--- title: "Meaning & Key Takeaway of: It's nice to have an elephant in the…" description: "\"It's nice to have an elephant in the room. There's nothing more helpful than something everybody's thinking about.\" — Seth Meyers" image: "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/03a/seth-meyers-3420_elephant_it-s-nice-to-have-an-elephant-in-the-roo_1353768.jpg" --- # It's nice to have an elephant in the room. There's nothing… ![“It's nice to have an elephant in the room. There's nothing more helpful than something everybody's thinking about.” quote by Seth Meyers](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/03a/seth-meyers-3420_elephant_it-s-nice-to-have-an-elephant-in-the-roo_1353768.jpg) [Download](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/03a/seth-meyers-3420_elephant_it-s-nice-to-have-an-elephant-in-the-roo_1353768.jpg) [Open image](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/03a/seth-meyers-3420_elephant_it-s-nice-to-have-an-elephant-in-the-roo_1353768.jpg) > “It's nice to have an elephant in the room. There's nothing more helpful than something everybody's thinking about.” [Seth Meyers](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/seth-meyers/) ## About This Quote This interpretation was drafted with AI assistance. It is one reading of the quote, not the author's own explanation. Calling out an obvious issue (“elephant in the room”) makes it visible and invites discussion. **In simple terms:** Naming a problem invites dialogue. Key Takeaway Address hidden issues directly. Themes communication transparency conflict resolution humor Mood thoughtful lighthearted Type reflective humorous When to use this quote - team meetings - family gatherings - political debates - classroom discussions Key Concepts social dynamics psychology group behavior Questions to Reflect On - What topics are you avoiding? - How can you bring them up gently? A Different Perspective May cause discomfort or defensiveness; not all topics can be openly discussed. ★ ★ ★ ★ ★ No ratings yet [Animal](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/animal/) [Elephant](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/elephant/) [Elephant in the room](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/elephant-in-the-room/) [Nothing](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/nothing/) [Thinking](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/thinking/) ## Related quotes > [“Money, you could say, was the elephant in The Room .”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/greg-sestero/money-you-could-say-was-the-elephant-in-the-room/) [Greg Sestero](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/greg-sestero/) > [“As the elephant in the room went unacknowledged, it started acting up, trampling over my relationships.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/sheryl-sandberg/as-the-elephant-in-the-room-went-unacknowledged-it-started-acting-up/) [Sheryl Sandberg](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/sheryl-sandberg/) > [“We are so used to the elephant in the room that sometimes we forget it is there”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/aminatta-forna/we-are-so-used-to-the-elephant-in-the-room-that-sometimes-we-forget/) [Aminatta Forna](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/aminatta-forna/) > [“It was like there was an elephant in the room. An elephant that expected us to have sex.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/morgan-matson/it-was-like-there-was-an-elephant-in-the-room-an-elephant-that/) [Morgan Matson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/morgan-matson/) > [“Never ignore the elephant in the room. That’s rude; play with it and introduce it.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/donna-lynn-hope/never-ignore-the-elephant-in-the-room-that-s-rude-play-with-it-and/) [Donna Lynn Hope](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/donna-lynn-hope/) > [When there’s an elephant in the room introduce him.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/randy-pausch/when-there-s-an-elephant-in-the-room-introduce-him/) [Randy Pausch](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/randy-pausch/) > [“The first thing the attendees saw when they walked in was a poster with the question “What are our mokitas?”—a Papua New Guinea word…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/susan-scott/the-first-thing-the-attendees-saw-when-they-walked-in-was-a-poster/) [Susan Scott](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/susan-scott/) > [“And that is how the problems were always fixed. Fix them on the surface but don't go to the root, always ignoring the elephant…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/cecelia-ahern/and-that-is-how-the-problems-were-always-fixed-fix-them-on-the/) [Cecelia Ahern](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/cecelia-ahern/) > [“The elephant in the room. It can't be talked about. It can't be ignored.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/michael-robotham/the-elephant-in-the-room-it-can-t-be-talked-about-it-can-t-be-ignored/) [Michael Robotham](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/michael-robotham/) > [“Patrick leaned forward in his chair, a serious expression washing over his face. “So are we not going to talk about the white elephant…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/katie-ashley/patrick-leaned-forward-in-his-chair-a-serious-expression-washing-over/) [Katie Ashley](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/katie-ashley/) > [When there is an invisible elephant in the room, one is from time to time bound to trip over a trunk.