--- title: "Meaning & Key Takeaway of: As I glanced at the phraseology of the…" description: "\"As I glanced at the phraseology of the research report, dull and unfathomable to outsiders like me, I thought that if you have the ambition to become a..." image: "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/9dc/jon-ronson-1772_ambition_as-i-glanced-at-the-phraseology-of-the-r_1278209.jpg" --- # As I glanced at the phraseology of the research report… ![“As I glanced at the phraseology of the research report, dull and unfathomable to outsiders like me, I thought that if you have the ambition to become a villain, the first thing you should do is learn to be impenetrable. Don’t act like Blofeld—monocled and ostentatious. We journalists love writing…” quote by Jon Ronson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/9dc/jon-ronson-1772_ambition_as-i-glanced-at-the-phraseology-of-the-r_1278209.jpg) [Download](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/9dc/jon-ronson-1772_ambition_as-i-glanced-at-the-phraseology-of-the-r_1278209.jpg) [Open image](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/9dc/jon-ronson-1772_ambition_as-i-glanced-at-the-phraseology-of-the-r_1278209.jpg) > “As I glanced at the phraseology of the research report, dull and unfathomable to outsiders like me, I thought that if you have the ambition to become a villain, the first thing you should do is learn to be impenetrable. Don’t act like Blofeld—monocled and ostentatious. We journalists love writing about eccentrics. We hate writing about impenetrable, boring people. It makes us look bad: the duller the interviewee, the duller the prose. If you want to get away with wielding true, malevolent power, be boring.” [Jon Ronson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jon-ronson/) ## About This Quote This interpretation was drafted with AI assistance. It is one reading of the quote, not the author's own explanation. Powerful influence thrives on being unremarkable; blandness shields malicious intent from scrutiny. **In simple terms:** Being boring protects secret power. Key Takeaway Embrace subtlety to conceal true motives. Themes power deception media personality Mood critical analytical Type satirical insightful When to use this quote - political interviews - corporate leadership - espionage - creative writing - media criticism Key Concepts political strategy psychology journalism Questions to Reflect On - Why do we gravitate toward flamboyant villains? - Can blandness be a moral choice? A Different Perspective Boring personas may be ignored, allowing harmful actions to go unnoticed. ★ ★ ★ ★ ★ No ratings yet [Ambition](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/ambition/) [Boring](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/boring/) [Boring people](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/boring-people/) [Dull](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/dull/) [Firsts](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/firsts/) [Get away](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/get-away/) [Hate](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/hate/) [Impenetrable](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/impenetrable/) [Impenetrable Don](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/impenetrable-don-251742/) [Journalist](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/journalist/) [Learn Impenetrable](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/learn-impenetrable-4120572/) [Looks](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/looks/) [Ostentatious](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/ostentatious/) [Ostentatious Journalists](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/ostentatious-journalists-251743/) [Outsiders](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/outsiders/) [People](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/people/) [Prose](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/prose/) [Research](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/research/) [Should](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/should/) [Villain](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/villain/) [Want](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/want/) [Writing](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/writing/) [Writing Impenetrable](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/writing-impenetrable-1619079/) ## Related quotes > [“...if you have the ambition to become a villain, the first thing you should do is learn to be impenetrable. Don’t act like Blofeld—monocled…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jon-ronson/if-you-have-the-ambition-to-become-a-villain-the-first-thing-you/) [Jon Ronson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jon-ronson/) > [“As I glanced at the phraseology of the research report, dull and unfathomable to outsiders like me, I thought that if you have the…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jon-ronson/as-i-glanced-at-the-phraseology-of-the-research-report-dull-and-2/) [Jon Ronson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jon-ronson/) > [However impenetrable it seems, if you don't try it, then you can never do it.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/andrew-wiles/however-impenetrable-it-seems-if-you-don-t-try-it-then-you-can-never/) [Andrew Wiles](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/andrew-wiles/) > [“Without art; without paintings, books, sculpture and music, the human soul would be quite impenetrable, don’t you think?”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jonathan-hull/without-art-without-paintings-books-sculpture-and-music-the-human/) [Jonathan Hull](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jonathan-hull/) > [That boy hardly needed a mask when his naked face was already impenetrable.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/lionel-shriver/that-boy-hardly-needed-a-mask-when-his-naked-face-was-already/) [Lionel Shriver](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/lionel-shriver/) > [“It's like there's a glass wall between us now, invisible but impenetrable”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/lauren-oliver/it-s-like-there-s-a-glass-wall-between-us-now-invisible-but/) [Lauren Oliver](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/lauren-oliver/) > [Artists probably should have some impenetrable aspects of themselves.