--- title: "Meaning & Key Takeaway of: George Bernard Shaw was right. He summed…" description: "\"George Bernard Shaw was right. He summed it all up when he said: \"The secret of being miserable is to have the leisure to bother about whether you are ..." image: "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/5ae/dale-carnegie-382_bernard-shaw_george-bernard-shaw-was-right-he-summed_1385310.jpg" --- # George Bernard Shaw was right. He summed it all up when he… ![“George Bernard Shaw was right. He summed it all up when he said: "The secret of being miserable is to have the leisure to bother about whether you are happy or not." So don't bother to think about it! Spit on your hands and get busy. Your blood will start circulating; your mind will start…” quote by Dale Carnegie](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/5ae/dale-carnegie-382_bernard-shaw_george-bernard-shaw-was-right-he-summed_1385310.jpg) [Download](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/5ae/dale-carnegie-382_bernard-shaw_george-bernard-shaw-was-right-he-summed_1385310.jpg) [Open image](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/5ae/dale-carnegie-382_bernard-shaw_george-bernard-shaw-was-right-he-summed_1385310.jpg) > “George Bernard Shaw was right. He summed it all up when he said: "The secret of being miserable is to have the leisure to bother about whether you are happy or not." So don't bother to think about it! Spit on your hands and get busy. Your blood will start circulating; your mind will start ticking-and pretty soon this whole positive upsurge of life in your body will drive worry from your mind. Get busy. Keep busy. It's the cheapest kind of medicine there is on this earth-and one of the best.” [Dale Carnegie](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/dale-carnegie/) ## About This Quote This interpretation was drafted with AI assistance. It is one reading of the quote, not the author's own explanation. Being preoccupied with happiness creates misery; activity and purpose dispel worry and energize life. **In simple terms:** Worry comes from overthinking happiness; staying busy restores vitality. Key Takeaway Stay active to avoid overthinking. Themes productivity mindset wellbeing Mood motivational energetic Type advice inspirational When to use this quote - work tasks - exercise - creative projects - volunteering Key Concepts psychology behavioral activation Questions to Reflect On - What activities truly energize you? - How can you balance rest and activity? A Different Perspective Busy work may become avoidance if not purposeful. ★ ★ ★ ★ ★ No ratings yet [Body](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/body/) [Earth](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/earth/) [Happiness](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/happiness/) [Inspirational](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/inspirational/) [Keep busy](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/keep-busy/) [Leisure](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/leisure/) [Medicine](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/medicine/) [Mind](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/mind/) [Miserable](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/miserable/) [Psychology](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/psychology/) [Secret](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/secret/) [Thinking](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/thinking/) [Worry](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/worry/) ## Related quotes > [“The secret of being miserable is to have the leisure to bother about whether you are happy or not”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/george-bernard-shaw/the-secret-of-being-miserable-is-to-have-the-leisure-to-bother-about/) [George Bernard Shaw](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/george-bernard-shaw/) > [The secret of being miserable is to have leisure to bother about whether you are happy or not. The cure for it is occupation.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/george-bernard-shaw/the-secret-of-being-miserable-is-to-have-leisure-to-bother-about-2/) [George Bernard Shaw](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/george-bernard-shaw/) > [The secret of being miserable is to have leisure to bother about whether you are happy or not. The cure for it is occupation,…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/george-bernard-shaw/the-secret-of-being-miserable-is-to-have-leisure-to-bother-about/) [George Bernard Shaw](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/george-bernard-shaw/) > [The only way to avoid being miserable is not to have enough leisure to wonder whether you are happy or not.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/george-bernard-shaw/the-only-way-to-avoid-being-miserable-is-not-to-have-enough-leisure/) [George Bernard Shaw](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/george-bernard-shaw/) > [“Bernard Shaw once remarked: ‘If you teach a man anything, he will never learn.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/dale-carnegie/bernard-shaw-once-remarked-if-you-teach-a-man-anything-he-will-never-2/) [Dale Carnegie](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/dale-carnegie/) > [I used to want so much in a hurry. They told me 'girl, you're gonna go far. I've done a little traveling and got…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ruthie-foster/i-used-to-want-so-much-in-a-hurry-they-told-me-girl-you-re-gonna-go/) [Ruthie Foster](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ruthie-foster/) > [Big Brother isn't watching. He's singing and dancing. He's pulling rabbits out of a hat. Big Brother's busy holding your attention every moment you're…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/chuck-palahniuk/big-brother-isn-t-watching-he-s-singing-and-dancing-he-s-pulling/) [Chuck Palahniuk](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/chuck-palahniuk/) > [Don't forget honey. Never let one man worry your mind. Find 'em, fool 'em and forget 'em.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/mae-west/don-t-forget-honey-never-let-one-man-worry-your-mind-find-em-fool-em/) [Mae West](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/mae-west/) > [If there is something to worry about, my mind has a tendency to worry about it. That can cut two ways. It can really…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/harvey-pekar/if-there-is-something-to-worry-about-my-mind-has-a-tendency-to-worry/) [Harvey Pekar](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/harvey-pekar/) > [“The sound shivers through the walls, through the table, through the window frame, and into my finger. These distraction-oholics. These focus-ophobics. Old George Orwell…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/chuck-palahniuk/the-sound-shivers-through-the-walls-through-the-table-through-the/) [Chuck Palahniuk](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/chuck-palahniuk/) > [“These distraction-oholics. These focus-ophobics. Old George Orwell got it backward. Big Brother isn't watching. He's singing and dancing. He's pulling rabbits out of a…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/chuck-palahniuk/these-distraction-oholics-these-focus-ophobics-old-george-orwell-got/) [Chuck Palahniuk](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/chuck-palahniuk/) > [“With the world always filling you, no one has to worry about what's in your mind. With everyone's imagination atrophied, no one will ever…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/chuck-palahniuk/with-the-world-always-filling-you-no-one-has-to-worry-about-what-s-in/) [Chuck Palahniuk](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/chuck-palahniuk/) > [With Wanderlei, there is not one bit of worry in my mind he would show up to bring the fight.