--- title: "Meaning & Key Takeaway of: By use you possess gain; by disuse you…" description: "\"By use you possess gain; by disuse you decline and lose.\" — Edwin Louis Cole" image: "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/c47/edwin-louis-cole-7164_decline_by-use-you-possess-gain-by-disuse-you-de_3184347.png" --- # By use you possess gain; by disuse you decline and lose. ![“By use you possess gain; by disuse you decline and lose.” quote by Edwin Louis Cole](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/c47/edwin-louis-cole-7164_decline_by-use-you-possess-gain-by-disuse-you-de_3184347.png) [Download](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/c47/edwin-louis-cole-7164_decline_by-use-you-possess-gain-by-disuse-you-de_3184347.png) [Open image](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/c47/edwin-louis-cole-7164_decline_by-use-you-possess-gain-by-disuse-you-de_3184347.png) > “By use you possess gain; by disuse you decline and lose.” [Edwin Louis Cole](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/edwin-louis-cole/) ## About This Quote This interpretation was drafted with AI assistance. It is one reading of the quote, not the author's own explanation. Active use of abilities strengthens them; neglect leads to decline and loss. **In simple terms:** Use it or lose it. Key Takeaway Practice regularly to maintain skills. Themes self‑development discipline growth Mood motivational pragmatic Type self‑help inspirational When to use this quote - career development - musical practice - physical fitness - language learning Key Concepts skill retention habit formation Questions to Reflect On - What skill have you let decline? - How can you reintegrate it into daily routine? A Different Perspective Neglect can cause irreversible skill erosion. ★ ★ ★ ★ ★ No ratings yet [Decline](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/decline/) ## Related quotes > [The principle of investing is that by use you possess and gain, by disuse you decline and lose.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/edwin-louis-cole/the-principle-of-investing-is-that-by-use-you-possess-and-gain-by/) [Edwin Louis Cole](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/edwin-louis-cole/) > [Snooker players go into steady decline and lose their intensity after a while. But I will have real purpose the next five years. I…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/john-higgins/snooker-players-go-into-steady-decline-and-lose-their-intensity-after/) [John Higgins](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/john-higgins/) > [Some lose yet gain, others gain and yet lose](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anonymous/some-lose-yet-gain-others-gain-and-yet-lose/) [Anonymous](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anonymous/) > [“I WHO HAVE.. I WHO HAVE NOTHING shall gain in SOMETHING. and in SOMETHING I HAVE will lose to NOTHING in having that SOMETHING…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/adam-rhee/i-who-have-i-who-have-nothing-shall-gain-in-something-and-in/) Adam Rhee > [Why not have a motivation beyond me to get to a healthy weight? Every actor does that. We're chameleons. We change; we grow as…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/chrissy-metz/why-not-have-a-motivation-beyond-me-to-get-to-a-healthy-weight-every/) [Chrissy Metz](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/chrissy-metz/) > [Keep in touch with the people who have something to gain rather than those who have nothing to lose.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/vikrant-parsai/keep-in-touch-with-the-people-who-have-something-to-gain-rather-than/) [Vikrant Parsai](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/vikrant-parsai/) > [I had nothig to lose ,but something to gain :)](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/eminem/i-had-nothig-to-lose-but-something-to-gain/) [Eminem](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/eminem/) > [My intent was to gain experience for fiction I eventually hoped to write. But there's no question I was drawn in by the hope…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/tom-rachman/my-intent-was-to-gain-experience-for-fiction-i-eventually-hoped-to/) [Tom Rachman](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/tom-rachman/) > [The harder I train every day on the track and in the gym, the more trust I gain in myself.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/miguel-cotto/the-harder-i-train-every-day-on-the-track-and-in-the-gym-the-more/) [Miguel Cotto](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/miguel-cotto/) > [“Quitters don’t gain what they have started working on; waiters don’t start what they could have gained. What is common there is failure.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/israelmore-ayivor/quitters-don-t-gain-what-they-have-started-working-on-waiters-don-t/) [Israelmore Ayivor](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/israelmore-ayivor/) > [The world's industry must gain incentives to stop polluting and to invest in clean technologies.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/tulsi-tanti/the-world-s-industry-must-gain-incentives-to-stop-polluting-and-to/) [Tulsi Tanti](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/tulsi-tanti/) > [Maybe bring in sponge balls to learn the technique and gain that experience of actually challenging for a header.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ryan-mason/maybe-bring-in-sponge-balls-to-learn-the-technique-and-gain-that/) [Ryan Mason](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ryan-mason/) > [God always has a way of making you give up something so that you may gain something better.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/camille-cassie-govender/god-always-has-a-way-of-making-you-give-up-something-so-that-you-may/) [Camille Cassie Govender](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/camille-cassie-govender/) > [“I believe that our world was created with a sense of order. For every loss, there's a gain. Sometimes we're so blinded by the…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/debbie-macomber/i-believe-that-our-world-was-created-with-a-sense-of-order-for-every/) [Debbie Macomber](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/debbie-macomber/) > [I believe confusion is good. Worldwide market leaders gain when there is confusion in the market.