--- title: "Meaning & Key Takeaway of: Be so preoccupied with good will that you…" description: "\"Be so preoccupied with good will that you haven't room for ill will.\" — E. Stanley Jones" image: "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/3d8/e-stanley-jones-4545_good-will_be-so-preoccupied-with-good-will-that-yo_1718222.png" --- # Be so preoccupied with good will that you haven't room for… ![“Be so preoccupied with good will that you haven't room for ill will.” quote by E. Stanley Jones](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/3d8/e-stanley-jones-4545_good-will_be-so-preoccupied-with-good-will-that-yo_1718222.png) [Download](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/3d8/e-stanley-jones-4545_good-will_be-so-preoccupied-with-good-will-that-yo_1718222.png) [Open image](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/3d8/e-stanley-jones-4545_good-will_be-so-preoccupied-with-good-will-that-yo_1718222.png) > “Be so preoccupied with good will that you haven't room for ill will.” [E. Stanley Jones](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/e-stanley-jones/) ## About This Quote This interpretation was drafted with AI assistance. It is one reading of the quote, not the author's own explanation. Prioritize goodwill so fully that negativity has no space. **In simple terms:** Focus on kindness, ignore malice. Key Takeaway Practice unconditional goodwill. Themes kindness spirituality ethical living Mood serene hopeful Type spiritual ethical When to use this quote - community service - personal relationships - conflict mediation Key Concepts moral philosophy inner peace Questions to Reflect On - How do you maintain vigilance while being kind? - Can goodwill coexist with healthy boundaries? A Different Perspective Neglecting caution can lead to exploitation. ★ ★ ★ ★ ★ No ratings yet [Good will](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/good-will/) [Ill](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/ill/) [Ill will](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/ill-will/) [Inspirational](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/inspirational/) [Love](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/love/) ## Related quotes > [“I didn’t call. I was preoccupied.’ ‘Preoccupied?’ I hissed, parting my lips with anger. ‘Well, then, I need to go, because I'm also preoccupied.…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/joanna-mazurkiewicz/i-didn-t-call-i-was-preoccupied-preoccupied-i-hissed-parting-my-lips/) [Joanna Mazurkiewicz](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/joanna-mazurkiewicz/) > [Our minds should not be empty because if they are not preoccupied by good, evil will break in upon them.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/samuel-johnson/our-minds-should-not-be-empty-because-if-they-are-not-preoccupied-by/) [Samuel Johnson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/samuel-johnson/) > [Time has been used destructively by people of ill will much more than it has been used constructively by those of good will.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/martin-luther-king-jr/time-has-been-used-destructively-by-people-of-ill-will-much-more-than/) [Martin Luther King, Jr](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/martin-luther-king-jr/) > [No society of nations, no people within a nation, no family can benefit through mutual aid unless good will exceeds ill will; unless the…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/henry-ford-ii/no-society-of-nations-no-people-within-a-nation-no-family-can-benefit/) [Henry Ford II](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/henry-ford-ii/) > [It is a strangely irrational notion that there is something in the very flow of time that will inevitably cure all ills. Actually time…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/martin-luther-king-jr/it-is-a-strangely-irrational-notion-that-there-is-something-in-the/) [Martin Luther King, Jr](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/martin-luther-king-jr/) > [The religion of Christ is peace and good-will,--the religion of Christendom is war and ill-will.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/walter-savage-landor/the-religion-of-christ-is-peace-and-good-will-the-religion-of/) [Walter Savage Landor](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/walter-savage-landor/) > [Employers, have you ever stopped to reckon what the goodwill of your workers is worth? ... In most large concerns it would be worth…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/b-c-forbes/employers-have-you-ever-stopped-to-reckon-what-the-goodwill-of-your/) [B. C. Forbes](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/b-c-forbes/) > [There is not a more disgusting spectacle under the sun than our subserviency to British criticism. It is disgusting, first, because it is truckling,…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/edgar-allan-poe/there-is-not-a-more-disgusting-spectacle-under-the-sun-than-our/) [Edgar Allan Poe](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/edgar-allan-poe/) > [Man is, perhaps, no more prone to war than he used to be and no more inclined to commit other evil deeds. But a…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/joseph-wood-krutch/man-is-perhaps-no-more-prone-to-war-than-he-used-to-be-and-no-more/) [Joseph Wood Krutch](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/joseph-wood-krutch/) > [It is but seldom that any one overt act produces hostilities between two nations; there exists, more commonly, a previous jealousy and ill will,…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/washington-irving/it-is-but-seldom-that-any-one-overt-act-produces-hostilities-between/) [Washington Irving](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/washington-irving/) > [It is unfortunate that in most cases when the sins of the father fall on the son it is because unlike God, people