--- title: "Meaning & Key Takeaway of: I'm not a ball in a pinball machine. I…" description: "\"I'm not a ball in a pinball machine. I know what I want.\" — Emile Hirsch" image: "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/fc8/emile-hirsch-14547_balls_i-m-not-a-ball-in-a-pinball-machine-i-kn_1146779.png" --- # I'm not a ball in a pinball machine. I know what I want. ![“I'm not a ball in a pinball machine. I know what I want.” quote by Emile Hirsch](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/fc8/emile-hirsch-14547_balls_i-m-not-a-ball-in-a-pinball-machine-i-kn_1146779.png) [Download](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/fc8/emile-hirsch-14547_balls_i-m-not-a-ball-in-a-pinball-machine-i-kn_1146779.png) [Open image](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/fc8/emile-hirsch-14547_balls_i-m-not-a-ball-in-a-pinball-machine-i-kn_1146779.png) > “I'm not a ball in a pinball machine. I know what I want.” [Emile Hirsch](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/emile-hirsch/) ## About This Quote This interpretation was drafted with AI assistance. It is one reading of the quote, not the author's own explanation. Self‑determination means refusing to be a passive object, instead actively pursuing personal goals. **In simple terms:** Know what you want and act, not be controlled. Key Takeaway Define goals, act purposefully. Themes agency determination self‑direction Mood motivational assertive Type advice inspirational When to use this quote - career planning - creative projects - personal growth Key Concepts psychology motivation goal setting Questions to Reflect On - What do you truly want? - How will you achieve it? A Different Perspective Over‑confidence may ignore external constraints. ★ ★ ★ ★ ★ No ratings yet [Computers](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/computers/) [Machines](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/machines/) [Pinball](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/pinball/) ## Related quotes > [Sometimes you get the pinball machine and sometimes the pinball machine gets you.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/tyler-childers/sometimes-you-get-the-pinball-machine-and-sometimes-the-pinball/) [Tyler Childers](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/tyler-childers/) > [The coolest thing, and I have it at home, is a huge Hulk Hogan, normal-sized pinball machine. When people come over they play it…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/hulk-hogan/the-coolest-thing-and-i-have-it-at-home-is-a-huge-hulk-hogan-normal/) [Hulk Hogan](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/hulk-hogan/) > [Tokyo is like a huge futuristic pinball machine. It's like a bubble with two lost creatures inside a pinball machine that doesn't care about…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/gaspar-noe/tokyo-is-like-a-huge-futuristic-pinball-machine-it-s-like-a-bubble/) [Gaspar Noe](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/gaspar-noe/) > [Tokyo's like a huge pinball machine. The first time you're there, and you don't understand what's going on, it's like 'ding ding ding ding…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/gaspar-noe/tokyo-s-like-a-huge-pinball-machine-the-first-time-you-re-there-and/) [Gaspar Noe](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/gaspar-noe/) > [Nobody trusts anyone, or why did they put tilt on a pinball machine.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/steve-mcqueen/nobody-trusts-anyone-or-why-did-they-put-tilt-on-a-pinball-machine/) [Steve McQueen](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/steve-mcqueen/) > [Why do people in ship mutinies always ask for "better treatment"? I'd ask for a pinball machine, because with all that rocking back and…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jack-handey/why-do-people-in-ship-mutinies-always-ask-for-better-treatment-i-d/) [Jack Handey](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jack-handey/) > [I am learning slowly to bring my crazy pinball-machine mind back to this place...](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anne-lamott/i-am-learning-slowly-to-bring-my-crazy-pinball-machine-mind-back-to/) [Anne Lamott](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anne-lamott/) > [“The programmed computer has all the fascination of the pinball machine or the jukebox mechanism, carried to the ultimate. Fourth”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/frederick-p-brooks-jr/the-programmed-computer-has-all-the-fascination-of-the-pinball/) [Frederick P. Brooks Jr](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/frederick-p-brooks-jr/) > [Programs to demonstrate Darwinian evolution are akin to a pinball machine. The steel ball bounces around differently every time but eventually falls down the…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/robert-j-marks-ii/programs-to-demonstrate-darwinian-evolution-are-akin-to-a-pinball/) Robert J. Marks II > [“While you’re playing yourself out in lonesome dissipation in front of a pinball machine, someone else might be reading through Proust. Still another might…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/haruki-murakami/while-you-re-playing-yourself-out-in-lonesome-dissipation-in-front-of/) [Haruki Murakami](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/haruki-murakami/) > [The world changed from having the determinism of a clock to having the contingency of a pinball machine.