--- title: "Meaning & Key Takeaway of: The whole idea is not to figure out what…" description: "\"The whole idea is not to figure out what you should do that will matter, but to make each thing you do reflect the values you want, because we don't kn..." image: "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/60c/gloria-steinem-277_figures_the-whole-idea-is-not-to-figure-out-what_2985584.jpg" --- # The whole idea is not to figure out what you should do… ![“The whole idea is not to figure out what you should do that will matter, but to make each thing you do reflect the values you want, because we don't know what's going to matter in the future” quote by Gloria Steinem](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/60c/gloria-steinem-277_figures_the-whole-idea-is-not-to-figure-out-what_2985584.jpg) [Download](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/60c/gloria-steinem-277_figures_the-whole-idea-is-not-to-figure-out-what_2985584.jpg) [Open image](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/60c/gloria-steinem-277_figures_the-whole-idea-is-not-to-figure-out-what_2985584.jpg) > “The whole idea is not to figure out what you should do that will matter, but to make each thing you do reflect the values you want, because we don't know what's going to matter in the future” [Gloria Steinem](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/gloria-steinem/) ## About This Quote This interpretation was drafted with AI assistance. It is one reading of the quote, not the author's own explanation. Act according to values, not future predictions. **In simple terms:** Live by values, not predictions. Key Takeaway Align actions with core values. Themes values future action uncertainty Mood inspirational reflective Type philosophical motivational When to use this quote - career planning - activism - personal decisions Key Concepts ethics philosophy Questions to Reflect On - What values guide you? - How do you act amid uncertainty? A Different Perspective Future may be unpredictable. ★ ★ ★ ★ ★ No ratings yet [Ideas](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/ideas/) [Time](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/time/) [Values](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/values/) ## Related quotes > [My message is that if we do not care about the climate crisis and if we do not act now then almost no other…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/greta-thunburg/my-message-is-that-if-we-do-not-care-about-the-climate-crisis-and-if/) [Greta Thunburg](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/greta-thunburg/) > [Our tax code should reflect our values.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/dean-phillips/our-tax-code-should-reflect-our-values/) [Dean Phillips](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/dean-phillips/) > [Perhaps the most significant thing a person can know about himself is to understand his own system of values. Almost every thing we do…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jacque-fresco/perhaps-the-most-significant-thing-a-person-can-know-about-himself-is/) [Jacque Fresco](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jacque-fresco/) > [“If you really do care about him, his past won't matter, because you're his future.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/kirsty-dallas/if-you-really-do-care-about-him-his-past-won-t-matter-because-you-re/) [Kirsty Dallas](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/kirsty-dallas/) > [“What happens now will not matter in the future.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/will-nolan/what-happens-now-will-not-matter-in-the-future/) Will Nolan > [Whose leadership, whose judgment, whose values do you want in the White House when that lands like a thud on the oval office desk?](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/rahm-emanuel/whose-leadership-whose-judgment-whose-values-do-you-want-in-the-white-2/) [Rahm Emanuel](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/rahm-emanuel/) > [For 6,000 years, these rules have been unquestionably right. And yet we break them every day. People feel that something is wrong in life.…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/krzysztof-kieslowski/for-6-000-years-these-rules-have-been-unquestionably-right-and-yet-we/) [Krzysztof Kieslowski](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/krzysztof-kieslowski/) > [When you're quite sure about yourself and the values and where you want to go, it's easy to make difficult choices.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ada-hegerberg/when-you-re-quite-sure-about-yourself-and-the-values-and-where-you/) [Ada Hegerberg](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ada-hegerberg/) > [“Jesus now spoke again. "Mack, I don't want to be first among a list of values; I want to be at the center of…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/wm-paul-young/jesus-now-spoke-again-mack-i-don-t-want-to-be-first-among-a-list-of/) [Wm. Paul Young](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/wm-paul-young/) > [In L.A., it's easy to get caught up in what you look like or how much money you have, and those aren't values I…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/joan-cusack/in-l-a-it-s-easy-to-get-caught-up-in-what-you-look-like-or-how-much/) [Joan Cusack](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/joan-cusack/) > [“I ask Andrew if he would mind offering some advice to younger people about how to live. He thinks they should ask themselves, What…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/bella-depaulo/i-ask-andrew-if-he-would-mind-offering-some-advice-to-younger-people/) [Bella DePaulo](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/bella-depaulo/) > [“But how do you know they're not going to matter? Unless you give it a shot?”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/morgan-matson/but-how-do-you-know-they-re-not-going-to-matter-unless-you-give-it-a/) [Morgan Matson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/morgan-matson/) > [If we're playing and competing at the level we want to and we know we can, then nothing else is really going to matter.