--- title: "Meaning & Key Takeaway of: Well, I try not to think about the…" description: "\"Well, I try not to think about the general public since I have no idea what the general public is and I don't think anybody does.\" — Elliott Smith" image: "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/fbf/elliott-smith-8566_doe_well-i-try-not-to-think-about-the-genera_402829.jpg" --- # Well, I try not to think about the general public since I… ![“Well, I try not to think about the general public since I have no idea what the general public is and I don't think anybody does.” quote by Elliott Smith](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/fbf/elliott-smith-8566_doe_well-i-try-not-to-think-about-the-genera_402829.jpg) [Download](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/fbf/elliott-smith-8566_doe_well-i-try-not-to-think-about-the-genera_402829.jpg) [Open image](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/fbf/elliott-smith-8566_doe_well-i-try-not-to-think-about-the-genera_402829.jpg) > “Well, I try not to think about the general public since I have no idea what the general public is and I don't think anybody does.” [Elliott Smith](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/elliott-smith/) ## About This Quote This interpretation was drafted with AI assistance. It is one reading of the quote, not the author's own explanation. He expresses uncertainty about the public’s identity, suggesting that understanding the masses is impossible and perhaps irrelevant. **In simple terms:** He admits he doesn’t know who the general public is. Key Takeaway Accept the mystery of the audience. Themes uncertainty public perception artist mindset Mood conflicted reflective Type philosophical personal When to use this quote - songwriting - media interviews - public speaking - marketing strategies Key Concepts existential doubt social anonymity Questions to Reflect On - How does this uncertainty affect your creative choices? - Can you still connect without knowing the audience? A Different Perspective Assuming no one truly knows the public may limit audience engagement. ★ ★ ★ ★ ★ No ratings yet [General public](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/general-public/) [Ideas](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/ideas/) [Thinking](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/thinking/) ## Related quotes > [It is absurd to think that the general public can ever make money out of market forecasts.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/benjamin-graham/it-is-absurd-to-think-that-the-general-public-can-ever-make-money-out/) [Benjamin Graham](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/benjamin-graham/) > [The public has no idea that the deficit has been falling like a stone.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/paul-krugman/the-public-has-no-idea-that-the-deficit-has-been-falling-like-a-stone/) [Paul Krugman](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/paul-krugman/) > [I don't think anybody can replace Mr. Miyazaki.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/makoto-shinkai/i-don-t-think-anybody-can-replace-mr-miyazaki/) [Makoto Shinkai](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/makoto-shinkai/) > [I don't think anybody likes losing.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/robin-lopez/i-don-t-think-anybody-likes-losing/) [Robin Lopez](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/robin-lopez/) > [We don't think about what anybody else with the media or other teams think about us.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/nikola-jokic/we-don-t-think-about-what-anybody-else-with-the-media-or-other-teams/) [Nikola Jokic](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/nikola-jokic/) > [I don't think anybody in the NFL is tied to each other.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/sean-taylor/i-don-t-think-anybody-in-the-nfl-is-tied-to-each-other/) [Sean Taylor](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/sean-taylor/) > [I don't think anybody wants to be mediocre.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/brooks-koepka/i-don-t-think-anybody-wants-to-be-mediocre/) [Brooks Koepka](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/brooks-koepka/) > [I just think, in general, I'm not a really judgmental person.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ross-lynch/i-just-think-in-general-i-m-not-a-really-judgmental-person/) [Ross Lynch](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ross-lynch/) > [Go through detailed variations in your own time, think in a general way about the position in the opponent's time and you will soon…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/alexander-kotov/go-through-detailed-variations-in-your-own-time-think-in-a-general/) [Alexander Kotov](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/alexander-kotov/) > [People often think that there's a general who makes all the difference, but I would reject that. It's a team effort. It's the power…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jim-harbaugh/people-often-think-that-there-s-a-general-who-makes-all-the/) [Jim Harbaugh](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jim-harbaugh/) > [I just think there's a general interest in the world of computers.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/irwin-winkler/i-just-think-there-s-a-general-interest-in-the-world-of-computers/) [Irwin Winkler](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/irwin-winkler/) > [The problem is a lot of people don't think. The general bloke just goes through life, gets a job, gets married and all that,…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/paul-simonon/the-problem-is-a-lot-of-people-don-t-think-the-general-bloke-just/) [Paul Simonon](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/paul-simonon/) > [I think in general the ends do not justify the means.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/howard-dean/i-think-in-general-the-ends-do-not-justify-the-means/) [Howard Dean](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/howard-dean/) > [I think anybody should be confident in themselves.