--- title: "Meaning & Key Takeaway of: Nothing satisfies the man who is not…" description: "\"“Nothing satisfies the man who is not satisfied with a little.”\" — Alain de Botton" image: "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/4ec/alain-de-botton-221_quote_nothing-satisfies-the-man-who-is-not-sat_1580716.jpg" --- # Nothing satisfies the man who is not satisfied with a… ![“Nothing satisfies the man who is not satisfied with a little.” quote by Alain de Botton](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/4ec/alain-de-botton-221_quote_nothing-satisfies-the-man-who-is-not-sat_1580716.jpg) [Download](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/4ec/alain-de-botton-221_quote_nothing-satisfies-the-man-who-is-not-sat_1580716.jpg) [Open image](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/4ec/alain-de-botton-221_quote_nothing-satisfies-the-man-who-is-not-sat_1580716.jpg) > ““Nothing satisfies the man who is not satisfied with a little.”” [Alain de Botton](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/alain-de-botton/) ## About This Quote This interpretation was drafted with AI assistance. It is one reading of the quote, not the author's own explanation. A man never fully satisfied with small pleasures will never feel content. **In simple terms:** Small pleasures aren't enough for true satisfaction. Key Takeaway Seek deeper fulfillment beyond fleeting joys. Themes contentment philosophy desire Mood thoughtful philosophical Type self‑help inspirational When to use this quote - mindfulness practice - value clarification - therapeutic counseling Key Concepts hedonism existentialism Questions to Reflect On - What deeper needs are you ignoring? - How can you cultivate lasting contentment? A Different Perspective Overemphasis on small pleasures can cause chronic dissatisfaction. ★ ★ ★ ★ ★ No ratings yet [Satisfies](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/satisfies/) ## Related quotes > [Knowing where she was in the world, even if he never touched her, gave him a deep satisfaction, and he half despised himself for…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ann-brashares/knowing-where-she-was-in-the-world-even-if-he-never-touched-her-gave/) [Ann Brashares](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ann-brashares/) > [“Christianity sedulously fosters, and in a sense permanently satisfies, man's craving for mental dissatisfaction by offering him the comfort of a crucified God.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/michael-polanyi/christianity-sedulously-fosters-and-in-a-sense-permanently-satisfies/) [Michael Polanyi](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/michael-polanyi/) > [To look around at what you have accomplished in a day gives a man a good feeling. Too many men work on parts of…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/richard-proenneke/to-look-around-at-what-you-have-accomplished-in-a-day-gives-a-man-a/) [Richard Proenneke](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/richard-proenneke/) > [A man is never more satisfied than when he is confirming a favorite theory.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/sarah-josepha-hale/a-man-is-never-more-satisfied-than-when-he-is-confirming-a-favorite/) [Sarah Josepha Hale](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/sarah-josepha-hale/) > [“I will not be a man satisfied until I am a man exhausted.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/corey-taylor/i-will-not-be-a-man-satisfied-until-i-am-a-man-exhausted/) [Corey Taylor](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/corey-taylor/) > [No amount of misfortune will satisfy the man who is not satisfied with reading a hundred epigrams.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/martial/no-amount-of-misfortune-will-satisfy-the-man-who-is-not-satisfied/) [Martial](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/martial/) > [No man can be satisfied with his attainment, although he may be satisfied with his circumstances.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/frank-arthur-swinnerton/no-man-can-be-satisfied-with-his-attainment-although-he-may-be/) [Frank Arthur Swinnerton](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/frank-arthur-swinnerton/) > [A stomach accustomed to hunger is satisfied with very little.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jos-saramago/a-stomach-accustomed-to-hunger-is-satisfied-with-very-little/) [Jose Saramago](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jos-saramago/) > [“I don't have money but I have something even money can't buy - Satisfaction. I'm satisfied with whatever little I have.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/saru-singhal/i-don-t-have-money-but-i-have-something-even-money-can-t-buy/) [Saru Singhal](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/saru-singhal/) > [Nature is satisfied with little; and if she is, I am also.