--- title: "Meaning & Key Takeaway of: This is what I think about poverty: why…" description: "\"This is what I think about poverty: why waste the potential of people? You never know what you've got going in society unless you give people a chance...." image: "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/36c/bill-shorten-14126_chance_this-is-what-i-think-about-poverty-why-w_3220792.jpg" --- # This is what I think about poverty: why waste the… ![“This is what I think about poverty: why waste the potential of people? You never know what you've got going in society unless you give people a chance.” quote by Bill Shorten](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/36c/bill-shorten-14126_chance_this-is-what-i-think-about-poverty-why-w_3220792.jpg) [Download](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/36c/bill-shorten-14126_chance_this-is-what-i-think-about-poverty-why-w_3220792.jpg) [Open image](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/36c/bill-shorten-14126_chance_this-is-what-i-think-about-poverty-why-w_3220792.jpg) > “This is what I think about poverty: why waste the potential of people? You never know what you've got going in society unless you give people a chance.” [Bill Shorten](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/bill-shorten/) ## About This Quote This interpretation was drafted with AI assistance. It is one reading of the quote, not the author's own explanation. Poverty wastes human potential; giving people opportunities reveals their contributions to society. **In simple terms:** Helping the poor unlocks hidden talent. Key Takeaway Invest in opportunities for the disadvantaged. Themes poverty potential opportunity Mood hopeful urgent Type political inspirational When to use this quote - education programs - job training - community mentorship - policy reform Key Concepts social justice economic development human capital Questions to Reflect On - What barriers prevent people from accessing opportunities? - How can society measure the impact of aid? A Different Perspective Resources are limited; not all interventions succeed. ★ ★ ★ ★ ★ No ratings yet [Chance](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/chance/) [People](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/people/) [Poverty](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/poverty/) [Society](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/society/) ## Related quotes > [The crime against nature will never make any great progress in society unless people are prompted to it by some particular custom.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/baron-de-montesquieu/the-crime-against-nature-will-never-make-any-great-progress-in/) [Baron de Montesquieu](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/baron-de-montesquieu/) > [No society can function as a society, unless it gives the individual member social status and function, and unless the decisive social power is…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/peter-drucker/no-society-can-function-as-a-society-unless-it-gives-the-individual/) [Peter Drucker](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/peter-drucker/) > [You cannot change any society unless you take responsibility for it, unless you see yourself as belonging to it and responsible for changing it.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/grace-lee-boggs/you-cannot-change-any-society-unless-you-take-responsibility-for-it/) [Grace Lee Boggs](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/grace-lee-boggs/) > [No doubt it is easy to demostrate that property will destroy society unless society destroys it.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/george-bernard-shaw/no-doubt-it-is-easy-to-demostrate-that-property-will-destroy-society/) [George Bernard Shaw](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/george-bernard-shaw/) > [“We're in our own world, and we're in the world that has been given us outside, and the problem is to achieve3 a harmonious…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/joseph-campbell/we-re-in-our-own-world-and-we-re-in-the-world-that-has-been-given-us/) [Joseph Campbell](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/joseph-campbell/) > [At some point in your life you have to engage with the fact that you are part of a society. Yeah the individual is…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/billy-bragg/at-some-point-in-your-life-you-have-to-engage-with-the-fact-that-you/) [Billy Bragg](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/billy-bragg/) > [We cannot go beyond the consumer society unless we first understand that obligatory public schools inevitably reproduce such a society, no matter what is…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ivan-illich/we-cannot-go-beyond-the-consumer-society-unless-we-first-understand/) [Ivan Illich](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ivan-illich/) > [I do earnestly wish to see the distinction of sex confounded in society, unless where love animates the behaviour.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/mary-wollstonecraft/i-do-earnestly-wish-to-see-the-distinction-of-sex-confounded-in/) [Mary Wollstonecraft](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/mary-wollstonecraft/) > [I don't think poverty provides that much of an obstacle to education as one thinks. I think the bigger obstacle to education is the…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/amartya-sen/i-don-t-think-poverty-provides-that-much-of-an-obstacle-to-education/) [Amartya Sen](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/amartya-sen/) > [We should not think of poverty eradication as a matter of collecting money and giving it to the poor so much as of reforming…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/thomas-pogge/we-should-not-think-of-poverty-eradication-as-a-matter-of-collecting/) [Thomas Pogge](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/thomas-pogge/) > [Let us never allow ourselves to think that poverty is an excuse for an invitation to totalitarianism, and if we should be tempted to…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/bernard-levin/let-us-never-allow-ourselves-to-think-that-poverty-is-an-excuse-for/) [Bernard Levin](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/bernard-levin/) > [“Contrary to what the West seems to think, it is not poverty that brings people like us so close to God. It's the fact…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/orhan-pamuk/contrary-to-what-the-west-seems-to-think-it-is-not-poverty-that/) [Orhan