--- title: "Meaning & Key Takeaway of: You can be smart and happy or stupid and…" description: "\"You can be smart and happy or stupid and miserable. . . it's your choice\" — Gordon B. Hinckley" image: "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/551/gordon-b-hinckley-331_being-smart_you-can-be-smart-and-happy-or-stupid-and_2806040.png" --- # You can be smart and happy or stupid and miserable… ![“You can be smart and happy or stupid and miserable. . . it's your choice” quote by Gordon B. Hinckley](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/551/gordon-b-hinckley-331_being-smart_you-can-be-smart-and-happy-or-stupid-and_2806040.png) [Download](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/551/gordon-b-hinckley-331_being-smart_you-can-be-smart-and-happy-or-stupid-and_2806040.png) [Open image](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/551/gordon-b-hinckley-331_being-smart_you-can-be-smart-and-happy-or-stupid-and_2806040.png) > “You can be smart and happy or stupid and miserable. . . it's your choice” [Gordon B. Hinckley](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/gordon-b-hinckley/) ## About This Quote This interpretation was drafted with AI assistance. It is one reading of the quote, not the author's own explanation. One can choose a path of intellect and joy or ignorance and misery; personal responsibility shapes happiness. **In simple terms:** Choices affect happiness. Key Takeaway Choose growth over stagnation. Themes choice responsibility happiness Mood reflective motivational Type spiritual inspirational When to use this quote - career decisions - personal relationships - health habits Key Concepts psychology spirituality Questions to Reflect On - What choices are you making today? - How do you balance intellect and happiness? A Different Perspective External circumstances can limit choices. ★ ★ ★ ★ ★ No ratings yet [Being smart](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/being-smart/) [Choice](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/choice/) [Choices](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/choices/) [Happiness](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/happiness/) [Inspirational](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/inspirational/) [Miserable](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/miserable/) [Smart](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/smart/) ## Related quotes > [I sometimes wish I weren't as logical as I am and I wish I weren't as smart as I am, because I'd be happy.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/rush-limbaugh/i-sometimes-wish-i-weren-t-as-logical-as-i-am-and-i-wish-i-weren-t-as/) [Rush Limbaugh](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/rush-limbaugh/) > [“I know that trolls are fundamentally sad people; I know that I've already defeated them in every substantive arena - by being smart, by…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/lindy-west/i-know-that-trolls-are-fundamentally-sad-people-i-know-that-i-ve/) [Lindy West](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/lindy-west/) > [“I don't think I’ve ever been happy, actually. I don’t really want to be happy. Only stupid people are happy.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/isela-servin/i-don-t-think-i-ve-ever-been-happy-actually-i-don-t-really-want-to-be/) Isela Servin > [I'm unhappy and that makes me happy. Because I'm not stupid, I've intelligence, ergo I'm not stupid.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jeremy-limn/i-m-unhappy-and-that-makes-me-happy-because-i-m-not-stupid-i-ve/) [Jeremy Limn](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jeremy-limn/) > [In a relationship, there is always one girl and one guy who are happy together. But then, one stupid al\*t comes and ruins everything.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/udigwe-vinsnt/in-a-relationship-there-is-always-one-girl-and-one-guy-who-are-happy/) Udigwe Vinsnt > [Be grateful, be smart, be clean, be true, be humble, be prayerful.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/gordon-b-hinckley/be-grateful-be-smart-be-clean-be-true-be-humble-be-prayerful/) [Gordon B. Hinckley](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/gordon-b-hinckley/) > [It's always better to be wise than to be smart.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/alan-alda/it-s-always-better-to-be-wise-than-to-be-smart/) [Alan Alda](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/alan-alda/) > [I know it sounds weird, but my definition of 'sexy' has changed as I've gotten older. And being smart and informed makes me feel…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/sarah-shahi/i-know-it-sounds-weird-but-my-definition-of-sexy-has-changed-as-i-ve/) [Sarah Shahi](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/sarah-shahi/) > [I learned just to be a belligerent asshole, which was really: "You have to get what you need to get out of it." You…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/david-fincher/i-learned-just-to-be-a-belligerent-asshole-which-was-really-you-have/) [David Fincher](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/david-fincher/) > [If you're stupid enough to whiff, you should be smart enough to forget it.