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/subhash-chandra/i-believe-confusion-is-good-worldwide-market-leaders-gain-when-there/) [Subhash Chandra](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/subhash-chandra/) ## More by Edwin Louis Cole > [The discipline of daily devotion to God undergirds decisions.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/edwin-louis-cole/the-discipline-of-daily-devotion-to-god-undergirds-decisions/) [Edwin Louis Cole](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/edwin-louis-cole/) > [God never ends anything on a negative; God always ends on a positive.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/edwin-louis-cole/god-never-ends-anything-on-a-negative-god-always-ends-on-a-positive/) [Edwin Louis Cole](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/edwin-louis-cole/) > [Knowledge of God's Word is a bulwark against deception, temptation, accusation, even persecution.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/edwin-louis-cole/knowledge-of-god-s-word-is-a-bulwark-against-deception-temptation/) [Edwin Louis Cole](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/edwin-louis-cole/) > [Marriage may be the closest thing to Heaven or Hell any of us will know on this earth.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/edwin-louis-cole/marriage-may-be-the-closest-thing-to-heaven-or-hell-any-of-us-will/) [Edwin Louis Cole](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/edwin-louis-cole/) > [Crying over what's gone won't find the present.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/edwin-louis-cole/crying-over-what-s-gone-won-t-find-the-present/) [Edwin Louis Cole](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/edwin-louis-cole/) > [Trust funds can never be a substitute for a fund of trust.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/edwin-louis-cole/trust-funds-can-never-be-a-substitute-for-a-fund-of-trust/) [Edwin Louis Cole](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/edwin-louis-cole/) > [Obedience is an act of faith; disobedience is the result of unbelief.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/edwin-louis-cole/obedience-is-an-act-of-faith-disobedience-is-the-result-of-unbelief/) [Edwin Louis Cole](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/edwin-louis-cole/) > [Maturity comes not with age but with the acceptance of responsibility. You are only young once but immaturity can last a lifetime!](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/edwin-louis-cole/maturity-comes-not-with-age-but-with-the-acceptance-of-responsibility/) [Edwin Louis Cole](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/edwin-louis-cole/) > [“You don't drown by falling in the water, you drowned by staying there”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/edwin-louis-cole/you-don-t-drown-by-falling-in-the-water-you-drowned-by-staying-there/) [Edwin Louis Cole](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/edwin-louis-cole/) > [Building a godly life on the sand of scriptural illiteracy is impossible.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/edwin-louis-cole/building-a-godly-life-on-the-sand-of-scriptural-illiteracy-is/) [Edwin Louis Cole](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/edwin-louis-cole/) > [You seek the heights of manhood when you seek the depths of God.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/edwin-louis-cole/you-seek-the-heights-of-manhood-when-you-seek-the-depths-of-god/) [Edwin Louis Cole](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/edwin-louis-cole/) > [God will finish what He authors, but He is not obligated to finish what He has not authored.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/edwin-louis-cole/god-will-finish-what-he-authors-but-he-is-not-obligated-to-finish/) [Edwin Louis Cole](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/edwin-louis-cole/) > [Men are limited by the knowledge of their minds, the worth of their characters and the principles upon which they are building their lives.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/edwin-louis-cole/men-are-limited-by-the-knowledge-of-their-minds-the-worth-of-their/) [Edwin Louis Cole](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/edwin-louis-cole/) > [The man who seeks to please God is the man who people are pleased with. The man who seeks to please others won't satisfy…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/edwin-louis-cole/the-man-who-seeks-to-please-god-is-the-man-who-people-are-pleased/) [Edwin Louis Cole](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/edwin-louis-cole/) > [Character is more important than talent.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/edwin-louis-cole/character-is-more-important-than-talent/) [Edwin Louis Cole](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/edwin-louis-cole/) [Explore all 94 Edwin Louis Cole quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/edwin-louis-cole/) ## More Decline quotes > [Among the many factors that make a return to halcyon days of the first decades of the postwar era virtually impossible is the decline…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/robert-gilpin/among-the-many-factors-that-make-a-return-to-halcyon-days-of-the/) [Robert Gilpin](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/robert-gilpin/) > [When a man imagines, even after years of striving, that he has attained perfection, his decline begins.