--- title: "Meaning & Key Takeaway of: Vivacity, leadership, must be had, and we…" description: "\"Vivacity, leadership, must be had, and we are not allowed to be nice in choosing. We must fetch the pump with dirty water, if clean cannot be had.\" — R..." image: "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/e97/ralph-waldo-emerson-6_being-nice_vivacity-leadership-must-be-had-and-we-a_1909351.png" --- # Vivacity, leadership, must be had, and we are not allowed… ![“Vivacity, leadership, must be had, and we are not allowed to be nice in choosing. We must fetch the pump with dirty water, if clean cannot be had.” quote by Ralph Waldo Emerson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/e97/ralph-waldo-emerson-6_being-nice_vivacity-leadership-must-be-had-and-we-a_1909351.png) [Download](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/e97/ralph-waldo-emerson-6_being-nice_vivacity-leadership-must-be-had-and-we-a_1909351.png) [Open image](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/e97/ralph-waldo-emerson-6_being-nice_vivacity-leadership-must-be-had-and-we-a_1909351.png) > “Vivacity, leadership, must be had, and we are not allowed to be nice in choosing. We must fetch the pump with dirty water, if clean cannot be had.” [Ralph Waldo Emerson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ralph-waldo-emerson/) ## About This Quote This interpretation was drafted with AI assistance. It is one reading of the quote, not the author's own explanation. True leadership requires decisive action, even when conditions are imperfect, rather than waiting for ideal circumstances. **In simple terms:** Leadership demands action despite imperfect conditions. Key Takeaway Act decisively, don't wait for perfect conditions. Themes leadership action decision-making Mood determined urgent Type motivational philosophical When to use this quote - business negotiations - emergency response - team management - political campaigns Key Concepts self-reliance pragmatism Questions to Reflect On - What imperfect you accept to act now? - How do you balance urgency with preparation? A Different Perspective Ideal conditions rarely exist; acting hastily can cause errors. ★ ★ ★ ★ ★ No ratings yet [Being nice](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/being-nice/) [Dirty water](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/dirty-water/) [Leadership](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/leadership/) [Vivacity](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/vivacity/) [Water](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/water/) ## Related quotes > [If you create a new party... to try to deny the communist party leadership, then not be allowed to exist.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/li-peng/if-you-create-a-new-party-to-try-to-deny-the-communist-party/) [Li Peng](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/li-peng/) > [Think me not unkind and rude That I walk alone in grove and glen; I go to the god of the wood To fetch…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ralph-waldo-emerson/think-me-not-unkind-and-rude-that-i-walk-alone-in-grove-and-glen-i-go/) [Ralph Waldo Emerson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ralph-waldo-emerson/) > [“We fetch fire and water, run about all day among the shops and markets, and get our clothes and shoes made and mended, and…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ralph-waldo-emerson/we-fetch-fire-and-water-run-about-all-day-among-the-shops-and-markets/) [Ralph Waldo Emerson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ralph-waldo-emerson/) > [I was just was tired of bending down, putting my hands in dirty water, ringing out a mop. So, I said, 'There's gotta be…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/joy-mangano/i-was-just-was-tired-of-bending-down-putting-my-hands-in-dirty-water/) [Joy Mangano](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/joy-mangano/) > [“We go back to our silent fishing, but I'm smiling the whole time. The tension has dimmed. Well, until Blake shoves Graham into the…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/lindy-zart/we-go-back-to-our-silent-fishing-but-i-m-smiling-the-whole-time-the/) [Lindy Zart](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/lindy-zart/) > [“As you will soon see, dear Mother, being charitable has not always been so pleasant for me, and to prove it I am going…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/john-beevers/as-you-will-soon-see-dear-mother-being-charitable-has-not-always-been/) [John Beevers](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/john-beevers/) > [“We are slaves, deprived of every right, exposed to every insult, condemned to certain death, but we still possess one power, and we must…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/primo-levi/we-are-slaves-deprived-of-every-right-exposed-to-every-insult/) [Primo Levi](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/primo-levi/) > [You must empty out the dirty water before you fill the pitcher with clean.