--- title: "Meaning & Key Takeaway of: The most common way people give up their…" description: "\"The most common way people give up their power is by thinking they don't have any.\" — Alice Walker" image: "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/4aa/alice-walker-347_power_the-most-common-way-people-give-up-their_1242577.png" --- # The most common way people give up their power is by… ![“The most common way people give up their power is by thinking they don't have any.” quote by Alice Walker](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/4aa/alice-walker-347_power_the-most-common-way-people-give-up-their_1242577.png) [Download](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/4aa/alice-walker-347_power_the-most-common-way-people-give-up-their_1242577.png) [Open image](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/4aa/alice-walker-347_power_the-most-common-way-people-give-up-their_1242577.png) > “The most common way people give up their power is by thinking they don't have any.” [Alice Walker](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/alice-walker/) ## About This Quote This interpretation was drafted with AI assistance. It is one reading of the quote, not the author's own explanation. People lose power by believing they lack it; recognizing inherent agency restores influence. **In simple terms:** Thinking you have no power leads to giving it up. Key Takeaway Acknowledge your inner power. Themes empowerment self‑belief agency Mood inspirational determined Type advice philosophical When to use this quote - activism - career advancement - personal growth - community organizing Key Concepts feminist theory psychology social change Questions to Reflect On - What power do you already hold? - How can you expand it responsibly? A Different Perspective It may oversimplify structural barriers to power. ★ ★ ★ ★ ★ No ratings yet [Common Way](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/common-way-365750/) [People Power](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/people-power/) [Power](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/power/) [Power Thinking](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/power-thinking-404313/) [Thinking](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/thinking/) [Way People](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/way-people/) ## Related quotes > [The mos common way people give up their power,is by thinking they don't have any.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anonymous/the-mos-common-way-people-give-up-their-power-is-by-thinking-they-don/) [Anonymous](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anonymous/) > [The most common way people give up their power is by thinking they dont have any.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anonymous/the-most-common-way-people-give-up-their-power-is-by-thinking-they-2/) [Anonymous](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anonymous/) > [“The most common way people give up their power is by thinking they don't have any. Alice Walker”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anonymous/the-most-common-way-people-give-up-their-power-is-by-thinking-they-3/) [Anonymous](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anonymous/) > [“One of my favorite quotes comes from author Alice Walker, who observed, “The most common way people give up their power is by thinking…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/sheryl-sandberg/one-of-my-favorite-quotes-comes-from-author-alice-walker-who-observed/) [Sheryl Sandberg](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/sheryl-sandberg/) > [Men have the power of thinking that they may avoid sin.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anonymous/men-have-the-power-of-thinking-that-they-may-avoid-sin/) [Anonymous](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anonymous/) > [“So long as we do not know definitely what we want, our forces will be scattered, and so long as our forces are scattered,…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/christian-d-larson/so-long-as-we-do-not-know-definitely-what-we-want-our-forces-will-be/) [Christian D. Larson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/christian-d-larson/) > [So what is the difference between "power thinking" and "positive" thinking? The distinction is slight but profound. To me, people use positive thinking to…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/t-harv-eker/so-what-is-the-difference-between-power-thinking-and-positive/) [T. Harv Eker](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/t-harv-eker/) > [Power over seems to be driving our very young species into a ditch because it's from an old competitive, "there may not be enough"…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/peter-buffett/power-over-seems-to-be-driving-our-very-young-species-into-a-ditch/) [Peter Buffett](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/peter-buffett/) > [A truly common culture is not one in which we all think alike, or in which we all believe that fairness is next to…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/terry-eagleton/a-truly-common-culture-is-not-one-in-which-we-all-think-alike-or-in/) [Terry Eagleton](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/terry-eagleton/) > [“...it's perfectly possible to live without expecting anything of life; in fact, it's the most common way.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/michel-houellebecq/it-s-perfectly-possible-to-live-without-expecting-anything-of-life-in/) [Michel Houellebecq](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/michel-houellebecq/) > [We come to reason, not to dominate. We do not seek to have our way, but to find a common way.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/lyndon-b-johnson/we-come-to-reason-not-to-dominate-we-do-not-seek-to-have-our-way-but/) [Lyndon B. Johnson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/lyndon-b-johnson/) > [Parla Come Mangi' --It is a common way to say 'be simple', 'don't try to be rhetorical' literaly: 'speak the way you eat](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/elizabeth-gilbert/parla-come-mangi-it-is-a-common-way-to-say-be-simple-don-t-try-to-be/) [Elizabeth Gilbert](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/elizabeth-gilbert/) > [It is difficult to speak of what is common in a way of your own.