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/arnold-palmer/if-you-re-stupid-enough-to-whiff-you-should-be-smart-enough-to-forget/) [Arnold Palmer](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/arnold-palmer/) > [For the past few years, I've been more selective than I have any right to be, but I think that's finally starting to work…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/lizzy-caplan/for-the-past-few-years-i-ve-been-more-selective-than-i-have-any-right/) [Lizzy Caplan](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/lizzy-caplan/) > [To be smart, spend carefully. To be wise, save regularly. To be genius, give extravagantly.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/chip-ingram/to-be-smart-spend-carefully-to-be-wise-save-regularly-to-be-genius/) [Chip Ingram](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/chip-ingram/) > [I hated grunge. No one’s more feminist than me, but you don’t have to look as if you don’t give a - you know.…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/catherine-zeta-jones/i-hated-grunge-no-one-s-more-feminist-than-me-but-you-don-t-have-to/) [Catherine Zeta-Jones](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/catherine-zeta-jones/) > [Listen! Say less rather than more. If you want to be smart, play stupid!](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/helena-rubinstein/listen-say-less-rather-than-more-if-you-want-to-be-smart-play-stupid/) [Helena Rubinstein](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/helena-rubinstein/) > [But if you get chronically, psychosocially stressed, you're going to compromise your health. So, essentially, we've evolved to be smart enough to make ourselves…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/robert-m-sapolsky/but-if-you-get-chronically-psychosocially-stressed-you-re-going-to/) [Robert M. Sapolsky](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/robert-m-sapolsky/) ## More by Gordon B. Hinckley > [“Now we are at war. Great forces have been mobilized and will continue to be. Political alliances are being forged. We do not know…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/gordon-b-hinckley/now-we-are-at-war-great-forces-have-been-mobilized-and-will-continue/) [Gordon B. Hinckley](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/gordon-b-hinckley/) > [“Do not trade your birthright as a mother for some bauble of passing value. Let your first interest be in your home. The baby…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/gordon-b-hinckley/do-not-trade-your-birthright-as-a-mother-for-some-bauble-of-passing/) [Gordon B. Hinckley](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/gordon-b-hinckley/) > [Some husbands regard it as their prerogative to compel their wives to fit their standards of what they think to be the ideal.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/gordon-b-hinckley/some-husbands-regard-it-as-their-prerogative-to-compel-their-wives-to/) [Gordon B. Hinckley](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/gordon-b-hinckley/) > [There have been times when a particularly heavy dose of such cynicism has caused me to reflect that surely this is the age and…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/gordon-b-hinckley/there-have-been-times-when-a-particularly-heavy-dose-of-such-cynicism/) [Gordon B. Hinckley](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/gordon-b-hinckley/) > [We must work harder to build mutual respect, an attitude of tolerance, with forbearance one for another.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/gordon-b-hinckley/we-must-work-harder-to-build-mutual-respect-an-attitude-of-tolerance/) [Gordon B. Hinckley](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/gordon-b-hinckley/) > [Who can calculate the wounds inflicted, their depth and pain, by harsh and mean words spoken in anger? How pitiful a sight is a…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/gordon-b-hinckley/who-can-calculate-the-wounds-inflicted-their-depth-and-pain-by-harsh/) [Gordon B. Hinckley](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/gordon-b-hinckley/) > [If you will make your first concern the comfort, the well-being, and the happiness of your companion, sublimating any personal concern to that loftier…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/gordon-b-hinckley/if-you-will-make-your-first-concern-the-comfort-the-well-being-and/) [Gordon B. Hinckley](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/gordon-b-hinckley/) > [Get on your knees and pray, then get on your feet and work.