A favorite quote of mine

From Ender's Shadow

If he's this good at getting people to like him, why didn't he do it before?

Because these fools always look up for power. People above you, they never want to share power with you. Why you look to them? They give you nothing. People below you, you give them hope, you give them respect, they give you power, 'cause they don't think they have any, so they don't mind giving it up.

Better with context, of course; I'll happily nerd out with any other Ender's Shadow fans.