--- title: "Meaning & Key Takeaway of: You are trying to do a more difficult…" description: "\"You are trying to do a more difficult thing than record folk songs; you are trying to record life.\" — H. G. Wells" image: "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/ef0/h-g-wells-1122_difficult_you-are-trying-to-do-a-more-difficult-th_2016219.png" --- # You are trying to do a more difficult thing than record… ![“You are trying to do a more difficult thing than record folk songs; you are trying to record life.” quote by H. G. Wells](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/ef0/h-g-wells-1122_difficult_you-are-trying-to-do-a-more-difficult-th_2016219.png) [Download](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/ef0/h-g-wells-1122_difficult_you-are-trying-to-do-a-more-difficult-th_2016219.png) [Open image](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/ef0/h-g-wells-1122_difficult_you-are-trying-to-do-a-more-difficult-th_2016219.png) > “You are trying to do a more difficult thing than record folk songs; you are trying to record life.” [H. G. Wells](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/h-g-wells/) ## About This Quote This interpretation was drafted with AI assistance. It is one reading of the quote, not the author's own explanation. Capturing everyday experiences is harder and more valuable than merely documenting songs; it preserves humanity. **In simple terms:** Life is harder to record than songs, but more important. Key Takeaway Preserve real life moments. Themes culture history authenticity recording Mood contemplative inquisitive Type observational inspirational When to use this quote - journalism - oral history - personal diaries Key Concepts memory human experience ethnography Questions to Reflect On - What everyday moments deserve preservation? - How can we balance art and reality? A Different Perspective Focusing on life may overlook artistic expression. ★ ★ ★ ★ ★ No ratings yet [Difficult](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/difficult/) [Difficult things](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/difficult-things/) [Folk songs](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/folk-songs/) [Folks](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/folks/) [Life](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/life/) [Music](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/music/) [Record Folk](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/record-folk-3626312/) [Record Life](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/record-life-654879/) [Records](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/records/) [Song](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/song/) [Songs Trying](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/songs-trying-242259/) [Trying](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/trying/) [Trying Difficult](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/trying-difficult-2346780/) [Trying Record](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/trying-record-243653/) ## Related quotes > [Try and keep on trying until that which seems difficult becomes possible and that which seems only possible becomes habit and a real part…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/dieter-f-uchtdorf/try-and-keep-on-trying-until-that-which-seems-difficult-becomes/) [Dieter F. Uchtdorf](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/dieter-f-uchtdorf/) > [“I’m giddy and trying not to be. This is more difficult than you’d imagine. Trying not to smile only makes you smile more.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/nicola-yoon/i-m-giddy-and-trying-not-to-be-this-is-more-difficult-than-you-d/) [Nicola Yoon](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/nicola-yoon/) > [What we've been trying to do is difficult. You know it's difficult to win one, to win two. Madness to win three. But to…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/brian-cody/what-we-ve-been-trying-to-do-is-difficult-you-know-it-s-difficult-to/) [Brian Cody](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/brian-cody/) > [“But what you're trying to do is much more difficult than climbing K2”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/greg-mortenson/but-what-you-re-trying-to-do-is-much-more-difficult-than-climbing-k2/) [Greg Mortenson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/greg-mortenson/) > [I'm trying to figure out how to record at home because I have a tiny house and a seven-year-old and my wife also works…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/matt-berninger/i-m-trying-to-figure-out-how-to-record-at-home-because-i-have-a-tiny/) [Matt Berninger](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/matt-berninger/) > [I'm trying to get the record that I made at my birthday party last year, trying to get that out, and the lawyers are…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/marian-mcpartland/i-m-trying-to-get-the-record-that-i-made-at-my-birthday-party-last/) [Marian McPartland](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/marian-mcpartland/) > [I'm just going to go out there and try to win the race. When you go out there trying to go for a record,…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ryan-lochte/i-m-just-going-to-go-out-there-and-try-to-win-the-race-when-you-go/) [Ryan Lochte](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ryan-lochte/) > [So many of my friends are still trying to get record deals, and I've had one for 10 years now, where my only goal…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jane-siberry/so-many-of-my-friends-are-still-trying-to-get-record-deals-and-i-ve/) [Jane Siberry](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jane-siberry/) > [We're not trying to top ourselves with each record, obviously.