--- title: "Meaning & Key Takeaway of: I've always thought I had pretty good…" description: "\"I've always thought I had pretty good instincts for people. There is a short list of people I've worked with over my career with whom I've not been abl..." image: "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/7c6/randall-robinson-16024_able_i-ve-always-thought-i-had-pretty-good-in_1086316.png" --- # I've always thought I had pretty good instincts for… ![“I've always thought I had pretty good instincts for people. There is a short list of people I've worked with over my career with whom I've not been able to distinguish easily between the public persona and the real private person.” quote by Randall Robinson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/7c6/randall-robinson-16024_able_i-ve-always-thought-i-had-pretty-good-in_1086316.png) [Download](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/7c6/randall-robinson-16024_able_i-ve-always-thought-i-had-pretty-good-in_1086316.png) [Open image](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/7c6/randall-robinson-16024_able_i-ve-always-thought-i-had-pretty-good-in_1086316.png) > “I've always thought I had pretty good instincts for people. There is a short list of people I've worked with over my career with whom I've not been able to distinguish easily between the public persona and the real private person.” [Randall Robinson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/randall-robinson/) ## About This Quote This interpretation was drafted with AI assistance. It is one reading of the quote, not the author's own explanation. The speaker reflects on trusting intuition about people's true selves, noting difficulty distinguishing public image from private identity. **In simple terms:** Trusting gut feelings about others can be unreliable. Key Takeaway Question your assumptions about others. Themes intuition perception authenticity Mood curious reflective Type advice observational When to use this quote - team building - leadership - networking - conflict resolution Key Concepts psychology social cognition Questions to Reflect On - How do you verify someone's true character? - What cues help you see beyond a persona? A Different Perspective Instincts can be biased by limited interaction. ★ ★ ★ ★ ★ No ratings yet [Able](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/able/) [Careers](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/careers/) [Good Instincts](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/good-instincts-915730/) [Instinct](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/instinct/) [Instincts](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/instincts/) [Instincts People](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/instincts-people-435967/) [Lists](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/lists/) [People](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/people/) [Persona](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/persona/) [Persons](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/persons/) [Pretty good](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/pretty-good/) [Private person](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/private-person/) [Public Persona](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/public-persona-526355/) [Real](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/real/) ## Related quotes > [My instincts are always against people who want to fasten some sort of hegemony onto things](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/clifford-geertz/my-instincts-are-always-against-people-who-want-to-fasten-some-sort/) [Clifford Geertz](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/clifford-geertz/) > [She has good instincts, but wrong judgments. She'll rue the day.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/david-o-selznick/she-has-good-instincts-but-wrong-judgments-she-ll-rue-the-day/) [David O. Selznick](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/david-o-selznick/) > [Good instincts usually tell you what to do long before your head has figured it out.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anonymous/good-instincts-usually-tell-you-what-to-do-long-before-your-head-has/) [Anonymous](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anonymous/) > [I know I have pretty good instincts.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ashley-tisdale/i-know-i-have-pretty-good-instincts/) [Ashley Tisdale](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ashley-tisdale/) > [I have really good instincts about friends.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/nicole-richie/i-have-really-good-instincts-about-friends/) [Nicole Richie](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/nicole-richie/) > [Good instincts are vital to longevity in the NFL.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/doug-baldwin/good-instincts-are-vital-to-longevity-in-the-nfl/) [Doug Baldwin](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/doug-baldwin/) > [Different presidents are different as far as their public persona vs. their persona meeting with advisers. For example, George Bush was pretty much the…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/kris-kobach/different-presidents-are-different-as-far-as-their-public-persona-vs/) [Kris Kobach](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/kris-kobach/) > [There's the private persona and the public persona and the two shall never meet](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/liev-schreiber/there-s-the-private-persona-and-the-public-persona-and-the-two-shall/) [Liev Schreiber](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/liev-schreiber/) > [I think everybody has a public persona. We all present ourselves.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/bob-odenkirk/i-think-everybody-has-a-public-persona-we-all-present-ourselves/) [Bob Odenkirk](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/bob-odenkirk/) > [I never felt happy with the idea that part of what I do is to be an object to be looked at. I thought…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/juliana-hatfield/i-never-felt-happy-with-the-idea-that-part-of-what-i-do-is-to-be-an/) [Juliana Hatfield](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/juliana-hatfield/) > [I made the decision when I came to Seagram that it had to be OK that my public persona would be bad. It's the…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/edgar-bronfman-jr/i-made-the-decision-when-i-came-to-seagram-that-it-had-to-be-ok-that/) [Edgar Bronfman, Jr](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/edgar-bronfman-jr/) > [a public persona that might be different from what we truly feel inside... everyone wonders if they are good enough, smart enough, pretty enough,…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jodi-picoult/a-public-persona-that-might-be-different-from-what-we-truly-feel/) [Jodi Picoult](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jodi-picoult/) > [Jeremy Clarkson is rather charming, but I can't stomach his public persona. I don't like his casual racism and casual misogyny.