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anonymous/the-world-changed-from-having-the-determinism-of-a-clock-to-having/) [Anonymous](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anonymous/) > [“Her parents, she said, has put a pinball machine inside her head when she was five years old. The red balls told her when…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/kay-redfield-jamison/her-parents-she-said-has-put-a-pinball-machine-inside-her-head-when/) [Kay Redfield Jamison](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/kay-redfield-jamison/) > [When I finally invent a time machine you will already know about it because I'll have told you a long time ago.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/dana-gould/when-i-finally-invent-a-time-machine-you-will-already-know-about-it/) [Dana Gould](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/dana-gould/) > [“If you program a machine, you know what it’s capable of. If the machine is programming itself, who knows what it might do? The”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/garry-kasparov/if-you-program-a-machine-you-know-what-it-s-capable-of-if-the-machine/) [Garry Kasparov](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/garry-kasparov/) > [You don't need a time machine if you know how to remember.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/rodman-philbrick/you-don-t-need-a-time-machine-if-you-know-how-to-remember/) [Rodman Philbrick](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/rodman-philbrick/) ## More by Emile Hirsch > [I identify with someone wanting something to work out, but not being able to get through the rocks to the river.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/emile-hirsch/i-identify-with-someone-wanting-something-to-work-out-but-not-being/) [Emile Hirsch](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/emile-hirsch/) > [When you're reading Thoreau you look at Hollywood differently, let me tell ya!](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/emile-hirsch/when-you-re-reading-thoreau-you-look-at-hollywood-differently-let-me/) [Emile Hirsch](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/emile-hirsch/) > [I'm not staying away from any genre. I'm trying to get scripts that I like.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/emile-hirsch/i-m-not-staying-away-from-any-genre-i-m-trying-to-get-scripts-that-i/) [Emile Hirsch](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/emile-hirsch/) > [There's something just so kind of smooth about politicians.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/emile-hirsch/there-s-something-just-so-kind-of-smooth-about-politicians/) [Emile Hirsch](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/emile-hirsch/) > [Most actors are lucky to ever get a job, period. I never forget that, because I have so many actor friends in L.A., and…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/emile-hirsch/most-actors-are-lucky-to-ever-get-a-job-period-i-never-forget-that/) [Emile Hirsch](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/emile-hirsch/) > [It was very, very challenging being on this thing called the gimbal. It would throw you around, give you whiplash, and they'd tie you…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/emile-hirsch/it-was-very-very-challenging-being-on-this-thing-called-the-gimbal-it/) [Emile Hirsch](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/emile-hirsch/) > [How much cooler was Oz than seeing the little dude behind the curtain?](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/emile-hirsch/how-much-cooler-was-oz-than-seeing-the-little-dude-behind-the-curtain/) [Emile Hirsch](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/emile-hirsch/) > [I remember when I saw 'The Matrix' when I was 13, I saw it in the theaters, and I was so blown away by…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/emile-hirsch/i-remember-when-i-saw-the-matrix-when-i-was-13-i-saw-it-in-the/) [Emile Hirsch](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/emile-hirsch/) > [There's something about the good-hearted guy fighting the system. I just love that. That's how 'Speed' is. He's a really focused guy with a…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/emile-hirsch/there-s-something-about-the-good-hearted-guy-fighting-the-system-i/) [Emile Hirsch](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/emile-hirsch/) > [Believe it or not, I got into the charismatic, shady, sly heart of Sedgewick Bell by watching CNN and C-SPAN.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/emile-hirsch/believe-it-or-not-i-got-into-the-charismatic-shady-sly-heart-of/) [Emile Hirsch](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/emile-hirsch/) > [I'm sort of like a rat in a maze - I'm moving forward, and any choice I make at the time seems like the…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/emile-hirsch/i-m-sort-of-like-a-rat-in-a-maze-i-m-moving-forward-and-any-choice-i/) [Emile Hirsch](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/emile-hirsch/) > [We want to do for 'Hamlet' what Baz Luhrmann did for 'Romeo and Juliet' in terms of like a really cool kind of re-imagining.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/emile-hirsch/we-want-to-do-for-hamlet-what-baz-luhrmann-did-for-romeo-and-juliet/) [Emile Hirsch](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/emile-hirsch/) > [A lot of the things I find funniest about people are their shortcomings that they're oblivious to, but that they're constantly reminding everyone around…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/emile-hirsch/a-lot-of-the-things-i-find-funniest-about-people-are-their/) [Emile Hirsch](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/emile-hirsch/) > [Sometimes good days are not always fun, sometimes they are good because of how hard they were and gratifying for those reasons.