Emmanuel Macron admitted to making “big mistakes” due to “excessive confidence”, especially in his speeches, in an interview Wednesday night with media outlet Brut India. “Every time I have been too confident, I have made mistakes, big mistakes,” he confided on the sidelines of an official visit to New Delhi.
Pressed for examples, he mentioned speeches: “when one thinks they can say anything, sometimes it is misunderstood and then one is so upset.” “We have an excess of confidence when we are less sensitive to how it will be perceived by others,” he added.
The younger generation is “under so much pressure”
Asked what he would aspire to if he were 25, the head of state responded that he would try to “develop skills in art and creation,” to “do something unique,” to “express (his) identity in dialogue with others.” “For years, I have wanted to learn data science. I have not yet started,” he added. This field of study relies on scientific methods, algorithms to analyze large amounts of data.
Emmanuel Macron also regretted the “lack of innocence” of the younger generation. “They are under so much pressure because of climate change, the collapse of biodiversity, wars, lack of cooperation, technological transformations,” he said.
Asked to project into a more intimate register – “Your love story in 60 seconds?” – he replied: “love is something unexpected, not written and must be experienced with intensity.” “It is the most important thing you experience in your life and it is impossible to compare to anything else because it is yours. And it cannot be inspired by any other,” he concluded.