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/baruch-spinoza/nature-is-satisfied-with-little-and-if-she-is-i-am-also/) [Baruch Spinoza](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/baruch-spinoza/) > [I'm satisfied with a little while you haters want it all. You waitin' for the spring and I'm gettin' it in the fall.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/drake/i-m-satisfied-with-a-little-while-you-haters-want-it-all-you-waitin/) [Drake](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/drake/) > [He who is not satisfied with a little, is satisfied with nothing .](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/epicurus/he-who-is-not-satisfied-with-a-little-is-satisfied-with-nothing/) [Epicurus](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/epicurus/) > [“The eye of a man is never satisfied with seeing.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/lailah-gifty-akita/the-eye-of-a-man-is-never-satisfied-with-seeing/) [Lailah Gifty Akita](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/lailah-gifty-akita/) > [“How can a man be satisfied to entertain an opinion merely, and enjoy it?”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/henry-david-thoreau/how-can-a-man-be-satisfied-to-entertain-an-opinion-merely-and-enjoy-it/) [Henry David Thoreau](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/henry-david-thoreau/) > [A man who is always satisfied with himself is seldom so with others, and others as little pleased with him](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/francois-de-la-rochefoucauld/a-man-who-is-always-satisfied-with-himself-is-seldom-so-with-others/) [François De La Rochefoucauld](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/francois-de-la-rochefoucauld/) ## More by Alain de Botton > [“To be mature is, we're told, to move beyond possessiveness. Jealousy is for babies. The mature person knows that no one owns anyone.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/alain-de-botton/to-be-mature-is-we-re-told-to-move-beyond-possessiveness-jealousy-is/) [Alain de Botton](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/alain-de-botton/) > [“He feared that by leaving her he would ruin her life - so he stayed, and did just that.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/alain-de-botton/he-feared-that-by-leaving-her-he-would-ruin-her-life-so-he-stayed-and/) [Alain de Botton](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/alain-de-botton/) > [You have to be quite heavily invested in someone to do them the honour of telling them you're annoyed with them.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/alain-de-botton/you-have-to-be-quite-heavily-invested-in-someone-to-do-them-the/) [Alain de Botton](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/alain-de-botton/) > [“The Anxiety of Sunday afternoon: your unlived lives and infinite possibility pressing upon the constraints of reality.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/alain-de-botton/the-anxiety-of-sunday-afternoon-your-unlived-lives-and-infinite/) [Alain de Botton](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/alain-de-botton/) > [Those who divorce aren't necessarily the most unhappy, just those neatly able to believe their misery is caused by one other person.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/alain-de-botton/those-who-divorce-aren-t-necessarily-the-most-unhappy-just-those/) [Alain de Botton](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/alain-de-botton/) > [“We could not be fulfilled if we weren't inauthentic some of the time—inauthentic, that is, in relation to such things as our passing desires…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/alain-de-botton/we-could-not-be-fulfilled-if-we-weren-t-inauthentic-some-of-the-time/) [Alain de Botton](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/alain-de-botton/) > [“Insofar as we appreciate order, it is when we perceive it as being accompanied by complexity, when we feel that a variety of elements…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/alain-de-botton/insofar-as-we-appreciate-order-it-is-when-we-perceive-it-as-being/) [Alain de Botton](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/alain-de-botton/) > [I like the values associated with a medical family - common sense, being practical but also thoughtful.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/alain-de-botton/i-like-the-values-associated-with-a-medical-family-common-sense-being/) [Alain de Botton](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/alain-de-botton/) > [“Anyone who urgently needs us deserves, in the true book of love, to be our friend.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/alain-de-botton/anyone-who-urgently-needs-us-deserves-in-the-true-book-of-love-to-be/) [Alain de Botton](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/alain-de-botton/) > [“We can then recognize that we invented religions to serve two central needs which continue to this day and which secular society has not…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/alain-de-botton/we-can-then-recognize-that-we-invented-religions-to-serve-two-central/) [Alain de Botton](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/alain-de-botton/) > [“Half the ingratitude and complacency in the world down to how slowly and imperceptibly most good and bad things unfold.