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/simon-callow/artists-probably-should-have-some-impenetrable-aspects-of-themselves/) [Simon Callow](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/simon-callow/) > [That which is impenetrable to us really exists. Behind the secrets of nature remains something subtle, intangible, and inexplicable. Veneration for this force beyond…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/albert-einstein/that-which-is-impenetrable-to-us-really-exists-behind-the-secrets-of/) [Albert Einstein](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/albert-einstein/) > [I think it's easy to make impenetrable music that nobody can get, and you can hide behind that sometimes.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/trent-reznor/i-think-it-s-easy-to-make-impenetrable-music-that-nobody-can-get-and/) [Trent Reznor](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/trent-reznor/) > [Nothing is so impenetrable as laughter in a language you don't understand.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/william-golding/nothing-is-so-impenetrable-as-laughter-in-a-language-you-don-t/) [William Golding](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/william-golding/) > [For an impenetrable shield, stand inside yourself](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/henry-david-thoreau/for-an-impenetrable-shield-stand-inside-yourself/) [Henry David Thoreau](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/henry-david-thoreau/) > [I can never say 'why' about anything I do. I suppose I can say 'how' and 'when' and 'what.' But 'why' is impenetrable to…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/paul-auster/i-can-never-say-why-about-anything-i-do-i-suppose-i-can-say-how-and/) [Paul Auster](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/paul-auster/) > [“Within a broken heart lie a realm of impenetrable shadows, and the echo of what could have been.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/felix-alexander/within-a-broken-heart-lie-a-realm-of-impenetrable-shadows-and-the/) [Felix Alexander](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/felix-alexander/) > [Let your plans be dark and impenetrable as night...](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/sun-tzu/let-your-plans-be-dark-and-impenetrable-as-night/) [Sun Tzu](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/sun-tzu/) > [“As we survey the challenges of life, that which is easy is rarely right. In fact, the course that we should properly follow appears…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/thomas-s-monson/as-we-survey-the-challenges-of-life-that-which-is-easy-is-rarely/) [Thomas S. Monson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/thomas-s-monson/) ## More by Jon Ronson > [Sometimes labeling is only useful, like with OCD. Once you're labeled you can be treated. On other occasions labeling leads to tyranny, like with…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jon-ronson/sometimes-labeling-is-only-useful-like-with-ocd-once-you-re-labeled/) [Jon Ronson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jon-ronson/) > [“I wonder if I’ve got any of the 374 mental disorders,” I thought. I opened the manual again. And I instantly diagnosed myself with…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jon-ronson/i-wonder-if-i-ve-got-any-of-the-374-mental-disorders-i-thought-i/) [Jon Ronson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jon-ronson/) > [Trying to prove you’re not a psychopath is even harder than trying to prove you’re not mentally ill,’ said Tony.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jon-ronson/trying-to-prove-you-re-not-a-psychopath-is-even-harder-than-trying-to/) [Jon Ronson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jon-ronson/) > [“It may very well be that the frotteurist is a helpless victim in the clutches of his obsession, but it’s equally possible that he’s…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jon-ronson/it-may-very-well-be-that-the-frotteurist-is-a-helpless-victim-in-the/) [Jon Ronson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jon-ronson/) > [“We are defining the boundaries of normality by tearing apart the people outside of it.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jon-ronson/we-are-defining-the-boundaries-of-normality-by-tearing-apart-the/) [Jon Ronson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jon-ronson/) > [My worryingly paradoxical thought process could be summarized thus: Thank God I don't believe in the secret rulers of the world. Imagine what the…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jon-ronson/my-worryingly-paradoxical-thought-process-could-be-summarized-thus/) [Jon Ronson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jon-ronson/) > [Friends are the fruitcake of life - some nutty, some soaked in alcohol, some sweet.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jon-ronson/friends-are-the-fruitcake-of-life-some-nutty-some-soaked-in-alcohol/) [Jon Ronson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jon-ronson/) > [“The consensus from the beginning was that only 1 percent of humans had it, but the chaos they caused was so far-reaching it could…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jon-ronson/the-consensus-from-the-beginning-was-that-only-1-percent-of-humans/) [Jon Ronson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jon-ronson/) > [“That's an incredibly depressing thought," I said "that if you're in a room and at one end lies madness and at the other end…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jon-ronson/that-s-an-incredibly-depressing-thought-i-said-that-if-you-re-in-a/) [Jon Ronson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jon-ronson/) > [The world outside Twitter was great. I read books. I reconnected with people I knew from real life and met them for drinks in…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jon-ronson/the-world-outside-twitter-was-great-i-read-books-i-reconnected-with/) [Jon Ronson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jon-ronson/) > [“What a brilliant cover story. In a success-obsessed society like this one, what's the best rock to hide something under? It's the rock called…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jon-ronson/what-a-brilliant-cover-story-in-a-success-obsessed-society-like-this/) [Jon Ronson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jon-ronson/) > [Guy Savelli's role in the War on Terror began when half-a-dozen strangers, within days of one another, contacted him via e-mail and telephone in…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jon-ronson/guy-savelli-s-role-in-the-war-on-terror-began-when-half-a-dozen/) [Jon Ronson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jon-ronson/) > [My paranoia never ends, but I haven't been paranoid about being spied on my shadowy forces for some time now.