---
title: "Meaning & Key Takeaway of: If I needed money, I learned to think in…"
description: "\"“If I needed money, I learned to think in terms of how I could get what I needed by making something and selling it, not by cutting costs elsewhere or ..."
image: "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/42e/anonymous-1_money_if-i-needed-money-i-learned-to-think-in_345923.jpg"
---

#  If I needed money, I learned to think in terms of how I…

![“If I needed money, I learned to think in terms of how I could get what I needed by making something and selling it, not by cutting costs elsewhere or working for someone else. This distinction was critical, because most budgets start by looking at income and then defining the available choices. I…” quote by Anonymous](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/42e/anonymous-1_money_if-i-needed-money-i-learned-to-think-in_345923.jpg)   [Download](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/42e/anonymous-1_money_if-i-needed-money-i-learned-to-think-in_345923.jpg) [Open image](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/42e/anonymous-1_money_if-i-needed-money-i-learned-to-think-in_345923.jpg)

> ““If I needed money, I learned to think in terms of how I could get what I needed by making something and selling it, not by cutting costs elsewhere or working for someone else. This distinction was critical, because most budgets start by looking at income and then defining the available choices. I did it differently—starting with a list of what I wanted to do, and then figuring out how to make it happen.””

[Anonymous](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anonymous/)

## About This Quote

This interpretation was drafted with AI assistance. It is one reading of the quote, not the author's own explanation.

Start by defining what you truly want, then devise ways to create value and earn money, rather than merely cutting costs.

**In simple terms:** Define goals, then create value.

Key Takeaway

Focus on value creation before cost cutting.

Themes

finance entrepreneurship goal setting

Mood

pragmatic motivational

Type

practical inspirational

When to use this quote

- starting a business
- freelance work
- budget planning
- career change

Key Concepts

Economics psychology

Questions to Reflect On

- What value can you offer?
- How can you align your goals with market needs?

A Different Perspective

May overlook structural barriers to income generation.

★ ★ ★ ★ ★   No ratings yet

[Budgets Start](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/budgets-start-3205001/) [Money](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/money/) [Money Learned](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/money-learned-1048763/) [Needed Making](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/needed-making-3205002/) [Needed Money](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/needed-money/) [Rich](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/rich/) [Wanted Figuring](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/wanted-figuring-695954/)

## Related quotes

> [I've just grown up a lot and started to encounter some of the big decisions of life in terms of what career I wanted…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/lee-norris/i-ve-just-grown-up-a-lot-and-started-to-encounter-some-of-the-big/)

[Lee Norris](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/lee-norris/)

> [Does money upset the hearts of learned men? He answered, "men whose hearts are changed by money are not learned"](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anonymous/does-money-upset-the-hearts-of-learned-men-he-answered-men-whose/)

[Anonymous](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anonymous/)

> [We lived in a very modest house. My father drove modest cars, we didn't travel, we didn't do any of the things that, were…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/neal-gabler/we-lived-in-a-very-modest-house-my-father-drove-modest-cars-we-didn-t/)

[Neal Gabler](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/neal-gabler/)

> [The question now is can better content be driven solely by more money. I have learned in 26 years that only money cannot give…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/subhash-chandra/the-question-now-is-can-better-content-be-driven-solely-by-more-money/)

[Subhash Chandra](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/subhash-chandra/)

> [What I know about money, I learned the hard way – by having had it.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/margaret-halsey/what-i-know-about-money-i-learned-the-hard-way-by-having-had-it/)

[Margaret Halsey](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/margaret-halsey/)

> [Well, outside of the tone, the big thing that I gained from working on horror film was how to shoot really quickly with no…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/deon-taylor/well-outside-of-the-tone-the-big-thing-that-i-gained-from-working-on/)

[Deon Taylor](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/deon-taylor/)

> [I grew up in a family where our mother made our clothing. We didn't have a lot of money, so we learned how to…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/marcy-kaptur/i-grew-up-in-a-family-where-our-mother-made-our-clothing-we-didn-t/)

[Marcy Kaptur](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/marcy-kaptur/)

> [For most of my life, making music has cost me money. So I learned to live very, very cheaply.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/james-murphy/for-most-of-my-life-making-music-has-cost-me-money-so-i-learned-to/)

[James Murphy](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/james-murphy/)

> [With Stand Up To Cancer, every penny goes to Cancer Research UK. You are playing with people's lives. I knew I needed to get…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/alan-carr/with-stand-up-to-cancer-every-penny-goes-to-cancer-research-uk-you/)

[Alan Carr](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/alan-carr/)

> [Of the nude pictures: Sure I posed. I needed the money.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/marilyn-monroe/of-the-nude-pictures-sure-i-posed-i-needed-the-money/)

[Marilyn Monroe](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/marilyn-monroe/)

> [No matter how much I wanted all those things that I needed money to buy, there was some devilish current pushing me off in…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/hunter-s-thompson/no-matter-how-much-i-wanted-all-those-things-that-i-needed-money-to/)