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/horace/it-is-difficult-to-speak-of-what-is-common-in-a-way-of-your-own/) [Horace](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/horace/) > [To do something very common, in my own way.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/adrienne-rich/to-do-something-very-common-in-my-own-way/) [Adrienne Rich](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/adrienne-rich/) > [People power. It has no limits. In politics, every politician in Ukraine is afraid of that. They know, if people go to the streets,…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/vitali-klitschko/people-power-it-has-no-limits-in-politics-every-politician-in-ukraine/) [Vitali Klitschko](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/vitali-klitschko/) ## More by Alice Walker > [I gave my archive to Emory University because there's a really dear friend who teaches there, Rudolph Byrd, and he's the editor.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/alice-walker/i-gave-my-archive-to-emory-university-because-there-s-a-really-dear/) [Alice Walker](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/alice-walker/) > [Just be what it is that you are, and that is just fine. You don't have to be what you're not in any way.…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/alice-walker/just-be-what-it-is-that-you-are-and-that-is-just-fine-you-don-t-have/) [Alice Walker](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/alice-walker/) > [“Remember this-- say it & know it is true: Alice loves me Alice loves me and I am not blamed for this. ... she…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/alice-walker/remember-this-say-it-know-it-is-true-alice-loves-me-alice-loves-me/) [Alice Walker](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/alice-walker/) > [“Only the sky above us do we hold in common.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/alice-walker/only-the-sky-above-us-do-we-hold-in-common/) [Alice Walker](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/alice-walker/) > [“Why aren't you happy in America, if everyone there drives motorcars?”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/alice-walker/why-aren-t-you-happy-in-america-if-everyone-there-drives-motorcars/) [Alice Walker](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/alice-walker/) > [“She saw poetry where other writers merely saw failure to cope with English.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/alice-walker/she-saw-poetry-where-other-writers-merely-saw-failure-to-cope-with/) [Alice Walker](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/alice-walker/) > [My mother had handed down respect for the possibilities...and the will to grasp them.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/alice-walker/my-mother-had-handed-down-respect-for-the-possibilities-and-the-will/) [Alice Walker](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/alice-walker/) > [Helped are those who are content to be themselves; they will never lack mystery in their lives and the joys of self-discovery will be…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/alice-walker/helped-are-those-who-are-content-to-be-themselves-they-will-never/) [Alice Walker](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/alice-walker/) > [“As others might prepare for an exam whose subject matter is unknown to them, so I must study, cram, for every conversation with my…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/alice-walker/as-others-might-prepare-for-an-exam-whose-subject-matter-is-unknown/) [Alice Walker](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/alice-walker/) > [The original crime of niggers and lesbians is that they prefer themselves.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/alice-walker/the-original-crime-of-niggers-and-lesbians-is-that-they-prefer/) [Alice Walker](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/alice-walker/) > [My mother was very strong. Once, she picked up a coconut and smashed it against my father's head. It taught me about women defending…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/alice-walker/my-mother-was-very-strong-once-she-picked-up-a-coconut-and-smashed-it/) [Alice Walker](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/alice-walker/) > [Many readers fail to realize this, but 'The Color Purple' is a theological text. It is about the reclamation of one's original God: the…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/alice-walker/many-readers-fail-to-realize-this-but-the-color-purple-is-a/) [Alice Walker](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/alice-walker/) > [The good news may be that Nature is phasing out the white man, but the bad news is that's who She thinks we all…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/alice-walker/the-good-news-may-be-that-nature-is-phasing-out-the-white-man-but-the/) [Alice Walker](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/alice-walker/) > [Humans - whatever billions we are - we don't have the control. We are considered expendable, basically.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/alice-walker/humans-whatever-billions-we-are-we-don-t-have-the-control-we-are/) [Alice Walker](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/alice-walker/) > [All my life I had to fight. I had to fight my daddy. I had to fight my uncles. I had to fight my…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/alice-walker/all-my-life-i-had-to-fight-i-had-to-fight-my-daddy-i-had-to-fight-my/) [Alice Walker](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/alice-walker/) [Explore all 654 Alice Walker quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/alice-walker/) ## More Power quotes > [We have to get control of our borders.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/mike-coffman/we-have-to-get-control-of-our-borders/) [Mike Coffman](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/mike-coffman/) > [For us who are now in power, we need to be challenged to serve the people and ignore our own egos and personal interests…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/wangari-maathai/for-us-who-are-now-in-power-we-need-to-be-challenged-to-serve-the/) [Wangari Maathai](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/wangari-maathai/) > [Your world will change whether or not you choose to change, but you have the power to choose it's direction.