--- title: "Meaning & Key Takeaway of: The authentic thing is to follow your…" description: "\"The authentic thing is to follow your heart, your instincts, your emotions. If you located yourself in an idea, your life would be lived very sadly.\" —..." image: "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/f91/emmet-gowin-26838_authentic_the-authentic-thing-is-to-follow-your-he_2616777.png" --- # The authentic thing is to follow your heart, your… ![“The authentic thing is to follow your heart, your instincts, your emotions. If you located yourself in an idea, your life would be lived very sadly.” quote by Emmet Gowin](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/f91/emmet-gowin-26838_authentic_the-authentic-thing-is-to-follow-your-he_2616777.png) [Download](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/f91/emmet-gowin-26838_authentic_the-authentic-thing-is-to-follow-your-he_2616777.png) [Open image](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/f91/emmet-gowin-26838_authentic_the-authentic-thing-is-to-follow-your-he_2616777.png) > “The authentic thing is to follow your heart, your instincts, your emotions. If you located yourself in an idea, your life would be lived very sadly.” [Emmet Gowin](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/emmet-gowin/) ## About This Quote This interpretation was drafted with AI assistance. It is one reading of the quote, not the author's own explanation. Advocates following heart, instincts, and emotions rather than ideas, warning that living through ideas leads to sadness. **In simple terms:** Follow heart, not just ideas, to avoid sadness. Key Takeaway Live authentically guided by inner feelings. Themes authenticity intuition emotional living Mood inspirational reflective Type philosophical psychological When to use this quote - personal decisions - creative work - life choices Key Concepts philosophy psychology Questions to Reflect On - How do instincts guide life choices? - When should ideas outweigh emotions? A Different Perspective May undervalue rational planning. ★ ★ ★ ★ ★ No ratings yet [Authentic](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/authentic/) [Authenticity](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/authenticity/) [Emotion](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/emotion/) [Follow your heart](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/follow-your-heart/) [Heart](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/heart/) [Ideas](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/ideas/) [Instinct](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/instinct/) [Photographer](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/photographer/) [Photography](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/photography/) ## Related quotes > [Your heart and your instincts are far more reliable than your brain. When you follow your heart, you can be sure you won't regret…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/nithya-menen/your-heart-and-your-instincts-are-far-more-reliable-than-your-brain/) [Nithya Menen](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/nithya-menen/) > [Follow your heart, your instincts. People might try to dissuade you from your passion, but no one can live your life but you.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/olympia-dukakis/follow-your-heart-your-instincts-people-might-try-to-dissuade-you/) [Olympia Dukakis](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/olympia-dukakis/) > [“...because you have been purifying your fields for many incarnations so you no longer belong in the heavy density of the third dimension and…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ana-rangel-gerry-o-malley/because-you-have-been-purifying-your-fields-for-many-incarnations-so/) [Ana Rangel & Gerry O'malley](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ana-rangel-gerry-o-malley/) > [A lot of guys try to mingle with me because of who I am. If I encounter a guy with a clean heart, I…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anonymous/a-lot-of-guys-try-to-mingle-with-me-because-of-who-i-am-if-i/) [Anonymous](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anonymous/) > [“Do what your heart - and your instincts - command and you will not be disappointed!”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/mary-alice-kruesi/do-what-your-heart-and-your-instincts-command-and-you-will-not-be/) Mary Alice Kruesi > [I stayed well clear of roles like 'Top Boy' for years before I did it, but I had to do it because the script…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ashley-walters/i-stayed-well-clear-of-roles-like-top-boy-for-years-before-i-did-it/) [Ashley Walters](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ashley-walters/) > [I don't think it is too good especially with music to worry about authenticity, it can get in the way of doing something which…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/andrew-vanwyngarden/i-don-t-think-it-is-too-good-especially-with-music-to-worry-about/) [Andrew VanWyngarden](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/andrew-vanwyngarden/) > [“But now? Being a sellout is the authentic thing. When”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/nathan-hill/but-now-being-a-sellout-is-the-authentic-thing-when/) [Nathan Hill](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/nathan-hill/) > [Album 1 is proving that you're worth listening to, album 2 is proving that it wasn't a fluke, and album 3 is the most…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/andy-grammer/album-1-is-proving-that-you-re-worth-listening-to-album-2-is-proving/) [Andy Grammer](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/andy-grammer/) > [The most authentic thing about us is our capacity to create, to overcome, to endure, to transform, to love and to be greater