--- title: "Meaning & Key Takeaway of: The thing we want the most is always the…" description: "\"“The thing we want the most is always the thing we cannot have.”\" — Dean Koontz" image: "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/1f2/dean-koontz-118_thing_the-thing-we-want-the-most-is-always-the_2418415.jpg" --- # The thing we want the most is always the thing we cannot… ![“The thing we want the most is always the thing we cannot have.” quote by Dean Koontz](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/1f2/dean-koontz-118_thing_the-thing-we-want-the-most-is-always-the_2418415.jpg) [Download](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/1f2/dean-koontz-118_thing_the-thing-we-want-the-most-is-always-the_2418415.jpg) [Open image](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/1f2/dean-koontz-118_thing_the-thing-we-want-the-most-is-always-the_2418415.jpg) > ““The thing we want the most is always the thing we cannot have.”” [Dean Koontz](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/dean-koontz/) ## About This Quote This interpretation was drafted with AI assistance. It is one reading of the quote, not the author's own explanation. Desire often intensifies for what is unattainable, making it seem more valuable. **In simple terms:** We want what we can't have. Key Takeaway Recognize the allure of the forbidden. Themes desire psychology unattainable goals Mood reflective insightful cautious Type philosophical advice When to use this quote - marketing - relationship goals - career aspirations - personal growth Key Concepts cognitive bias motivation Questions to Reflect On - What makes the unavailable seem better? - How to balance desire with realistic goals? A Different Perspective Chasing the impossible can lead to frustration. ★ ★ ★ ★ ★ No ratings yet [Thing](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/thing/) [Thing Want](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/thing-want/) [Want](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/want/) [Want Thing](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/want-thing/) ## Related quotes > [“ Success" If you want a thing bad enough To go out and fight for it, Work day and night for it, Give up…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/berton-braley/success-if-you-want-a-thing-bad-enough-to-go-out-and-fight-for-it/) [Berton Braley](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/berton-braley/) > [If you cannot have the thing you want, you want the thing you have.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/robert-kubica/if-you-cannot-have-the-thing-you-want-you-want-the-thing-you-have/) [Robert Kubica](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/robert-kubica/) > [When I was younger, I always wanted to impress, to be good for my country, to make them feel good, and sometimes that meant…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/usain-bolt/when-i-was-younger-i-always-wanted-to-impress-to-be-good-for-my/) [Usain Bolt](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/usain-bolt/) > [“Say there’s this thing you want, this thing that seems more important than everything, this thing you’ve been waiting for because it will make…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/bennett-madison/say-there-s-this-thing-you-want-this-thing-that-seems-more-important/) [Bennett Madison](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/bennett-madison/) > [I don't want to be brain tumor girl. I don't want this to be my thing.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/simone-giertz/i-don-t-want-to-be-brain-tumor-girl-i-don-t-want-this-to-be-my-thing/) [Simone Giertz](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/simone-giertz/) > [She is the last thing I want on my mind when I go.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/hailey-kohl/she-is-the-last-thing-i-want-on-my-mind-when-i-go/) [Hailey Kohl](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/hailey-kohl/) > [The last thing you want is to be desperate in Hollywood.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/noah-hawley/the-last-thing-you-want-is-to-be-desperate-in-hollywood/) [Noah Hawley](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/noah-hawley/) > [I just want to do my own thing, and I've always been that way.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/sophie-thatcher/i-just-want-to-do-my-own-thing-and-i-ve-always-been-that-way/) [Sophie Thatcher](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/sophie-thatcher/) > [I don't want to be 'the girl with cancer' ... I just didn't want that to be my only thing. But it is part…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/hoda-kotb/i-don-t-want-to-be-the-girl-with-cancer-i-just-didn-t-want-that-to-be/) [Hoda Kotb](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/hoda-kotb/) > [“I want to be the last thing you see when I go to sleep and the first thing I see when I wake up.…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/kate-perry/i-want-to-be-the-last-thing-you-see-when-i-go-to-sleep-and-the-first/) [Kate Perry](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/kate-perry/) > [We always want to be the best... We always want every thing but we dont think we deserve or not](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/hasina-jalili/we-always-want-to-be-the-best-we-always-want-every-thing-but-we-dont/) [Hasina Jalili](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/hasina-jalili/) > [Jesus says if you want to have me, you must give up that other thing that has you.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/eric-ludy/jesus-says-if-you-want-to-have-me-you-must-give-up-that-other-thing/) [Eric Ludy](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/eric-ludy/) > [You will not have that for which you ask, nor can you have anything you want. This is because your very request is a…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/neale-donald-walsch/you-will-not-have-that-for-which-you-ask-nor-can-you-have-anything/) [Neale Donald Walsch](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/neale-donald-walsch/) > [I want to do that thing rich people do where they turn money into more money.