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/bruce-johnston/we-re-not-trying-to-top-ourselves-with-each-record-obviously/) [Bruce Johnston](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/bruce-johnston/) > [Sometimes when you're trying to do a record too close to home, you can get really distracted.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/norah-jones/sometimes-when-you-re-trying-to-do-a-record-too-close-to-home-you-can/) [Norah Jones](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/norah-jones/) > [I kind of, I have quite a clear idea of what I'm trying to do with a record. A Super Furry Animals record is…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/gruff-rhys/i-kind-of-i-have-quite-a-clear-idea-of-what-i-m-trying-to-do-with-a/) [Gruff Rhys](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/gruff-rhys/) > [I'm not too fond of changing things into waltzes, but sometimes that works. I'm trying to get the record that I made at my…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/marian-mcpartland/i-m-not-too-fond-of-changing-things-into-waltzes-but-sometimes-that-2/) [Marian McPartland](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/marian-mcpartland/) > [Writing songs is about trying to connect with people on a deeper spiritual level - but I'm not a fan of contemporary Christian music.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ryan-tedder/writing-songs-is-about-trying-to-connect-with-people-on-a-deeper/) [Ryan Tedder](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ryan-tedder/) > [If I write songs trying to top other songs, it's a lot of pressure.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/nicky-jam/if-i-write-songs-trying-to-top-other-songs-it-s-a-lot-of-pressure/) [Nicky Jam](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/nicky-jam/) > [It's just a bunch of songs. I'm not trying to cure any major disease.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/nuno-bettencourt/it-s-just-a-bunch-of-songs-i-m-not-trying-to-cure-any-major-disease/) [Nuno Bettencourt](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/nuno-bettencourt/) ## More by H. G. Wells > [... life falls into place only with God.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/h-g-wells/life-falls-into-place-only-with-god/) [H. G. Wells](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/h-g-wells/) > [Fools make researches and wise men exploit them - that is our earthly way of dealing with the question, and we thank Heaven for…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/h-g-wells/fools-make-researches-and-wise-men-exploit-them-that-is-our-earthly/) [H. G. Wells](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/h-g-wells/) > [The true sweetness of chess, if it ever can be sweet, is to see a victory snatched, by some happy impertinence, out of the…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/h-g-wells/the-true-sweetness-of-chess-if-it-ever-can-be-sweet-is-to-see-a/) [H. G. Wells](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/h-g-wells/) > [A priest is a man vowed, trained, and consecrated, a man belonging to a special corps, and necessarily with an intense esprit de corps.…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/h-g-wells/a-priest-is-a-man-vowed-trained-and-consecrated-a-man-belonging-to-a/) [H. G. Wells](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/h-g-wells/) > [The man who raises a fist has run out of ideas.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/h-g-wells/the-man-who-raises-a-fist-has-run-out-of-ideas/) [H. G. Wells](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/h-g-wells/) > [The choice is: the Universe...or nothing.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/h-g-wells/the-choice-is-the-universe-or-nothing/) [H. G. Wells](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/h-g-wells/) > [ The crisis \[the Great Depression\] discovered a great man in Franklin Roosevelt...None too soon he has carried America forward to the second stage of… ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/h-g-wells/the-crisis-the-great-depression-discovered-a-great-man-in-franklin/) [H. G. Wells](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/h-g-wells/) > [Non-violence is the policy of the vegetable kingdom.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/h-g-wells/non-violence-is-the-policy-of-the-vegetable-kingdom/) [H. G. Wells](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/h-g-wells/) > [For all my desire to be interesting, I have to confess that for most things and people I don't give a damn.