[Hunter S. Thompson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/hunter-s-thompson/)

> [I played the submissive wife in 'Shakti' because I needed the money. But I'm glad I did.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/deepti-naval/i-played-the-submissive-wife-in-shakti-because-i-needed-the-money-but/)

[Deepti Naval](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/deepti-naval/)

> [I used to work in jobs I hated because I needed the money to buy a guitar. I know what it feels like to…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/chris-cornell/i-used-to-work-in-jobs-i-hated-because-i-needed-the-money-to-buy-a/)

[Chris Cornell](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/chris-cornell/)

> [Originally, I think, I wanted to be an actor. But I got into broadcasting by accident, if you will, because I needed money to…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/alex-trebek/originally-i-think-i-wanted-to-be-an-actor-but-i-got-into/)

[Alex Trebek](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/alex-trebek/)

> [I signed my first book contract without paying much attention to what it said. I didn't know at the time that the book would…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/stephanie-land/i-signed-my-first-book-contract-without-paying-much-attention-to-what/)

[Stephanie Land](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/stephanie-land/)

## More by Anonymous

> [And a tear rolled down her cheek, as she said goodbye; because she's walking away, and she's never looking back](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anonymous/and-a-tear-rolled-down-her-cheek-as-she-said-goodbye-because-she-s/)

[Anonymous](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anonymous/)

> [Life is full of change. That's how we learn and grow.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anonymous/life-is-full-of-change-that-s-how-we-learn-and-grow/)

[Anonymous](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anonymous/)

> [You'll seldom experience regret for anything that you've done. It is what you haven't done that will torment you. The message, therefore, is clear.…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anonymous/you-ll-seldom-experience-regret-for-anything-that-you-ve-done-it-is/)

[Anonymous](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anonymous/)

> [Scrabble - The game is available in Braille. That’s a nice fact. This makes me feel better about humanity for some reason. I can’t…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anonymous/scrabble-the-game-is-available-in-braille-that-s-a-nice-fact-this/)

[Anonymous](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anonymous/)

> [Everyone needs someone to love, and I choose you.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anonymous/everyone-needs-someone-to-love-and-i-choose-you/)

[Anonymous](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anonymous/)

> [“THIS tale of my sore-troubled life I write,    To thank the God of nature, who conveyed    My soul to me, and with such care…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anonymous/this-tale-of-my-sore-troubled-life-i-write-to-thank-the-god-of-nature/)

[Anonymous](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anonymous/)

> [Put on my J's and dance the whole night away Im naughty by nature like Im hip-hop hooray With my hands in the sky,…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anonymous/put-on-my-j-s-and-dance-the-whole-night-away-im-naughty-by-nature/)

[Anonymous](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anonymous/)

> [Me.. I have been through a lot, but I still manage to have a smile on my face. Im not worried about the past…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anonymous/me-i-have-been-through-a-lot-but-i-still-manage-to-have-a-smile-on-my/)

[Anonymous](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anonymous/)

> [Distance is a test of love. many will fail for those who can't withstand it, but for those who can, theres only one answer…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anonymous/distance-is-a-test-of-love-many-will-fail-for-those-who-can-t/)

[Anonymous](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anonymous/)

> [Im sorry I ever tried...](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anonymous/im-sorry-i-ever-tried/)

[Anonymous](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anonymous/)

> [Being betrayed by the one you love is the worst feeling in the world...](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anonymous/being-betrayed-by-the-one-you-love-is-the-worst-feeling-in-the-world/)

[Anonymous](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anonymous/)

> [Let children support their parents or be imprisoned.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anonymous/let-children-support-their-parents-or-be-imprisoned/)

[Anonymous](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anonymous/)

> [The only person I've ever purposely caused pain here is myself...By simply sharing, caring too much.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anonymous/the-only-person-i-ve-ever-purposely-caused-pain-here-is-myself-by/)

[Anonymous](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anonymous/)

> [“Start a business, not a startup”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anonymous/start-a-business-not-a-startup/)

[Anonymous](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anonymous/)

> [The truth is, of course, that the curtness of the Ten Commandments is an evidence, not of the gloom and narrowness of a religion,…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anonymous/the-truth-is-of-course-that-the-curtness-of-the-ten-commandments-is/)

[Anonymous](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anonymous/)

[Explore all 162,899 Anonymous quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anonymous/)

## More Money quotes

> [You've got to tell your money what to do or it will leave.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/dave-ramsey/you-ve-got-to-tell-your-money-what-to-do-or-it-will-leave/)

[Dave Ramsey](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/dave-ramsey/)

> [Don't let's lose sight of what creates wealth. It is open markets, it is capitalism.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/rupert-murdoch/don-t-let-s-lose-sight-of-what-creates-wealth-it-is-open-markets-it/)

[Rupert Murdoch](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/rupert-murdoch/)

> [If I had a dollar for every time I couldn’t sleep, I could buy a billion locks and finally read a book in peace.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/aesop-rock/if-i-had-a-dollar-for-every-time-i-couldn-t-sleep-i-could-buy-a/)

