--- title: "Meaning & Key Takeaway of: But when friends would ask Kathy whether…" description: "\"“But when friends would ask Kathy whether they, too, should start their own business, she talked them out of it. You don’t run the business, she would ..." image: "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/c55/dave-eggers-638_business_but-when-friends-would-ask-kathy-whether_540802.png" --- # But when friends would ask Kathy whether they, too, should… ![“But when friends would ask Kathy whether they, too, should start their own business, she talked them out of it. You don’t run the business, she would say. The business runs you.” quote by Dave Eggers](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/c55/dave-eggers-638_business_but-when-friends-would-ask-kathy-whether_540802.png) [Download](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/c55/dave-eggers-638_business_but-when-friends-would-ask-kathy-whether_540802.png) [Open image](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/c55/dave-eggers-638_business_but-when-friends-would-ask-kathy-whether_540802.png) > ““But when friends would ask Kathy whether they, too, should start their own business, she talked them out of it. You don’t run the business, she would say. The business runs you.”” [Dave Eggers](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/dave-eggers/) ## About This Quote This interpretation was drafted with AI assistance. It is one reading of the quote, not the author's own explanation. Entrepreneurship can become a trap where the work dominates life, rather than serving it. **In simple terms:** Business can control you. Key Takeaway Choose ventures that serve your life goals. Themes entrepreneurship control balance Mood reflective cautious Type advice cautionary When to use this quote - career planning - startup decisions - life‑work integration Key Concepts autonomy self‑determination risk Questions to Reflect On - Do you feel your work controls you? - How can you maintain autonomy in a demanding role? A Different Perspective Business demands personal sacrifice and may limit freedom. ★ ★ ★ ★ ★ No ratings yet [Business](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/business/) [Business Runs](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/business-runs-734382/) [Business Say](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/business-say-2432169/) [Business Talked](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/business-talked-3427638/) [Run Business](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/run-business/) [Say Business](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/say-business-511640/) ## Related quotes > [Something will master and something will serve. Either you run the day or the day runs you; either you run the business or the…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jim-rohn/something-will-master-and-something-will-serve-either-you-run-the-day/) [Jim Rohn](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jim-rohn/) > [In football, as in life, as in business, everything can be talked about and discussed.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ronald-koeman/in-football-as-in-life-as-in-business-everything-can-be-talked-about/) [Ronald Koeman](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ronald-koeman/) > [Business runs hot and cold so the more you're in charge of your own destiny, the better off you are.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/bill-burr/business-runs-hot-and-cold-so-the-more-you-re-in-charge-of-your-own/) [Bill Burr](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/bill-burr/) > [Every one has time if he likes. Business runs after nobody: people cling to it of their own free will and think that to…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/seneca-the-younger/every-one-has-time-if-he-likes-business-runs-after-nobody-people/) [Seneca the Younger](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/seneca-the-younger/) > [In my opinion, my business runs better when my family is a part of it, and I get to see my wife and kids;…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/walker-hayes/in-my-opinion-my-business-runs-better-when-my-family-is-a-part-of-it/) [Walker Hayes](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/walker-hayes/) > [When you see corruption, when you see injustice, you speak up. You don't just shut up and say it's none of my business.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/manal-al-sharif/when-you-see-corruption-when-you-see-injustice-you-speak-up-you-don-t/) [Manal al-Sharif](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/manal-al-sharif/) > [WHAT PEOPLE THINK SAY OR DO …IS NONE OF MY BUSINESS](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/leonard-paul-rose/what-people-think-say-or-do-is-none-of-my-business/) [LEONARD PAUL ROSE](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/leonard-paul-rose/) > [I think we can say our business plan worked even if a lot of people questioned if it could work beforehand and said we…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/guenther-steiner/i-think-we-can-say-our-business-plan-worked-even-if-a-lot-of-people/) [Guenther Steiner](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/guenther-steiner/) > [There is no polite way to say that business is destroying the world.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/paul-hawken/there-is-no-polite-way-to-say-that-business-is-destroying-the-world/) [Paul Hawken](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/paul-hawken/) > [If you look at the Company Register, maybe that's what we should say to that business consultant or analyst. If you look at the…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/thabo-mbeki/if-you-look-at-the-company-register-maybe-that-s-what-we-should-say/) [Thabo Mbeki](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/thabo-mbeki/) > [We should not say how's business, but where is business](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/thomas-dewar-1st-baron-dewar/we-should-not-say-how-s-business-but-where-is-business/) [Thomas Dewar, 1st Baron Dewar](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/thomas-dewar-1st-baron-dewar/) > [What I will say is that business is not a nice area. And you might say that I am a business woman, but I'm…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/cheryl-cole/what-i-will-say-is-that-business-is-not-a-nice-area-and-you-might-say/) [Cheryl