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/emile-hirsch/sometimes-good-days-are-not-always-fun-sometimes-they-are-good/) [Emile Hirsch](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/emile-hirsch/) > [I've realized that what you think of when you make a 'big movie,' if it's actually a green screen movie, it's like doing independent…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/emile-hirsch/i-ve-realized-that-what-you-think-of-when-you-make-a-big-movie-if-it/) [Emile Hirsch](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/emile-hirsch/) [Explore all 46 Emile Hirsch quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/emile-hirsch/) ## More Balls quotes > [It's a lot harder to play football when you haven't got the ball.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/andy-gray/it-s-a-lot-harder-to-play-football-when-you-haven-t-got-the-ball/) [Andy Gray](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/andy-gray/) > [Once you pull the trigger, you've got to throw balls aggressively and with conviction.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/alex-smith/once-you-pull-the-trigger-you-ve-got-to-throw-balls-aggressively-and/) [Alex Smith](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/alex-smith/) > [Thinking about the things that happened, I don't know any other ball player would could have done what he (Jackie Robinson) did. To be…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/pee-wee-reese/thinking-about-the-things-that-happened-i-don-t-know-any-other-ball/) [Pee Wee Reese](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/pee-wee-reese/) > [Play small ball. Get back to basics. I would say that you need to be a conservative, but you need to maintain your independent…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/andrea-tantaros/play-small-ball-get-back-to-basics-i-would-say-that-you-need-to-be-a/) [Andrea Tantaros](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/andrea-tantaros/) > [Donald Trump is a different ball of wax. I've been trying to say for I don't know how many months now that the traditional…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/rush-limbaugh/donald-trump-is-a-different-ball-of-wax-i-ve-been-trying-to-say-for-i/) [Rush Limbaugh](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/rush-limbaugh/) > [Well, you can certainly teach free-throwing. And you can teach the boys to pass at angles and run in curves. - University of Kansas…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/darryl-dawkins/well-you-can-certainly-teach-free-throwing-and-you-can-teach-the-boys/) [Darryl Dawkins](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/darryl-dawkins/) > [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/) > [I like René Descartes' theory about a ball of wax. You can change its form from solid to liquid, but it's still the same…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/emmy-rossum/i-like-ren-descartes-theory-about-a-ball-of-wax-you-can-change-its/) [Emmy Rossum](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/emmy-rossum/) > [It wasn't really touching to be young; it was touching not to be young, because you had less of life left. Touching to be…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/rose-macaulay/it-wasn-t-really-touching-to-be-young-it-was-touching-not-to-be-young/) [Rose Macaulay](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/rose-macaulay/) > [This ball was so crowded that it took me - a trained professional journalist with vast experience in this area - forty five minutes…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/dave-barry/this-ball-was-so-crowded-that-it-took-me-a-trained-professional/) [Dave Barry](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/dave-barry/) > [Common sense is the guy who tells you that you ought to have had your brakes relined last week before you smashed a front…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/raymond-chandler/common-sense-is-the-guy-who-tells-you-that-you-ought-to-have-had-your/) [Raymond Chandler](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/raymond-chandler/) > [Throwing a ball is not natural, whether it's overhand or underhand.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jennie-finch/throwing-a-ball-is-not-natural-whether-it-s-overhand-or-underhand/) [Jennie Finch](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jennie-finch/) > [I don't feel like I have to live up to anything because I've proven that I can play. Give me the ball and let's…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/clinton-portis/i-don-t-feel-like-i-have-to-live-up-to-anything-because-i-ve-proven/) [Clinton Portis](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/clinton-portis/) > [And if we seem nutty to you and if we seem like an odd ball to you, just remember one thing. The mighty oak…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/glenn-turner/and-if-we-seem-nutty-to-you-and-if-we-seem-like-an-odd-ball-to-you/) [Glenn Turner](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/glenn-turner/) > [You run the football for toughness. You run the ball to tell your opponent that you're as tough as they are. But you throw…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jerry-glanville/you-run-the-football-for-toughness-you-run-the-ball-to-tell-your/) Jerry Glanville Browse all 3,005 Balls quotes ```json { "@context": "https://schema.org", "@graph": [ { "@type": "Quotation", "text": "I'm not a ball in a pinball machine. 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