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/h-g-wells/for-all-my-desire-to-be-interesting-i-have-to-confess-that-for-most/) [H. G. Wells](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/h-g-wells/) > [The Jews looked for a special savior, a messiah, who was to redeem mankind by the agreeable process of restoring the fabulous glories of…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/h-g-wells/the-jews-looked-for-a-special-savior-a-messiah-who-was-to-redeem/) [H. G. Wells](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/h-g-wells/) > [“And I have by me, for my comfort, two strange white flowers—shrivelled now, and brown and flat and brittle—to witness that even when mind…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/h-g-wells/and-i-have-by-me-for-my-comfort-two-strange-white-flowers-shrivelled/) [H. G. Wells](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/h-g-wells/) > [ \[A novel by Henry James\] is like a church lit but without a congregation to distract you, with every light and line focused on… ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/h-g-wells/a-novel-by-henry-james-is-like-a-church-lit-but-without-a/) [H. G. Wells](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/h-g-wells/) > [In England we have come to rely upon a comfortable time-lag of fifty years or a century intervening between the perception that something ought…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/h-g-wells/in-england-we-have-come-to-rely-upon-a-comfortable-time-lag-of-fifty/) [H. G. Wells](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/h-g-wells/) > [We must end war before war ends us.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/h-g-wells/we-must-end-war-before-war-ends-us/) [H. G. Wells](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/h-g-wells/) > [What good is religion if it collapses under calamity?](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/h-g-wells/what-good-is-religion-if-it-collapses-under-calamity/) [H. G. Wells](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/h-g-wells/) [Explore all 280 H. G. Wells quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/h-g-wells/) ## More Difficult quotes > [Companies with cultures that celebrate diverse opinions and encourage the exchange of ideas have an advantage when solving difficult problems. A company that doesn't…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/doug-mcmillon/companies-with-cultures-that-celebrate-diverse-opinions-and-encourage/) [Doug McMillon](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/doug-mcmillon/) > [I'm not a huge social media kind of guy, so I don't really know, I don't really ever get... at least in real life,…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/freddie-stroma/i-m-not-a-huge-social-media-kind-of-guy-so-i-don-t-really-know-i-don/) [Freddie Stroma](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/freddie-stroma/) > [Consumers can choose organic cotton grown without pesticides, but it uses more water and requires more land than conventional crops. Organic cotton can also…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/tatiana-schlossberg/consumers-can-choose-organic-cotton-grown-without-pesticides-but-it/) [Tatiana Schlossberg](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/tatiana-schlossberg/) > [It is extremely difficult to do anything constructive, let alone deep, on daily commercial television, especially on a talk show.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/dennis-prager/it-is-extremely-difficult-to-do-anything-constructive-let-alone-deep/) [Dennis Prager](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/dennis-prager/) > [Having small children and being an investigative reporter would seem like a difficult mix, but it worked well for me. I was often working…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jill-abramson/having-small-children-and-being-an-investigative-reporter-would-seem/) [Jill Abramson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jill-abramson/) > [It's only a little difficult to say no. You've got to believe that the work you're doing is ultimately more useful to the world.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/derek-sivers/it-s-only-a-little-difficult-to-say-no-you-ve-got-to-believe-that-the/) [Derek Sivers](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/derek-sivers/) > [How wonderful it would be, I thought, if only we could practice the teachings of the Buddha as he really taught them from his…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/dzogchen-ponlop-rinpoche/how-wonderful-it-would-be-i-thought-if-only-we-could-practice-the/) [Dzogchen Ponlop Rinpoche](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/dzogchen-ponlop-rinpoche/) > [It's difficult for people to come to the understanding that only a small minority of the people ever really get the word about life,…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/earl-nightingale/it-s-difficult-for-people-to-come-to-the-understanding-that-only-a/) [Earl Nightingale](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/earl-nightingale/) > [Lutherans, whose arguments and mistakes will not be difficult to contest or discover, do not want to attribute any value to works, and they…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/michael-servetus/lutherans-whose-arguments-and-mistakes-will-not-be-difficult-to/) [Michael Servetus](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/michael-servetus/) > [My friends, this body - perhaps more than any other gathering in human history - now faces that difficult task.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/leonardo-dicaprio/my-friends-this-body-perhaps-more-than-any-other-gathering-in-human/) [Leonardo DiCaprio](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/leonardo-dicaprio/) > [I want to make myself and the crowd happy by way of something different, and that makes things difficult. 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