---
title: "Meaning & Key Takeaway of: Our survival depends on not just what we…"
description: "\"“Our survival depends on not just what we can get in life but also what we can give”\" — Han Nolan"
image: "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/1f6/han-nolan-27297_depends_our-survival-depends-on-not-just-what-we_361089.png"
---

#  Our survival depends on not just what we can get in life…

![“Our survival depends on not just what we can get in life but also what we can give” quote by Han Nolan](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/1f6/han-nolan-27297_depends_our-survival-depends-on-not-just-what-we_361089.png)   [Download](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/1f6/han-nolan-27297_depends_our-survival-depends-on-not-just-what-we_361089.png) [Open image](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/1f6/han-nolan-27297_depends_our-survival-depends-on-not-just-what-we_361089.png)

> ““Our survival depends on not just what we can get in life but also what we can give””

[Han Nolan](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/han-nolan/)

## About This Quote

This interpretation was drafted with AI assistance. It is one reading of the quote, not the author's own explanation.

Giving is as essential as receiving for personal fulfillment and societal health.

**In simple terms:** Giving matters as much as getting.

Key Takeaway

Balance giving and receiving.

Themes

generosity purpose community

Mood

inspirational reflective

Type

ethical philosophical

When to use this quote

- volunteering
- donations
- peer support
- teamwork

Key Concepts

reciprocity altruism

Questions to Reflect On

- What can you give without depleting yourself?
- How does giving shape your identity?

A Different Perspective

Overemphasis on giving can lead to burnout.

★ ★ ★ ★ ★   No ratings yet

[Life](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/life/) [Survival](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/survival/)

## Related quotes

> [“Survival depends on denial, and death comes swiftly to those who forsake it.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/b-g-bowers/survival-depends-on-denial-and-death-comes-swiftly-to-those-who/)

[B.G. Bowers](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/b-g-bowers/)

> [We need to save the Arctic not because of the polar bears, and not because it is the most beautiful place in the world,…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anonymous/we-need-to-save-the-arctic-not-because-of-the-polar-bears-and-not/)

[Anonymous](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anonymous/)

> [“...it is our animal nature to judge the weak more harshly, owing to how survival depends upon weeding these creatures out.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/suzanne-rindell/it-is-our-animal-nature-to-judge-the-weak-more-harshly-owing-to-how/)

[Suzanne Rindell](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/suzanne-rindell/)

> [“As a pupil of wild things, I have come to understand that life must continue despite the cruelty of the climate. Lack of sunlight…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/krista-schlyer/as-a-pupil-of-wild-things-i-have-come-to-understand-that-life-must/)

Krista Schlyer

> [Our survival depends on our ability to form trusting relationships.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/simon-sinek/our-survival-depends-on-our-ability-to-form-trusting-relationships/)

[Simon Sinek](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/simon-sinek/)

> [One thing you have to realize from now on is that it doesn't matter if this is a dream or not. Survival depends on…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/rebecca-mckinsey/one-thing-you-have-to-realize-from-now-on-is-that-it-doesn-t-matter/)

[Rebecca McKinsey](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/rebecca-mckinsey/)

> [“You can take her to any place in the world, she will survive. A woman of faith can handle any situation, because external environments…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/gift-gugu-mona/you-can-take-her-to-any-place-in-the-world-she-will-survive-a-woman/)

[Gift Gugu Mona](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/gift-gugu-mona/)

> [“Fear may blind us to the fact that individual survival often depends on working with others.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/matt-j-rossano/fear-may-blind-us-to-the-fact-that-individual-survival-often-depends/)

Matt J. Rossano

> [I believe that our very survival depends upon us becoming better systems thinkers.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/margaret-j-wheatley/i-believe-that-our-very-survival-depends-upon-us-becoming-better/)

[Margaret J. Wheatley](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/margaret-j-wheatley/)

> [“My heart thrashes in time with my feet pounding across the cold, hard ground. I can’t run any faster, longer, and yet I must.…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/elle-a-rose/my-heart-thrashes-in-time-with-my-feet-pounding-across-the-cold-hard/)

[Elle A. Rose](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/elle-a-rose/)

> [It's important to know the past, but your survival depends on knowing the present.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jonathan-maberry/it-s-important-to-know-the-past-but-your-survival-depends-on-knowing/)

[Jonathan Maberry](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jonathan-maberry/)

> [“Survival often depends on a specific focus: A relationship, a belief, or a hope balanced on the edge of possibility. Or something more ephemeral:…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/elisabeth-tova-bailey/survival-often-depends-on-a-specific-focus-a-relationship-a-belief-or/)

