--- title: "Meaning & Key Takeaway of: Icelandic people are really educated. But…" description: "\"Icelandic people are really educated. But maybe we are at where the people in the States were 50 years ago, where they think that stuff that isn't done..." image: "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/8d1/bjork-2024_backwards_icelandic-people-are-really-educated-but_3221902.jpg" --- # Icelandic people are really educated. But maybe we are at… ![“Icelandic people are really educated. But maybe we are at where the people in the States were 50 years ago, where they think that stuff that isn't done with a hammer or physical power is not a job. It's that backwards.” quote by Bjork](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/8d1/bjork-2024_backwards_icelandic-people-are-really-educated-but_3221902.jpg) [Download](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/8d1/bjork-2024_backwards_icelandic-people-are-really-educated-but_3221902.jpg) [Open image](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/8d1/bjork-2024_backwards_icelandic-people-are-really-educated-but_3221902.jpg) > “Icelandic people are really educated. But maybe we are at where the people in the States were 50 years ago, where they think that stuff that isn't done with a hammer or physical power is not a job. It's that backwards.” [Bjork](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/bjork/) ## About This Quote This interpretation was drafted with AI assistance. It is one reading of the quote, not the author's own explanation. Societal values undervalue intellectual work compared to physical labor, reflecting outdated perceptions of what constitutes a legitimate job. **In simple terms:** People think only physical work is real work, ignoring intellectual contributions. Key Takeaway Challenge stereotypes about work value. Themes culture labor education Mood thoughtful critical Type cultural educational When to use this quote - career counseling - education reform - media representation Key Concepts work perception intellectual labor social norms Questions to Reflect On - How can we elevate the status of intellectual work? - What examples show intellectual work’s impact? A Different Perspective Changing deep-rooted cultural beliefs is difficult. ★ ★ ★ ★ ★ No ratings yet [Icelandic](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/icelandic/) [People](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/people/) [Thinking](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/thinking/) ## Related quotes > [I feel Icelandic people are really good at gathering together information and brain power. We're better at that than some kind of Las Vegas…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/bjork/i-feel-icelandic-people-are-really-good-at-gathering-together/) [Bjork](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/bjork/) > [Most Icelandic people are really proud to be from there, and we don't have embarrassments like World War II where we were cruel to…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/bjork/most-icelandic-people-are-really-proud-to-be-from-there-and-we-don-t/) [Bjork](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/bjork/) > [Icelandic people are inbred. And they have a sense of themselves as genetically special, and a history of risk-taking because they make their living…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/michael-lewis/icelandic-people-are-inbred-and-they-have-a-sense-of-themselves-as/) [Michael Lewis](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/michael-lewis/) > [I feel like the people from Iceland have a different relationship with their country than other places. Most Icelandic people are really proud to…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/bjork/i-feel-like-the-people-from-iceland-have-a-different-relationship/) [Bjork](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/bjork/) > [The way I was educated, maybe from just inhaling something in the air back then, I grew up believing that E. B. White occupied…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/paul-di-filippo/the-way-i-was-educated-maybe-from-just-inhaling-something-in-the-air/) [Paul Di Filippo](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/paul-di-filippo/) > [I took three years off. I differentiated myself from the industry. Found my identity - sort of... I haven't graduated yet. I'm not legitimately…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/claire-danes/i-took-three-years-off-i-differentiated-myself-from-the-industry/) [Claire Danes](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/claire-danes/) > [Icelandic peoples were the ones who memorized sagas... We were the first rappers of Europe.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/bjork/icelandic-peoples-were-the-ones-who-memorized-sagas-we-were-the-first/) [Bjork](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/bjork/) > [I think everyone should go to college and get a degree and then spend six months as a bartender and six months as a…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/al-mcguire/i-think-everyone-should-go-to-college-and-get-a-degree-and-then-spend/) [Al McGuire](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/al-mcguire/) > [I think ereoyvne should go to college and get a degree and then spend six months as a bartender and six months as a…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/aastha/i-think-ereoyvne-should-go-to-college-and-get-a-degree-and-then-spend/) Aastha > [ I've taken \[acting\] class with Larry Moss, who's more kind of in the theater world, so he's really educated me about playwrights. ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/eva-mendes/i-ve-taken-acting-class-with-larry-moss-who-s-more-kind-of-in-the/) [Eva Mendes](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/eva-mendes/) > [When I started stand-up - and this is in the '90s - there was definitely people hadn't watched decades of Comedy Central, where people…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jim-gaffigan/when-i-started-stand-up-and-this-is-in-the-90s-there-was-definitely/) [Jim Gaffigan](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jim-gaffigan/) > [“Blíndur er bóklaus ma∂ur. Blind is a man without a book.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/hannah-kent/bl-ndur-er-b-klaus-ma-ur-blind-is-a-man-without-a-book/) [Hannah Kent](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/hannah-kent/) > [Icelanders love to speak English. Their English is a joy to hear because of how colloquial and idiomatic it is, but they appreciate your…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/john-grant/icelanders-love-to-speak-english-their-english-is-a-joy-to-hear/) [John Grant](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/john-grant/) > [It's very difficult to say anything in Icelandic. I can say "takk," which means "thank you." That's about all I learned.