refuse…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anonymous/it-is-unfortunate-that-in-most-cases-when-the-sins-of-the-father-fall/) [Anonymous](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anonymous/) > [Never allow sick attitudes to poison your thinking, nor let ill will make you ill. Avoid making your mind sore by that painful rehurting…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/norman-vincent-peale/never-allow-sick-attitudes-to-poison-your-thinking-nor-let-ill-will/) [Norman Vincent Peale](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/norman-vincent-peale/) > [“The growth of his power and fame was matched, in my imagination, by the degree of the punishment I would have liked to inflict…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/nabokov-i-tyrants-destroyed-i/the-growth-of-his-power-and-fame-was-matched-in-my-imagination-by-the/) Nabokov i Tyrants Destroyed i > [There is all the difference in the world between the criminal's avoiding the public eye and the civil disobedience's taking the law into his…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/hannah-arendt/there-is-all-the-difference-in-the-world-between-the-criminal-s/) [Hannah Arendt](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/hannah-arendt/) > [To think profoundly, to seek and speak truth, to love justice and denounce wrong is to draw upon one's self the ill will of…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/john-lancaster-spalding/to-think-profoundly-to-seek-and-speak-truth-to-love-justice-and/) [John Lancaster Spalding](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/john-lancaster-spalding/) ## More by E. Stanley Jones > [The action carries a sense of incompleteness and frustration, but not of guilt. Victorious living does not mean perfect living in the sense of…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/e-stanley-jones/the-action-carries-a-sense-of-incompleteness-and-frustration-but-not/) [E. Stanley Jones](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/e-stanley-jones/) > [Many live in dread of what is coming. Why should we? The unknown puts adventure into life. ... The unexpected around the corner gives…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/e-stanley-jones/many-live-in-dread-of-what-is-coming-why-should-we-the-unknown-puts/) [E. Stanley Jones](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/e-stanley-jones/) > [The love of God invades me, the peace of God pervades me, the will of God persuades me, and I am wholly His.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/e-stanley-jones/the-love-of-god-invades-me-the-peace-of-god-pervades-me-the-will-of/) [E. Stanley Jones](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/e-stanley-jones/) > [Your capacity to say "No" determines your capacity to say "Yes" to greater things.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/e-stanley-jones/your-capacity-to-say-no-determines-your-capacity-to-say-yes-to/) [E. Stanley Jones](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/e-stanley-jones/) > [A road that perhaps more than any other leads to self atrophy is undedicated money.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/e-stanley-jones/a-road-that-perhaps-more-than-any-other-leads-to-self-atrophy-is/) [E. Stanley Jones](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/e-stanley-jones/) > [Recognize negativism and inferiority attitudes as enemies - do not try to dress them as your friends. you will be tempted to look upon…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/e-stanley-jones/recognize-negativism-and-inferiority-attitudes-as-enemies-do-not-try/) [E. Stanley Jones](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/e-stanley-jones/) > [When Satan attacks you, command him in the Name of Jesus to bend his neck. On the back of it you'll find there's a…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/e-stanley-jones/when-satan-attacks-you-command-him-in-the-name-of-jesus-to-bend-his/) [E. Stanley Jones](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/e-stanley-jones/) > [To implant fear in the minds of children is a crime. If parents try to rule the child by fear, then fear rules the…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/e-stanley-jones/to-implant-fear-in-the-minds-of-children-is-a-crime-if-parents-try-to/) [E. Stanley Jones](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/e-stanley-jones/) > [Everybody who belongs to Christ belongs to everybody who belongs to Christ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/e-stanley-jones/everybody-who-belongs-to-christ-belongs-to-everybody-who-belongs-to/) [E. Stanley Jones](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/e-stanley-jones/) > [Whatever we focus on determines what we become.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/e-stanley-jones/whatever-we-focus-on-determines-what-we-become/) [E. Stanley Jones](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/e-stanley-jones/) > [In the pure, strong hours of the morning, when the soul of the day is at its best, lean upon the window sill of…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/e-stanley-jones/in-the-pure-strong-hours-of-the-morning-when-the-soul-of-the-day-is/) [E. Stanley Jones](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/e-stanley-jones/) > [Everything that happens to me can help me along in my Christian life.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/e-stanley-jones/everything-that-happens-to-me-can-help-me-along-in-my-christian-life/) [E. Stanley Jones](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/e-stanley-jones/) > [To live by worry is to live against reality](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/e-stanley-jones/to-live-by-worry-is-to-live-against-reality/) [E. Stanley Jones](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/e-stanley-jones/) > [If we know how to pray, we know how to live.