[Aesop Rock](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/aesop-rock/)

> [Money is the kind of instrument which is very speedily produced.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anatoly-chubais/money-is-the-kind-of-instrument-which-is-very-speedily-produced/)

[Anatoly Chubais](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anatoly-chubais/)

> [I would borrow money all day long, if the cost of borrowing is less than the expected return.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/brad-schneider/i-would-borrow-money-all-day-long-if-the-cost-of-borrowing-is-less/)

[Brad Schneider](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/brad-schneider/)

> [If you restore a car, and you're making money, then you're doing it wrong.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jay-leno/if-you-restore-a-car-and-you-re-making-money-then-you-re-doing-it/)

[Jay Leno](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jay-leno/)

> [Maybe you can,t buy a big house.. A new car.. A huge diamond ring.. But if you have just one true friend who loves…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/cathy/maybe-you-can-t-buy-a-big-house-a-new-car-a-huge-diamond-ring-but-if/)

[Cathy](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/cathy/)

> [“Don't allow money to become the yardstick by which you measure the worth of the world around you!”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/andrew-james-pritchard/don-t-allow-money-to-become-the-yardstick-by-which-you-measure-the/)

[Andrew James Pritchard](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/andrew-james-pritchard/)

> [Academically, I was never that interested. I skipped classes. My biggest dream was to have a coffee shop, but I had no idea how…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/daniel-espinosa/academically-i-was-never-that-interested-i-skipped-classes-my-biggest/)

[Daniel Espinosa](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/daniel-espinosa/)

> [Amongst the financial Twitterati, the term 'muppets' has come to describe any client used and abused by some financial predator. I've adopted the term…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/barry-ritholtz/amongst-the-financial-twitterati-the-term-muppets-has-come-to/)

[Barry Ritholtz](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/barry-ritholtz/)

> [I doubt that we Americans can come to terms with our money neuroses without understanding the more florid pathology of the very rich for…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/philip-slater/i-doubt-that-we-americans-can-come-to-terms-with-our-money-neuroses/)

[Philip Slater](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/philip-slater/)

> [“The writer must earn money in order to be able to live and to write, but he must by no means live and write…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jeff-goins/the-writer-must-earn-money-in-order-to-be-able-to-live-and-to-write/)

[Jeff Goins](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jeff-goins/)

> [Jobs and money are never the primary cause of stress. Thinking, negative thinking causes stress. The real cause of all problems lie in our…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/bob-proctor/jobs-and-money-are-never-the-primary-cause-of-stress-thinking/)

[Bob Proctor](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/bob-proctor/)

> [Most paper money initially existed as a substitute for gold. That's what gave it value. But right now what gives a currency value is…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/peter-schiff/most-paper-money-initially-existed-as-a-substitute-for-gold-that-s/)

[Peter Schiff](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/peter-schiff/)

> [The man who works for the gold in the job rather than for the money in the pay envelope, is the fellow who gets…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/joseph-french-johnson/the-man-who-works-for-the-gold-in-the-job-rather-than-for-the-money/)

[Joseph French Johnson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/joseph-french-johnson/)

[Browse all 45,172 Money quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/money/)

```json
{
    "@context": "https://schema.org",
    "@graph": [
        {
            "@type": "Quotation",
            "text": "“If I needed money, I learned to think in terms of how I could get what I needed by making something and selling it, not by cutting costs elsewhere or working for someone else. This distinction was critical, because most budgets start by looking at income and then defining the available choices. I did it differently—starting with a list of what I wanted to do, and then figuring out how to make it happen.”",
            "creator": {
                "@type": "Person",
                "name": "Anonymous"
            },
            "isPartOf": {
                "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/#website"
            },
            "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anonymous/if-i-needed-money-i-learned-to-think-in-terms-of-how-i-could-get-what/",
            "about": {
                "@type": "Thing",
                "name": "Money"
            },
            "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anonymous/if-i-needed-money-i-learned-to-think-in-terms-of-how-i-could-get-what/#quotation",
            "image": {
                "@type": "ImageObject",
                "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/42e/anonymous-1_money_if-i-needed-money-i-learned-to-think-in_345923.jpg",
                "contentUrl": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/42e/anonymous-1_money_if-i-needed-money-i-learned-to-think-in_345923.jpg",
                "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/42e/anonymous-1_money_if-i-needed-money-i-learned-to-think-in_345923.jpg",
                "width": 1080,
                "height": 1080,
                "caption": "“If I needed money, I learned to think in terms of how I could get what I needed by making something and…” — Anonymous",
                "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": "Anonymous",
                    "item": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anonymous/"
                },
                {
                    "@type": "ListItem",
                    "position": 4,
                    "name": "“If I needed money, I learned...",
                    "item": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anonymous/if-i-needed-money-i-learned-to-think-in-terms-of-how-i-could-get-what/"
                }
            ],
            "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anonymous/if-i-needed-money-i-learned-to-think-in-terms-of-how-i-could-get-what/#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
            }
        }
    ]
}
```