Pamuk](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/orhan-pamuk/) > [I assume the president's going to say he got bad intelligence... I think that wherever you see poverty, whether it's in the white rural…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/charles-rangel/i-assume-the-president-s-going-to-say-he-got-bad-intelligence-i-think/) [Charles Rangel](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/charles-rangel/) > [“I came to think of poverty of speech as a reflection of the richness of the mind, giving it time to explore and develop…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anonymous/i-came-to-think-of-poverty-of-speech-as-a-reflection-of-the-richness/) [Anonymous](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anonymous/) > [We think sometimes that poverty is only being hungry, naked and homeless. The poverty of being unwanted, unloved and uncared for is the greatest…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/mother-teresa/we-think-sometimes-that-poverty-is-only-being-hungry-naked-and/) [Mother Teresa](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/mother-teresa/) ## More by Bill Shorten > [Both casual, unthinking discrimination and deliberate, malicious homophobia erode self-confidence and undermine mental health. Both are far too common, not just in our schoolyards…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/bill-shorten/both-casual-unthinking-discrimination-and-deliberate-malicious/) [Bill Shorten](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/bill-shorten/) > [Our world is moving forward on climate change. If Australia goes backwards, we will be going alone.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/bill-shorten/our-world-is-moving-forward-on-climate-change-if-australia-goes/) [Bill Shorten](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/bill-shorten/) > [To the best of my knowledge, when I became national secretary and, indeed, Victorian secretary, the - my predecessors in the union had detected…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/bill-shorten/to-the-best-of-my-knowledge-when-i-became-national-secretary-and/) [Bill Shorten](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/bill-shorten/) > [Safe Schools lets young people who identify as gay know that they have every right to be accepted and respected for who they are.…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/bill-shorten/safe-schools-lets-young-people-who-identify-as-gay-know-that-they/) [Bill Shorten](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/bill-shorten/) > [Labor should not be about creating monuments on hills or statues in parks. Labor's monuments and statues are when a young person can find…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/bill-shorten/labor-should-not-be-about-creating-monuments-on-hills-or-statues-in/) [Bill Shorten](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/bill-shorten/) > [We will always be a fair wage nation in a low wage region.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/bill-shorten/we-will-always-be-a-fair-wage-nation-in-a-low-wage-region/) [Bill Shorten](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/bill-shorten/) > [I believe marriage equality is a simple change that sends a powerful message. It is a chance for us to say, as a nation,…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/bill-shorten/i-believe-marriage-equality-is-a-simple-change-that-sends-a-powerful/) [Bill Shorten](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/bill-shorten/) > [It is devastating that jail is seen as a rite of passage for many Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander people, part of the natural…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/bill-shorten/it-is-devastating-that-jail-is-seen-as-a-rite-of-passage-for-many/) [Bill Shorten](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/bill-shorten/) > [Australia's economic future depends upon getting smarter. This means investing in the skills and knowledge of our workforce.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/bill-shorten/australia-s-economic-future-depends-upon-getting-smarter-this-means/) [Bill Shorten](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/bill-shorten/) > [The supreme challenge of Labor is to recognise our 'revolutionary moment' when it arrives. And to have the courage to seize it - wholly,…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/bill-shorten/the-supreme-challenge-of-labor-is-to-recognise-our-revolutionary/) [Bill Shorten](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/bill-shorten/) > [We commissioned an independent statutory economic body - the Productivity Commission - to review the possibility of funding a disability scheme. The commission returned…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/bill-shorten/we-commissioned-an-independent-statutory-economic-body-the/) [Bill Shorten](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/bill-shorten/) > [The appalling rate of incarceration among Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander peoples demands we create justice targets under the Closing the Gap framework.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/bill-shorten/the-appalling-rate-of-incarceration-among-aboriginal-and-torres/) [Bill Shorten](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/bill-shorten/) > [Trusting people to pursue their own futures invariably provides better outcomes. Money goes where it is needed, rather than being absorbed by administration costs.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/bill-shorten/trusting-people-to-pursue-their-own-futures-invariably-provides/) [Bill Shorten](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/bill-shorten/) > [We all have choices in history. Some are more important than others.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/bill-shorten/we-all-have-choices-in-history-some-are-more-important-than-others/) [Bill Shorten](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/bill-shorten/) > [Ending discrimination and extending equality should always be a national priority.