--- title: "Meaning & Key Takeaway of: He that can please nobody is not so much…" description: "\"He that can please nobody is not so much to be pitied as he that nobody can please.\" — Charles Caleb Colton" image: "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/131/charles-caleb-colton-270_please_he-that-can-please-nobody-is-not-so-much_1340380.png" --- # He that can please nobody is not so much to be pitied as… ![“He that can please nobody is not so much to be pitied as he that nobody can please.” quote by Charles Caleb Colton](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/131/charles-caleb-colton-270_please_he-that-can-please-nobody-is-not-so-much_1340380.png) [Download](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/131/charles-caleb-colton-270_please_he-that-can-please-nobody-is-not-so-much_1340380.png) [Open image](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/131/charles-caleb-colton-270_please_he-that-can-please-nobody-is-not-so-much_1340380.png) > “He that can please nobody is not so much to be pitied as he that nobody can please.” [Charles Caleb Colton](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/charles-caleb-colton/) ## About This Quote This interpretation was drafted with AI assistance. It is one reading of the quote, not the author's own explanation. Being unable to satisfy anyone is more pitiable than being unable to please anyone at all. **In simple terms:** Not pleasing anyone is worse than being unpleasable. Key Takeaway Recognize the difference between being unliked and being unable to please. Themes pity human nature expectations Mood reflective somber Type philosophical observational When to use this quote - personal relationships - leadership - customer service Key Concepts ego social dynamics Questions to Reflect On - Do you prioritize personal integrity over universal approval? - How does this view affect your leadership style? A Different Perspective Even if you please everyone, you may still be pitied for lack of authenticity. ★ ★ ★ ★ ★ No ratings yet ## Related quotes > [If we believe that a person seeking refuge is to be pitied, feared, despised, and looked down upon, we are doing ourselves a disservice.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/clemantine-wamariya/if-we-believe-that-a-person-seeking-refuge-is-to-be-pitied-feared/) [Clemantine Wamariya](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/clemantine-wamariya/) > [He's more to be pitied than scorned](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/unnown/he-s-more-to-be-pitied-than-scorned/) Unnown > [Seeing too much to deny and too little to be sure, I am in a state to be pitied.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/blaise-pascal/seeing-too-much-to-deny-and-too-little-to-be-sure-i-am-in-a-state-to/) [Blaise Pascal](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/blaise-pascal/) > [I seem to be the only person in the world who doesn't mind being pitied. If you love me, pity me. The human state…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jessamyn-west/i-seem-to-be-the-only-person-in-the-world-who-doesn-t-mind-being/) [Jessamyn West](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jessamyn-west/) > [The coward is an object to be pitied.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/swami-vivekananda/the-coward-is-an-object-to-be-pitied/) [Swami Vivekananda](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/swami-vivekananda/) > [“She did not want to be a consolation prize. Be pitied or a distraction.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/sarah-j-maas/she-did-not-want-to-be-a-consolation-prize-be-pitied-or-a-distraction/) [Sarah J. Maas](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/sarah-j-maas/) > [Girls, like men, want to be petted, pitied, and made much of, when they are diffident, in low spirits, or in unrequited love. These…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/george-bernard-shaw/girls-like-men-want-to-be-petted-pitied-and-made-much-of-when-they/) [George Bernard Shaw](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/george-bernard-shaw/) > [No one likes to be pitied for his faults.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/luc-de-clapiers/no-one-likes-to-be-pitied-for-his-faults/) [Luc de Clapiers](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/luc-de-clapiers/) > [When men take pleasure in feeling their minds elevated with strong drink, and so indulge their appetite as to disorder their understandings, neglect their…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/john-woolman/when-men-take-pleasure-in-feeling-their-minds-elevated-with-strong/) [John Woolman](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/john-woolman/) > [ “\[T\]hey are much to be pitied who have not ... been given a taste for Nature in early life. They lose a great deal.” ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jane-austen/t-hey-are-much-to-be-pitied-who-have-not-been-given-a-taste-for/) [Jane Austen](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jane-austen/) > [“So he dreams himself the life he cannot have?” “Exactly. But we, who can do anything, we refuse to live our dreams on the…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/helen-simonson/so-he-dreams-himself-the-life-he-cannot-have-exactly-but-we-who-can/) [Helen Simonson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/helen-simonson/) > [“People pitied only what they could easily slaughter.