than…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ben-okri/the-most-authentic-thing-about-us-is-our-capacity-to-create-to/) [Ben Okri](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ben-okri/) > [“The most authentic thing about us is our capacity to create, to overcome, to endure, to transform, to love and to be greater than…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/alison-miller/the-most-authentic-thing-about-us-is-our-capacity-to-create-to-2/) [Alison Miller](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/alison-miller/) > [You can hear my opinion on various subjects, but telling my story is the most authentic thing I can do. There's nothing more powerful…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/hasan-minhaj/you-can-hear-my-opinion-on-various-subjects-but-telling-my-story-is/) [Hasan Minhaj](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/hasan-minhaj/) > [Follow your heart, but don't leave your brain behind.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/matthew-van-zyl/follow-your-heart-but-don-t-leave-your-brain-behind/) [Matthew Van Zyl](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/matthew-van-zyl/) > [I wish I could tell you to always follow your heart, but I think it is bad advice. You have a heart, yes, it…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/gabrielle-zevin/i-wish-i-could-tell-you-to-always-follow-your-heart-but-i-think-it-is/) [Gabrielle Zevin](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/gabrielle-zevin/) > [You can choose to follow your heart always.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/miguel-angel-ruiz/you-can-choose-to-follow-your-heart-always/) [Miguel Angel Ruiz](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/miguel-angel-ruiz/) ## More by Emmet Gowin > [I was going round the world searching for an interesting place, when I realized that the place that I was in was already interesting.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/emmet-gowin/i-was-going-round-the-world-searching-for-an-interesting-place-when-i/) [Emmet Gowin](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/emmet-gowin/) > [The challenge of photography is to show the thing photographed so that our feelings are awakened and hidden aspects are revealed to us](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/emmet-gowin/the-challenge-of-photography-is-to-show-the-thing-photographed-so/) [Emmet Gowin](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/emmet-gowin/) > [I want my photographs to say: "Look-there's this thing you haven't seen that you should see."](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/emmet-gowin/i-want-my-photographs-to-say-look-there-s-this-thing-you-haven-t-seen/) [Emmet Gowin](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/emmet-gowin/) > [Photography is such an important instrument in the education of our feelings and perception because of its duality. Photography represents the world we know,…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/emmet-gowin/photography-is-such-an-important-instrument-in-the-education-of-our/) [Emmet Gowin](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/emmet-gowin/) > [What's great is that the picture is already taken before it goes public. It's in secret. The trust that develops from such a habit…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/emmet-gowin/what-s-great-is-that-the-picture-is-already-taken-before-it-goes/) [Emmet Gowin](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/emmet-gowin/) > [As a good picture would come, I would never know exactly what I had done. When you did see it, it would strike you…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/emmet-gowin/as-a-good-picture-would-come-i-would-never-know-exactly-what-i-had/) [Emmet Gowin](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/emmet-gowin/) > [You’re always working at the margin of what you don’t understand, that’s the only exhilarating place to be. To just illustrate what you already…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/emmet-gowin/you-re-always-working-at-the-margin-of-what-you-don-t-understand-that/) [Emmet Gowin](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/emmet-gowin/) > [I made 10 times as many images as the other students," he says of the early years. "I destroyed all those negatives except a…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/emmet-gowin/i-made-10-times-as-many-images-as-the-other-students-he-says-of-the/) [Emmet Gowin](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/emmet-gowin/) > [This is the gift of the landscape photograph, that the heart finds a place to stand.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/emmet-gowin/this-is-the-gift-of-the-landscape-photograph-that-the-heart-finds-a/) [Emmet Gowin](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/emmet-gowin/) > [Twentieth-century art has allowed me to see things in a cryptic way. I love the butterfly's wings, which disappear when folded and when open…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/emmet-gowin/twentieth-century-art-has-allowed-me-to-see-things-in-a-cryptic-way-i/) [Emmet Gowin](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/emmet-gowin/) > [For me, pictures provide a means of holding, intensely, a moment of communication between one human and another.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/emmet-gowin/for-me-pictures-provide-a-means-of-holding-intensely-a-moment-of/) [Emmet Gowin](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/emmet-gowin/) > [We tremble at the feelings we experience as our sense of wholeness is reorganized by what we see.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/emmet-gowin/we-tremble-at-the-feelings-we-experience-as-our-sense-of-wholeness-is/) [Emmet Gowin](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/emmet-gowin/) > [I feel that whatever picture an artist makes it is in part a picture of himself - a matter of identity.