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/bill-shorten/ending-discrimination-and-extending-equality-should-always-be-a/) [Bill Shorten](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/bill-shorten/) [Explore all 48 Bill Shorten quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/bill-shorten/) ## More Chance quotes > [Before I debuted, it was my goal to make my debut, and afterwards, I aimed at winning champion titles on television music shows, and…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/hyuna/before-i-debuted-it-was-my-goal-to-make-my-debut-and-afterwards-i/) [Hyuna](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/hyuna/) > [I understand it's promotion, but no one ever gave me a chance. No one ever thought I'd be the champ, and look where I'm…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/stipe-miocic/i-understand-it-s-promotion-but-no-one-ever-gave-me-a-chance-no-one/) [Stipe Miocic](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/stipe-miocic/) > [I might, by chance, write something just as shoddy; But then I wouldn't show it to everybody.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/moliere/i-might-by-chance-write-something-just-as-shoddy-but-then-i-wouldn-t/) [Moliere](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/moliere/) > [When I get a chance to play golf or go on a boat with good people, take the boat out and put some lobsters…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/bernie-mac/when-i-get-a-chance-to-play-golf-or-go-on-a-boat-with-good-people/) [Bernie Mac](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/bernie-mac/) > [The happy medium is television. And if you find a good suitor, you can do it for years. With movies, you roll the dice.…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/bruce-campbell/the-happy-medium-is-television-and-if-you-find-a-good-suitor-you-can/) [Bruce Campbell](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/bruce-campbell/) > [I get afraid of the dark if I'm in a great deal of dark, and I have to move around inside of that fear...…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/emil-ferris/i-get-afraid-of-the-dark-if-i-m-in-a-great-deal-of-dark-and-i-have-to/) [Emil Ferris](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/emil-ferris/) > [I have heard that if you pull a bent breath through the second hole of a harmonica tuned to the key of Georgia while…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/buddy-wakefield/i-have-heard-that-if-you-pull-a-bent-breath-through-the-second-hole/) [Buddy Wakefield](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/buddy-wakefield/) > [There are times when we can feel destiny close around us like a fist around a doorknob. Sure, we can resist. But a knob…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/tom-robbins/there-are-times-when-we-can-feel-destiny-close-around-us-like-a-fist/) [Tom Robbins](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/tom-robbins/) > [Pain held no terror for him. Pain was, if not friend, then family, something he had grown up with in his crèche, learning to…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/paolo-bacigalupi/pain-held-no-terror-for-him-pain-was-if-not-friend-then-family/) [Paolo Bacigalupi](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/paolo-bacigalupi/) > [Love changes people, for better or for worse. You could look at it as a chance for you to change. The best kind of…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anonymous/love-changes-people-for-better-or-for-worse-you-could-look-at-it-as-a/) [Anonymous](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anonymous/) > [“It's not who, it's when”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/alejandro-taubas/it-s-not-who-it-s-when/) Alejandro Taubas > [Childhood is Last Chance Gulch for happiness. After that, you know too much.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/tom-stoppard/childhood-is-last-chance-gulch-for-happiness-after-that-you-know-too/) [Tom Stoppard](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/tom-stoppard/) > [I thought my first few jobs would just be off, off, off, off, off broadway. And by chance and how the world works, I…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/tommy-dorfman/i-thought-my-first-few-jobs-would-just-be-off-off-off-off-off/) [Tommy Dorfman](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/tommy-dorfman/) > [If you’re worrying about the past, you’ve got a good chance of screwing up the future.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/howard-a-tullman/if-you-re-worrying-about-the-past-you-ve-got-a-good-chance-of/) [Howard A. Tullman](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/howard-a-tullman/) > [To be successful, one must take chances.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/willie-stargell/to-be-successful-one-must-take-chances/) [Willie Stargell](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/willie-stargell/) [Browse all 12,460 Chance quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/chance/) ```json { "@context": "https://schema.org", "@graph": [ { "@type": "Quotation", "text": "This is what I think about poverty: why waste the potential of people? You never know what you've got going in society unless you give people a chance.", "creator": { "@type": "Person", "name": "Bill Shorten" }, "isPartOf": { "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/#website" }, "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/bill-shorten/this-is-what-i-think-about-poverty-why-waste-the-potential-of-people/", "about": { "@type": "Thing", "name": "Chance" }, "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/bill-shorten/this-is-what-i-think-about-poverty-why-waste-the-potential-of-people/#quotation", "image": { "@type": "ImageObject", "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/36c/bill-shorten-14126_chance_this-is-what-i-think-about-poverty-why-w_3220792.jpg", "contentUrl": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/36c/bill-shorten-14126_chance_this-is-what-i-think-about-poverty-why-w_3220792.jpg", "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/36c/bill-shorten-14126_chance_this-is-what-i-think-about-poverty-why-w_3220792.jpg", "width": 1080, "height": 1080, "caption": "“This is what I think about poverty: why waste the potential of people? You never know what you've got going…” — Bill Shorten", "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": "Bill Shorten", "item": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/bill-shorten/" }, { "@type": "ListItem", "position": 4, "name": "This is what I think about...", "item": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/bill-shorten/this-is-what-i-think-about-poverty-why-waste-the-potential-of-people/" } ], "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/bill-shorten/this-is-what-i-think-about-poverty-why-waste-the-potential-of-people/#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 } } ] } ```