--- title: "Meaning & Key Takeaway of: Some men see things as they are, and say…" description: "\"“Some men see things as they are, and say, ‘Why?’ I dream of things that never were, and say, ‘Why not?’” —GEORGE BERNARD SHAW”\" — Anthony Robbins" image: "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/2e9/anthony-robbins-15346_george-bernard-shaw_some-men-see-things-as-they-are-and-say_917915.jpg" --- # Some men see things as they are, and say, ‘Why?’ I dream… ![“Some men see things as they are, and say, ‘Why?’ I dream of things that never were, and say, ‘Why not?’” —GEORGE BERNARD SHAW” quote by Anthony Robbins](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/2e9/anthony-robbins-15346_george-bernard-shaw_some-men-see-things-as-they-are-and-say_917915.jpg) [Download](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/2e9/anthony-robbins-15346_george-bernard-shaw_some-men-see-things-as-they-are-and-say_917915.jpg) [Open image](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/2e9/anthony-robbins-15346_george-bernard-shaw_some-men-see-things-as-they-are-and-say_917915.jpg) > ““Some men see things as they are, and say, ‘Why?’ I dream of things that never were, and say, ‘Why not?’” —GEORGE BERNARD SHAW”” [Anthony Robbins](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anthony-robbins/) ## About This Quote This interpretation was drafted with AI assistance. It is one reading of the quote, not the author's own explanation. Seeing reality as it is prompts questioning; dreaming beyond limits inspires innovation. **In simple terms:** Question reality, imagine possibilities. Key Takeaway Cultivate curiosity and imagination. Themes creativity philosophy innovation Mood inspired optimistic Type advice philosophical When to use this quote - science - art - business - personal development Key Concepts critical inquiry visionary thinking Questions to Reflect On - What is a current reality you accept? - What impossible idea excites you? A Different Perspective Dreams can be unrealistic without grounding. ★ ★ ★ ★ ★ No ratings yet [Dream](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/dream/) ## Related quotes > [Some men see things as they are, and say why. I dream of things that never were, and say why not.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anonymous/some-men-see-things-as-they-are-and-say-why-i-dream-of-things-that/) [Anonymous](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anonymous/) > [“Some men see things as they are, and say, why; I dream things as they never were, and say, why not.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/george-bernard-shaw/some-men-see-things-as-they-are-and-say-why-i-dream-things-as-they/) [George Bernard Shaw](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/george-bernard-shaw/) > [Some people see things as they are and say why?. I dream of things and say why not?](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/robert-kenney/some-people-see-things-as-they-are-and-say-why-i-dream-of-things-and/) Robert Kenney > [“I hear you say 'Why?' Always 'Why?' You see things; and you say 'Why?' But I dream things that never were; and I say…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/george-bernard-shaw/i-hear-you-say-why-always-why-you-see-things-and-you-say-why-but-i/) [George Bernard Shaw](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/george-bernard-shaw/) > [You see things and you say, 'Why?'. But I dream things and I say, 'Why not?'.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/george-bernard-shaw/you-see-things-and-you-say-why-but-i-dream-things-and-i-say-why-not/) [George Bernard Shaw](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/george-bernard-shaw/) > [You see things and say, 'Why?', but I dream things and say, 'Why not?'](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/george-bernard-shaw/you-see-things-and-say-why-but-i-dream-things-and-say-why-not/) [George Bernard Shaw](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/george-bernard-shaw/) > [“You see things; you say, 'Why?' But I dream things that never were; and I say 'Why not?”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/george-bernard-shaw/you-see-things-you-say-why-but-i-dream-things-that-never-were-and-i/) [George Bernard Shaw](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/george-bernard-shaw/) > [Some men see things as they are and ask why. Others dream things that never were and ask why not.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/george-bernard-shaw/some-men-see-things-as-they-are-and-ask-why-others-dream-things-that/) [George Bernard Shaw](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/george-bernard-shaw/) > [“The people who get on in this world are the people who get up and look for the circumstances they want, and, if they…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/steve-levinson/the-people-who-get-on-in-this-world-are-the-people-who-get-up-and/) Steve Levinson > [Rees's First Law of Quotations: When in doubt, ascribe all quotations to George Bernard Shaw.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/nigel-rees/rees-s-first-law-of-quotations-when-in-doubt-ascribe-all-quotations/) [Nigel Rees](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/nigel-rees/) > [“It was George Bernard Shaw who famously said that you should not do to others as you would wish to be done to -…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/will-buckingham/it-was-george-bernard-shaw-who-famously-said-that-you-should-not-do/) Will Buckingham > [If you can't get rid of the skeleton in your closet, you'd best teach it to dance. - George Bernard Shaw (1856-1950)](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/george-bernard-shaw/if-you-can-t-get-rid-of-the-skeleton-in-your-closet-you-d-best-teach/) [George Bernard Shaw](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/george-bernard-shaw/) > [Nobody can read Freud without realizing that he was the scientific equivalent of another nuisance, George Bernard Shaw.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/robert-m-hutchins/nobody-can-read-freud-without-realizing-that-he-was-the-scientific/) [Robert M. Hutchins](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/robert-m-hutchins/) > [If a farmer calls me to a sick animal, he couldn't care less if I were George Bernard Shaw.