--- title: "Meaning & Key Takeaway of: I am shocked at the openness with which…" description: "\"“I am shocked at the openness with which people reveal their secrets and personal failures. Until I realize: not everyone has been raised in a culture ..." image: "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/e2d/nicole-hardy-22139_failure_i-am-shocked-at-the-openness-with-which_1567887.jpg" --- # I am shocked at the openness with which people reveal… ![“I am shocked at the openness with which people reveal their secrets and personal failures. Until I realize: not everyone has been raised in a culture of perfection; they don't see a benefit to the shellac required to keep up appearances.” quote by Nicole Hardy](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/e2d/nicole-hardy-22139_failure_i-am-shocked-at-the-openness-with-which_1567887.jpg) [Download](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/e2d/nicole-hardy-22139_failure_i-am-shocked-at-the-openness-with-which_1567887.jpg) [Open image](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/e2d/nicole-hardy-22139_failure_i-am-shocked-at-the-openness-with-which_1567887.jpg) > ““I am shocked at the openness with which people reveal their secrets and personal failures. Until I realize: not everyone has been raised in a culture of perfection; they don't see a benefit to the shellac required to keep up appearances.”” [Nicole Hardy](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/nicole-hardy/) ## About This Quote This interpretation was drafted with AI assistance. It is one reading of the quote, not the author's own explanation. People often share failures openly, revealing a culture lacking perfection and the pressure to maintain appearances. **In simple terms:** People share failures because they lack perfection pressure. Key Takeaway Accept imperfections and avoid judging appearances. Themes vulnerability culture perfection authenticity Mood reflective empathetic Type observational philosophical When to use this quote - online sharing - workplace feedback - personal relationships - mental health Key Concepts social norms self‑presentation Questions to Reflect On - How does cultural pressure shape openness? - What benefits come from authentic sharing? A Different Perspective Not everyone values openness; some may hide struggles for safety. ★ ★ ★ ★ ★ No ratings yet [Failure](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/failure/) [Openness](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/openness/) ## Related quotes > [The thing about the Internet is the openness. People can link to each other themselves.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/niklas-zennstrom/the-thing-about-the-internet-is-the-openness-people-can-link-to-each/) [Niklas Zennstrom](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/niklas-zennstrom/) > [“We love seeing raw truth and openness in other people, but we're afraid to let them see it in us. We're afraid that our…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/bren-brown/we-love-seeing-raw-truth-and-openness-in-other-people-but-we-re/) [Brené Brown](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/bren-brown/) > [The road to revolution involves openness to the people, not imperviousness to them; it involves communion with the people, not mistrust.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/paulo-freire/the-road-to-revolution-involves-openness-to-the-people-not/) [Paulo Freire](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/paulo-freire/) > [Where we are as a nation is due to having an openness to the people of the world. It's incredibly important. I firmly believe…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/bob-iger/where-we-are-as-a-nation-is-due-to-having-an-openness-to-the-people/) [Bob Iger](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/bob-iger/) > [Listen, talk, be respectful of people - and make sure that you have openness to where people are coming from. And you don't do…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/blase-j-cupich/listen-talk-be-respectful-of-people-and-make-sure-that-you-have/) [Blase J. Cupich](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/blase-j-cupich/) > [When you approach the world with such vulnerability and openness, people return that energy. It's draining, but it fills me with a purpose. I…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/arlo-parks/when-you-approach-the-world-with-such-vulnerability-and-openness/) [Arlo Parks](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/arlo-parks/) > [“People often reveal their innermost selves in the most innocent of situations.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/abhishek-ratna/people-often-reveal-their-innermost-selves-in-the-most-innocent-of/) [Abhishek Ratna](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/abhishek-ratna/) > [“You’ve never seen this side of him, Theo, which makes sense because people reveal different parts of themselves to different people. I don’t know…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/adam-silvera/you-ve-never-seen-this-side-of-him-theo-which-makes-sense-because/) [Adam Silvera](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/adam-silvera/) > [Be silent in a group of people See what they reveal to you.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/yoko-ono/be-silent-in-a-group-of-people-see-what-they-reveal-to-you/) [Yoko Ono](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/yoko-ono/) > [I realize that we all think we might be terrible people. But we only reveal this before we ask someone to love us. It…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/miranda-july/i-realize-that-we-all-think-we-might-be-terrible-people-but-we-only/) [Miranda July](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/miranda-july/) > [People reveal their true colors in due time...](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anonymous/people-reveal-their-true-colors-in-due-time/) [Anonymous](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anonymous/) > [“People will reveal themselves to you. In single moments they show you what they are.