--- title: "Meaning & Key Takeaway of: Often people attempt to live their lives…" description: "\"“Often people attempt to live their lives backwards: they try to have more things, or more money, in order to do more of what they want so that they wi..." image: "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/f42/anonymous-1_quote_often-people-attempt-to-live-their-lives_1097647.jpg" --- # Often people attempt to live their lives backwards: they… ![“Often people attempt to live their lives backwards: they try to have more things, or more money, in order to do more of what they want so that they will be happier. The way it actually works is the reverse. You must first be who you really are, then do what you really need to do, in order to have…” quote by Anonymous](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/f42/anonymous-1_quote_often-people-attempt-to-live-their-lives_1097647.jpg) [Download](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/f42/anonymous-1_quote_often-people-attempt-to-live-their-lives_1097647.jpg) [Open image](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/f42/anonymous-1_quote_often-people-attempt-to-live-their-lives_1097647.jpg) > ““Often people attempt to live their lives backwards: they try to have more things, or more money, in order to do more of what they want so that they will be happier. The way it actually works is the reverse. You must first be who you really are, then do what you really need to do, in order to have what you want. — Margaret Young”” [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 comes from authentic self‑identity and fulfilling necessary duties before seeking desires. **In simple terms:** Be yourself first, then pursue goals. Key Takeaway Live authentically. Themes authenticity purpose self‑actualization Mood motivational inspirational Type advice philosophical When to use this quote - career planning - personal development - spiritual practice - relationship building Key Concepts psychology philosophy Questions to Reflect On - What does being your true self mean to you? - Which duties must you fulfill before chasing desires? A Different Perspective Focusing on self may delay immediate gratification, causing frustration. ★ ★ ★ ★ ★ No ratings yet [Backwards](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/backwards/) [Backwards Try](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/backwards-try-725474/) [Lives Backwards](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/lives-backwards-725473/) [Reverse](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/reverse/) [Reverse Really](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/reverse-really-2795536/) ## Related quotes > [Often people attempt to live their lives backwards; they try to have more things, or more money, in order to do more of what…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/margaret-young/often-people-attempt-to-live-their-lives-backwards-they-try-to-have-2/) [Margaret Young](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/margaret-young/) > [The way it actually works is the reverse. You must first be who you really are, then do what you need to do, in…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/margaret-young/the-way-it-actually-works-is-the-reverse-you-must-first-be-who-you/) [Margaret Young](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/margaret-young/) > [It's funny because when you do become successful, you're forced to look backwards and try to crawl back into the womb where you first…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jack-white/it-s-funny-because-when-you-do-become-successful-you-re-forced-to/) [Jack White](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jack-white/) > [Yeah, like Bizarro Superman, Superman's exact opposite, who lives in the backwards Bizarro world. Up is down, down is up, he says hello when…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jerry-seinfeld/yeah-like-bizarro-superman-superman-s-exact-opposite-who-lives-in-the/) [Jerry Seinfeld](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jerry-seinfeld/) > [Life is lived forward but is judged in reverse.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/salman-rushdie/life-is-lived-forward-but-is-judged-in-reverse/) [Salman Rushdie](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/salman-rushdie/) > [Beingness, doingness and havingness are like a triangle where each side supports the others. They are not in conflict with each other. They all…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/shakti-gawain/beingness-doingness-and-havingness-are-like-a-triangle-where-each/) [Shakti Gawain](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/shakti-gawain/) > [You can understand life backwards, but you can only live life forwards.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anonymous/you-can-understand-life-backwards-but-you-can-only-live-life-forwards/) [Anonymous](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anonymous/) > [Life is like riding a train backwards. Even though you can't see where you're going, you know you're safe because God is like the…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anonymous/life-is-like-riding-a-train-backwards-even-though-you-can-t-see-where/) [Anonymous](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anonymous/) > [An arrow can only be shot by pulling it backwards.so when life is dragging you back with difficulties, it only means that its going…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anonymous/an-arrow-can-only-be-shot-by-pulling-it-backwards-so-when-life-is/) [Anonymous](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anonymous/) > [You cant connect the dots looking forward, you can only connect them looking backwards](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anonymous/you-cant-connect-the-dots-looking-forward-you-can-only-connect-them/) [Anonymous](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anonymous/) > ['Are you as bored as I am?' Makes sense even when you read it backwards...](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anonymous/are-you-as-bored-as-i-am-makes-sense-even-when-you-read-it-backwards/) [Anonymous](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anonymous/) > [Does bending over backwards for someone just mean standing up?](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anonymous/does-bending-over-backwards-for-someone-just-mean-standing-up/) [Anonymous](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anonymous/) > [That is what mortals misunderstand. They say of some temporal sufferring, "No future bliss can make up for it" not knowing that Heaven, once…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anonymous/that-is-what-mortals-misunderstand-they-say-of-some-temporal/) [Anonymous](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anonymous/) > [If you're not always moving forwards then you're always moving backwards relatively.