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/c-j-hill/people-pitied-only-what-they-could-easily-slaughter/) [C.J. Hill](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/c-j-hill/) > [This thought strengthened in me my belief that all men, without exception, deserve to be pitied, if only because they are alive.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/alberto-moravia/this-thought-strengthened-in-me-my-belief-that-all-men-without/) [Alberto Moravia](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/alberto-moravia/) > [If our inward griefs were written on our brows, how many who are envied now would be pitied. It would seem that they had…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/pietro-metastasio/if-our-inward-griefs-were-written-on-our-brows-how-many-who-are/) [Pietro Metastasio](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/pietro-metastasio/) > [I lived with the terrible knowledge that one day I would be an old man still waiting for my real life to start. Already,…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/pat-conroy/i-lived-with-the-terrible-knowledge-that-one-day-i-would-be-an-old/) [Pat Conroy](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/pat-conroy/) ## More by Charles Caleb Colton > [Villainy that is vigilant will be an overmatch for virtue, if she slumber at her post.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/charles-caleb-colton/villainy-that-is-vigilant-will-be-an-overmatch-for-virtue-if-she/) [Charles Caleb Colton](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/charles-caleb-colton/) > [A beautiful woman, if poor, should use double circumspection; for her beauty will tempt others, her poverty herself.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/charles-caleb-colton/a-beautiful-woman-if-poor-should-use-double-circumspection-for-her/) [Charles Caleb Colton](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/charles-caleb-colton/) > [Were the life of man prolonged, he would become such a proficient in villainy, that it would become necessary again to drown or to…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/charles-caleb-colton/were-the-life-of-man-prolonged-he-would-become-such-a-proficient-in/) [Charles Caleb Colton](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/charles-caleb-colton/) > [To dare to live alone is the rarest courage; since there are many who had rather meet their bitterest enemy in the field, than…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/charles-caleb-colton/to-dare-to-live-alone-is-the-rarest-courage-since-there-are-many-who/) [Charles Caleb Colton](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/charles-caleb-colton/) > [It is doubtful whether mankind are most indebted to those who like Bacon and Butler dig the gold from the mine of literature, or…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/charles-caleb-colton/it-is-doubtful-whether-mankind-are-most-indebted-to-those-who-like/) [Charles Caleb Colton](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/charles-caleb-colton/) > [Be very slow to believe that you are wiser than all others; it is a fatal but common error. Where one has been saved…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/charles-caleb-colton/be-very-slow-to-believe-that-you-are-wiser-than-all-others-it-is-a/) [Charles Caleb Colton](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/charles-caleb-colton/) > [None are so fond of secrets as those who do not mean to keep them.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/charles-caleb-colton/none-are-so-fond-of-secrets-as-those-who-do-not-mean-to-keep-them/) [Charles Caleb Colton](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/charles-caleb-colton/) > [Mental pleasures never cloy; unlike those of the body, they are increased by reputation, approved by reflection, and strengthened by enjoyment.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/charles-caleb-colton/mental-pleasures-never-cloy-unlike-those-of-the-body-they-are/) [Charles Caleb Colton](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/charles-caleb-colton/) > [Ignorance lies at the bottom of all human knowledge, and the deeper we penetrate, the nearer we arrive unto it.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/charles-caleb-colton/ignorance-lies-at-the-bottom-of-all-human-knowledge-and-the-deeper-we/) [Charles Caleb Colton](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/charles-caleb-colton/) > [Heroism, self-denial, and magnanimity, in all instances where they do not spring from a principle of religion, are but splendid altars on which we…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/charles-caleb-colton/heroism-self-denial-and-magnanimity-in-all-instances-where-they-do/) [Charles Caleb Colton](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/charles-caleb-colton/) > [We ought not to be over-anxious to encourage innovation in cases of doubtful improvement, for an old system must ever have two advantages over…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/charles-caleb-colton/we-ought-not-to-be-over-anxious-to-encourage-innovation-in-cases-of/) [Charles Caleb Colton](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/charles-caleb-colton/) > [We owe almost all our knowledge not to those who have agreed, but to those who have