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/kyler-murray/i-think-anybody-should-be-confident-in-themselves/) [Kyler Murray](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/kyler-murray/) > [With what all these people are saying, do you think that anybody wants to be around me? They all think that I did this…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/marc-wallice/with-what-all-these-people-are-saying-do-you-think-that-anybody-wants/) [Marc Wallice](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/marc-wallice/) ## More by Elliott Smith > [Somewhere where people aren't so mad would be nice, but I don't know if there is anywhere like that.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/elliott-smith/somewhere-where-people-aren-t-so-mad-would-be-nice-but-i-don-t-know/) [Elliott Smith](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/elliott-smith/) > [I actually don't think that I'm gonna sell a lot of records.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/elliott-smith/i-actually-don-t-think-that-i-m-gonna-sell-a-lot-of-records/) [Elliott Smith](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/elliott-smith/) > [Because God only knows why people like what they like and don't like something else.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/elliott-smith/because-god-only-knows-why-people-like-what-they-like-and-don-t-like/) [Elliott Smith](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/elliott-smith/) > [My girlfriend at the time convinced me to send these songs to Cavity Search. When they wanted to put out my record I was…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/elliott-smith/my-girlfriend-at-the-time-convinced-me-to-send-these-songs-to-cavity/) [Elliott Smith](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/elliott-smith/) > [People think they know all these things about other people, and if you ask them why they think they know that, it'd be hard…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/elliott-smith/people-think-they-know-all-these-things-about-other-people-and-if-you/) [Elliott Smith](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/elliott-smith/) > [I didn't think I was gonna be playing on the Oscars or anything.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/elliott-smith/i-didn-t-think-i-was-gonna-be-playing-on-the-oscars-or-anything/) [Elliott Smith](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/elliott-smith/) > [All your secret wishes could right now be coming true.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/elliott-smith/all-your-secret-wishes-could-right-now-be-coming-true/) [Elliott Smith](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/elliott-smith/) > [I can't think of anything off the top of my head that seems more important than something designed to raise money to keep something…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/elliott-smith/i-can-t-think-of-anything-off-the-top-of-my-head-that-seems-more/) [Elliott Smith](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/elliott-smith/) > [I went walking around the city some more, people watching with a cold, blank stare. And I saw your face in everyone, I swear.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/elliott-smith/i-went-walking-around-the-city-some-more-people-watching-with-a-cold/) [Elliott Smith](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/elliott-smith/) > [There are lots of things I like about playing in a band, the things I can't do by myself you know.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/elliott-smith/there-are-lots-of-things-i-like-about-playing-in-a-band-the-things-i/) [Elliott Smith](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/elliott-smith/) > [The band's filter, but playing live is a lot of fun.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/elliott-smith/the-band-s-filter-but-playing-live-is-a-lot-of-fun/) [Elliott Smith](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/elliott-smith/) > [People can be chaos but it's hard to fit it into some creative piece that you made. It's hard.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/elliott-smith/people-can-be-chaos-but-it-s-hard-to-fit-it-into-some-creative-piece/) [Elliott Smith](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/elliott-smith/) > [“Tired of dancing on a pot of gold flake paint”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/elliott-smith/tired-of-dancing-on-a-pot-of-gold-flake-paint/) [Elliott Smith](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/elliott-smith/) > [A lot of people are kind of depressed. I'm happy some of the time, and some of the time I'm not.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/elliott-smith/a-lot-of-people-are-kind-of-depressed-i-m-happy-some-of-the-time-and/) [Elliott Smith](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/elliott-smith/) > [I didn't know how many people knew who Ferdinand was.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/elliott-smith/i-didn-t-know-how-many-people-knew-who-ferdinand-was/) [Elliott Smith](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/elliott-smith/) [Explore all 80 Elliott Smith quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/elliott-smith/) ## More Doe quotes > [So the fool, as distinct from the scoundrel, is completely self- satisfied; in fact, he can easily become dangerous, as it does not take…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/dietrich-bonhoeffer/so-the-fool-as-distinct-from-the-scoundrel-is-completely-self/) [Dietrich Bonhoeffer](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/dietrich-bonhoeffer/) > [I cannot forbid a person to marry several wives, for it does not contradict Scripture. MARTIN LUTHER, letter to Chancellor Gregory Brück, January 13,…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jean-de-la-bruyere/i-cannot-forbid-a-person-to-marry-several-wives-for-it-does-not/) [Jean de la Bruyere](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jean-de-la-bruyere/) > [For successful education there must always be a certain freshness in the knowledge dealt with. It must be either new in itself or invested…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/alfred-north-whitehead/for-successful-education-there-must-always-be-a-certain-freshness-in/) [Alfred North Whitehead](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/alfred-north-whitehead/) > [The prophet who fails to present a bearable alternative and yet preaches doom is part of the trap that he postulates. Not only does…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/margaret-mead/the-prophet-who-fails-to-present-a-bearable-alternative-and-yet/) [Margaret Mead](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/margaret-mead/) > [Sometimes a sign or a quote is simply interesting by itself and does not require anything beyond being framed on a page.