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/liz/i-want-to-do-that-thing-rich-people-do-where-they-turn-money-into/) [LIZ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/liz/) > [Why do guys only want one thing? And then if you do or don't give it to them they treat you like shit?](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anonymous/why-do-guys-only-want-one-thing-and-then-if-you-do-or-don-t-give-it/) [Anonymous](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anonymous/) ## More by Dean Koontz > [“This kind of derangement is emblematic of humankind. Grave faults are said to be only eccentricities, and imperfections are routinely celebrated as mere differences…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/dean-koontz/this-kind-of-derangement-is-emblematic-of-humankind-grave-faults-are/) [Dean Koontz](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/dean-koontz/) > [“He often remembered his dad's admonition that envy was mental theft. If you coveted another man's possessions, Dad said, then you should be willing…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/dean-koontz/he-often-remembered-his-dad-s-admonition-that-envy-was-mental-theft/) [Dean Koontz](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/dean-koontz/) > [But victimhood was seductive, a release from responsibility and caring. 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Each of the two additional powers…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/dean-koontz/her-mother-said-that-three-great-powers-kept-the-universe-going-the/) [Dean Koontz](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/dean-koontz/) > [“I stopped keeping an eye out for Santa Claus on Christmas Eve because, when I was five, my mother told me that Santa was…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/dean-koontz/i-stopped-keeping-an-eye-out-for-santa-claus-on-christmas-eve-because/) [Dean Koontz](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/dean-koontz/) > [“To one degree or another, I have been happy most of my life, in part because the world has infinite charms if you wish…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/dean-koontz/to-one-degree-or-another-i-have-been-happy-most-of-my-life-in-part/) [Dean Koontz](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/dean-koontz/) > [“This life is just a bootcamp, to test and toughen us, to prepare us for the next life of service in some great adventure.…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/dean-koontz/this-life-is-just-a-bootcamp-to-test-and-toughen-us-to-prepare-us-for/) [Dean Koontz](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/dean-koontz/) > [“A madman should have a madman’s laugh, not the warm chuckle of a favorite uncle.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/dean-koontz/a-madman-should-have-a-madman-s-laugh-not-the-warm-chuckle-of-a/) [Dean Koontz](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/dean-koontz/) > [“Anger was a reliable defense, but one that allowed no chance of final victory. 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You wreck a kid's life, I have no pity for you.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/dean-koontz/some-will-accuse-me-of-being-judgmental-thank-you-and-proud-of-it-you/) [Dean Koontz](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/dean-koontz/) > [“Waiting is one of the things that humans beings cannot do well, though it is one of the essential things we must do successfully…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/dean-koontz/waiting-is-one-of-the-things-that-humans-beings-cannot-do-well-though/) [Dean Koontz](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/dean-koontz/) > [“Dogs know we need to give affection as much as they need to receive it. They were the first therapists; they've been in practice…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/dean-koontz/dogs-know-we-need-to-give-affection-as-much-as-they-need-to-receive/) [Dean Koontz](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/dean-koontz/) [Explore all 1,233 Dean Koontz quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/dean-koontz/) ## More Thing quotes > [When you step out and do a song in a musical, the easier thing to do is make it funny. But when those transitions…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/kelli-o-hara/when-you-step-out-and-do-a-song-in-a-musical-the-easier-thing-to-do/) [Kelli O'Hara](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/kelli-o-hara/) > [It's a hard thing to describe. 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It was like suddenly an abyss opened at my feet - I was standing on nothing.…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ben-okri/we-never-think-that-our-mothers-will-die-it-was-like-suddenly-an/) [Ben Okri](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ben-okri/) > [Everyone will admire you when you do well. What a horrible thing to do to someone.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/frederick-lenz/everyone-will-admire-you-when-you-do-well-what-a-horrible-thing-to-do/) [Frederick Lenz](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/frederick-lenz/) > [Becoming famous is a really shocking thing, especially when you don't have aspirations to it. It got to the point where I would try…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/alison-moyet/becoming-famous-is-a-really-shocking-thing-especially-when-you-don-t/) [Alison Moyet](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/alison-moyet/) > [I wish there was such a thing as reincarnation.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/evel-knievel/i-wish-there-was-such-a-thing-as-reincarnation/) [Evel Knievel](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/evel-knievel/) > [Like many other scientists who hold the Catholic faith, I see the Creator's plan and purpose fulfilled in our universe. I see a planet…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/kenneth-r-miller/like-many-other-scientists-who-hold-the-catholic-faith-i-see-the/) [Kenneth R. 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