Cole](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/cheryl-cole/) > [It is a business. I know we, as athletes and owners and people involved with the NBA, never want to say that it's a…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/chris-bosh/it-is-a-business-i-know-we-as-athletes-and-owners-and-people-involved/) [Chris Bosh](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/chris-bosh/) > [People come in with business plans and, I mean I know that no one is going to meet everything they say in a business…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/arthur-rock/people-come-in-with-business-plans-and-i-mean-i-know-that-no-one-is/) [Arthur Rock](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/arthur-rock/) > [Funnily enough, when I was leaving school and they asked you what you were going to do, and I just liked acting, that's never…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/kylie-minogue/funnily-enough-when-i-was-leaving-school-and-they-asked-you-what-you/) [Kylie Minogue](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/kylie-minogue/) ## More by Dave Eggers > [“4. THE CRUMBLING WALL (Hamburger, prepared medium well, with bacon and barbecue sauce. Courtesy of that place on Solano, where, it should be mentioned,…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/dave-eggers/4-the-crumbling-wall-hamburger-prepared-medium-well-with-bacon-and/) [Dave Eggers](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/dave-eggers/) > [“LOW-FLYING, QUICK-MOVING CLOUDS: I haven't long to live. TREETOPS, ROUNDED AND ROUGH: That's probably true. LOW-FLYING, QUICK-MOVING CLOUDS: I won't even make it to…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/dave-eggers/low-flying-quick-moving-clouds-i-haven-t-long-to-live-treetops/) [Dave Eggers](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/dave-eggers/) > [But the grind has begun. The windows don’t open, and even the availability of near-constant jokes about Jews and Mormons fails to stem the…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/dave-eggers/but-the-grind-has-begun-the-windows-don-t-open-and-even-the/) [Dave Eggers](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/dave-eggers/) > [“One button for the rest of your life online.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/dave-eggers/one-button-for-the-rest-of-your-life-online/) [Dave Eggers](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/dave-eggers/) > [We feel that to reveal embarrassing or private things, we have given someone something, that, like a primitive person fearing that a photographer will…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/dave-eggers/we-feel-that-to-reveal-embarrassing-or-private-things-we-have-given/) [Dave Eggers](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/dave-eggers/) > [I think I'm far too hopeful and trusting. That's something I got from my mum.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/dave-eggers/i-think-i-m-far-too-hopeful-and-trusting-that-s-something-i-got-from/) [Dave Eggers](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/dave-eggers/) > [“Overnight, all comment boards became civil, all posters held accountable. The trolls, who had more or less overtaken the internet, were driven back into…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/dave-eggers/overnight-all-comment-boards-became-civil-all-posters-held/) [Dave Eggers](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/dave-eggers/) > [“Have we wasted precious space dust on you?”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/dave-eggers/have-we-wasted-precious-space-dust-on-you/) [Dave Eggers](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/dave-eggers/) > [“What can one do with one's hands when the camera is interested in other things?”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/dave-eggers/what-can-one-do-with-one-s-hands-when-the-camera-is-interested-in/) [Dave Eggers](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/dave-eggers/) > [“The money that could have saved the Shuttle, and the money we send to random countries, that we use to remake unchangeable countries ten…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/dave-eggers/the-money-that-could-have-saved-the-shuttle-and-the-money-we-send-to/) [Dave Eggers](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/dave-eggers/) > [Write your goddamned book now. The world awaits.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/dave-eggers/write-your-goddamned-book-now-the-world-awaits/) [Dave Eggers](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/dave-eggers/) > [The only infallible truth of our lives is that everything we love in life will be taken from us.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/dave-eggers/the-only-infallible-truth-of-our-lives-is-that-everything-we-love-in/) [Dave Eggers](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/dave-eggers/) > [“First of all: I am tired. I am true of heart! And Also: You are tired. You are true of heart!”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/dave-eggers/first-of-all-i-am-tired-i-am-true-of-heart-and-also-you-are-tired-you/) [Dave Eggers](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/dave-eggers/) > [And what we were trying to offer every day was one-on-one attention. The goal was to have a one-to-one ratio with every one of…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/dave-eggers/and-what-we-were-trying-to-offer-every-day-was-one-on-one-attention/) [Dave Eggers](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/dave-eggers/) > [Suffering is only suffering if it’s done in silence, in solitude. Pain experienced in public, in view of loving millions, was no longer pain.…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/dave-eggers/suffering-is-only-suffering-if-it-s-done-in-silence-in-solitude-pain/) [Dave Eggers](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/dave-eggers/) [Explore all 428 Dave Eggers quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/dave-eggers/) ## More Business quotes > [Companies with cultures that celebrate diverse opinions and encourage the exchange of ideas have an advantage when solving difficult problems. A company that doesn't…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/doug-mcmillon/companies-with-cultures-that-celebrate-diverse-opinions-and-encourage/) [Doug McMillon](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/doug-mcmillon/) > [You can laugh at me, but I understand show business.