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/e-stanley-jones/if-we-know-how-to-pray-we-know-how-to-live/) [E. Stanley Jones](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/e-stanley-jones/) > [While love takes on itself impossible tasks, yet it finds that love lightens all loads. It is the same burden that wings are to…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/e-stanley-jones/while-love-takes-on-itself-impossible-tasks-yet-it-finds-that-love/) [E. Stanley Jones](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/e-stanley-jones/) [Explore all 109 E. Stanley Jones quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/e-stanley-jones/) ## More Good will quotes > ['Peace on earth, good will toward men' - democracy must cling to that message. For it is my deep conviction that democracy cannot live…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/franklin-d-roosevelt/peace-on-earth-good-will-toward-men-democracy-must-cling-to-that/) [Franklin D. Roosevelt](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/franklin-d-roosevelt/) > [I am an optimist, and I believe that people are inherently good and that if you give everyone a voice and freedom of expression,…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/matt-mullenweg/i-am-an-optimist-and-i-believe-that-people-are-inherently-good-and/) [Matt Mullenweg](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/matt-mullenweg/) > [We are thankful for good-will rather than for services, for the motive than the quantum of favor received.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/william-hazlitt/we-are-thankful-for-good-will-rather-than-for-services-for-the-motive/) [William Hazlitt](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/william-hazlitt/) > [To all people of good will who are working for social justice: never tire of working for a more just world, marked by greater…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/pope-francis/to-all-people-of-good-will-who-are-working-for-social-justice-never/) [Pope Francis](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/pope-francis/) > [In the end we are always rewarded for our good will, our patience, fair-mindedness, and gentleness with what is strange.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/friedrich-nietzsche/in-the-end-we-are-always-rewarded-for-our-good-will-our-patience-fair/) [Friedrich Nietzsche](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/friedrich-nietzsche/) > [Without good-will, no man has any presumptive right, except the right or opportunity to change his will, so long as there is hope of…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/william-ernest-hocking/without-good-will-no-man-has-any-presumptive-right-except-the-right/) [William Ernest Hocking](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/william-ernest-hocking/) > [The saints differ from us in their exuberance, the excess of our human talents. Moderation is not their secret. It is in the wildness…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/phyllis-mcginley/the-saints-differ-from-us-in-their-exuberance-the-excess-of-our-human/) [Phyllis McGinley](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/phyllis-mcginley/) > [If someone is gay and is searching for the Lord and has good will, then who am I to judge him?... No one should…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/pope-francis/if-someone-is-gay-and-is-searching-for-the-lord-and-has-good-will/) [Pope Francis](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/pope-francis/) > [Inspiration and creativity, they ride right next to one anotherNot everyday are you going to wake up, the clouds are gonna part and the…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jack-white/inspiration-and-creativity-they-ride-right-next-to-one-anothernot/) [Jack White](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jack-white/) > [Let tyrants fear, I have always so behaved myself that, under God, I have placed my chiefest strength and safeguard in the loyal hearts…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/elizabeth-i/let-tyrants-fear-i-have-always-so-behaved-myself-that-under-god-i/) [Elizabeth I](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/elizabeth-i/) > [The real essentials of life - compassion, kindness, good will, forgiveness - are what is fundamental to living as a true human being.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/eknath-easwaran/the-real-essentials-of-life-compassion-kindness-good-will-forgiveness/) [Eknath Easwaran](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/eknath-easwaran/) > [To laughter! The bright coinage of the bank of good will.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/minna-antrim/to-laughter-the-bright-coinage-of-the-bank-of-good-will/) [Minna Antrim](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/minna-antrim/) > [Scatter good will and love and prayers all around, everywhere, and you will be astonished, not only by what it does for other people,…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/norman-vincent-peale/scatter-good-will-and-love-and-prayers-all-around-everywhere-and-you/) [Norman Vincent Peale](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/norman-vincent-peale/) > [Why is the tao so valuable? Because it is everywhere, and everyone can use it. This is why those who seek will find, And…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/laozi/why-is-the-tao-so-valuable-because-it-is-everywhere-and-everyone-can/) [Laozi](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/laozi/) > [Judenhass is endlessly disturbing, often unpleasant and incessantly horrifying in its stark coldness. The quotes should never be forgotten or made light of. It…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/marv-wolfman/judenhass-is-endlessly-disturbing-often-unpleasant-and-incessantly/) [Marv Wolfman](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/marv-wolfman/) [Browse all 321 Good will quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/good-will/) ```json { "@context": "https://schema.org", "@graph": [ { "@type": "Quotation", "text": "Be so preoccupied with good will that you haven't room for ill will.", "creator": { "@type": "Person", "name": "E. 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