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jo-brand/jeremy-clarkson-is-rather-charming-but-i-can-t-stomach-his-public/) [Jo Brand](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jo-brand/) > [ I think it's basically the same game, although with a public figure like \[Donald\] Trump I think you are bound to consider the public… ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/george-saunders/i-think-it-s-basically-the-same-game-although-with-a-public-figure/) [George Saunders](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/george-saunders/) > [But when you become a slave to a public persona and don’t feel comfortable without it, it becomes a shield and it shouldn’t come…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/gugu-mbatha-raw/but-when-you-become-a-slave-to-a-public-persona-and-don-t-feel/) [Gugu Mbatha-Raw](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/gugu-mbatha-raw/) ## More by Randall Robinson > [I'm aware that because America is so powerful - with its tentacles reaching out to the world - one doesn't escape it by leaving.…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/randall-robinson/i-m-aware-that-because-america-is-so-powerful-with-its-tentacles/) [Randall Robinson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/randall-robinson/) > [Democracy requires that if you who don't like the outcome of elections you have to tolerate it and then pursue your interest the next…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/randall-robinson/democracy-requires-that-if-you-who-don-t-like-the-outcome-of/) [Randall Robinson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/randall-robinson/) > [Black people in America have to, for their own protection, develop a defense mechanism, and I just grew terribly tired of it. When you…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/randall-robinson/black-people-in-america-have-to-for-their-own-protection-develop-a/) [Randall Robinson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/randall-robinson/) > [Whites have more than eleven times the net worth or wealth of African Americans. They make greater salaries. Our unemployment rate is twice theirs.…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/randall-robinson/whites-have-more-than-eleven-times-the-net-worth-or-wealth-of-african/) [Randall Robinson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/randall-robinson/) > [“Unbalanced power poisons introspection. In its vacated space lay living society's imperative questions, unseen, unphrased, unasked, unanswered.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/randall-robinson/unbalanced-power-poisons-introspection-in-its-vacated-space-lay/) [Randall Robinson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/randall-robinson/) > [I think people involved with institutions find it harder to know the time to go than the time to come.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/randall-robinson/i-think-people-involved-with-institutions-find-it-harder-to-know-the/) [Randall Robinson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/randall-robinson/) > [I've never had any trouble opposing people I've been close to. I've never worried about offending or bothering people I feel strongly about.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/randall-robinson/i-ve-never-had-any-trouble-opposing-people-i-ve-been-close-to-i-ve/) [Randall Robinson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/randall-robinson/) > [Reagan was conservative, but he didn't approach global management with an unbending religious zeal.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/randall-robinson/reagan-was-conservative-but-he-didn-t-approach-global-management-with/) [Randall Robinson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/randall-robinson/) > [The whole future of America's black community is at risk. One out of every three young black men in Washington, D.C., is under one…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/randall-robinson/the-whole-future-of-america-s-black-community-is-at-risk-one-out-of/) [Randall Robinson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/randall-robinson/) > [I don't know of any situation where you're going to have an officeholder in a country of eight million people who's cut off at…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/randall-robinson/i-don-t-know-of-any-situation-where-you-re-going-to-have-an/) [Randall Robinson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/randall-robinson/) > [We all have to die, and I preferred to have just one death. It seems to me that to suffer insult without response is…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/randall-robinson/we-all-have-to-die-and-i-preferred-to-have-just-one-death-it-seems-to/) [Randall Robinson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/randall-robinson/) > [I got a chance to be in a society where the barriers between classes - social and economic - are not insuperable, where money…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/randall-robinson/i-got-a-chance-to-be-in-a-society-where-the-barriers-between-classes/) [Randall Robinson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/randall-robinson/) > [Americans don't bother to notice anybody else in the world.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/randall-robinson/americans-don-t-bother-to-notice-anybody-else-in-the-world/) [Randall Robinson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/randall-robinson/) > [The U.S. has the largest prison population in the world: two million people. One out of every eight prisoners in the world is an…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/randall-robinson/the-u-s-has-the-largest-prison-population-in-the-world-two-million/) [Randall Robinson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/randall-robinson/) > [ Condelleza Rice and Colin Powell are both dangerous people. What they did in Haiti \[2004 U.S.-backed coup that ousted democratically elected President Jean-Bertrand Aristide\]… ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/randall-robinson/condelleza-rice-and-colin-powell-are-both-dangerous-people-what-they/) [Randall Robinson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/randall-robinson/) [Explore all 41 Randall Robinson quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/randall-robinson/) ## More Able quotes > [I am certain that children always know more than they are able to tell, and that makes the big difference between them and adults,…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jacques-lusseyran/i-am-certain-that-children-always-know-more-than-they-are-able-to/) [Jacques Lusseyran](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jacques-lusseyran/) > [I have observed this in my experience of slavery, - that whenever my condition was improved, instead of its increasing my contentment, it only…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/frederick-douglass/i-have-observed-this-in-my-experience-of-slavery-that-whenever-my/) [Frederick Douglass](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/frederick-douglass/) > [There is something about the South that accepts the supernatural. 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I'm still…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/nas/i-think-i-ve-had-the-longest-career-of-strength-focus-and-still-being/) [Nas](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/nas/) > [I have that need in me, I want everyone to love me, but I'm embarrassed by that need, so I wanted to cover it…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anthony-jeselnik/i-have-that-need-in-me-i-want-everyone-to-love-me-but-i-m-embarrassed/) [Anthony Jeselnik](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anthony-jeselnik/) > [Thinking about the things that happened, I don't know any other ball player would could have done what he (Jackie Robinson) did. 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