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/gordon-b-hinckley/get-on-your-knees-and-pray-then-get-on-your-feet-and-work/) [Gordon B. Hinckley](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/gordon-b-hinckley/) > [I have now been an officer in this Church for a very long time. I am an old man who cannot deny the calendar.…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/gordon-b-hinckley/i-have-now-been-an-officer-in-this-church-for-a-very-long-time-i-am/) [Gordon B. Hinckley](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/gordon-b-hinckley/) > [Books represent the accumulated workings of the human mind, the endless treasures of man's thoughts.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/gordon-b-hinckley/books-represent-the-accumulated-workings-of-the-human-mind-the/) [Gordon B. Hinckley](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/gordon-b-hinckley/) > [The Voice of Heaven is a still small voice. The voice of peace in the home is a quiet voice. There is need for…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/gordon-b-hinckley/the-voice-of-heaven-is-a-still-small-voice-the-voice-of-peace-in-the/) [Gordon B. Hinckley](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/gordon-b-hinckley/) > [We wear on our faces the results of what we believe and how we behave, and such behavior is most evident in the eyes…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/gordon-b-hinckley/we-wear-on-our-faces-the-results-of-what-we-believe-and-how-we-behave/) [Gordon B. Hinckley](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/gordon-b-hinckley/) > [You are great young people. I have said again and again, we have the finest generation of young people ever in the history of…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/gordon-b-hinckley/you-are-great-young-people-i-have-said-again-and-again-we-have-the/) [Gordon B. Hinckley](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/gordon-b-hinckley/) > [Work without vision is drudgery. Vision without work is dreaming. Work plus vision-this is destiny.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/gordon-b-hinckley/work-without-vision-is-drudgery-vision-without-work-is-dreaming-work/) [Gordon B. Hinckley](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/gordon-b-hinckley/) > [There is no association richer than the companionship of husband and wife.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/gordon-b-hinckley/there-is-no-association-richer-than-the-companionship-of-husband-and/) [Gordon B. Hinckley](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/gordon-b-hinckley/) [Explore all 669 Gordon B. Hinckley quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/gordon-b-hinckley/) ## More Being smart quotes > [But if you get chronically, psychosocially stressed, you're going to compromise your health. So, essentially, we've evolved to be smart enough to make ourselves…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/robert-m-sapolsky/but-if-you-get-chronically-psychosocially-stressed-you-re-going-to/) [Robert M. Sapolsky](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/robert-m-sapolsky/) > [Listen! Say less rather than more. If you want to be smart, play stupid!](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/helena-rubinstein/listen-say-less-rather-than-more-if-you-want-to-be-smart-play-stupid/) [Helena Rubinstein](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/helena-rubinstein/) > [I hated grunge. No one’s more feminist than me, but you don’t have to look as if you don’t give a - you know.…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/catherine-zeta-jones/i-hated-grunge-no-one-s-more-feminist-than-me-but-you-don-t-have-to/) [Catherine Zeta-Jones](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/catherine-zeta-jones/) > [To be smart, spend carefully. To be wise, save regularly. To be genius, give extravagantly.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/chip-ingram/to-be-smart-spend-carefully-to-be-wise-save-regularly-to-be-genius/) [Chip Ingram](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/chip-ingram/) > [For the past few years, I've been more selective than I have any right to be, but I think that's finally starting to work…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/lizzy-caplan/for-the-past-few-years-i-ve-been-more-selective-than-i-have-any-right/) [Lizzy Caplan](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/lizzy-caplan/) > [If you're stupid enough to whiff, you should be smart enough to forget it.