---
title: "Meaning & Key Takeaway of: But I do know focusing on the exterior…"
description: "\"But I do know focusing on the exterior doesn't make me happy. If I want peace and serenity, it won't be reached by getting thinner or fatter.\" — Elle M..."
image: "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/d53/elle-macpherson-12894_exterior_but-i-do-know-focusing-on-the-exterior-d_3198928.jpg"
---

#  But I do know focusing on the exterior doesn't make me…

![“But I do know focusing on the exterior doesn't make me happy. If I want peace and serenity, it won't be reached by getting thinner or fatter.” quote by Elle Macpherson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/d53/elle-macpherson-12894_exterior_but-i-do-know-focusing-on-the-exterior-d_3198928.jpg)   [Download](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/d53/elle-macpherson-12894_exterior_but-i-do-know-focusing-on-the-exterior-d_3198928.jpg) [Open image](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/d53/elle-macpherson-12894_exterior_but-i-do-know-focusing-on-the-exterior-d_3198928.jpg)

> “But I do know focusing on the exterior doesn't make me happy. If I want peace and serenity, it won't be reached by getting thinner or fatter.”

[Elle Macpherson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/elle-macpherson/)

## About This Quote

This interpretation was drafted with AI assistance. It is one reading of the quote, not the author's own explanation.

External changes like weight don’t guarantee inner peace; true serenity comes from inner work.

**In simple terms:** Inner peace isn’t about looks.

Key Takeaway

Cultivate inner calm through mindfulness.

Themes

wellness self‑acceptance inner peace

Mood

calm thoughtful

Type

advice motivational

When to use this quote

- stressful work environments
- personal health journeys
- relationship conflicts
- major life changes

Key Concepts

mindfulness body positivity

Questions to Reflect On

- What inner practices help you feel centered?
- How can you balance external goals with inner well‑being?

A Different Perspective

Focusing solely on appearance can ignore deeper psychological needs.

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[Peace](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/peace/) [Peace and serenity](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/peace-and-serenity/) [Peace Serenity](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/peace-serenity/) [Serenity](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/serenity/)

## Related quotes

> [“When you do the right thing, you get the feeling of peace and serenity associated with it. Do it again and again.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/roy-t-bennett/when-you-do-the-right-thing-you-get-the-feeling-of-peace-and-serenity/)

[Roy T. Bennett](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/roy-t-bennett/)

> [“When someone obtains peace and serenity, this shines a bright spotlight on others’ own unhappiness making their discomfort even more apparent.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/david-w-earle-lpc-love-is-not-enough/when-someone-obtains-peace-and-serenity-this-shines-a-bright/)

[David W. Earle LPC- Love is Not Enough](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/david-w-earle-lpc-love-is-not-enough/)

> [Our very contract with nature has a deep restorative power; contemplation of its magnificence imparts peace and serenity.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/pope-john-paul-ii/our-very-contract-with-nature-has-a-deep-restorative-power/)

[Pope John Paul II](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/pope-john-paul-ii/)

> [“Many voices from the world in which we live tell us we should live at a frantic pace. There is always more to do…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/richard-g-scott/many-voices-from-the-world-in-which-we-live-tell-us-we-should-live-at/)

[Richard G. Scott](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/richard-g-scott/)

> [I am on the edge of mysteries and the veil is getting thinner and thinner.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/louis-pasteur/i-am-on-the-edge-of-mysteries-and-the-veil-is-getting-thinner-and/)

[Louis Pasteur](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/louis-pasteur/)

> [I resent that there is an image of perfection that is getting thinner and thinner. I've got a lovely husband and children, and I…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/kate-winslet/i-resent-that-there-is-an-image-of-perfection-that-is-getting-thinner/)

[Kate Winslet](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/kate-winslet/)

> [Everything's cool as long as I'm getting thinner.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/lynn/everything-s-cool-as-long-as-i-m-getting-thinner/)

[Lynn](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/lynn/)

> [When I was younger, I was very thick-skinned - my skin is actually getting thinner as I get older.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/lenny-henry/when-i-was-younger-i-was-very-thick-skinned-my-skin-is-actually/)

[Lenny Henry](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/lenny-henry/)

> [I'm one of those people who lives for the moment. If you concern yourself with what's going to happen a year from now, or…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/oprah-winfrey/i-m-one-of-those-people-who-lives-for-the-moment-if-you-concern/)

[Oprah Winfrey](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/oprah-winfrey/)

> [ It was he \[Vincent\] who helped me to accommodate my life in such a way that I can be at peace with myself. Serenity… ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/johanna-van-gogh-bonger/it-was-he-vincent-who-helped-me-to-accommodate-my-life-in-such-a-way/)