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/napoleon-hill/your-world-will-change-whether-or-not-you-choose-to-change-but-you/) [Napoleon Hill](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/napoleon-hill/) > [I want the municipality to be a helping hand to the man with a desire of sympathy, to help the fallen when it is…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/john-burns/i-want-the-municipality-to-be-a-helping-hand-to-the-man-with-a-desire/) [John Burns](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/john-burns/) > [You can draw power from everything in your life. In order to do that, everything has to be set up in a proper way.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/frederick-lenz/you-can-draw-power-from-everything-in-your-life-in-order-to-do-that/) [Frederick Lenz](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/frederick-lenz/) > [The one means that wins the easiest victory over reason is terror and force.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/adolf-hitler/the-one-means-that-wins-the-easiest-victory-over-reason-is-terror-and/) [Adolf Hitler](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/adolf-hitler/) > [DECIDE, v.i. To succumb to the preponderance of one set of influences over another set.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ambrose-bierce/decide-v-i-to-succumb-to-the-preponderance-of-one-set-of-influences/) [Ambrose Bierce](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ambrose-bierce/) > [Movies have power. Power to impact society and the choices we make. I want to entertain, but I also want to say something to…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/gina-prince-bythewood/movies-have-power-power-to-impact-society-and-the-choices-we-make-i/) [Gina Prince-Bythewood](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/gina-prince-bythewood/) > [Next to the assumption of power was the responsibility of relinquishing it.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/benjamin-disraeli/next-to-the-assumption-of-power-was-the-responsibility-of/) [Benjamin Disraeli](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/benjamin-disraeli/) > [Do not pray for tasks equal to your powers. Pray for powers equal to your tasks.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/phillips-brooks/do-not-pray-for-tasks-equal-to-your-powers-pray-for-powers-equal-to/) [Phillips Brooks](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/phillips-brooks/) > [With every product, the delta between the brand and the reality determines its power over the minds of consumers, and with Trump, that delta…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/rick-wilson/with-every-product-the-delta-between-the-brand-and-the-reality/) [Rick Wilson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/rick-wilson/) > [If you have everything under control, you're not moving fast enough.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/mario-andretti/if-you-have-everything-under-control-you-re-not-moving-fast-enough/) [Mario Andretti](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/mario-andretti/) > [“The power of imagination is strongest in the place of solitude.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/sunday-adelaja/the-power-of-imagination-is-strongest-in-the-place-of-solitude/) [Sunday Adelaja](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/sunday-adelaja/) > [“Action is a powerful thing. When you smile through your sadness, it can completely change your outlook. Try it! Smile :) Now hold onto…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/leticia-rae/action-is-a-powerful-thing-when-you-smile-through-your-sadness-it-can/) [Leticia Rae](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/leticia-rae/) > [Politics is about power. It is about the power of the state. It is about the power of the state as applied to individuals,…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/kevin-rudd/politics-is-about-power-it-is-about-the-power-of-the-state-it-is/) [Kevin Rudd](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/kevin-rudd/) [Browse all 17,893 Power quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/power/) ```json { "@context": "https://schema.org", "@graph": [ { "@type": "Quotation", "text": "The most common way people give up their power is by thinking they don't have any.", "creator": { "@type": "Person", "name": "Alice Walker" }, "isPartOf": { "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/#website" }, "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/alice-walker/the-most-common-way-people-give-up-their-power-is-by-thinking-they/", "about": { "@type": "Thing", "name": "Power" }, "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/alice-walker/the-most-common-way-people-give-up-their-power-is-by-thinking-they/#quotation", "image": { "@type": "ImageObject", "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/4aa/alice-walker-347_power_the-most-common-way-people-give-up-their_1242577.png", "contentUrl": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/4aa/alice-walker-347_power_the-most-common-way-people-give-up-their_1242577.png", "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/4aa/alice-walker-347_power_the-most-common-way-people-give-up-their_1242577.png", "width": 1080, "height": 1080, "caption": "“The most common way people give up their power is by thinking they don't have any.” — Alice Walker", "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": "Alice Walker", "item": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/alice-walker/" }, { "@type": "ListItem", "position": 4, "name": "The most common way people give...", "item": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/alice-walker/the-most-common-way-people-give-up-their-power-is-by-thinking-they/" } ], "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/alice-walker/the-most-common-way-people-give-up-their-power-is-by-thinking-they/#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 } } ] } ```