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/brooke-sweat/if-we-re-playing-and-competing-at-the-level-we-want-to-and-we-know-we/) [Brooke Sweat](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/brooke-sweat/) > [I know my music probably isn't going to matter to the public after I die, but that doesn't mean I don't have something to…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/natalie-imbruglia/i-know-my-music-probably-isn-t-going-to-matter-to-the-public-after-i/) [Natalie Imbruglia](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/natalie-imbruglia/) > [If I'm going to do something, I'm going to do it - no matter what.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/rick-gonzalez/if-i-m-going-to-do-something-i-m-going-to-do-it-no-matter-what/) Rick Gonzalez ## More by Gloria Steinem > [People waste more time waiting for someone to take charge of their lives than they do in any other pursuit.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/gloria-steinem/people-waste-more-time-waiting-for-someone-to-take-charge-of-their/) [Gloria Steinem](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/gloria-steinem/) > [Nothing will happen automatically. Change depends on what you and I do every day.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/gloria-steinem/nothing-will-happen-automatically-change-depends-on-what-you-and-i-do/) [Gloria Steinem](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/gloria-steinem/) > [Women are never again going to be mindless coffee-makers or mindless policy-makers in politics.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/gloria-steinem/women-are-never-again-going-to-be-mindless-coffee-makers-or-mindless/) [Gloria Steinem](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/gloria-steinem/) > [The state of female artists is very good. But the very definition of art has been biased in that 'art' was what men did…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/gloria-steinem/the-state-of-female-artists-is-very-good-but-the-very-definition-of/) [Gloria Steinem](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/gloria-steinem/) > [We will live to see the day that St. Patrick's Cathedral is a child-care center and the pope is no longer a disgrace to…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/gloria-steinem/we-will-live-to-see-the-day-that-st-patrick-s-cathedral-is-a-child/) [Gloria Steinem](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/gloria-steinem/) > [Just when you thought multi-nationals and crazed consumerism were too big to fight, along comes Naomi Klein with facts, spirit, and news of successful…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/gloria-steinem/just-when-you-thought-multi-nationals-and-crazed-consumerism-were-too/) [Gloria Steinem](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/gloria-steinem/) > [I don't know Beyoncé, but I have the impression that she's sincere, that she really is a feminist and wanted to put the word…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/gloria-steinem/i-don-t-know-beyonc-but-i-have-the-impression-that-she-s-sincere-that/) [Gloria Steinem](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/gloria-steinem/) > [I started out life as a writer, and writers write in part because they don't want to talk.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/gloria-steinem/i-started-out-life-as-a-writer-and-writers-write-in-part-because-they/) [Gloria Steinem](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/gloria-steinem/) > [Proust's tea cake has nothing on one hour in a college dorm.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/gloria-steinem/proust-s-tea-cake-has-nothing-on-one-hour-in-a-college-dorm/) [Gloria Steinem](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/gloria-steinem/) > [Sadomasochiasm - which we know very well doesn't exist in societies that don't have child abuse - is regarded some sort of natural sexual…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/gloria-steinem/sadomasochiasm-which-we-know-very-well-doesn-t-exist-in-societies/) [Gloria Steinem](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/gloria-steinem/) > [Behave like everything you do matters.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/gloria-steinem/behave-like-everything-you-do-matters/) [Gloria Steinem](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/gloria-steinem/) > [“Part of traveling over years means coming back to the same place and knowing it for the first time.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/gloria-steinem/part-of-traveling-over-years-means-coming-back-to-the-same-place-and/) [Gloria Steinem](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/gloria-steinem/) > [If you say, I'm for equal pay, that's a reform. But if you say. I'm a feminist, that's a transformation of society.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/gloria-steinem/if-you-say-i-m-for-equal-pay-that-s-a-reform-but-if-you-say-i-m-a/) [Gloria Steinem](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/gloria-steinem/) > [I think that part of everybody's success is due to their looks, but it just works in different ways. If you're whatever society calls…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/gloria-steinem/i-think-that-part-of-everybody-s-success-is-due-to-their-looks-but-it/) [Gloria Steinem](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/gloria-steinem/) > [Of course, we can change. We're very adaptable. But it takes a while.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/gloria-steinem/of-course-we-can-change-we-re-very-adaptable-but-it-takes-a-while/) [Gloria Steinem](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/gloria-steinem/) [Explore all 766 Gloria Steinem quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/gloria-steinem/) ## More Figures quotes > [The tough thing about radio is I've met a lot of people in it who like my music. But it's hard for them to…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/chris-isaak/the-tough-thing-about-radio-is-i-ve-met-a-lot-of-people-in-it-who/) [Chris Isaak](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/chris-isaak/) > [I was always anti-marriage. I didn't understand monogamy. I couldn't figure out how that could last. And then I met Bryn and I started…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/maria-bello/i-was-always-anti-marriage-i-didn-t-understand-monogamy-i-couldn-t/) [Maria Bello](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/maria-bello/) > [I guess he'll have to figure out someday that he is supposed to have this dark side, that it is part of what it…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anne-lamott/i-guess-he-ll-have-to-figure-out-someday-that-he-is-supposed-to-have/) [Anne Lamott](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anne-lamott/) > [It is sometimes said that scientists are unromantic, that their passion to figure out robs the world of beauty and mystery. But is it…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/carl-sagan/it-is-sometimes-said-that-scientists-are-unromantic-that-their/) [Carl Sagan](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/carl-sagan/) > [My life is a crystal teardrop. There are snowflakes falling in the teardrop and little figures trudging in slow motion.