Men of genius are often dull and inert in society; as the blazing meteor, when it descends to earth, is only a stone.

The conditions that produce someone’s best work are usually not the conditions of a dinner party. Deep ability often comes with a slow, inward way of operating that looks like dullness in a room built for quick exchange. Nothing is wrong with the person or the room; they simply run at different speeds. Social brilliance is its own separate talent, and the two rarely arrive together.

Do not judge people by how they perform in company, yourself included. If you are quiet at gatherings and effective alone, that is a fact about the setting rather than a deficiency. Meet people in the conditions where they are actually themselves.