Johanna van Gogh-Bonger

> [I gained an inner peace, the serenity of a prisoner, so to speak.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/nadezhda-tolokonnikova/i-gained-an-inner-peace-the-serenity-of-a-prisoner-so-to-speak/)

[Nadezhda Tolokonnikova](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/nadezhda-tolokonnikova/)

> [Self love. Inner peace. Serenity.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anonymous/self-love-inner-peace-serenity/)

[Anonymous](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anonymous/)

> [Annihilation has no terrors for me, because I have already tried it before I was born -a hundred million years -and I have suffered…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/mark-twain/annihilation-has-no-terrors-for-me-because-i-have-already-tried-it-2/)

[Mark Twain](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/mark-twain/)

> [“I have long ago lost my belief in immortality also my interest in it… I have sampled this life and it is sufficient… Annihilation…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/s-t-joshi/i-have-long-ago-lost-my-belief-in-immortality-also-my-interest-in-it/)

[S.T. Joshi](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/s-t-joshi/)

> [May this day bring countless happiness and endless joy and live with peace and serenity. Happy Birthday.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anonymous/may-this-day-bring-countless-happiness-and-endless-joy-and-live-with/)

[Anonymous](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anonymous/)

## More by Elle Macpherson

> [As long as people want to see me in movies, and as long as I find it interesting, I'll keep working.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/elle-macpherson/as-long-as-people-want-to-see-me-in-movies-and-as-long-as-i-find-it/)

[Elle Macpherson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/elle-macpherson/)

> [Anyway, I believe you don't fix the inside by putting something on the outside.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/elle-macpherson/anyway-i-believe-you-don-t-fix-the-inside-by-putting-something-on-the/)

[Elle Macpherson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/elle-macpherson/)

> [I come from a country where you don't wear clothes most of the year. Nudity is the most natural state.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/elle-macpherson/i-come-from-a-country-where-you-don-t-wear-clothes-most-of-the-year/)

[Elle Macpherson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/elle-macpherson/)

> [Acting and modeling have nothing to do with each other.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/elle-macpherson/acting-and-modeling-have-nothing-to-do-with-each-other/)

[Elle Macpherson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/elle-macpherson/)

> [G-strings are uncomfortable. Girls want real knickers now.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/elle-macpherson/g-strings-are-uncomfortable-girls-want-real-knickers-now/)

[Elle Macpherson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/elle-macpherson/)

> [Everything I do is about women honouring themselves, treating themselves and taking care of themselves.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/elle-macpherson/everything-i-do-is-about-women-honouring-themselves-treating/)

[Elle Macpherson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/elle-macpherson/)

> [I think that natural beauty is very charismatic... I just believe in enhancing who we are rather than trying to manipulate or change it…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/elle-macpherson/i-think-that-natural-beauty-is-very-charismatic-i-just-believe-in/)

[Elle Macpherson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/elle-macpherson/)

> [For 15 years, I've been playing the same character - which is myself - and I'm bored with 'myself'.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/elle-macpherson/for-15-years-i-ve-been-playing-the-same-character-which-is-myself-and/)

[Elle Macpherson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/elle-macpherson/)

> [I don't look at myself in the mirror. I'll flash past a mirror in the morning to check how I'm dressed, that's it.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/elle-macpherson/i-don-t-look-at-myself-in-the-mirror-i-ll-flash-past-a-mirror-in-the/)

[Elle Macpherson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/elle-macpherson/)

> [I don't believe we own our children, they're their own souls who make their own choices, we just guide and support them.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/elle-macpherson/i-don-t-believe-we-own-our-children-they-re-their-own-souls-who-make/)

[Elle Macpherson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/elle-macpherson/)

> [Focusing on the way I look makes me uncomfortable. I try to focus on the way I feel - I know what makes me…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/elle-macpherson/focusing-on-the-way-i-look-makes-me-uncomfortable-i-try-to-focus-on/)

[Elle Macpherson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/elle-macpherson/)

> [I've always found it very difficult to understand the laws as far as nudity in America - how some things are pornographic and some…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/elle-macpherson/i-ve-always-found-it-very-difficult-to-understand-the-laws-as-far-as/)

[Elle Macpherson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/elle-macpherson/)

> [I wish somebody had told me to start using sunscreen when I was younger 'cause I grew up in the '70s... and at that…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/elle-macpherson/i-wish-somebody-had-told-me-to-start-using-sunscreen-when-i-was/)

[Elle Macpherson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/elle-macpherson/)