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jon-ronson/my-paranoia-never-ends-but-i-haven-t-been-paranoid-about-being-spied/) [Jon Ronson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jon-ronson/) > [“It is an awful lot harder, Tony told me, to convince people you’re sane than it is to convince them you’re crazy. “I”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jon-ronson/it-is-an-awful-lot-harder-tony-told-me-to-convince-people-you-re-sane/) [Jon Ronson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jon-ronson/) > [It is slightly chilling to realize there are rational, functional people up there employed to spot, nurture, and exploit those down here among us…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jon-ronson/it-is-slightly-chilling-to-realize-there-are-rational-functional/) [Jon Ronson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jon-ronson/) [Explore all 209 Jon Ronson quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jon-ronson/) ## More Ambition quotes > [Ambition drives you on, ability certainly helps, but the fickle finger of fate and luck are great things.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/fergus-henderson/ambition-drives-you-on-ability-certainly-helps-but-the-fickle-finger/) [Fergus Henderson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/fergus-henderson/) > [One needs more than ambition and talent to make a success of anything, really. There must be love and a vocation.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jessye-norman/one-needs-more-than-ambition-and-talent-to-make-a-success-of-anything/) [Jessye Norman](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jessye-norman/) > [I just think my own ambition would not allow me to sit on the gifts that my creator had given me. And so that's…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/janelle-monae/i-just-think-my-own-ambition-would-not-allow-me-to-sit-on-the-gifts/) [Janelle Monae](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/janelle-monae/) > [A man's worth is no greater than the worth of his ambitions](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anonymous/a-man-s-worth-is-no-greater-than-the-worth-of-his-ambitions/) [Anonymous](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anonymous/) > [I'm hungry and ambitious.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/julen-lopetegui/i-m-hungry-and-ambitious/) [Julen Lopetegui](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/julen-lopetegui/) > [“I was ambitious and desperate to direct my first film, so I capitulated and blew it. Never again. Never fucking again.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/craig-ferguson/i-was-ambitious-and-desperate-to-direct-my-first-film-so-i/) [Craig Ferguson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/craig-ferguson/) > [I was always attracted most to joining City, and I am pleased to be at such a good club with such a big ambition…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/edin-dzeko/i-was-always-attracted-most-to-joining-city-and-i-am-pleased-to-be-at/) [Edin Dzeko](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/edin-dzeko/) > [Work towards your goal and dont watch the post size,its either they hate,or like you.there is no room for both sides.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/isaac-buabeng/work-towards-your-goal-and-dont-watch-the-post-size-its-either-they/) [Isaac Buabeng](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/isaac-buabeng/) > [“But young men have not only this frivolous ambition of being thought masters of execution, inciting them on the one hand, but also their…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anonymous/but-young-men-have-not-only-this-frivolous-ambition-of-being-thought/) [Anonymous](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anonymous/) > [I almost never have a plan for myself... I'm not ambitious in that way.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/martha-plimpton/i-almost-never-have-a-plan-for-myself-i-m-not-ambitious-in-that-way/) [Martha Plimpton](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/martha-plimpton/) > [I play for high stakes and given an audience - there is no act too daring or too noble.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/winston-churchill/i-play-for-high-stakes-and-given-an-audience-there-is-no-act-too/) [Winston Churchill](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/winston-churchill/) > [There's nothing worse than a leader who lacks ambition.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anonymous/there-s-nothing-worse-than-a-leader-who-lacks-ambition/) [Anonymous](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anonymous/) > [If i can't even protect my captain's dream, then whatever ambition i have is nothing but talk..](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/zoro/if-i-can-t-even-protect-my-captain-s-dream-then-whatever-ambition-i/) [Zoro](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/zoro/) > [It may seem unattainable but if you put actions, your heart and your mind into it, you will prevail.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/london-mond/it-may-seem-unattainable-but-if-you-put-actions-your-heart-and-your/) [London Mond](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/london-mond/) > [Obligation is what's leading us to toward successful, and what keeps us moving towards the future.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/wazim-shaw/obligation-is-what-s-leading-us-to-toward-successful-and-what-keeps/) [Wazim Shaw](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/wazim-shaw/) [Browse all 4,601 Ambition quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/ambition/) ```json { "@context": "https://schema.org", "@graph": [ { "@type": "Quotation", "text": "As I glanced at the phraseology of the research report, dull and unfathomable to outsiders like me, I thought that if you have the ambition to become a villain, the first thing you should do is learn to be impenetrable. Don’t act like Blofeld—monocled and ostentatious. We journalists love writing about eccentrics. We hate writing about impenetrable, boring people. It makes us look bad: the duller the interviewee, the duller the prose. 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