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/joan-baez/my-life-is-a-crystal-teardrop-there-are-snowflakes-falling-in-the/) [Joan Baez](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/joan-baez/) > [The best way to hold customers is to constantly figure out how to give them more for less.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/philip-kotler/the-best-way-to-hold-customers-is-to-constantly-figure-out-how-to/) [Philip Kotler](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/philip-kotler/) > [What do you want for your life? And how are you going to get it? Figure that out. And then follow me to gloryville.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jason-ellis/what-do-you-want-for-your-life-and-how-are-you-going-to-get-it-figure/) [Jason Ellis](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jason-ellis/) > [I don't have to figure out how God is going to solve my problem. I don't have to understand how He's going to bring…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/joel-osteen/i-don-t-have-to-figure-out-how-god-is-going-to-solve-my-problem-i-don/) [Joel Osteen](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/joel-osteen/) > [In comparative terms, there's no poverty in America by a long shot. Heritage Foundation political scientist Robert Rector has worked up figures showing that…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/p-j-o-rourke/in-comparative-terms-there-s-no-poverty-in-america-by-a-long-shot/) [P. J. O'Rourke](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/p-j-o-rourke/) > [ \[Hitler thought\] that Mussolini was no figure of world history, like der Fuehrer or Stalin. ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/joseph-goebbels/hitler-thought-that-mussolini-was-no-figure-of-world-history-like-der/) [Joseph Goebbels](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/joseph-goebbels/) > [The thing about a pick-up line is, even if it works, then what? I just figure you unapologetically be yourself, and if it works,…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/skylar-astin/the-thing-about-a-pick-up-line-is-even-if-it-works-then-what-i-just/) [Skylar Astin](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/skylar-astin/) > [Anderson sent me to give you this he said. I believe the subtext was kiss and makeup. This time I was sure I made…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jenna-black/anderson-sent-me-to-give-you-this-he-said-i-believe-the-subtext-was/) [Jenna Black](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jenna-black/) > [It's a lot of money, but in reality what's important is the kids health. I suppose the day could come where we could walk…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jeff-carter/it-s-a-lot-of-money-but-in-reality-what-s-important-is-the-kids/) Jeff Carter > [I've used Twitter now and again to try to figure something out; it's an amazing resource. But I think you have to use it…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/susan-orlean/i-ve-used-twitter-now-and-again-to-try-to-figure-something-out-it-s/) [Susan Orlean](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/susan-orlean/) > [The figure of the enthusiast who has just discovered jogging or a new way to fix tofu can be said to stand or, more…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/lewis-h-lapham/the-figure-of-the-enthusiast-who-has-just-discovered-jogging-or-a-new/) [Lewis H. Lapham](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/lewis-h-lapham/) Browse all 4,696 Figures quotes ```json { "@context": "https://schema.org", "@graph": [ { "@type": "Quotation", "text": "The whole idea is not to figure out what you should do that will matter, but to make each thing you do reflect the values you want, because we don't know what's going to matter in the future", "creator": { "@type": "Person", "name": "Gloria Steinem" }, "isPartOf": { "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/#website" }, "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/gloria-steinem/the-whole-idea-is-not-to-figure-out-what-you-should-do-that-will/", "about": { "@type": "Thing", "name": "Figures" }, "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/gloria-steinem/the-whole-idea-is-not-to-figure-out-what-you-should-do-that-will/#quotation", "image": { "@type": "ImageObject", "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/60c/gloria-steinem-277_figures_the-whole-idea-is-not-to-figure-out-what_2985584.jpg", "contentUrl": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/60c/gloria-steinem-277_figures_the-whole-idea-is-not-to-figure-out-what_2985584.jpg", "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/60c/gloria-steinem-277_figures_the-whole-idea-is-not-to-figure-out-what_2985584.jpg", "width": 1080, "height": 1080, "caption": "“The whole idea is not to figure out what you should do that will matter, but to make each thing you do…” — Gloria Steinem", "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": "Gloria Steinem", "item": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/gloria-steinem/" }, { "@type": "ListItem", "position": 4, "name": "The whole idea is not to...", "item": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/gloria-steinem/the-whole-idea-is-not-to-figure-out-what-you-should-do-that-will/" } ], "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/gloria-steinem/the-whole-idea-is-not-to-figure-out-what-you-should-do-that-will/#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 } } ] } ```