> [Being a public person doesn't necessarily mean you're a piece of meat for everybody.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/elle-macpherson/being-a-public-person-doesn-t-necessarily-mean-you-re-a-piece-of-meat/)

[Elle Macpherson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/elle-macpherson/)

> [I'm almost 50, so I obviously don't have the same body that I had when I was 20. But I also don't have the…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/elle-macpherson/i-m-almost-50-so-i-obviously-don-t-have-the-same-body-that-i-had-when/)

[Elle Macpherson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/elle-macpherson/)

[Explore all 52 Elle Macpherson quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/elle-macpherson/)

## More Exterior quotes

> [Sometimes I envy painters, it is wonderful to remain in front of a bouquet of flowers a whole morning, or even longer. A photographer…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/edouard-boubat/sometimes-i-envy-painters-it-is-wonderful-to-remain-in-front-of-a/)

[Edouard Boubat](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/edouard-boubat/)

> [It is the free alone which never changes, and the unchangeable alone which is free; for change is produced by something exterior to a…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/swami-vivekananda/it-is-the-free-alone-which-never-changes-and-the-unchangeable-alone/)

[Swami Vivekananda](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/swami-vivekananda/)

> [As more Americans meet Mitt Romney, I think they'll see beyond the handsome exterior and see not just a good salesman, but a thoughtful…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/kathryn-jean-lopez/as-more-americans-meet-mitt-romney-i-think-they-ll-see-beyond-the/)

Kathryn Jean Lopez

> [If the love of God really reigns in your heart, it will show itself in the exterior.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/catherine-mcauley/if-the-love-of-god-really-reigns-in-your-heart-it-will-show-itself-in/)

[Catherine McAuley](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/catherine-mcauley/)

> [And what is faith, love, virtue unassayed Alone, without exterior help sustained?](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/john-milton/and-what-is-faith-love-virtue-unassayed-alone-without-exterior-help/)

[John Milton](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/john-milton/)

> [Life can be very funny and very tragic. Everyone has stuff that they've been through that makes up whatever fire it is that they…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/emmy-rossum/life-can-be-very-funny-and-very-tragic-everyone-has-stuff-that-they/)

[Emmy Rossum](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/emmy-rossum/)

> [The senses are the organs by which man places himself in connexion with exterior objects.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jean-anthelme-brillat-savarin/the-senses-are-the-organs-by-which-man-places-himself-in-connexion/)

[Jean Anthelme Brillat-Savarin](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jean-anthelme-brillat-savarin/)

> [To desire to be what one can be is purpose in life. There are no exterior forces. There are only interior forces. Who squanders…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/cynthia-ozick/to-desire-to-be-what-one-can-be-is-purpose-in-life-there-are-no/)

[Cynthia Ozick](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/cynthia-ozick/)

> [I try to keep away exterior events that are going to make me do something negative internally to myself.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/lin-shaye/i-try-to-keep-away-exterior-events-that-are-going-to-make-me-do/)

[Lin Shaye](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/lin-shaye/)

> [From the exterior face of the wall towers must be projected, from which an approaching enemy may be annoyed by weapons, from the embrasures…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anonymous/from-the-exterior-face-of-the-wall-towers-must-be-projected-from/)

[Anonymous](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anonymous/)

> [Thus happiness depends, as nature shows, less on exterior things than most suppose.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/william-cowper/thus-happiness-depends-as-nature-shows-less-on-exterior-things-than/)

[William Cowper](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/william-cowper/)

> [An oyster, that marvel of delicacy, that concentration of sapid excellence, that mouthful bwefore all other mouthfuls, who first had faith to believe it,…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/henry-ward-beecher/an-oyster-that-marvel-of-delicacy-that-concentration-of-sapid/)

[Henry Ward Beecher](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/henry-ward-beecher/)

> [In other words, the real problem is not exterior. The real problem is interior. The real problem is how to get people to internally…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ken-wilber/in-other-words-the-real-problem-is-not-exterior-the-real-problem-is/)

[Ken Wilber](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ken-wilber/)

> [It was a strange monster, for beneath its exterior it was frightened and sickened by its own violence. It chastised itself for its savagery.…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/kristin-cashore/it-was-a-strange-monster-for-beneath-its-exterior-it-was-frightened/)

[Kristin Cashore](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/kristin-cashore/)

> [I saw that the kingdom must be interior before it can be exterior, that it is a kingdom of ideas, and not one of…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/hannah-whitall-smith/i-saw-that-the-kingdom-must-be-interior-before-it-can-be-exterior/)

[Hannah Whitall Smith](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/hannah-whitall-smith/)

Browse all 212 Exterior quotes

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