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/idries-shah/you-must-empty-out-the-dirty-water-before-you-fill-the-pitcher-with/) [Idries Shah](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/idries-shah/) > [Our world is one of terrible contradictions. Plenty of food, but one billion people go hungry. Lavish lifestyles for a few, but poverty for…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ban-ki-moon/our-world-is-one-of-terrible-contradictions-plenty-of-food-but-one/) [Ban Ki-moon](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ban-ki-moon/) > [Where does rain come from? It comes from all the dirty water that evaporates from the earth, like urine and the water you throw…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ajahn-chah/where-does-rain-come-from-it-comes-from-all-the-dirty-water-that/) [Ajahn Chah](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ajahn-chah/) > [We have to learn how to come out of unclean situations cleaner than we were, and even how to wash ourselves with dirty water…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/friedrich-nietzsche/we-have-to-learn-how-to-come-out-of-unclean-situations-cleaner-than/) [Friedrich Nietzsche](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/friedrich-nietzsche/) > [To pursue truth with such astonishing lack of consideration for other people's feelings, to rend the think veils of civilisation so wantonly, so brutally,…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/virginia-woolf/to-pursue-truth-with-such-astonishing-lack-of-consideration-for-other/) [Virginia Woolf](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/virginia-woolf/) > [“He wanted to be better than what he was made of. In Mumbai's dirty water, he wanted to be ice...He wanted to be recognized…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/katherine-boo/he-wanted-to-be-better-than-what-he-was-made-of-in-mumbai-s-dirty/) [Katherine Boo](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/katherine-boo/) > [“I'm tired of drinking dirty water.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anthony-t-hincks/i-m-tired-of-drinking-dirty-water/) [Anthony T. Hincks](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anthony-t-hincks/) > [“He looks about the room at the few sticks of furniture, at the dirty bed sheets and the wash basin with the dirty water…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/henry-miller/he-looks-about-the-room-at-the-few-sticks-of-furniture-at-the-dirty/) [Henry Miller](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/henry-miller/) ## More by Ralph Waldo Emerson > [The history of mankind interests us only as it exhibits a steady gain of truth and right, in the incessant conflict which it records…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ralph-waldo-emerson/the-history-of-mankind-interests-us-only-as-it-exhibits-a-steady-gain/) [Ralph Waldo Emerson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ralph-waldo-emerson/) > [If we will not interfere with our thought, but will act entirely, or see how the thing stands in God, we know the particular…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ralph-waldo-emerson/if-we-will-not-interfere-with-our-thought-but-will-act-entirely-or/) [Ralph Waldo Emerson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ralph-waldo-emerson/) > [If there is any period one would desire to be born in, is it not the age of Revolution; when the old and the…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ralph-waldo-emerson/if-there-is-any-period-one-would-desire-to-be-born-in-is-it-not-the/) [Ralph Waldo Emerson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ralph-waldo-emerson/) > [A man cannot speak but he judges himself. With his will or against his will he draws his portrait to the eye of his…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ralph-waldo-emerson/a-man-cannot-speak-but-he-judges-himself-with-his-will-or-against-his/) [Ralph Waldo Emerson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ralph-waldo-emerson/) > [Consideration is the soil in which wisdom may be expected to grow, and strength be given to every up-springing plant of duty.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ralph-waldo-emerson/consideration-is-the-soil-in-which-wisdom-may-be-expected-to-grow-and/) [Ralph Waldo Emerson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ralph-waldo-emerson/) > [“There is then creative reading as well as creative writing. When the mind is braced by labor and invention, the page of whatever book…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ralph-waldo-emerson/there-is-then-creative-reading-as-well-as-creative-writing-when-the/) [Ralph Waldo Emerson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ralph-waldo-emerson/) > [The order of things consents to virtue.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ralph-waldo-emerson/the-order-of-things-consents-to-virtue/) [Ralph Waldo Emerson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ralph-waldo-emerson/) > [Life only avails, not the having lived.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ralph-waldo-emerson/life-only-avails-not-the-having-lived/) [Ralph Waldo Emerson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ralph-waldo-emerson/) > [Another success is the post-office, with its educating energy augmented by cheapness and guarded by a certain religious sentimentin mankind; so that the power…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ralph-waldo-emerson/another-success-is-the-post-office-with-its-educating-energy/) [Ralph Waldo Emerson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ralph-waldo-emerson/) > [A child reminds us that playtime is an essential part of our daily routine.