--- title: "Meaning & Key Takeaway of: If they really want us to be happy…" description: "\"“If they really want us to be happy, they'd let us pick ourselves.”\" — Anonymous" image: "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/839/anonymous-1_happiness_if-they-really-want-us-to-be-happy-they_52873.jpg" --- # If they really want us to be happy, they'd let us pick… ![“If they really want us to be happy, they'd let us pick ourselves.” quote by Anonymous](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/839/anonymous-1_happiness_if-they-really-want-us-to-be-happy-they_52873.jpg) [Download](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/839/anonymous-1_happiness_if-they-really-want-us-to-be-happy-they_52873.jpg) [Open image](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/839/anonymous-1_happiness_if-they-really-want-us-to-be-happy-they_52873.jpg) > ““If they really want us to be happy, they'd let us pick ourselves.”” [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. True happiness requires personal agency; external forces cannot dictate fulfillment. **In simple terms:** Freedom is essential for joy. Key Takeaway Choice drives contentment. Themes autonomy happiness personal freedom self-determination psychology Mood hopeful reflective Type philosophical motivational When to use this quote - career decisions - relationship choices - lifestyle changes - educational paths Key Concepts agency well‑being Practical Applications - designing empowerment programs - crafting policies that increase individual choice Questions to Reflect On - What limits your sense of agency? - How might constraints foster creativity? A Different Perspective Happiness can also arise from acceptance of circumstances, not just choice. ★ ★ ★ ★ ★ No ratings yet [Happiness](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/happiness/) [Romance](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/romance/) ## Related quotes > [Depend on yourself before depending on others, because others can let you down... but you can pick yourself up.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anonymous/depend-on-yourself-before-depending-on-others-because-others-can-let/) [Anonymous](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anonymous/) > [Don't put your happiness in the hands of someone else. If you really want to be happy, you have to find this happiness within…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anonymous/don-t-put-your-happiness-in-the-hands-of-someone-else-if-you-really/) [Anonymous](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anonymous/) > [Be happy with who you are, never let someone else make you feel you're worthless.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anonymous/be-happy-with-who-you-are-never-let-someone-else-make-you-feel-you-re/) [Anonymous](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anonymous/) > [Keep your spirits up. Make your heart happy and let it reflect on everything you do.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anonymous/keep-your-spirits-up-make-your-heart-happy-and-let-it-reflect-on/) [Anonymous](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anonymous/) > [They deserve to be happy with someone else. Let them go.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anonymous/they-deserve-to-be-happy-with-someone-else-let-them-go/) [Anonymous](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anonymous/) > [It doesn't matter if its a relationship, a lifestyle, or a job. If it doesn't make you happy let it go.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anonymous/it-doesn-t-matter-if-its-a-relationship-a-lifestyle-or-a-job-if-it/) [Anonymous](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anonymous/) > [As a good horse is not very apt to jump over a bank, if left to guide himself, I let mine pick his own…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/buffalo-bill/as-a-good-horse-is-not-very-apt-to-jump-over-a-bank-if-left-to-guide/) [Buffalo Bill](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/buffalo-bill/) > [I've always looked out for the UnderDog even as a kid I never let anyone pick on someone around me.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/amber-rose/i-ve-always-looked-out-for-the-underdog-even-as-a-kid-i-never-let/) [Amber Rose](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/amber-rose/) > [Never let someone pick and choose what they want from you. If they don't want the whole package they're the wrong person for you.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/sonya-parker/never-let-someone-pick-and-choose-what-they-want-from-you-if-they-don/) [Sonya Parker](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/sonya-parker/) > [I just want you to be happy even if I'm not the reason behind that happiness.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anonymous/i-just-want-you-to-be-happy-even-if-i-m-not-the-reason-behind-that/) [Anonymous](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anonymous/) > [I think it's so foolish for people to want to be happy. Happy is so momentary--you're happy for an instant and then you start…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anonymous/i-think-it-s-so-foolish-for-people-to-want-to-be-happy-happy-is-so/) [Anonymous](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anonymous/) > [Its the hard decisions in life we just have to make if you want to be happy!](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anonymous/its-the-hard-decisions-in-life-we-just-have-to-make-if-you-want-to-be/) [Anonymous](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anonymous/) > [Give Up To Be Happy From one of my mails I thought it was worth sharing 15 Things You Should Give Up To Be…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anonymous/give-up-to-be-happy-from-one-of-my-mails-i-thought-it-was-worth/) [Anonymous](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anonymous/) > [God please help me erase this love I'm feeling. I also want to be happy even though I know I won't be with him.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anonymous/god-please-help-me-erase-this-love-i-m-feeling-i-also-want-to-be/) [Anonymous](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anonymous/) > [I'm not worrying. I'm tired of being mad and sad and confused and for once I want to be happy, and aint.