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/emmet-gowin/i-feel-that-whatever-picture-an-artist-makes-it-is-in-part-a-picture/) [Emmet Gowin](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/emmet-gowin/) > [It might take us a lifetime to find out what it is we need to say. Most of us fall into where our feelings…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/emmet-gowin/it-might-take-us-a-lifetime-to-find-out-what-it-is-we-need-to-say/) [Emmet Gowin](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/emmet-gowin/) > [I need to say to you. There are things in your life that only you will see, stories that only you will hear. If…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/emmet-gowin/i-need-to-say-to-you-there-are-things-in-your-life-that-only-you-will/) [Emmet Gowin](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/emmet-gowin/) [Explore all 21 Emmet Gowin quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/emmet-gowin/) ## More Authentic quotes > [“RIGHT Do you do what feels right or what is seen right?”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/kitty-downer/right-do-you-do-what-feels-right-or-what-is-seen-right/) [Kitty Downer](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/kitty-downer/) > [When somebody comes across as authentic and genuine and sweet, people just want to spend time with that person.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/pete-holmes/when-somebody-comes-across-as-authentic-and-genuine-and-sweet-people/) [Pete Holmes](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/pete-holmes/) > [Anything that I ever do is from the heart and authentic.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/belinda-carlisle/anything-that-i-ever-do-is-from-the-heart-and-authentic/) [Belinda Carlisle](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/belinda-carlisle/) > [Being authentic can be a good thing in that often people who are fixated on that are also fixated on having very high standards,…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/edgar-meyer/being-authentic-can-be-a-good-thing-in-that-often-people-who-are/) [Edgar Meyer](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/edgar-meyer/) > [“REMEMBER Do you live your life according to how you want to remember it or how you will be remembered?”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/kitty-downer/remember-do-you-live-your-life-according-to-how-you-want-to-remember/) [Kitty Downer](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/kitty-downer/) > [I've put my days of fantasy behind me and make authentic realistic films.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/vikram-bhatt/i-ve-put-my-days-of-fantasy-behind-me-and-make-authentic-realistic/) [Vikram Bhatt](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/vikram-bhatt/) > [I think as long as you're authentic, people will relate to that.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/charles-woodson/i-think-as-long-as-you-re-authentic-people-will-relate-to-that/) [Charles Woodson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/charles-woodson/) > [I had always wanted to expand to beauty, but I knew I wanted to be able to translate my design aesthetic in an authentic…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/charlotte-ronson/i-had-always-wanted-to-expand-to-beauty-but-i-knew-i-wanted-to-be/) [Charlotte Ronson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/charlotte-ronson/) > [“But now? Being a sellout is the authentic thing. When”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/nathan-hill/but-now-being-a-sellout-is-the-authentic-thing-when/) [Nathan Hill](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/nathan-hill/) > [“The biggest mistake people make when trying to be authentic is just that: they try. They see these role models of what an "authentic"…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/vironika-tugaleva/the-biggest-mistake-people-make-when-trying-to-be-authentic-is-just/) [Vironika Tugaleva](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/vironika-tugaleva/) > [“Some days I like to wander to old and warn our places, forests ripped apart by man and streams that carry stagnant water where…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/nikki-rowe/some-days-i-like-to-wander-to-old-and-warn-our-places-forests-ripped/) [Nikki Rowe](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/nikki-rowe/) > [Christie led the way - with a bulldozer. The governor is blunt, brash, and self-consciously authentic, the antithesis to what turns off today's voters:…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ron-fournier/christie-led-the-way-with-a-bulldozer-the-governor-is-blunt-brash-and/) [Ron Fournier](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ron-fournier/) > [“Show up authentically and synergy will meet you there.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/sanjo-jendayi/show-up-authentically-and-synergy-will-meet-you-there/) [Sanjo Jendayi](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/sanjo-jendayi/) > [Disturb reality, defy gravity, be authentic and above all... be happy!](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/joaquin-gonzalez/disturb-reality-defy-gravity-be-authentic-and-above-all-be-happy/) [Joaquin Gonzalez](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/joaquin-gonzalez/) > [We have to express ourselves in the most true and authentic way.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/eugene-lee-yang/we-have-to-express-ourselves-in-the-most-true-and-authentic-way/) [Eugene Lee Yang](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/eugene-lee-yang/) [Browse all 784 Authentic quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/authentic/) ```json { "@context": "https://schema.org", "@graph": [ { "@type": "Quotation", "text": "The authentic thing is to follow your heart, your instincts, your emotions. 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