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/alain-de-botton/half-the-ingratitude-and-complacency-in-the-world-down-to-how-slowly/) [Alain de Botton](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/alain-de-botton/) > [It is perhaps when our lives are at their most problematic that we are likely to be most receptive to beautiful things.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/alain-de-botton/it-is-perhaps-when-our-lives-are-at-their-most-problematic-that-we/) [Alain de Botton](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/alain-de-botton/) > [“Does what is praised becomes better? Does an emerald become worse if it isn't praised? And what a gold, ivory, a flower or a…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/alain-de-botton/does-what-is-praised-becomes-better-does-an-emerald-become-worse-if/) [Alain de Botton](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/alain-de-botton/) > [The bourgeois thinkers of the eighteenth century thus turned Aristotle's formula on its head: satisfactions which the Greek philosopher had identified with leisure were…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/alain-de-botton/the-bourgeois-thinkers-of-the-eighteenth-century-thus-turned/) [Alain de Botton](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/alain-de-botton/) > [Reputation matters so much only because people so seldom think for themselves.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/alain-de-botton/reputation-matters-so-much-only-because-people-so-seldom-think-for/) [Alain de Botton](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/alain-de-botton/) [Explore all 850 Alain de Botton quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/alain-de-botton/) ## More Satisfied quotes > [So the fool, as distinct from the scoundrel, is completely self- satisfied; in fact, he can easily become dangerous, as it does not take…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/dietrich-bonhoeffer/so-the-fool-as-distinct-from-the-scoundrel-is-completely-self/) [Dietrich Bonhoeffer](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/dietrich-bonhoeffer/) > [It is a sweet thing that we serve a dissatisfied God who has destinations in mind for us that we would never choose for…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/paul-david-tripp/it-is-a-sweet-thing-that-we-serve-a-dissatisfied-god-who-has/) [Paul David Tripp](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/paul-david-tripp/) > [Every woman thinks herself attractive; even the plainest is satisfied with the charms she deems that she possesses.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ovid/every-woman-thinks-herself-attractive-even-the-plainest-is-satisfied/) [Ovid](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ovid/) > [As for doing good; that is one of the professions which is full. Moreover I have tried it fairly and, strange as it may…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/henry-david-thoreau/as-for-doing-good-that-is-one-of-the-professions-which-is-full/) [Henry David Thoreau](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/henry-david-thoreau/) > [The connoisseur of art must be able to appreciate what is simply beautiful, but the common run of people is satisfied with ornament](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/johann-wolfgang-von-goethe/the-connoisseur-of-art-must-be-able-to-appreciate-what-is-simply/) [Johann Wolfgang Von Goethe](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/johann-wolfgang-von-goethe/) > [Understanding science and pushing the boundaries of science is what makes me immensely satisfied.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/bill-gates/understanding-science-and-pushing-the-boundaries-of-science-is-what/) [Bill Gates](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/bill-gates/) > [Experiences in order to be educative must lead out into an expanding world of subject matter, a subject matter of facts or information and…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/john-dewey/experiences-in-order-to-be-educative-must-lead-out-into-an-expanding/) [John Dewey](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/john-dewey/) > [When a captive lion steps out of his cage, he comes into a wider world than the lion who has known only the wilds.…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/yukio-mishima/when-a-captive-lion-steps-out-of-his-cage-he-comes-into-a-wider-world/) [Yukio Mishima](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/yukio-mishima/) > [I think the most insulting thing you can do to a director is to challenge when he or she is satisfied with your interpretation.