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ksenia-sobchak/you-can-laugh-at-me-but-i-understand-show-business/) [Ksenia Sobchak](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ksenia-sobchak/) > [“Start a business, not a startup”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anonymous/start-a-business-not-a-startup/) [Anonymous](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anonymous/) > [“Take some books and read; that’s an immense help; and books are always good company if you have the right sort.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/louisa-may-alcott/take-some-books-and-read-that-s-an-immense-help-and-books-are-always/) [Louisa May Alcott](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/louisa-may-alcott/) > [I'm a business first and foremost so whatever my business is, it's separate from my personal. It's like whatever I do business wise, it's…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/snoop-dogg/i-m-a-business-first-and-foremost-so-whatever-my-business-is-it-s/) [Snoop Dogg](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/snoop-dogg/) > [Many early-stage entrepreneurs make one simple mistake: Describing this 'big picture' in vague concepts and words.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/sunil-nagaraj/many-early-stage-entrepreneurs-make-one-simple-mistake-describing/) [Sunil Nagaraj](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/sunil-nagaraj/) > [Nobody has a crystal ball, and part of evolving a business plan is to say, 'I might have said we're going left, but I…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ryan-kavanaugh/nobody-has-a-crystal-ball-and-part-of-evolving-a-business-plan-is-to/) [Ryan Kavanaugh](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ryan-kavanaugh/) > [I think a business guy is different from an artist. They walk different paths. Artists create the best outputs when they're having fun. And…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/g-dragon/i-think-a-business-guy-is-different-from-an-artist-they-walk/) [G-Dragon](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/g-dragon/) > [ “\[S\]ometimes, when you are a food person, the possible irrelevance of what you are doing doesn’t cross your mind until it’s too late. (Once,… ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/nora-ephron/s-ometimes-when-you-are-a-food-person-the-possible-irrelevance-of/) [Nora Ephron](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/nora-ephron/) > [If you have a different mindset, you will have a different outcome: if you make different choices from your peers, your life will then…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jack-ma/if-you-have-a-different-mindset-you-will-have-a-different-outcome-if/) [Jack Ma](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jack-ma/) > [“Some say the Earth is angry Because he wants no company; I say the Earth is angry Because he lives alone.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/n-k-jemisin/some-say-the-earth-is-angry-because-he-wants-no-company-i-say-the/) [N.K. Jemisin](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/n-k-jemisin/) > [ If the State does not acquire supremacy over \[vast private\] enterprises, it becomes their puppet, and they become the real State. ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/bertrand-russell/if-the-state-does-not-acquire-supremacy-over-vast-private-enterprises/) [Bertrand Russell](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/bertrand-russell/) > [It's not just that families can't buy a home or start a business without some savings tucked away.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jim-cooper/it-s-not-just-that-families-can-t-buy-a-home-or-start-a-business/) [Jim Cooper](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jim-cooper/) > [I'm not into business at all.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/freddie-mercury/i-m-not-into-business-at-all/) [Freddie Mercury](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/freddie-mercury/) > [I've long believed one of the mainsprings of our own liberty has been the widespread ownership of property among our people and the expectation…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ronald-reagan/i-ve-long-believed-one-of-the-mainsprings-of-our-own-liberty-has-been/) [Ronald Reagan](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ronald-reagan/) [Browse all 39,016 Business quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/business/) ```json { "@context": "https://schema.org", "@graph": [ { "@type": "Quotation", "text": "“But when friends would ask Kathy whether they, too, should start their own business, she talked them out of it. You don’t run the business, she would say. The business runs you.”", "creator": { "@type": "Person", "name": "Dave Eggers" }, "isPartOf": { "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/#website" }, "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/dave-eggers/but-when-friends-would-ask-kathy-whether-they-too-should-start-their/", "about": { "@type": "Thing", "name": "Business" }, "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/dave-eggers/but-when-friends-would-ask-kathy-whether-they-too-should-start-their/#quotation", "image": { "@type": "ImageObject", "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/c55/dave-eggers-638_business_but-when-friends-would-ask-kathy-whether_540802.png", "contentUrl": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/c55/dave-eggers-638_business_but-when-friends-would-ask-kathy-whether_540802.png", "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/c55/dave-eggers-638_business_but-when-friends-would-ask-kathy-whether_540802.png", "width": 1080, "height": 1080, "caption": "“But when friends would ask Kathy whether they, too, should start their own business, she talked them out of…” — Dave Eggers", "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": "Dave Eggers", "item": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/dave-eggers/" }, { "@type": "ListItem", "position": 4, "name": "“But when friends would ask Kathy...", "item": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/dave-eggers/but-when-friends-would-ask-kathy-whether-they-too-should-start-their/" } ], "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/dave-eggers/but-when-friends-would-ask-kathy-whether-they-too-should-start-their/#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 } } ] } ```