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anonymous/i-m-not-worrying-i-m-tired-of-being-mad-and-sad-and-confused-and-for/) [Anonymous](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anonymous/) ## 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 Happiness quotes > [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/) > [Remember that your natural state is joy.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/wayne-dyer/remember-that-your-natural-state-is-joy/) [Wayne Dyer](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/wayne-dyer/) > [Balance suggests a perfect equilibrium. There is no such thing. That is a false expectation… There are going to be priorities and dimensions of…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/denise-morrison/balance-suggests-a-perfect-equilibrium-there-is-no-such-thing-that-is/) [Denise Morrison](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/denise-morrison/) > [“WE CAN'T ALWAYS CONTROL OUR CIRCUMSTANCES BUT WE CAN CONTROL OUR ATTITUDE. WE MUST BE MORE CONCERNED WITH WHAT WE DO WITH WHAT HAPPENS…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/marvin-j-ashton/we-can-t-always-control-our-circumstances-but-we-can-control-our/) [MARVIN J. ASHTON](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/marvin-j-ashton/) > [I can skate beautifully. While performing on ice I always try to please the audience and to win as well. Being artistic is very…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/evgeni-plushenko/i-can-skate-beautifully-while-performing-on-ice-i-always-try-to/) [Evgeni Plushenko](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/evgeni-plushenko/) > [Sometimes we wish for the feel but we never understand that we have to give a lot to get the feel !](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/robert-reynolds/sometimes-we-wish-for-the-feel-but-we-never-understand-that-we-have/) [Robert Reynolds](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/robert-reynolds/) > [Sing like no one's listening, love like you've never been hurt, dance like nobody's watching, and live like its heaven on earth.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/mark-twain/sing-like-no-one-s-listening-love-like-you-ve-never-been-hurt-dance/) [Mark Twain](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/mark-twain/) > [“It was beautiful. He thought he had never seen anything so beautiful in all his life; that, having seen it, he could die content,…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/mira-grant/it-was-beautiful-he-thought-he-had-never-seen-anything-so-beautiful/) [Mira Grant](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/mira-grant/) > [The happy have whole days,](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/colley-cibber/the-happy-have-whole-days/) [Colley Cibber](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/colley-cibber/) > [I have observed this in my experience of slavery, - that whenever my condition was improved, instead of its increasing my contentment, it only…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/frederick-douglass/i-have-observed-this-in-my-experience-of-slavery-that-whenever-my/) [Frederick Douglass](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/frederick-douglass/) > [I've got nothing to do today but smile.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anonymous/i-ve-got-nothing-to-do-today-but-smile/) [Anonymous](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anonymous/) > [Her dignity consists in being unknown to the world; her glory is in the esteem of her husband; her pleasures in the happiness of…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jean-jacques-rousseau/her-dignity-consists-in-being-unknown-to-the-world-her-glory-is-in/) [Jean-Jacques Rousseau](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jean-jacques-rousseau/) > [The size of a man's understanding might always be justly measured by his mirth.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/samuel-johnson/the-size-of-a-man-s-understanding-might-always-be-justly-measured-by/) [Samuel Johnson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/samuel-johnson/) > [Positive thinking evokes more energy, more initiative, more happiness.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anonymous/positive-thinking-evokes-more-energy-more-initiative-more-happiness/) [Anonymous](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anonymous/) > [When you have a choice, choose happy!](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/pancho-barnes/when-you-have-a-choice-choose-happy/) Pancho Barnes [Browse all 40,288 Happiness quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/happiness/) ```json { "@context": "https://schema.org", "@graph": [ { "@type": "Quotation", "text": "“If they really want us to be happy, they'd let us pick ourselves.”", "creator": { "@type": "Person", "name": "Anonymous" }, "isPartOf": { "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/#website" }, "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anonymous/if-they-really-want-us-to-be-happy-they-d-let-us-pick-ourselves/", "about": { "@type": "Thing", "name": "Happiness" }, "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anonymous/if-they-really-want-us-to-be-happy-they-d-let-us-pick-ourselves/#quotation", "image": { "@type": "ImageObject", "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/839/anonymous-1_happiness_if-they-really-want-us-to-be-happy-they_52873.jpg", "contentUrl": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/839/anonymous-1_happiness_if-they-really-want-us-to-be-happy-they_52873.jpg", "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/839/anonymous-1_happiness_if-they-really-want-us-to-be-happy-they_52873.jpg", "width": 1080, "height": 1080, "caption": "“If they really want us to be happy, they'd let us pick ourselves.” — 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 they really want us to...", "item": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anonymous/if-they-really-want-us-to-be-happy-they-d-let-us-pick-ourselves/" } ], "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anonymous/if-they-really-want-us-to-be-happy-they-d-let-us-pick-ourselves/#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 } } ] } ```