MOTIVATING TIPS

Gerry Spence

Born 1929 · American trial lawyer and legal author

1 verified quote1 topicAll with editorial commentary

[ Life ]

Wyoming's most celebrated trial lawyer came of age in the 1950s courtrooms of Laramie, a far cry from the Manhattan law firms that dominated American legal culture. Born in 1929, Spence built his reputation not on corporate mergers but on defending the underdog—death row inmates, Native American tribes, Randy Weaver at Ruby Ridge. His folksy manner and genuine distrust of power made him radioactive to establishment lawyers and irresistible to juries. By the 1980s, he'd become the lawyer other lawyers feared.

[ Words & Works ]

Spence wrote *How to Argue and Win Every Time* (1995) and *From Freedom to Slavery* (1993), books that treated courtroom persuasion as democratic theater rather than legal chess. His speeches at law schools deliberately attacked the profession's elitism. What endures is his radical belief that ordinary people, speaking plainly, could outmatch any opposing counsel with superior credentials. He proved it repeatedly—and taught millions that conviction, not credentials, wins arguments.

Frequently asked

What are the best Gerry Spence quotes?

Gerry Spence is best known for quotes on On Focus & Distraction. Among the most cited: "I would rather have a mind..." from How to Argue and Win Every Time.

How many Gerry Spence quotes does MotivatingTips have?

MotivatingTips has 1 verified Gerry Spence quote, each with editorial commentary and source verification. Quotes are organized across On Focus & Distraction.

What book are Gerry Spence's quotes from?

Quotes on MotivatingTips are sourced from How to Argue and Win Every Time.

Are these Gerry Spence quotes verified?

Every Gerry Spence quote on MotivatingTips includes verified attribution with source, book, chapter, or speech reference where available.

Best Gerry Spence Quotes

Hand-picked, verified, and explained.

I would rather have a mind opened by wonder than one closed by belief.

VerifiedHow to Argue and Win Every Time, Chapter 5, St. Martin's Press, 1995
Why This Matters

Spence isn't simply championing curiosity over dogma—he's describing two opposite *postures* toward knowledge itself. A mind opened by wonder remains actively engaged, perpetually asking "what else?", while a closed mind mistakes certainty for completion and stops listening. The real sting appears when we notice how belief can masquerade as wisdom: a person may feel intellectually proud of their convictions while actually having surrendered the harder work of ongoing inquiry. Watch how this plays out in any serious argument—the person still asking questions often learns something, while the person certain of their rightness goes home unchanged.

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Works cited

  • How to Argue and Win Every Time1 quote
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APA Style

Gerry Spence Quotes. (n.d.). MotivatingTips. Retrieved May 13, 2026, from https://www.motivatingtips.com/authors/gerry-spence

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Gerry Spence Quotes. MotivatingTips, DSS Media, 2026. https://www.motivatingtips.com/authors/gerry-spence, accessed May 13, 2026.

MLA Style

"Gerry Spence Quotes." MotivatingTips. DSS Media, 2026. 13 May 2026. https://www.motivatingtips.com/authors/gerry-spence

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