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/brad-tavares/with-wanderlei-there-is-not-one-bit-of-worry-in-my-mind-he-would-show/) [Brad Tavares](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/brad-tavares/) > [I keep busy. That was my nickname in college, 'Iron to the Fire.' I like to keep several things going at once.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/creed-bratton/i-keep-busy-that-was-my-nickname-in-college-iron-to-the-fire-i-like/) [Creed Bratton](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/creed-bratton/) > [Keep busy while you are waiting for something to happen.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/robert-genn/keep-busy-while-you-are-waiting-for-something-to-happen/) [Robert Genn](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/robert-genn/) ## More by Dale Carnegie > [“When dealing with people, remember you are not dealing with creatures of logic, but with creatures bristling with prejudice and motivated by pride and…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/dale-carnegie/when-dealing-with-people-remember-you-are-not-dealing-with-creatures/) [Dale Carnegie](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/dale-carnegie/) > [I deal with the obvious. I present, reiterate, and glorify the obvious - because the obvious is what people need to be told.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/dale-carnegie/i-deal-with-the-obvious-i-present-reiterate-and-glorify-the-obvious/) [Dale Carnegie](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/dale-carnegie/) > [You can make more friends in two months by becoming more interested in other people than you can in two years by trying to…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/dale-carnegie/you-can-make-more-friends-in-two-months-by-becoming-more-interested/) [Dale Carnegie](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/dale-carnegie/) > [“The man who goes farthest is generally the one who is willing to do and dare. The sure-thing boat never gets far from shore.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/dale-carnegie/the-man-who-goes-farthest-is-generally-the-one-who-is-willing-to-do/) [Dale Carnegie](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/dale-carnegie/) > [“Apply the blacksmith's homely principle when you are speaking. If you feel deeply about your subject you will be able to think of little…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/dale-carnegie/apply-the-blacksmith-s-homely-principle-when-you-are-speaking-if-you/) [Dale Carnegie](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/dale-carnegie/) > [One of the most tragic things I know about human nature is that all of us tend to put off living. We are all…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/dale-carnegie/one-of-the-most-tragic-things-i-know-about-human-nature-is-that-all/) [Dale Carnegie](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/dale-carnegie/) > [If you can't sleep, then get up and do something instead of lying there worrying. It's the worry that gets you, not the lack…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/dale-carnegie/if-you-can-t-sleep-then-get-up-and-do-something-instead-of-lying/) [Dale Carnegie](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/dale-carnegie/) > [I realize now that people are not thinking about you and me or caring what is said about us. They are thinking about themselves-before…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/dale-carnegie/i-realize-now-that-people-are-not-thinking-about-you-and-me-or-caring/) [Dale Carnegie](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/dale-carnegie/) > [Those convinced against their will are of the same opinion still.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/dale-carnegie/those-convinced-against-their-will-are-of-the-same-opinion-still/) [Dale Carnegie](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/dale-carnegie/) > [Each nation feels superior to other nations. That breeds patriotism - and wars.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/dale-carnegie/each-nation-feels-superior-to-other-nations-that-breeds-patriotism/) [Dale Carnegie](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/dale-carnegie/) > [We are gods in the chrysalis.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/dale-carnegie/we-are-gods-in-the-chrysalis/) [Dale Carnegie](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/dale-carnegie/) > [If you want to know how to make people shun you and laugh at you behind your back and even despise you, here is…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/dale-carnegie/if-you-want-to-know-how-to-make-people-shun-you-and-laugh-at-you/) [Dale Carnegie](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/dale-carnegie/) > [So if you aspire to be a good conversationali st, be an attentive listener. To be interesting, be interested. Ask questions that other persons…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/dale-carnegie/so-if-you-aspire-to-be-a-good-conversationali-st-be-an-attentive/) [Dale Carnegie](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/dale-carnegie/) > [...Be grateful for what you have to be thankful for instead of complaining about the little things that annoy you.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/dale-carnegie/be-grateful-for-what-you-have-to-be-thankful-for-instead-of/) [Dale Carnegie](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/dale-carnegie/) > [Don't be afraid of enemies who attack you. Be afraid of the friends who flatter you.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/dale-carnegie/don-t-be-afraid-of-enemies-who-attack-you-be-afraid-of-the-friends/) [Dale Carnegie](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/dale-carnegie/) [Explore all 592 Dale Carnegie quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/dale-carnegie/) ## 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": "George Bernard Shaw was right. He summed it all up when he said: \"The secret of being miserable is to have the leisure to bother about whether you are happy or not.\" So don't bother to think about it! Spit on your hands and get busy. Your blood will start circulating; your mind will start ticking-and pretty soon this whole positive upsurge of life in your body will drive worry from your mind. Get busy. Keep busy. 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