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ralph-waldo-emerson/a-child-reminds-us-that-playtime-is-an-essential-part-of-our-daily/) [Ralph Waldo Emerson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ralph-waldo-emerson/) > [No man can be criticised but by a greater than he. Do not, then, read the reviews.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ralph-waldo-emerson/no-man-can-be-criticised-but-by-a-greater-than-he-do-not-then-read/) [Ralph Waldo Emerson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ralph-waldo-emerson/) > [Coal lay in ledges under the ground since the Flood, until a laborer with pick and windlass brings it to the surface. We may…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ralph-waldo-emerson/coal-lay-in-ledges-under-the-ground-since-the-flood-until-a-laborer/) [Ralph Waldo Emerson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ralph-waldo-emerson/) > [I am; therefore, I had nothing better to do than to think.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ralph-waldo-emerson/i-am-therefore-i-had-nothing-better-to-do-than-to-think/) [Ralph Waldo Emerson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ralph-waldo-emerson/) > [In a library we are surrounded by many hundreds of dear friends, but they are imprisoned by an enchanter in these paper and leathern…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ralph-waldo-emerson/in-a-library-we-are-surrounded-by-many-hundreds-of-dear-friends-but/) [Ralph Waldo Emerson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ralph-waldo-emerson/) > [The compensations of calamity are made apparent to the understanding also, after long intervals of time. A fever, a mutilation, a cruel disappointment, a…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ralph-waldo-emerson/the-compensations-of-calamity-are-made-apparent-to-the-understanding/) [Ralph Waldo Emerson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ralph-waldo-emerson/) [Explore all 4,802 Ralph Waldo Emerson quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ralph-waldo-emerson/) ## More Being nice quotes > [Business school graduates from the best schools earn large salaries and frequently rise to positions of great power. It would be nice if they…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jeffrey-pfeffer/business-school-graduates-from-the-best-schools-earn-large-salaries/) [Jeffrey Pfeffer](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jeffrey-pfeffer/) > [Good people are found not changed. Recently I read a headline that said, 'We don't teach people to be nice. We simply hire nice…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jim-rohn/good-people-are-found-not-changed-recently-i-read-a-headline-that/) [Jim Rohn](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jim-rohn/) > [What is needed, however, isn't just that people working together be nice to each other. It is discipline. Discipline is hard--harder than trustworthiness and…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/atul-gawande/what-is-needed-however-isn-t-just-that-people-working-together-be/) [Atul Gawande](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/atul-gawande/) > [I think there's a lot of scope in broadening the way videogames approach depictions of masculinity, which is still extremely narrow in scope. It…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/neil-druckmann/i-think-there-s-a-lot-of-scope-in-broadening-the-way-videogames/) Neil Druckmann > [He put his arms around her. “Well, in my defense, then, whatever I did seemed to work, didn't it?” She sighed. “I suppose.” “You…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/nicholas-sparks/he-put-his-arms-around-her-well-in-my-defense-then-whatever-i-did/) [Nicholas Sparks](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/nicholas-sparks/) > [Somewhere where people aren't so mad would be nice, but I don't know if there is anywhere like that.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/elliott-smith/somewhere-where-people-aren-t-so-mad-would-be-nice-but-i-don-t-know/) [Elliott Smith](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/elliott-smith/) > [Most of the people I know who were raised to be accommodating or were raised to just be nice and put everybody's needs ahead…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/stephen-chbosky/most-of-the-people-i-know-who-were-raised-to-be-accommodating-or-were/) [Stephen Chbosky](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/stephen-chbosky/) > [“When we are nice to others, we generally lose all claim to their respect.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/marcel-proust/when-we-are-nice-to-others-we-generally-lose-all-claim-to-their/) [Marcel Proust](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/marcel-proust/) > [Being nice from now on, leaving the old BS where it's at.