--- title: "Meaning & Key Takeaway of: I've concluded that genius is as common…" description: "\"I've concluded that genius is as common as dirt. We suppress genius because we haven't yet figured out how to manage a population of educated men and w..." image: "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/522/john-taylor-gatto-4736_common_i-ve-concluded-that-genius-is-as-common_3172880.png" --- # I've concluded that genius is as common as dirt. We… ![“I've concluded that genius is as common as dirt. We suppress genius because we haven't yet figured out how to manage a population of educated men and women. The solution, I think, is simple and glorious. Let them manage themselves.” quote by John Taylor Gatto](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/522/john-taylor-gatto-4736_common_i-ve-concluded-that-genius-is-as-common_3172880.png) [Download](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/522/john-taylor-gatto-4736_common_i-ve-concluded-that-genius-is-as-common_3172880.png) [Open image](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/522/john-taylor-gatto-4736_common_i-ve-concluded-that-genius-is-as-common_3172880.png) > “I've concluded that genius is as common as dirt. We suppress genius because we haven't yet figured out how to manage a population of educated men and women. The solution, I think, is simple and glorious. Let them manage themselves.” [John Taylor Gatto](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/john-taylor-gatto/) ## About This Quote This interpretation was drafted with AI assistance. It is one reading of the quote, not the author's own explanation. Society stifles talent because it lacks structures for self‑governance; allowing educated people autonomy would unleash widespread genius. **In simple terms:** We block talent due to poor management; letting people self‑manage could free it. Key Takeaway Give people autonomy to manage themselves. Themes education talent self‑governance societal structures Mood optimistic critical Type philosophical policy When to use this quote - schools - workplace policy - community leadership - education reform Key Concepts human potential autonomy systems design Questions to Reflect On - How can we ensure responsibility in self‑managed groups? - What safeguards prevent chaos? A Different Perspective Self‑governance may fail without shared values or accountability. ★ ★ ★ ★ ★ No ratings yet [Dirt](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/dirt/) [Educated man](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/educated-man/) [Genius](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/genius/) [Intelligence](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/intelligence/) [Learning](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/learning/) [Men](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/men/) [Men and women](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/men-and-women/) [Thinking](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/thinking/) ## Related quotes > [Ive concluded that genius is as common as dirt. We suppress our genius only because we havent yet figured out how to manage a…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/john-taylor-gatto/ive-concluded-that-genius-is-as-common-as-dirt-we-suppress-our-genius/) [John Taylor Gatto](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/john-taylor-gatto/) > [What we seek to advance, what we seek to develop in all of our colleges and universities, are educated men and women who can…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/john-f-kennedy/what-we-seek-to-advance-what-we-seek-to-develop-in-all-of-our/) [John F. Kennedy](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/john-f-kennedy/) > [Men who allow their love of power to give them a distorted view of the world are to be found in every asylum: one…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/bertrand-russell/men-who-allow-their-love-of-power-to-give-them-a-distorted-view-of-2/) [Bertrand Russell](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/bertrand-russell/) > [Educated men and women, especially those who are in college, very often get the idea that religion is fit only for the common people.…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/booker-t-washington/educated-men-and-women-especially-those-who-are-in-college-very-often/) [Booker T. Washington](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/booker-t-washington/) > [It is this simplicity that makes the uneducated more effective than the educated when addressing popular audiences-makes them, as the poets tell us, 'charm…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/aristotle/it-is-this-simplicity-that-makes-the-uneducated-more-effective-than/) [Aristotle](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/aristotle/) > [Educated men - "civilized," as Fourier used to say with disdain - tremble at the idea that society might some day be without judges,…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/peter-kropotkin/educated-men-civilized-as-fourier-used-to-say-with-disdain-tremble-at/) [Peter Kropotkin](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/peter-kropotkin/) > [Educated men are so impressive.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/william-shakespeare/educated-men-are-so-impressive/) [William Shakespeare](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/william-shakespeare/) > [“Where any one body of educated men, of whatever denomination, are condemned indiscriminately, there must be a deficiency of information, (or smiling) of something…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jane-austen/where-any-one-body-of-educated-men-of-whatever-denomination-are/) [Jane Austen](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jane-austen/) > [The population has to be educated about how the government actually works.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/aaron-mcgruder/the-population-has-to-be-educated-about-how-the-government-actually/) [Aaron McGruder](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/aaron-mcgruder/) > [We should educate more women and girls. 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All astonishing things…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/benjamin-haydon/genius-is-nothing-more-than-common-faculties-refined-to-a-greater/) [Benjamin Haydon](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/benjamin-haydon/) > [The only difference between a genius and one of common capacity is that the former anticipates and explores what the latter accidentally hits upon;…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anonymous/the-only-difference-between-a-genius-and-one-of-common-capacity-is/) [Anonymous](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anonymous/) > [“For this is the great secret, which was known to all educated men in our day: that by what men think, we create the…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/marion-zimmer-bradley/for-this-is-the-great-secret-which-was-known-to-all-educated-men-in/) [Marion Zimmer Bradley](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/marion-zimmer-bradley/) > [“this is the great secret, which was known to all educated men in our day: that by what men think, we create the world…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/marion-zimmer-bradley/this-is-the-great-secret-which-was-known-to-all-educated-men-in-our/) [Marion Zimmer Bradley](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/marion-zimmer-bradley/) ## More by John Taylor Gatto > [If you live in a material universe where acquiring things is very important to you, then family is an absolute deterrent to maintaining that…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/john-taylor-gatto/if-you-live-in-a-material-universe-where-acquiring-things-is-very/) [John Taylor Gatto](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/john-taylor-gatto/) > [We could encourage the best qualities of youthfulness - curiosity, adventure, resilience, the capacity for surprising insight simply by being more flexible about time,…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/john-taylor-gatto/we-could-encourage-the-best-qualities-of-youthfulness-curiosity/) [John Taylor Gatto](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/john-taylor-gatto/) > [There isn't a right way to become educated; there are as many ways as there are fingerprints.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/john-taylor-gatto/there-isn-t-a-right-way-to-become-educated-there-are-as-many-ways-as/) [John Taylor Gatto](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/john-taylor-gatto/) > [The truth is that schools don't really teach anything except how to obey orders. This is a great mystery to me because thousands of…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/john-taylor-gatto/the-truth-is-that-schools-don-t-really-teach-anything-except-how-to/) [John Taylor Gatto](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/john-taylor-gatto/) > [“Any economy in which the most common tasks are the shuffling of paper, the punching of buttons, and the running of mouths isn’t an…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/john-taylor-gatto/any-economy-in-which-the-most-common-tasks-are-the-shuffling-of-paper/) [John Taylor Gatto](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/john-taylor-gatto/) > [This was once a land where every sane person knew how to build a shelter, grow food, and entertain one another. 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