfect poem. And being president is as effortless as writing the perfect poem. Always a Reckoning, my first collection of poetry, was described by Booklist as 'keenly evocative.'” [Jimmy Carter](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jimmy-carter/) ## About This Quote This interpretation was drafted with AI assistance. It is one reading of the quote, not the author's own explanation. Presidency and poetry share similar challenges: both require skill, vision, and can feel effortless when mastered, yet are inherently demanding. **In simple terms:** Being president is like writing poetry: hard yet can seem easy. Key Takeaway Embrace the difficulty of leadership. Themes leadership artistry politics creativity Mood thoughtful inspirational analytical Type philosophical inspirational When to use this quote - political leadership - creative writing - public speaking - policy drafting Key Concepts Poetic metaphor role comparison public service Questions to Reflect On - How does artistic practice inform leadership? - What makes a task feel effortless? A Different Perspective May oversimplify the unique pressures of political office. ★ ★ ★ ★ ★ No ratings yet [Collections](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/collections/) [Difficult](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/difficult/) [Effortless](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/effortless/) [Firsts](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/firsts/) [Perfect](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/perfect/) [Perfect Poem](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/perfect-poem-1312596/) [Poem President](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/poem-president-5293349/) [Poem Reckoning](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/poem-reckoning-5293351/) [Poetry](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/poetry/) [President](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/president/) [President Difficult](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/president-difficult-417369/) [President Effortless](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/president-effortless-5293350/) [Reckoning](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/reckoning/) [Writing](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/writing/) ## Related quotes > [A perfect poem is impossible. Once it had been written, the world would end. Immature poets imitate; mature poets steal.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/robert-graves/a-perfect-poem-is-impossible-once-it-had-been-written-the-world-would-2/) [Robert Graves](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/robert-graves/) > [The progress of our soul is like a perfect poem. It has an infinite idea which, once realised, makes all movements full of meaning…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/rabindranath-tagore/the-progress-of-our-soul-is-like-a-perfect-poem-it-has-an-infinite/) [Rabindranath Tagore](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/rabindranath-tagore/) > [I think a good poem should have some inscrutable part. You can't quite explain it. The poem can only explain itself to a certain…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/billy-collins/i-think-a-good-poem-should-have-some-inscrutable-part-you-can-t-quite/) [Billy Collins](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/billy-collins/) > [A perfect poem is impossible. Once it had been written, the world would end.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/robert-graves/a-perfect-poem-is-impossible-once-it-had-been-written-the-world-would/) [Robert Graves](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/robert-graves/) > [Being Vice President is difficult. Don't make it tougher.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/donald-rumsfeld/being-vice-president-is-difficult-don-t-make-it-tougher/) [Donald Rumsfeld](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/donald-rumsfeld/) > [ There was a real choice when \[Barack Obama\] became president. It was a very difficult choice - to say, "We're not going to hold… ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/edward-snowden/there-was-a-real-choice-when-barack-obama-became-president-it-was-a/) [Edward Snowden](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/edward-snowden/) > [That's what I like to call him, "the current president." I find it difficult to say or type his name, George W. Bush. I…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/sarah-vowell/that-s-what-i-like-to-call-him-the-current-president-i-find-it/) [Sarah Vowell](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/sarah-vowell/) > [With any president it is difficult to predict how the world will be effected by his presence in the white house.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/diahann-carroll/with-any-president-it-is-difficult-to-predict-how-the-world-will-be/) [Diahann Carroll](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/diahann-carroll/) > [There are just some things about being president that are difficult.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ken-cuccinelli/there-are-just-some-things-about-being-president-that-are-difficult/) [Ken Cuccinelli](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ken-cuccinelli/) > [For when the heart insists on its destiny, resisting the general blandishment, then the agony is great; so too the danger. 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What I’m…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ta-nehisi-coates/what-i-m-talking-about-is-more-than-recompense-for-past-injustices/) [Ta-Nehisi Coates](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ta-nehisi-coates/) > ['The Reckoning' is one of my proudest hours. I love that episode so much.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/julie-plec/the-reckoning-is-one-of-my-proudest-hours-i-love-that-episode-so-much/) [Julie Plec](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/julie-plec/) > [The Pink Panther wasn't shown to the press for reasons that soon became apparent when I saw it at a public performance. Two people…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/philip-french/the-pink-panther-wasn-t-shown-to-the-press-for-reasons-that-soon/) [Philip French](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/philip-french/) ## More by Jimmy Carter > [One of the most basic principles for making and keeping peace within and between nations. . . is that in political, military, moral, and…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jimmy-carter/one-of-the-most-basic-principles-for-making-and-keeping-peace-within/) [Jimmy Carter](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jimmy-carter/) > [I think politicians really go with the tide.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jimmy-carter/i-think-politicians-really-go-with-the-tide/) [Jimmy Carter](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jimmy-carter/) > [There's no way to have a peace agreement unless the mediator or negotiator looks at both sides from an equal basis.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jimmy-carter/there-s-no-way-to-have-a-peace-agreement-unless-the-mediator-or/) [Jimmy Carter](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jimmy-carter/) > [Jesus never said a word about homosexuality. 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He's a much better speech maker than I am. 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I have to admit that the…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/philip-treacy/mac-allowed-me-to-have-complete-freedom-on-the-collaborations-from/) [Philip Treacy](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/philip-treacy/) > [I took a wrong turn on the way to the bathroom and found myself in a beautifully proportioned room I had never seen before,…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anonymous/i-took-a-wrong-turn-on-the-way-to-the-bathroom-and-found-myself-in-a/) [Anonymous](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anonymous/) > [Whatever we may say against collections, which present authors in a disjointed form, they nevertheless bring about many excellent results. We are not always…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/johann-wolfgang-von-goethe/whatever-we-may-say-against-collections-which-present-authors-in-a/) [Johann Wolfgang von Goethe](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/johann-wolfgang-von-goethe/) > [This is an extraordinary illustrated collection of Chinese herbsaccompanied by concise and expert comments. Jing-Nuan Wu has succeeded incompiling this most unique and informative…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/koji-nakanishi/this-is-an-extraordinary-illustrated-collection-of-chinese/) [Koji Nakanishi](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/koji-nakanishi/) > [I have a large watch collection, and classic watches are especially important to me. I had a silver Rolex, and I actually gave it…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/nate-berkus/i-have-a-large-watch-collection-and-classic-watches-are-especially/) [Nate Berkus](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/nate-berkus/) > [By calling it a memoir, I meant is as a collection of memories. I thought it was (a more) artful (title) than documentary.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/natalie-merchant/by-calling-it-a-memoir-i-meant-is-as-a-collection-of-memories-i/) [Natalie Merchant](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/natalie-merchant/) > [Who wrote the Bible? Current scholarship, to my knowledge, assumes that the material that constitutes the Old Testament was put together from various oral…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/noam-chomsky/who-wrote-the-bible-current-scholarship-to-my-knowledge-assumes-that/) [Noam Chomsky](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/noam-chomsky/) > [I've had plenty of jo-jobs. Nothing I'd call a career. Let me put it this way. 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