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/travis-mulhauser/people-will-reveal-themselves-to-you-in-single-moments-they-show-you/) Travis Mulhauser > [“People reveal their true character when they're off center.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ted-dekker/people-reveal-their-true-character-when-they-re-off-center/) [Ted Dekker](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ted-dekker/) > [All people will reveal themselves in time, some right away and others may take a little longer, but they always do.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/donny-mote/all-people-will-reveal-themselves-in-time-some-right-away-and-others/) Donny Mote > [People reveal themselves completely only when they are thrown out of the customary conditions of their life.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/leonardo-da-vinci/people-reveal-themselves-completely-only-when-they-are-thrown-out-of/) [Leonardo da Vinci](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/leonardo-da-vinci/) ## More by Nicole Hardy > [“The separation of young single adults from (plain old) single adults is supposedly a precaution against older men courting girls as young as eighteen.…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/nicole-hardy/the-separation-of-young-single-adults-from-plain-old-single-adults-is/) [Nicole Hardy](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/nicole-hardy/) > [“That feels like the worst part: denying people hope. I don't know where I'd be if I couldn't even tell myself that any day…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/nicole-hardy/that-feels-like-the-worst-part-denying-people-hope-i-don-t-know-where/) [Nicole Hardy](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/nicole-hardy/) > [“I would, for the love of God, feel a man's hands on me before I die.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/nicole-hardy/i-would-for-the-love-of-god-feel-a-man-s-hands-on-me-before-i-die/) [Nicole Hardy](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/nicole-hardy/) > [“Sariah and Kim both nod when I say I woke up one day wondering, Whose life is this, and how did I end up…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/nicole-hardy/sariah-and-kim-both-nod-when-i-say-i-woke-up-one-day-wondering-whose/) [Nicole Hardy](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/nicole-hardy/) > [“I played along, spent the next two hours searching for Mormon men who are attractive, employed, educated, no more than two inches shorter than…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/nicole-hardy/i-played-along-spent-the-next-two-hours-searching-for-mormon-men-who/) [Nicole hardy](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/nicole-hardy/) > [“If I say no, sex isn't everything--those mechanics, that act--but it affects everything, she will say, "Be faithful." If I say sex casts a…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/nicole-hardy/if-i-say-no-sex-isn-t-everything-those-mechanics-that-act-but-it/) [Nicole Hardy](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/nicole-hardy/) > [“We seem expected to put up with bad manners and bizarre behavior from LDS men, I say. Things we'd never subject ourselves to on…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/nicole-hardy/we-seem-expected-to-put-up-with-bad-manners-and-bizarre-behavior-from/) [Nicole Hardy](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/nicole-hardy/) > [“My throat closes against the words I can't swallow, not one more time. Because it's not true, what they're telling me--what they've been telling…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/nicole-hardy/my-throat-closes-against-the-words-i-can-t-swallow-not-one-more-time/) [Nicole Hardy](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/nicole-hardy/) > [“Kids need information in order to make good decisions.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/nicole-hardy/kids-need-information-in-order-to-make-good-decisions/) [Nicole Hardy](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/nicole-hardy/) > [“Rather than envy, anticipation, or joy, what I feel when I look at the bride is a shortness of breath. I hear the echo…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/nicole-hardy/rather-than-envy-anticipation-or-joy-what-i-feel-when-i-look-at-the/) [Nicole Hardy](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/nicole-hardy/) > [“There have to be men out there like us: committed to the Gospel, if not the culture of the church, she says. I nod…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/nicole-hardy/there-have-to-be-men-out-there-like-us-committed-to-the-gospel-if-not/) [Nicole Hardy](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/nicole-hardy/) > [“I can't bear to look at the screen itself, the women in pastels, like so many Jordan almonds. The men in suits, wearing equally…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/nicole-hardy/i-can-t-bear-to-look-at-the-screen-itself-the-women-in-pastels-like/) [Nicole Hardy](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/nicole-hardy/) > [“For Mormon women, however, motherhood is an identity, rather than a role.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/nicole-hardy/for-mormon-women-however-motherhood-is-an-identity-rather-than-a-role/) [Nicole Hardy](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/nicole-hardy/) > [“Five minutes later, I have in my hand a one-way ticket that will take me back to the island of Grand Cayman to live.