--- title: "Meaning & Key Takeaway of: If people I've never met or don't know…" description: "\"If people I've never met or don't know say that what I've written or done or said means anything to them, then I'm happy to take it at face value, for ..." image: "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/769/christopher-hitchens-117_cheer_if-people-i-ve-never-met-or-don-t-know-s_3004639.jpg" --- # If people I've never met or don't know say that what I've… ![“If people I've never met or don't know say that what I've written or done or said means anything to them, then I'm happy to take it at face value, for once. It cheers me up.” quote by Christopher Hitchens](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/769/christopher-hitchens-117_cheer_if-people-i-ve-never-met-or-don-t-know-s_3004639.jpg) [Download](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/769/christopher-hitchens-117_cheer_if-people-i-ve-never-met-or-don-t-know-s_3004639.jpg) [Open image](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/769/christopher-hitchens-117_cheer_if-people-i-ve-never-met-or-don-t-know-s_3004639.jpg) > “If people I've never met or don't know say that what I've written or done or said means anything to them, then I'm happy to take it at face value, for once. It cheers me up.” [Christopher Hitchens](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/christopher-hitchens/) ## About This Quote This interpretation was drafted with AI assistance. It is one reading of the quote, not the author's own explanation. If strangers find meaning in your work, accept it graciously; it can lift your spirits. **In simple terms:** Take unknown appreciation at face value. Key Takeaway Appreciate unexpected validation. Themes recognition humility self‑esteem Mood humble cheerful Type reflective philosophical When to use this quote - publishing - public speaking Key Concepts social psychology validation theory Questions to Reflect On - What does this praise mean to you? - How does it affect your work? A Different Perspective Over‑valuing strangers’ opinions may distort self‑assessment. ★ ★ ★ ★ ★ No ratings yet [Cheer me up](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/cheer-me-up/) [Face value](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/face-value/) [Faces](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/faces/) [People](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/people/) [Values](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/values/) ## Related quotes > [“Show me what you've written," I said, although I wanted desperately to avoid looking at it.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/osamu-dazai/show-me-what-you-ve-written-i-said-although-i-wanted-desperately-to/) [Osamu Dazai](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/osamu-dazai/) > [I wouldn't be very happy if a poet read what I had written and said, 'What a peculiar thing to say about this work…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/helen-vendler/i-wouldn-t-be-very-happy-if-a-poet-read-what-i-had-written-and-said/) [Helen Vendler](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/helen-vendler/) > [“Truths are written, never said... Lines are drawn, but then they fade.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/colleen-hoover/truths-are-written-never-said-lines-are-drawn-but-then-they-fade/) [Colleen Hoover](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/colleen-hoover/) > [“She's read every word I've written," he said. "That's the truest way to know someone's heart.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/adam-johnson/she-s-read-every-word-i-ve-written-he-said-that-s-the-truest-way-to/) [adam johnson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/adam-johnson/) > [“After all that had happened, that it all came down to what was written and what had been said.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jodi-picoult/after-all-that-had-happened-that-it-all-came-down-to-what-was-written/) [Jodi Picoult](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jodi-picoult/) > [I can't tell you how many times someone has written me and said, 'I became a doctor because of you' or 'I became a…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/rudy-ruettiger/i-can-t-tell-you-how-many-times-someone-has-written-me-and-said-i/) [Rudy Ruettiger](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/rudy-ruettiger/) > [“Indeed, all books, each and every book ever written, could be said to be offered to the reader as a form of self-help.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/mohsin-hamid/indeed-all-books-each-and-every-book-ever-written-could-be-said-to-be/) [Mohsin Hamid](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/mohsin-hamid/) > [I can't stress to you enough how much I can relate to teens being cyberbullied. Something that helps me is looking at old videos…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ariana-grande/i-can-t-stress-to-you-enough-how-much-i-can-relate-to-teens-being/) [Ariana Grande](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ariana-grande/) > [Tommy grabs my waist and swings me around in a circle. I drag my feet because i am opposed to people touching me when…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/maggie-stiefvater/tommy-grabs-my-waist-and-swings-me-around-in-a-circle-i-drag-my-feet/) [Maggie Stiefvater](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/maggie-stiefvater/) > [You know what the doctor said to me to cheer me up?" Fat said. "There are worse diseases than cancer." "Did he show you…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/philip-k-dick/you-know-what-the-doctor-said-to-me-to-cheer-me-up-fat-said-there-are/) [Philip K. Dick](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/philip-k-dick/) > [I hate to admit this, but some days hearing about other people's problems actually cheers me up.