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/kit-harington/it-s-very-difficult-to-say-anything-in-icelandic-i-can-say-takk-which/) [Kit Harington](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/kit-harington/) > [One thing for sure is it will be written in the Icelandic language. All of my literary work is.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/sjon/one-thing-for-sure-is-it-will-be-written-in-the-icelandic-language/) [Sjon](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/sjon/) ## More by Bjork > [Sometimes when I write lyrics there are images in them, usually on a quite simplistic level, like colors. But most often music comes first…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/bjork/sometimes-when-i-write-lyrics-there-are-images-in-them-usually-on-a/) [Bjork](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/bjork/) > [“I do not believe in religion, but if I had to choose one, it would be Buddhism. It seems more livable, closer to men.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/bjork/i-do-not-believe-in-religion-but-if-i-had-to-choose-one-it-would-be/) [Björk](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/bjork/) > [Over the last 10 years, there have been so many incredible albums created in bedrooms by people who never would've gotten an album deal.…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/bjork/over-the-last-10-years-there-have-been-so-many-incredible-albums/) [Bjork](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/bjork/) > [“I mean, the human race, we are a tribe, let's face it, and let's stop all this religious bullshit. I think everybody, or at…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/bjork/i-mean-the-human-race-we-are-a-tribe-let-s-face-it-and-let-s-stop-all/) [Björk](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/bjork/) > [I find it very difficult to draw a line between what's sex and what isn't. It can be very, very sexy to drive a…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/bjork/i-find-it-very-difficult-to-draw-a-line-between-what-s-sex-and-what/) [Bjork](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/bjork/) > [Believe it or not, I'm a bit clumsy with technology. It's probably why I'm so excited about the touchscreen - even an idiot can…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/bjork/believe-it-or-not-i-m-a-bit-clumsy-with-technology-it-s-probably-why/) [Bjork](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/bjork/) > [I don't really have an ego. I'm not that bothered.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/bjork/i-don-t-really-have-an-ego-i-m-not-that-bothered/) [Bjork](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/bjork/) > [I feel the 21st century is another new age. Not only can we collaborate again with nature, but we have to. It's an emergency.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/bjork/i-feel-the-21st-century-is-another-new-age-not-only-can-we/) [Bjork](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/bjork/) > [“You show me continents, I see the islands, You count the centuries, I blink my eyes.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/bjork/you-show-me-continents-i-see-the-islands-you-count-the-centuries-i/) [Bjork](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/bjork/) > [I find most children quite inspiring.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/bjork/i-find-most-children-quite-inspiring/) [Bjork](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/bjork/) > [In '96, I was in a very specific place with my own music - I was only listening to beats. You would come to…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/bjork/in-96-i-was-in-a-very-specific-place-with-my-own-music-i-was-only/) [Bjork](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/bjork/) > [I think every year brings unknowns that you have to deal with and handle, confront and embrace.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/bjork/i-think-every-year-brings-unknowns-that-you-have-to-deal-with-and/) [Bjork](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/bjork/) > [Maybe it's just a personal thing, but I get so much grounding from Iceland because I know it's always going to be there. I…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/bjork/maybe-it-s-just-a-personal-thing-but-i-get-so-much-grounding-from/) [Bjork](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/bjork/) > [When I was 18, science, physics, and math were my favorite. I was a bit of a nerd - the only girl with a…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/bjork/when-i-was-18-science-physics-and-math-were-my-favorite-i-was-a-bit/) [Bjork](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/bjork/) > [I never really understood the word ‘loneliness’. As far as I was concerned, I was in an orgy with the sky and the ocean,…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/bjork/i-never-really-understood-the-word-loneliness-as-far-as-i-was/) [Bjork](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/bjork/) [Explore all 191 Bjork quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/bjork/) ## 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 ```json { "@context": "https://schema.org", "@graph": [ { "@type": "Quotation", "text": "Icelandic people are really educated. But maybe we are at where the people in the States were 50 years ago, where they think that stuff that isn't done with a hammer or physical power is not a job. It's that backwards.", "creator": { "@type": "Person", "name": "Bjork" }, "isPartOf": { "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/#website" }, "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/bjork/icelandic-people-are-really-educated-but-maybe-we-are-at-where-the/", "about": { "@type": "Thing", "name": "Backwards" }, "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/bjork/icelandic-people-are-really-educated-but-maybe-we-are-at-where-the/#quotation", "image": { "@type": "ImageObject", "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/8d1/bjork-2024_backwards_icelandic-people-are-really-educated-but_3221902.jpg", "contentUrl": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/8d1/bjork-2024_backwards_icelandic-people-are-really-educated-but_3221902.jpg", "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/8d1/bjork-2024_backwards_icelandic-people-are-really-educated-but_3221902.jpg", "width": 1080, "height": 1080, "caption": "“Icelandic people are really educated. But maybe we are at where the people in the States were 50 years ago…” — Bjork", "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": "Bjork", "item": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/bjork/" }, { "@type": "ListItem", "position": 4, "name": "Icelandic people are really educated. But...", "item": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/bjork/icelandic-people-are-really-educated-but-maybe-we-are-at-where-the/" } ], "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/bjork/icelandic-people-are-really-educated-but-maybe-we-are-at-where-the/#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 } } ] } ```