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/arnold-palmer/if-you-re-stupid-enough-to-whiff-you-should-be-smart-enough-to-forget/) [Arnold Palmer](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/arnold-palmer/) > [I learned just to be a belligerent asshole, which was really: "You have to get what you need to get out of it." You…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/david-fincher/i-learned-just-to-be-a-belligerent-asshole-which-was-really-you-have/) [David Fincher](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/david-fincher/) > [I know it sounds weird, but my definition of 'sexy' has changed as I've gotten older. And being smart and informed makes me feel…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/sarah-shahi/i-know-it-sounds-weird-but-my-definition-of-sexy-has-changed-as-i-ve/) [Sarah Shahi](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/sarah-shahi/) > [It's always better to be wise than to be smart.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/alan-alda/it-s-always-better-to-be-wise-than-to-be-smart/) [Alan Alda](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/alan-alda/) > [Each practitioner thinks there's one magic way to get a machine to be smart, and so they're all wasting their time in a sense.…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/marvin-minsky/each-practitioner-thinks-there-s-one-magic-way-to-get-a-machine-to-be/) [Marvin Minsky](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/marvin-minsky/) > [All my serving utensils are measured. It's not obvious, because they're really beautiful, but I have the option of tracking what I'm eating. That…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ali-vincent/all-my-serving-utensils-are-measured-it-s-not-obvious-because-they-re/) [Ali Vincent](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ali-vincent/) > [We should all feel confident in our intelligence. By the way, intelligence to me isn't just being book-smart or having a college degree; it's…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/tabatha-coffey/we-should-all-feel-confident-in-our-intelligence-by-the-way/) [Tabatha Coffey](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/tabatha-coffey/) > [Calling someone fat wont make you any skinnier, calling someone dumb dosnt make you any smarter.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/mean-girls/calling-someone-fat-wont-make-you-any-skinnier-calling-someone-dumb/) [Mean Girls](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/mean-girls/) > [The way to win is to work, work, work, work and hope to have a few insights And you're probably not going to be…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/charlie-munger/the-way-to-win-is-to-work-work-work-work-and-hope-to-have-a-few/) [Charlie Munger](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/charlie-munger/) > [What we are saying is we have to be smart about the ideology that is putting this idea into the world that a woman…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/asra-nomani/what-we-are-saying-is-we-have-to-be-smart-about-the-ideology-that-is/) [Asra Nomani](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/asra-nomani/) [Browse all 243 Being smart quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/being-smart/) ```json { "@context": "https://schema.org", "@graph": [ { "@type": "Quotation", "text": "You can be smart and happy or stupid and miserable. . . it's your choice", "creator": { "@type": "Person", "name": "Gordon B. Hinckley" }, "isPartOf": { "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/#website" }, "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/gordon-b-hinckley/you-can-be-smart-and-happy-or-stupid-and-miserable-it-s-your-choice/", "about": { "@type": "Thing", "name": "Being smart" }, "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/gordon-b-hinckley/you-can-be-smart-and-happy-or-stupid-and-miserable-it-s-your-choice/#quotation", "image": { "@type": "ImageObject", "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/551/gordon-b-hinckley-331_being-smart_you-can-be-smart-and-happy-or-stupid-and_2806040.png", "contentUrl": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/551/gordon-b-hinckley-331_being-smart_you-can-be-smart-and-happy-or-stupid-and_2806040.png", "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/551/gordon-b-hinckley-331_being-smart_you-can-be-smart-and-happy-or-stupid-and_2806040.png", "width": 1080, "height": 1080, "caption": "“You can be smart and happy or stupid and miserable. . . it's your choice” — Gordon B. Hinckley", "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": "Gordon B. Hinckley", "item": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/gordon-b-hinckley/" }, { "@type": "ListItem", "position": 4, "name": "You can be smart and happy...", "item": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/gordon-b-hinckley/you-can-be-smart-and-happy-or-stupid-and-miserable-it-s-your-choice/" } ], "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/gordon-b-hinckley/you-can-be-smart-and-happy-or-stupid-and-miserable-it-s-your-choice/#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 } } ] } ```