…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/nicole-hardy/five-minutes-later-i-have-in-my-hand-a-one-way-ticket-that-will-take/) [Nicole Hardy](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/nicole-hardy/) > [“Already I'm wondering if it will happen again, and when: that what I've been conditioned to fear, taught to avoid, will instead reveal the…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/nicole-hardy/already-i-m-wondering-if-it-will-happen-again-and-when-that-what-i-ve/) [Nicole Hardy](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/nicole-hardy/) [Explore all 28 Nicole Hardy quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/nicole-hardy/) ## More Failure quotes > [When you do things they're absolutely right at that time for you and it can always teach you something about yourself. You can take…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/kym-marsh/when-you-do-things-they-re-absolutely-right-at-that-time-for-you-and/) [Kym Marsh](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/kym-marsh/) > [Failures happen. You can't cry over them. You just take it in your stride because you know that you have done your best... Sometimes,…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/divya-dutta/failures-happen-you-can-t-cry-over-them-you-just-take-it-in-your/) [Divya Dutta](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/divya-dutta/) > [No one is completely unhappy at the failure of his best friend.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/groucho-marx/no-one-is-completely-unhappy-at-the-failure-of-his-best-friend/) [Groucho Marx](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/groucho-marx/) > [“Rhiannon's Law #28: If you're going to fuck up, be sure to fuck up good and proper. Nothing makes failure acceptable, so you might…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anonymous/rhiannon-s-law-28-if-you-re-going-to-fuck-up-be-sure-to-fuck-up-good/) [Anonymous](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anonymous/) > [Failure is a part of life and you have to learn to deal with it. Failure is something that is part of life's cycle…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/colin-powell/failure-is-a-part-of-life-and-you-have-to-learn-to-deal-with-it/) [Colin Powell](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/colin-powell/) > [If my child had prejudice in his head, I'd be ashamed. I would see it as my failure as a parent.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/salman-rushdie/if-my-child-had-prejudice-in-his-head-i-d-be-ashamed-i-would-see-it/) [Salman Rushdie](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/salman-rushdie/) > [First action was a mistake. What about the second? third? fourth and fifth?...Mehn you are bad...](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anonymous/first-action-was-a-mistake-what-about-the-second-third-fourth-and/) [Anonymous](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anonymous/) > [God's love never fail :)](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anonymous/god-s-love-never-fail/) [Anonymous](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anonymous/) > [Don’t you just hate nights like that, when you think over every mistake you’ve made, every hurt you’ve received, every bit of meanness you’ve…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/charlaine-harris/don-t-you-just-hate-nights-like-that-when-you-think-over-every/) [Charlaine Harris](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/charlaine-harris/) > [“Our failure to understand another being's inner reality doesn't make that reality any less real, or any less valuable to that being. (p.255)”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/kathryn-schulz/our-failure-to-understand-another-being-s-inner-reality-doesn-t-make/) [Kathryn Schulz](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/kathryn-schulz/) > [I hope that the Palestinians don't make the mistake of unleashing a new intifada. They've tried it twice before, and the consequences were bad…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/tom-segev/i-hope-that-the-palestinians-don-t-make-the-mistake-of-unleashing-a/) [Tom Segev](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/tom-segev/) > [Don't take too much comfort in the fact that you're successful today because tomorrow could bring failure. There's no surety in life.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/michael-savage/don-t-take-too-much-comfort-in-the-fact-that-you-re-successful-today/) [Michael Savage](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/michael-savage/) > [“It took me years to learn to sit at my desk for more than two minutes at a time, to put up with the…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/erica-jong/it-took-me-years-to-learn-to-sit-at-my-desk-for-more-than-two-minutes/) [Erica Jong](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/erica-jong/) > [failure in the theater is more public, more brilliant, more unreal than in any other field.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/lillian-hellman/failure-in-the-theater-is-more-public-more-brilliant-more-unreal-than/) [Lillian Hellman](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/lillian-hellman/) > [As we are coming to the end of the year, I want you to forget about the past, the failure, the negative thoughts or…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anonymous/as-we-are-coming-to-the-end-of-the-year-i-want-you-to-forget-about/) [Anonymous](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anonymous/) [Browse all 27,498 Failure quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/failure/) ```json { "@context": "https://schema.org", "@graph": [ { "@type": "Quotation", "text": "“I am shocked at the openness with which people reveal their secrets and personal failures. 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