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/susan-elizabeth-phillips/i-hate-to-admit-this-but-some-days-hearing-about-other-people-s/) [Susan Elizabeth Phillips](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/susan-elizabeth-phillips/) > [In the past, I used to counter any such notions by asking myself: 'Would you really want President Hattersley?' I now find that possibility…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/a-n-wilson/in-the-past-i-used-to-counter-any-such-notions-by-asking-myself-would/) [A. N. Wilson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/a-n-wilson/) > [“I resolutely refuse to believe that the state of Edward's health had anything to do with this, and I don't say this only because…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/christopher-hitchens/i-resolutely-refuse-to-believe-that-the-state-of-edward-s-health-had/) [Christopher Hitchens](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/christopher-hitchens/) > [Beauty products always cheer me up and give me hope. If it makes you feel pretty, why not?](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/salma-hayek/beauty-products-always-cheer-me-up-and-give-me-hope-if-it-makes-you/) [Salma Hayek](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/salma-hayek/) > [Ingenuity and incongruity always cheer me up.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/terry-pratchett/ingenuity-and-incongruity-always-cheer-me-up/) [Terry Pratchett](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/terry-pratchett/) ## More by Christopher Hitchens > [“The spirit of our accurate and exact philosophy is outraged by conclusions that contradict each other so glaringly.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/christopher-hitchens/the-spirit-of-our-accurate-and-exact-philosophy-is-outraged-by/) [Christopher Hitchens](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/christopher-hitchens/) > [“Many governments employ torture but this was the first time that the element of Saturnalia and pornography in the process had been made so…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/christopher-hitchens/many-governments-employ-torture-but-this-was-the-first-time-that-the/) [Christopher Hitchens](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/christopher-hitchens/) > [ It's \[Los Angeles\] mostly full of nonsense and delusion and egomania. They think they'll be young and beautiful forever, even though most of them… ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/christopher-hitchens/it-s-los-angeles-mostly-full-of-nonsense-and-delusion-and-egomania/) [Christopher Hitchens](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/christopher-hitchens/) > [To be against rationalization is not the same as to be opposed to reasoning.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/christopher-hitchens/to-be-against-rationalization-is-not-the-same-as-to-be-opposed-to/) [Christopher Hitchens](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/christopher-hitchens/) > [ \[Religion\] attacks us in our deepest integrity - the core of our self-respect. Religion says that we would not know right from wrong, we… ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/christopher-hitchens/religion-attacks-us-in-our-deepest-integrity-the-core-of-our-self/) [Christopher Hitchens](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/christopher-hitchens/) > [“In the very recent past, we have seen the Church of Rome befouled by its complicity with the unpardonable sin of child rape, or,…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/christopher-hitchens/in-the-very-recent-past-we-have-seen-the-church-of-rome-befouled-by/) [Christopher Hitchens](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/christopher-hitchens/) > [It's surprising to me how many of my friends send Christmas cards, or holiday cards, including my atheist and secular friends.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/christopher-hitchens/it-s-surprising-to-me-how-many-of-my-friends-send-christmas-cards-or/) [Christopher Hitchens](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/christopher-hitchens/) > [Suppose there were groups of secularists at hospitals who went round the terminally ill and urged them to adopt atheism: 'Don't be a mug…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/christopher-hitchens/suppose-there-were-groups-of-secularists-at-hospitals-who-went-round/) [Christopher Hitchens](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/christopher-hitchens/) > [There are, after all, atheists who say they wish the fable were true but are unable to suspend the requisite disbelief, or who have…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/christopher-hitchens/there-are-after-all-atheists-who-say-they-wish-the-fable-were-true/) [Christopher Hitchens](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/christopher-hitchens/) > [“It isn’t so long since a test of Anglican orthodoxy was applied to anyone seeking to study or teach at Oxford and Cambridge universities.…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/christopher-hitchens/it-isn-t-so-long-since-a-test-of-anglican-orthodoxy-was-applied-to/) [Christopher Hitchens](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/christopher-hitchens/) > [Gullibility and credulity are considered undesireable qualities in every department of human life - except religion ... Why are we praised by godly men…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/christopher-hitchens/gullibility-and-credulity-are-considered-undesireable-qualities-in/) [Christopher Hitchens](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/christopher-hitchens/) > [It's much worse to see a woman drunk than a man: I don't know quite why this is true but it just is. Don't…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/christopher-hitchens/it-s-much-worse-to-see-a-woman-drunk-than-a-man-i-don-t-know-quite/) [Christopher Hitchens](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/christopher-hitchens/) > [It's true that obscenity is a matter of taste and in the eye of the beholder.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/christopher-hitchens/it-s-true-that-obscenity-is-a-matter-of-taste-and-in-the-eye-of-the/) [Christopher Hitchens](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/christopher-hitchens/) > [I worked out early on to give up things I couldn't do well at all.