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/james-herriot/if-a-farmer-calls-me-to-a-sick-animal-he-couldn-t-care-less-if-i-were/) [James Herriot](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/james-herriot/) > [As George Bernard Shaw observed: "All great truths begin as blasphemies." Yet I have to say, the idea that there is intelligent life elsewhere…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/neale-donald-walsch/as-george-bernard-shaw-observed-all-great-truths-begin-as-blasphemies/) [Neale Donald Walsch](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/neale-donald-walsch/) ## More by Anthony Robbins > [“success is simple. First, you decide what you want specifically; and second, you decide you’re willing to pay the price to make it happen—and…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anthony-robbins/success-is-simple-first-you-decide-what-you-want-specifically-and/) [Anthony Robbins](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anthony-robbins/) > [“They think that everything happens for a reason, and it serves them. They believe that every adversity contains the seed of an equivalent or…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anthony-robbins/they-think-that-everything-happens-for-a-reason-and-it-serves-them/) [Anthony Robbins](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anthony-robbins/) > [If you can't, you must. If you must, you can.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anthony-robbins/if-you-can-t-you-must-if-you-must-you-can/) [Anthony Robbins](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anthony-robbins/) > [“that people who produce outstanding results think this way.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anthony-robbins/that-people-who-produce-outstanding-results-think-this-way/) [Anthony Robbins](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anthony-robbins/) > [“The mystic poet William Blake once wrote, “The man who never alters his opinion is like standing water and breeds reptiles of the mind.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anthony-robbins/the-mystic-poet-william-blake-once-wrote-the-man-who-never-alters-his/) [Anthony Robbins](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anthony-robbins/) > [“Live life fully while you’re here.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anthony-robbins/live-life-fully-while-you-re-here/) [Anthony Robbins](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anthony-robbins/) > [“1) Decide what you want, 2) Take action, 3) Notice what’s working or not, and 4) Change your approach until you achieve what you…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anthony-robbins/1-decide-what-you-want-2-take-action-3-notice-what-s-working-or-not/) [Anthony Robbins](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anthony-robbins/) > [Do what you fear, and the death of fear is certain.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anthony-robbins/do-what-you-fear-and-the-death-of-fear-is-certain/) [Anthony Robbins](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anthony-robbins/) > [“No season lasts forever because all of life is a cycle of planting, reaping, resting, and renewal. Winter is not infinite: even if you’re…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anthony-robbins/no-season-lasts-forever-because-all-of-life-is-a-cycle-of-planting/) [Anthony Robbins](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anthony-robbins/) > [“Or maybe in school you didn’t learn as quickly as you thought other kids did, and rather than considering the idea that you had…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anthony-robbins/or-maybe-in-school-you-didn-t-learn-as-quickly-as-you-thought-other/) [Anthony Robbins](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anthony-robbins/) > [The quality of your life is the quality of your relationships.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anthony-robbins/the-quality-of-your-life-is-the-quality-of-your-relationships/) [Anthony Robbins](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anthony-robbins/) > [“In life, never spend more than 10 percent of your time on the problem, and spend at least 90 percent of your time on…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anthony-robbins/in-life-never-spend-more-than-10-percent-of-your-time-on-the-problem/) [Anthony Robbins](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anthony-robbins/) > [“What are our beliefs designed for? They’re the guiding force to tell us what will lead to pain and what will lead to pleasure.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anthony-robbins/what-are-our-beliefs-designed-for-they-re-the-guiding-force-to-tell/) [Anthony Robbins](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anthony-robbins/) > [“THE PROBLEM-SOLVING QUESTIONS 1. What is great about this problem? 2. What is not perfect yet? 3. What am I willing to do to…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anthony-robbins/the-problem-solving-questions-1-what-is-great-about-this-problem-2/) [Anthony Robbins](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anthony-robbins/) > [“Remember, don’t drive into the past using your rear-view mirror as a guide. You want to learn from your past, not live in it—focus…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anthony-robbins/remember-don-t-drive-into-the-past-using-your-rear-view-mirror-as-a/) [Anthony Robbins](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anthony-robbins/) [Explore all 42 Anthony Robbins quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anthony-robbins/) ## More Bernard shaw quotes > [Plato was only a Bernard Shaw who unfortunately made his jokes in Greek.