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/karen-joy-fowler/when-there-is-an-invisible-elephant-in-the-room-one-is-from-time-to/) [Karen Joy Fowler](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/karen-joy-fowler/) > [“With Sissi, he was not the elephant in the room, he was the elephant and the room. As”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/bassem-youssef/with-sissi-he-was-not-the-elephant-in-the-room-he-was-the-elephant/) [Bassem Youssef](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/bassem-youssef/) > [Mediocrity is the elephant in the room.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/kevin-spacey/mediocrity-is-the-elephant-in-the-room/) [Kevin Spacey](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/kevin-spacey/) > [when there's an elephant in the room, you can't pretend it isn't there and just discuss the ants.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ellen-wittlinger/when-there-s-an-elephant-in-the-room-you-can-t-pretend-it-isn-t-there/) [Ellen Wittlinger](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ellen-wittlinger/) > [I don't like taboo subjects and I don't like elephants in the room. If there's an elephant in the room, I really want to…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/frank-skinner/i-don-t-like-taboo-subjects-and-i-don-t-like-elephants-in-the-room-if/) [Frank Skinner](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/frank-skinner/) ## More by Seth Meyers > [Pope Benedict delivered an anti-euthanasia message this week, saying that people must accept death at 'the hour chosen by God.' And then he rode…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/seth-meyers/pope-benedict-delivered-an-anti-euthanasia-message-this-week-saying/) [Seth Meyers](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/seth-meyers/) > [Swedish automaker Saab admitted this week that for certain tests they used human cadavers as crash-test dummies. Worse, they weren't cadavers before the test.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/seth-meyers/swedish-automaker-saab-admitted-this-week-that-for-certain-tests-they/) [Seth Meyers](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/seth-meyers/) > [Starting Monday, 7-11 will begin testing a new plastic wrap designed to keep bananas yellow and firm for five days. Though if your banana…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/seth-meyers/starting-monday-7-11-will-begin-testing-a-new-plastic-wrap-designed/) [Seth Meyers](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/seth-meyers/) > [Astronauts living on the International Space Station will soon be getting their drinking water from a new system that recycles their urine into drinkable…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/seth-meyers/astronauts-living-on-the-international-space-station-will-soon-be/) [Seth Meyers](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/seth-meyers/) > [The Earth will be around for a long time before you have a funnier president than Obama. 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Guards probably should've become suspicious…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/seth-meyers/on-wednesday-a-55-year-old-inmate-escaped-from-rikers-island-after-he/) [Seth Meyers](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/seth-meyers/) [Explore all 131 Seth Meyers quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/seth-meyers/) ## More Animal quotes > [I was 3-years-old - to this day it is a vivid memory. My family and I were on a boat, catching fish. 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He becomes uniquely human when he reaches out for the superfluous and extravagant.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/eric-hoffer/when-grubbing-for-necessities-man-is-still-an-animal-he-becomes/) [Eric Hoffer](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/eric-hoffer/) > [I'm 38 and I'm single, and I'm having my most intense and gratifying relationship with a dog. But we all learn about love in…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/caroline-knapp/i-m-38-and-i-m-single-and-i-m-having-my-most-intense-and-gratifying/) [Caroline Knapp](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/caroline-knapp/) > [Practically all animals which move fast in a homogeneous medium have found means of giving their body a streamlined shape, thereby reducing friction to…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/konrad-lorenz/practically-all-animals-which-move-fast-in-a-homogeneous-medium-have/) [Konrad Lorenz](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/konrad-lorenz/) > [A horse, a horse, my kingdom for a horse!](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/william-shakespeare/a-horse-a-horse-my-kingdom-for-a-horse/) [William Shakespeare](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/william-shakespeare/) > [“it is a federal system of sadistic torture, vivisection, and animal genocide, which has been carried on for decades under the fraudulent guise of…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/michael-tobias/it-is-a-federal-system-of-sadistic-torture-vivisection-and-animal/) [Michael Tobias](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/michael-tobias/) > [“What does it mean to be a self-conscious animal? The idea is ludicrous, if it is not monstrous. 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