differed](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/charles-caleb-colton/we-owe-almost-all-our-knowledge-not-to-those-who-have-agreed-but-to/) [Charles Caleb Colton](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/charles-caleb-colton/) > [Metaphysicians have been learning their lessons for the last four thousand years, and it is high time that they should now begin to teach…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/charles-caleb-colton/metaphysicians-have-been-learning-their-lessons-for-the-last-four/) [Charles Caleb Colton](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/charles-caleb-colton/) > [Faith and works are necessary to our spiritual life as Christians, as soul and body are to our natural life as men; for faith…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/charles-caleb-colton/faith-and-works-are-necessary-to-our-spiritual-life-as-christians-as/) [Charles Caleb Colton](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/charles-caleb-colton/) > [When all moves equally (says Pascal), nothing seems to move as in a vessel under sail; and when all run by common consent into…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/charles-caleb-colton/when-all-moves-equally-says-pascal-nothing-seems-to-move-as-in-a/) [Charles Caleb Colton](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/charles-caleb-colton/) [Explore all 778 Charles Caleb Colton quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/charles-caleb-colton/) ## More Please quotes > [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/) > [Grandma, please. It’s okay. Dad’s doing a great job. I give him kudos for at least being calm and rational, and not losing his…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/sherrilyn-kenyon/grandma-please-it-s-okay-dad-s-doing-a-great-job-i-give-him-kudos-for/) [Sherrilyn Kenyon](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/sherrilyn-kenyon/) > [I have often wondered how they manage to get return envelopes which miss, by one-quarter of an inch, fitting the blank you are supposed…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/robert-benchley/i-have-often-wondered-how-they-manage-to-get-return-envelopes-which/) [Robert Benchley](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/robert-benchley/) > [I just can’t, Nick, okay? Now, please give me a second to lie here in silence and bleed.” – Caleb](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/sherrilyn-kenyon/i-just-can-t-nick-okay-now-please-give-me-a-second-to-lie-here-in/) [Sherrilyn Kenyon](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/sherrilyn-kenyon/) > [Good girls don't hurt other people's feelings. Good girls are not overly aggressive, competitive, or boastful. Good girls please others. But what good girls…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/susan-jane-gilman/good-girls-don-t-hurt-other-people-s-feelings-good-girls-are-not/) [Susan Jane Gilman](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/susan-jane-gilman/) > [The less we show our love to a woman, Or please her less, and neglect our duty, The more we trap and ruin her…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/alexander-pushkin/the-less-we-show-our-love-to-a-woman-or-please-her-less-and-neglect/) [Alexander Pushkin](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/alexander-pushkin/) > [Please don't allow anyone to make you feel less than what you are.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/colleen-hoover/please-don-t-allow-anyone-to-make-you-feel-less-than-what-you-are/) [Colleen Hoover](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/colleen-hoover/) > [... even the most sublimely accomplished non-stop talker can't consistently please.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/j-d-salinger-2/even-the-most-sublimely-accomplished-non-stop-talker-can-t/) [J. D. Salinger](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/j-d-salinger-2/) > [Don't smoke. Don't kill yourselves. Don't maim yourselves. Tell your friends. Please don't smoke.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/joe-eszterhas/don-t-smoke-don-t-kill-yourselves-don-t-maim-yourselves-tell-your/) [Joe Eszterhas](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/joe-eszterhas/) > [Closing his eyes, he sent up a prayer to anyone who was listening, asking please, for God's sake, stop sending him signals that they…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/j-r-ward/closing-his-eyes-he-sent-up-a-prayer-to-anyone-who-was-listening/) [J.R. Ward](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/j-r-ward/) > [Vienna is a handsome, lively city, and pleases me exceedingly.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/frederic-chopin/vienna-is-a-handsome-lively-city-and-pleases-me-exceedingly/) [Frederic Chopin](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/frederic-chopin/) > [Many people expect, just as they did then, "those at the top" to make all their decisions for them: Please get us work, and…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/wladyslaw-bartoszewski/many-people-expect-just-as-they-did-then-those-at-the-top-to-make-all/) [Wladyslaw Bartoszewski](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/wladyslaw-bartoszewski/) > [ I walked all around it \[the Guggenheim Bilbao\] and couldn't find one clear, clean shot. To make things worse, the weather was lousy. 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