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anonymous/if-you-re-not-always-moving-forwards-then-you-re-always-moving/) [Anonymous](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anonymous/) > [Going forward...because backwards is not an option :)](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anonymous/going-forward-because-backwards-is-not-an-option/) [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 Backwards quotes > [I'm just always looking forwards. I spend very little time, looking backwards.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/gary-vaynerchuk/i-m-just-always-looking-forwards-i-spend-very-little-time-looking/) [Gary Vaynerchuk](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/gary-vaynerchuk/) > [I wear T-shirts and backwards hats and buy my shoes at Payless!](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/kaitlyn-bristowe/i-wear-t-shirts-and-backwards-hats-and-buy-my-shoes-at-payless/) [Kaitlyn Bristowe](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/kaitlyn-bristowe/) > [A historian is not always a prophet facing backwards, but a journalist is always someone who afterwards knew everything beforehand.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/karl-kraus/a-historian-is-not-always-a-prophet-facing-backwards-but-a-journalist/) [Karl Kraus](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/karl-kraus/) > [Why don't you just imagine it never happened..??](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/effy-stonem/why-don-t-you-just-imagine-it-never-happened/) [Effy Stonem](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/effy-stonem/) > [“It would seem no matter how progressive we get there are always those few who are backwards in their ways.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/solange-nicole/it-would-seem-no-matter-how-progressive-we-get-there-are-always-those/) [Solange nicole](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/solange-nicole/) > [In the spiritual life, he who does not advance goes backwards.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/pio-of-pietrelcina/in-the-spiritual-life-he-who-does-not-advance-goes-backwards/) [Pio of Pietrelcina](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/pio-of-pietrelcina/) > [Now, success is not the result of making money; making money is the result of success - and success is in direct proportion to…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/earl-nightingale/now-success-is-not-the-result-of-making-money-making-money-is-the/) [Earl Nightingale](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/earl-nightingale/) > [Can anyone be so foolish as to believe that there are men whose feet are higher than their heads, or places where things may…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/lactantius/can-anyone-be-so-foolish-as-to-believe-that-there-are-men-whose-feet/) [Lactantius](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/lactantius/) > [I took a little break - I was coming back to work and the last thing I was going to do was take a…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/nia-long/i-took-a-little-break-i-was-coming-back-to-work-and-the-last-thing-i/) [Nia Long](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/nia-long/) > [Only a fool walks into the future backwards.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/terry-goodkind/only-a-fool-walks-into-the-future-backwards/) [Terry Goodkind](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/terry-goodkind/) > [We have different expectations for different groups of people. We tend to modulate the degree with which we're forgiving or punitive depending on how…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/chris-hayes/we-have-different-expectations-for-different-groups-of-people-we-tend/) [Chris Hayes](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/chris-hayes/) > [You know what, if you play 'She Looks So Perfect' backwards... you just listen to it.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/luke-hemmings/you-know-what-if-you-play-she-looks-so-perfect-backwards-you-just/) [Luke Hemmings](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/luke-hemmings/) > [Nursing is a progressive art such that to stand still is to go backwards.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/florence-nightingale/nursing-is-a-progressive-art-such-that-to-stand-still-is-to-go/) [Florence Nightingale](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/florence-nightingale/) > [“Just like backing out of the driveway… If the driveway was ten miles long, full of rocks and pits, with lethal radiation hovering above,…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/daniel-thorman/just-like-backing-out-of-the-driveway-if-the-driveway-was-ten-miles/) [Daniel Thorman](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/daniel-thorman/) > [We're not competitor obsessed, we're customer obsessed. We start with the customer and we work backwards.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jeff-bezos/we-re-not-competitor-obsessed-we-re-customer-obsessed-we-start-with/) [Jeff Bezos](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jeff-bezos/) [Browse all 837 Backwards quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/backwards/) ```json { "@context": "https://schema.org", "@graph": [ { "@type": "Quotation", "text": "“Often people attempt to live their lives backwards: they try to have more things, or more money, in order to do more of what they want so that they will be happier. The way it actually works is the reverse. 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