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/christopher-hitchens/i-worked-out-early-on-to-give-up-things-i-couldn-t-do-well-at-all/) [Christopher Hitchens](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/christopher-hitchens/) > [Writing is what's important to me, and anything that helps me do that - or enhances and prolongs and deepens and sometimes intensifies argument…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/christopher-hitchens/writing-is-what-s-important-to-me-and-anything-that-helps-me-do-that/) [Christopher Hitchens](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/christopher-hitchens/) [Explore all 1,241 Christopher Hitchens quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/christopher-hitchens/) ## More Cheer quotes > [Laughing, laughing, laughing, laughing! It is the jester! A voice from the Void, to cheer poor Cicero! I accept your gift, dearest Night Mother.…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/marcus-tullius-cicero/laughing-laughing-laughing-laughing-it-is-the-jester-a-voice-from-the/) [Marcus Tullius Cicero](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/marcus-tullius-cicero/) > [Hardy thinks they're cheering for him. I'm not going to tell him differently.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/terry-hoeppner/hardy-thinks-they-re-cheering-for-him-i-m-not-going-to-tell-him/) Terry Hoeppner > [When I step into the batters box. The fans, the noise, the cheers, they all disappear. For that moment, the world is just a…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/mary-wollstonecraft-shelley/when-i-step-into-the-batters-box-the-fans-the-noise-the-cheers-they/) [Mary Wollstonecraft Shelley](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/mary-wollstonecraft-shelley/) > [When the American people saw the LA riots and crowds of Blacks cheering O.J. Simpson (who was acquitted by the almost all Black jury),…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/david-duke/when-the-american-people-saw-the-la-riots-and-crowds-of-blacks/) [David Duke](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/david-duke/) > [I'm neurotic in the sense that I can have a crowd of 300 people cheering you, applauding you, standing O, but one guy come…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/wayne-white/i-m-neurotic-in-the-sense-that-i-can-have-a-crowd-of-300-people/) [Wayne White](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/wayne-white/) > [All the people in Korea are cheering me like I'm a gold medalist or something, so I have a responsibility to my country.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/psy/all-the-people-in-korea-are-cheering-me-like-i-m-a-gold-medalist-or/) [PSY](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/psy/) > [“Kurt smiled a shy smile. "You're just trying to cheer me up," he said. "Course I am," Andy said. "You deserve to be full…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/cory-doctorow/kurt-smiled-a-shy-smile-you-re-just-trying-to-cheer-me-up-he-said/) [Cory Doctorow](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/cory-doctorow/) > [Be of good cheer. Do not think of today's failures, but of the success that may come tomorrow. You have set yourselves a difficult…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/helen-keller/be-of-good-cheer-do-not-think-of-today-s-failures-but-of-the-success/) [Helen Keller](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/helen-keller/) > [I am, beneath everything else, a fan. I was fixed in this mode as a young boy and am awed by people who take…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/roger-ebert/i-am-beneath-everything-else-a-fan-i-was-fixed-in-this-mode-as-a/) [Roger Ebert](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/roger-ebert/) > [ People had been so attached to the Diane \[Cheers\] character that audiences and producers found it difficult to think of me in any other… ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/shelley-long/people-had-been-so-attached-to-the-diane-cheers-character-that/) [Shelley Long](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/shelley-long/) > [I decided very early that I was going to be a reporter, that I would not cheer for the team. I don't denigrate people…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ernie-harwell/i-decided-very-early-that-i-was-going-to-be-a-reporter-that-i-would/) [Ernie Harwell](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ernie-harwell/) > [It's fun, and a laugh for you... you can boo me and feel happy about yourself because you're part of the crowd that did…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/adam-goodes/it-s-fun-and-a-laugh-for-you-you-can-boo-me-and-feel-happy-about/) [Adam Goodes](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/adam-goodes/) > [Poetical taste is the only magician whose wand is not broken. No hand, except its own, can dissolve the fabric of beauty in which…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/robert-aris-willmott/poetical-taste-is-the-only-magician-whose-wand-is-not-broken-no-hand/) [Robert Aris Willmott](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/robert-aris-willmott/) > [This is no time to be precious about locating the exact individuals directly involved in this particular terrorist attack… We know who the homicidal…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ann-coulter/this-is-no-time-to-be-precious-about-locating-the-exact-individuals/) [Ann Coulter](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ann-coulter/) > [Cheer up, you're never alone! There is probably at least 1 bug in your room.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ramandeep-singh/cheer-up-you-re-never-alone-there-is-probably-at-least-1-bug-in-your/) [Ramandeep Singh](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ramandeep-singh/) Browse all 1,099 Cheer quotes ```json { "@context": "https://schema.org", "@graph": [ { "@type": "Quotation", "text": "If people I've never met or don't know say that what I've written or done or said means anything to them, then I'm happy to take it at face value, for once. 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