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/theodore-martin/when-a-man-imagines-even-after-years-of-striving-that-he-has-attained/) Theodore Martin > [Low levels of vitamin D in the population as a whole suggest that most people need to take a vitamin D supplement. This may…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/andrew-weil/low-levels-of-vitamin-d-in-the-population-as-a-whole-suggest-that/) [Andrew Weil](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/andrew-weil/) > [The challenge is either to build an economy that is sustainable or to stay with our unsustainable economy until it declines. It is not…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/lester-r-brown/the-challenge-is-either-to-build-an-economy-that-is-sustainable-or-to/) [Lester R. Brown](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/lester-r-brown/) > [In my humble opinion, the PC as we have known it is in a continuous decline and being relegated to a utility device for…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/hector-ruiz/in-my-humble-opinion-the-pc-as-we-have-known-it-is-in-a-continuous/) [Hector Ruiz](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/hector-ruiz/) > [“There is a great deal of ruin in a nation.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/adam-smith/there-is-a-great-deal-of-ruin-in-a-nation/) [Adam Smith](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/adam-smith/) > [I think the rise of quantitative econometrics and a highly mathematical approach to risk management was the obverse of a decline in interest in…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/niall-ferguson/i-think-the-rise-of-quantitative-econometrics-and-a-highly/) [Niall Ferguson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/niall-ferguson/) > [To my way of thinking, the American family started to decline when parents began to communicate with their children.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/erma-bombeck/to-my-way-of-thinking-the-american-family-started-to-decline-when/) [Erma Bombeck](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/erma-bombeck/) > [Deflation means a slowdown of income growth. Markets shrink, new capital investment and employment also taper off, so wages decline. That is what's happening…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/michael-hudson/deflation-means-a-slowdown-of-income-growth-markets-shrink-new/) [Michael Hudson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/michael-hudson/) > [Prominent exploration experts have recently predicted that total world production of liquid oil will peak by about the end of this decade-or a few…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/amory-lovins/prominent-exploration-experts-have-recently-predicted-that-total/) [Amory Lovins](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/amory-lovins/) > [In the 1970s, British food was beginning to get good, whereas in France it was just starting its long, sad decline. My most memorable…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/sebastian-faulks/in-the-1970s-british-food-was-beginning-to-get-good-whereas-in-france/) [Sebastian Faulks](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/sebastian-faulks/) > [In all our academies we attempt far too much. ... In earlier times lectures were delivered upon chemistry and botany as branches of medicine,…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/johann-wolfgang-von-goethe/in-all-our-academies-we-attempt-far-too-much-in-earlier-times/) [Johann Wolfgang von Goethe](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/johann-wolfgang-von-goethe/) > [A decline in the national housing price level would need to be substantial to trigger a significant rise in foreclosures, because the vast majority…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/alan-greenspan/a-decline-in-the-national-housing-price-level-would-need-to-be/) [Alan Greenspan](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/alan-greenspan/) > [“A civilization, when the moment has come for crowds to acquire a high hand over it, is at the mercy of too many chances…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/gustave-le-bon/a-civilization-when-the-moment-has-come-for-crowds-to-acquire-a-high/) [Gustave Le Bon](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/gustave-le-bon/) > [Obviously it's true that as you go up the ranks, the number of women starts to decline. Whether that's because of 'self-deselection' or other…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/marianne-lake/obviously-it-s-true-that-as-you-go-up-the-ranks-the-number-of-women/) [Marianne Lake](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/marianne-lake/) [Browse all 851 Decline quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/decline/) ```json { "@context": "https://schema.org", "@graph": [ { "@type": "Quotation", "text": "By use you possess gain; by disuse you decline and lose.", "creator": { "@type": "Person", "name": "Edwin Louis Cole" }, "isPartOf": { "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/#website" }, "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/edwin-louis-cole/by-use-you-possess-gain-by-disuse-you-decline-and-lose/", "about": { "@type": "Thing", "name": "Decline" }, "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/edwin-louis-cole/by-use-you-possess-gain-by-disuse-you-decline-and-lose/#quotation", "image": { "@type": "ImageObject", "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/c47/edwin-louis-cole-7164_decline_by-use-you-possess-gain-by-disuse-you-de_3184347.png", "contentUrl": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/c47/edwin-louis-cole-7164_decline_by-use-you-possess-gain-by-disuse-you-de_3184347.png", "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/c47/edwin-louis-cole-7164_decline_by-use-you-possess-gain-by-disuse-you-de_3184347.png", "width": 1080, "height": 1080, "caption": "“By use you possess gain; by disuse you decline and lose.” — Edwin Louis Cole", "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": "Edwin Louis Cole", "item": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/edwin-louis-cole/" }, { "@type": "ListItem", "position": 4, "name": "By use you possess gain; by...", "item": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/edwin-louis-cole/by-use-you-possess-gain-by-disuse-you-decline-and-lose/" } ], "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/edwin-louis-cole/by-use-you-possess-gain-by-disuse-you-decline-and-lose/#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 } } ] } ```