Self-Deception Quotes

Must I denounce myself as a monster while you still refuse to see the one growing inside you?

Even the best of men can be deceived by their true nature.

You guys are just as f***ed-up as I am. You’re just better at lying to yourselves.[to Taissa and Shauna]

When humans lie to themselves, it’s called rationalizing. Because it’s rational to do whatever you can to make yourself feel better.

Whatever your Achilles heel is, that little spot… I know you think you’ve got time to work on it, and you do. You actually… You have a lot of time. But little by little, life’s just gonna chip away at it, you know? And, you know, you’ll think, “Okay, well, my s***’s not so bad.” You know, it’s a fleeting thought, a little temptation here and there. But once I get the job, then I’m gonna deal with my s***. But then you’ve gotta get the promotion. Right? And then you gotta get the house. And then every interaction becomes about me, me, me. “If I do this for Troy, then maybe Troy will help me later.” And you start thinking that way because it’s the only way to keep your head above water. And then when you finally catch a breath, and you go to stand on your own two feet, that Achilles heel is just gonna give out. And you’re gonna fall. And you’re gonna grasp at everyone around you. But it’s too late. You’re going down. And that fleeting thought is who you are now. And you’re never gonna change.[to Austin]

We’ve all been guilty of magical thinking at one time or other.

Sometimes there are lies that we tell to protect ourselves, and lies that we tell to protect those we love. And sometimes, they’re the same lie.[to Linda]

People lie to themselves about three things. They view themselves in implausibly positive ways, they think they have far more control over their lives than they actually do, and they believe the future will be better than the evidence of the present can possibly justify.

Of all the lies a man can tell, none more dangerous than the ones he tells himself.

It’s not following someone if you have to walk the same way home.

I had to get my mind back. And one good deed, it levels the scales again.

Have you not been to a therapist?[Mabel Mora]Yeah, once. Waste of time. He said, “You only hear things you want.” And then he told me a bunch of stuff I didn’t even wanna hear.[Charles-Haden Savage]