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/gilbert-k-chesterton/plato-was-only-a-bernard-shaw-who-unfortunately-made-his-jokes-in/) [Gilbert K. Chesterton](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/gilbert-k-chesterton/) > [As George Bernard Shaw observed: "All great truths begin as blasphemies." Yet I have to say, the idea that there is intelligent life elsewhere…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/neale-donald-walsch/as-george-bernard-shaw-observed-all-great-truths-begin-as-blasphemies/) [Neale Donald Walsch](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/neale-donald-walsch/) > [My toils in the quotation field have led me to formulate two or three laws about the way people use and abuse quotations. My…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/nigel-rees/my-toils-in-the-quotation-field-have-led-me-to-formulate-two-or-three/) [Nigel Rees](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/nigel-rees/) > [Erik Erikson has commented: Potentially creative men like (Bernard) Shaw build the personal fundament of their work during a self-decreed moratorium, during which they…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/lewis-hyde/erik-erikson-has-commented-potentially-creative-men-like-bernard-shaw/) [Lewis Hyde](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/lewis-hyde/) > [Bernard Shaw remains the only model we have of what the citizen of a democracy should be: an informed participant in all things we…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jacques-barzun/bernard-shaw-remains-the-only-model-we-have-of-what-the-citizen-of-a/) [Jacques Barzun](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jacques-barzun/) > [If a farmer calls me to a sick animal, he couldn't care less if I were George Bernard Shaw.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/james-herriot/if-a-farmer-calls-me-to-a-sick-animal-he-couldn-t-care-less-if-i-were/) [James Herriot](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/james-herriot/) > [In two thousand years all our generals and politicians may be forgotten, but Einstein and Madame Curie and Bernard Shaw and Stravinsky will keep…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anthony-burgess/in-two-thousand-years-all-our-generals-and-politicians-may-be/) [Anthony Burgess](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anthony-burgess/) > [I must say Bernard Shaw is greatly improved by music.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/t-s-eliot/i-must-say-bernard-shaw-is-greatly-improved-by-music/) [T. S. Eliot](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/t-s-eliot/) > [Nobody can read Freud without realizing that he was the scientific equivalent of another nuisance, George Bernard Shaw.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/robert-m-hutchins/nobody-can-read-freud-without-realizing-that-he-was-the-scientific/) [Robert M. Hutchins](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/robert-m-hutchins/) > [The way Bernard Shaw believes in himself is very refreshing in these atheistic days when so many people believe in no God at all.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/israel-zangwill/the-way-bernard-shaw-believes-in-himself-is-very-refreshing-in-these/) [Israel Zangwill](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/israel-zangwill/) > [If you can't get rid of the skeleton in your closet, you'd best teach it to dance. - George Bernard Shaw (1856-1950)](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/george-bernard-shaw/if-you-can-t-get-rid-of-the-skeleton-in-your-closet-you-d-best-teach/) [George Bernard Shaw](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/george-bernard-shaw/) > [“It was George Bernard Shaw who famously said that you should not do to others as you would wish to be done to -…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/will-buckingham/it-was-george-bernard-shaw-who-famously-said-that-you-should-not-do/) Will Buckingham > [We depend on the critics to give us a glimpse of what happened. Bernard Shaw championed Ibsen, who got the most terrible notices for…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/diana-rigg/we-depend-on-the-critics-to-give-us-a-glimpse-of-what-happened/) [Diana Rigg](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/diana-rigg/) > [As yet, Bernard Shaw hasn't become prominent enough to have any enemies, but none of his friends like him.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/oscar-wilde/as-yet-bernard-shaw-hasn-t-become-prominent-enough-to-have-any/) [Oscar Wilde](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/oscar-wilde/) > [Rees's First Law of Quotations: When in doubt, ascribe all quotations to George Bernard Shaw.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/nigel-rees/rees-s-first-law-of-quotations-when-in-doubt-ascribe-all-quotations/) [Nigel Rees](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/nigel-rees/) Browse all 79 Bernard shaw quotes ```json { "@context": "https://schema.org", "@graph": [ { "@type": "Quotation", "text": "“Some men see things as they are, and say, ‘Why?’ I dream of things that never were, and say, ‘Why not?’” —GEORGE BERNARD SHAW”", "creator": { "@type": "Person", "name": "Anthony Robbins" }, "isPartOf": { "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/#website" }, "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anthony-robbins/some-men-see-things-as-they-are-and-say-why-i-dream-of-things-that-2/", "about": { "@type": "Thing", "name": "Bernard shaw" }, "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anthony-robbins/some-men-see-things-as-they-are-and-say-why-i-dream-of-things-that-2/#quotation", "image": { "@type": "ImageObject", "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/2e9/anthony-robbins-15346_george-bernard-shaw_some-men-see-things-as-they-are-and-say_917915.jpg", "contentUrl": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/2e9/anthony-robbins-15346_george-bernard-shaw_some-men-see-things-as-they-are-and-say_917915.jpg", "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/2e9/anthony-robbins-15346_george-bernard-shaw_some-men-see-things-as-they-are-and-say_917915.jpg", "width": 1080, "height": 1080, "caption": "“Some men see things as they are, and say, ‘Why?’ I dream of things that never were, and say, ‘Why not?’”…” — Anthony Robbins", "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": "Anthony Robbins", "item": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anthony-robbins/" }, { "@type": "ListItem", "position": 4, "name": "“Some men see things as they...", "item": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anthony-robbins/some-men-see-things-as-they-are-and-say-why-i-dream-of-things-that-2/" } ], "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anthony-robbins/some-men-see-things-as-they-are-and-say-why-i-dream-of-things-that-2/#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 } } ] } ```