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anonymous/being-nice-from-now-on-leaving-the-old-bs-where-it-s-at/) [Anonymous](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anonymous/) > [I can see that I imagine all kinds of rejection that never happens. I can see that I beg and plead for love that…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/elizabeth-wurtzel/i-can-see-that-i-imagine-all-kinds-of-rejection-that-never-happens-i/) [Elizabeth Wurtzel](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/elizabeth-wurtzel/) > [I think music is better listened to with other people. Music is better shared. It depends what situation you're in - if it's a…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/tom-odell/i-think-music-is-better-listened-to-with-other-people-music-is-better/) [Tom Odell](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/tom-odell/) > [Everybody wants to be good, but not many are prepared to make the sacrifices it takes to be great. To many people, being nice…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/paul-arden/everybody-wants-to-be-good-but-not-many-are-prepared-to-make-the-2/) [Paul Arden](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/paul-arden/) > [Give me a mirror.Or holy water. I'll drink it,even!" I gasped as someone threw water on the side of my face. "A little warning…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/kiersten-white/give-me-a-mirror-or-holy-water-i-ll-drink-it-even-i-gasped-as-someone/) [Kiersten White](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/kiersten-white/) > [What inspired me as a child is the same thing that inspires me now: being nice. I always try to one up everybody with…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/joell-ortiz/what-inspired-me-as-a-child-is-the-same-thing-that-inspires-me-now/) [Joell Ortiz](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/joell-ortiz/) > [My ex-wife was trying to be nice once, so she took me to a concert in Los Angeles. I went with her to Symphony…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/b-b-king/my-ex-wife-was-trying-to-be-nice-once-so-she-took-me-to-a-concert-in/) [B. B. King](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/b-b-king/) [Browse all 659 Being nice quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/being-nice/) ```json { "@context": "https://schema.org", "@graph": [ { "@type": "Quotation", "text": "Vivacity, leadership, must be had, and we are not allowed to be nice in choosing. We must fetch the pump with dirty water, if clean cannot be had.", "creator": { "@type": "Person", "name": "Ralph Waldo Emerson" }, "isPartOf": { "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/#website" }, "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ralph-waldo-emerson/vivacity-leadership-must-be-had-and-we-are-not-allowed-to-be-nice-in/", "about": { "@type": "Thing", "name": "Being nice" }, "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ralph-waldo-emerson/vivacity-leadership-must-be-had-and-we-are-not-allowed-to-be-nice-in/#quotation", "image": { "@type": "ImageObject", "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/e97/ralph-waldo-emerson-6_being-nice_vivacity-leadership-must-be-had-and-we-a_1909351.png", "contentUrl": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/e97/ralph-waldo-emerson-6_being-nice_vivacity-leadership-must-be-had-and-we-a_1909351.png", "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/e97/ralph-waldo-emerson-6_being-nice_vivacity-leadership-must-be-had-and-we-a_1909351.png", "width": 1080, "height": 1080, "caption": "“Vivacity, leadership, must be had, and we are not allowed to be nice in choosing. We must fetch the pump…” — Ralph Waldo Emerson", "creditText": "SMS4Smile Quotes", "creator": { "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/#organization" } } }, { "@type": "BreadcrumbList", "itemListElement": [ { "@type": "ListItem", "position": 1, "name": "Home", "item": "https://sms4smile.com/" }, { "@type": "ListItem", "position": 2, "name": "Quotes", "item": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/" }, { "@type": "ListItem", "position": 3, "name": "Ralph Waldo Emerson", "item": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ralph-waldo-emerson/" }, { "@type": "ListItem", "position": 4, "name": "Vivacity, leadership, must be had, and...", "item": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ralph-waldo-emerson/vivacity-leadership-must-be-had-and-we-are-not-allowed-to-be-nice-in/" } ], "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ralph-waldo-emerson/vivacity-leadership-must-be-had-and-we-are-not-allowed-to-be-nice-in/#breadcrumb" }, { "@type": "WebSite", "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/#website", "name": "SMS4Smile Quotes", "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/", "publisher": { "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/#organization" } }, { "@type": "Organization", "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/#organization", "name": "SMS4Smile Quotes", "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/", "logo": { "@type": "ImageObject", "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/wp-content/themes/sq/assets/icons/icon-512.png", "width": 512, "height": 512 } } ] } ```