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/stephen-vincent-benet/sometimes-a-sign-or-a-quote-is-simply-interesting-by-itself-and-does/) [Stephen Vincent Benet](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/stephen-vincent-benet/) > [A home is not a museum. It doesn't have to be furnished with Picasso paintings, or Sheraton suites, or Oriental rugs, or Chinese pottery.…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/james-m-cain/a-home-is-not-a-museum-it-doesn-t-have-to-be-furnished-with-picasso/) [James M. Cain](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/james-m-cain/) > [The image of blacks usually is one of people who are suffering from hunger, unemployment, and poverty. The idea of them as agents and…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/grace-lee-boggs/the-image-of-blacks-usually-is-one-of-people-who-are-suffering-from/) [Grace Lee Boggs](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/grace-lee-boggs/) > [He's a fool that marries; but he's a greater fool that does not marry a fool.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/william-wycherley/he-s-a-fool-that-marries-but-he-s-a-greater-fool-that-does-not-marry/) [William Wycherley](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/william-wycherley/) > [Nothing old is ever reborn but neither does it totally disappear. And that which has once been born, will always reappear in a new…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/alvar-aalto/nothing-old-is-ever-reborn-but-neither-does-it-totally-disappear-and/) [Alvar Aalto](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/alvar-aalto/) > [One of the things the United States does well is building coalitions. What the U.S. knows is that if you don't have a coalition…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/shimon-peres/one-of-the-things-the-united-states-does-well-is-building-coalitions/) [Shimon Peres](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/shimon-peres/) > [Preaching to the choir actually arms the choir with arguments and elevates the choir's discourse. There's a reason the right does it and does…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/dan-savage/preaching-to-the-choir-actually-arms-the-choir-with-arguments-and/) [Dan Savage](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/dan-savage/) > [There is something about the South that accepts the supernatural. If you don't accept it and you're having a conversation with someone who does,…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/alice-englert/there-is-something-about-the-south-that-accepts-the-supernatural-if/) [Alice Englert](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/alice-englert/) > [ 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/) > [If Wall Street crashes, does Main Street follow? Not necessarily.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ben-bernanke/if-wall-street-crashes-does-main-street-follow-not-necessarily/) [Ben Bernanke](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ben-bernanke/) > [It does not seem to me to be sufficiently recognized everywhere among the officials that the existence or non-existence of our people and Empire…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/paul-von-hindenburg/it-does-not-seem-to-me-to-be-sufficiently-recognized-everywhere-among/) [Paul von Hindenburg](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/paul-von-hindenburg/) Browse all 25,574 Doe quotes ```json { "@context": "https://schema.org", "@graph": [ { "@type": "Quotation", "text": "Well, I try not to think about the general public since I have no idea what the general public is and I don't think anybody does.", "creator": { "@type": "Person", "name": "Elliott Smith" }, "isPartOf": { "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/#website" }, "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/elliott-smith/well-i-try-not-to-think-about-the-general-public-since-i-have-no-idea/", "about": { "@type": "Thing", "name": "Doe" }, "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/elliott-smith/well-i-try-not-to-think-about-the-general-public-since-i-have-no-idea/#quotation", "image": { "@type": "ImageObject", "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/fbf/elliott-smith-8566_doe_well-i-try-not-to-think-about-the-genera_402829.jpg", "contentUrl": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/fbf/elliott-smith-8566_doe_well-i-try-not-to-think-about-the-genera_402829.jpg", "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/fbf/elliott-smith-8566_doe_well-i-try-not-to-think-about-the-genera_402829.jpg", "width": 1080, "height": 1080, "caption": "“Well, I try not to think about the general public since I have no idea what the general public is and I…” — Elliott Smith", "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": "Elliott Smith", "item": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/elliott-smith/" }, { "@type": "ListItem", "position": 4, "name": "Well, I try not to think...", "item": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/elliott-smith/well-i-try-not-to-think-about-the-general-public-since-i-have-no-idea/" } ], "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/elliott-smith/well-i-try-not-to-think-about-the-general-public-since-i-have-no-idea/#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 } } ] } ```