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/dustin-hoffman/i-think-the-most-insulting-thing-you-can-do-to-a-director-is-to/) [Dustin Hoffman](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/dustin-hoffman/) > [No matter the style, the farther one goes the more obstacles increase, and the more distant appears the object it is desired to attain.…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jean-georges-noverre/no-matter-the-style-the-farther-one-goes-the-more-obstacles-increase/) [Jean-Georges Noverre](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jean-georges-noverre/) > [Do not be satisfied with the speech of your lips and the thought in your heart, all the promises and good sayings in your…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/menachem-mendel-of-kotzk/do-not-be-satisfied-with-the-speech-of-your-lips-and-the-thought-in/) [Menachem Mendel of Kotzk](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/menachem-mendel-of-kotzk/) > [If you abide in the love of Christ, rooted in the faith, you will encounter, even amid setbacks and suffering, the source of true…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/pope-benedict-xvi/if-you-abide-in-the-love-of-christ-rooted-in-the-faith-you-will/) [Pope Benedict XVI](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/pope-benedict-xvi/) > [It's not that you don't make any money doing conscious rap music. You make a lot of money doing this, but if you're greedy…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/krs-one/it-s-not-that-you-don-t-make-any-money-doing-conscious-rap-music-you/) [KRS-One](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/krs-one/) > [The goal in raising one's child is to enable him, first, to discover who he wants to be, and then to become a person…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/bruno-bettelheim/the-goal-in-raising-one-s-child-is-to-enable-him-first-to-discover/) [Bruno Bettelheim](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/bruno-bettelheim/) > [Love is doing what will enthrall the beloved with the greatest and longest joy. What will enthrall the beloved this way is the glory…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/john-piper/love-is-doing-what-will-enthrall-the-beloved-with-the-greatest-and/) [John Piper](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/john-piper/) Browse all 2,026 Satisfied quotes ```json { "@context": "https://schema.org", "@graph": [ { "@type": "Quotation", "text": "“Nothing satisfies the man who is not satisfied with a little.”", "creator": { "@type": "Person", "name": "Alain de Botton" }, "isPartOf": { "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/#website" }, "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/alain-de-botton/nothing-satisfies-the-man-who-is-not-satisfied-with-a-little/", "about": { "@type": "Thing", "name": "Satisfied" }, "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/alain-de-botton/nothing-satisfies-the-man-who-is-not-satisfied-with-a-little/#quotation", "image": { "@type": "ImageObject", "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/4ec/alain-de-botton-221_quote_nothing-satisfies-the-man-who-is-not-sat_1580716.jpg", "contentUrl": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/4ec/alain-de-botton-221_quote_nothing-satisfies-the-man-who-is-not-sat_1580716.jpg", "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/4ec/alain-de-botton-221_quote_nothing-satisfies-the-man-who-is-not-sat_1580716.jpg", "width": 1080, "height": 1080, "caption": "“Nothing satisfies the man who is not satisfied with a little.” — Alain de Botton", "creditText": "SMS4Smile Quotes", "creator": { "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/#organization" } } }, { "@type": "BreadcrumbList", "itemListElement": [ { "@type": "ListItem", "position": 1, "name": "Home", "item": "https://sms4smile.com/" }, { "@type": "ListItem", "position": 2, "name": "Quotes", "item": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/" }, { "@type": "ListItem", "position": 3, "name": "Alain de Botton", "item": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/alain-de-botton/" }, { "@type": "ListItem", "position": 4, "name": "“Nothing satisfies the man who is...", "item": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/alain-de-botton/nothing-satisfies-the-man-who-is-not-satisfied-with-a-little/" } ], "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/alain-de-botton/nothing-satisfies-the-man-who-is-not-satisfied-with-a-little/#breadcrumb" }, { "@type": "WebSite", "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/#website", "name": "SMS4Smile Quotes", "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/", "publisher": { "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/#organization" } }, { "@type": "Organization", "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/#organization", "name": "SMS4Smile Quotes", "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/", "logo": { "@type": "ImageObject", "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/wp-content/themes/sq/assets/icons/icon-512.png", "width": 512, "height": 512 } } ] } ```