[Elisabeth Tova Bailey](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/elisabeth-tova-bailey/)

> [“In life, little happens by chance, and most bad hands we’re dealt are the consequence of our actions, which are shaped by our wisdom…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/dean-koontz/in-life-little-happens-by-chance-and-most-bad-hands-we-re-dealt-are/)

[Dean Koontz](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/dean-koontz/)

> [“It is almost as if you were frantically constructing another world while the world that you live in dissolves beneath your feet, and that…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/tennessee-williams/it-is-almost-as-if-you-were-frantically-constructing-another-world/)

[Tennessee Williams](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/tennessee-williams/)

> [Today, our very survival depends on our ability to stay awake, to adjust to new ideas, to remain vigilant and to face the challenge…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/martin-luther-king-jr/today-our-very-survival-depends-on-our-ability-to-stay-awake-to/)

[Martin Luther King, Jr](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/martin-luther-king-jr/)

## More by Han Nolan

> [“Anyway, I'm afraid to ask about Reed, where he is, because I'm afraid I can't handle the answer. The way people come and go…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/han-nolan/anyway-i-m-afraid-to-ask-about-reed-where-he-is-because-i-m-afraid-i/)

[Han Nolan](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/han-nolan/)

> [“For the first time in my life, I felt a gentleness, a softness in the unfolding of each day.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/han-nolan/for-the-first-time-in-my-life-i-felt-a-gentleness-a-softness-in-the/)

[Han Nolan](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/han-nolan/)

> [I glance at the exit across the room. I want out. The bird in my chest is crashing up against its cage. I can…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/han-nolan/i-glance-at-the-exit-across-the-room-i-want-out-the-bird-in-my-chest/)

[Han Nolan](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/han-nolan/)

> [When God's moving his hands through your life, you had better sit up and take notice](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/han-nolan/when-god-s-moving-his-hands-through-your-life-you-had-better-sit-up/)

[Han Nolan](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/han-nolan/)

> [“Honestly, I'm just so fed up with you. I'm at my wits' end.' Since my mother is always at her wits' end, I'm surprised…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/han-nolan/honestly-i-m-just-so-fed-up-with-you-i-m-at-my-wits-end-since-my/)

[Han Nolan](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/han-nolan/)

> [There's always light after the dark. You have to go through that dark place to get to it, but it's there, waiting for you.…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/han-nolan/there-s-always-light-after-the-dark-you-have-to-go-through-that-dark/)

[Han Nolan](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/han-nolan/)

> [And she didn't once say anything about this being a sin. It used to be I got the word sin slapped in my face…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/han-nolan/and-she-didn-t-once-say-anything-about-this-being-a-sin-it-used-to-be/)

[Han Nolan](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/han-nolan/)

> [“We just have to accept that life is perfectly imperfect.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/han-nolan/we-just-have-to-accept-that-life-is-perfectly-imperfect/)

[Han Nolan](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/han-nolan/)

> [“Good for you, Jason. It's perfectly natural to be angry with your mother for dying. Everybody who loses someone special goes through that. It's…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/han-nolan/good-for-you-jason-it-s-perfectly-natural-to-be-angry-with-your/)

[Han Nolan](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/han-nolan/)

> [I thought it was safer and easier to be one my own. But I don’t think I was to be invisible anymore because-because it’s…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/han-nolan/i-thought-it-was-safer-and-easier-to-be-one-my-own-but-i-don-t-think/)

[Han Nolan](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/han-nolan/)

> [And I was afraid because I knew I had outgrown my past before I could see a path to my future.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/han-nolan/and-i-was-afraid-because-i-knew-i-had-outgrown-my-past-before-i-could/)

[Han Nolan](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/han-nolan/)

> [If only his mind were as easy to fix as his body.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/han-nolan/if-only-his-mind-were-as-easy-to-fix-as-his-body/)

[Han Nolan](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/han-nolan/)

> [How it's Done is a richly woven tale of a young woman who discovers what it really means to be an adult. This story,…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/han-nolan/how-it-s-done-is-a-richly-woven-tale-of-a-young-woman-who-discovers/)

[Han Nolan](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/han-nolan/)

> [“If you love someone, you stand by him, forever, no matter what.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/han-nolan/if-you-love-someone-you-stand-by-him-forever-no-matter-what/)

[Han Nolan](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/han-nolan/)

> [“I stepped back and looked at all the people as they continued to weave in and out, around and around, faster and faster until…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/han-nolan/i-stepped-back-and-looked-at-all-the-people-as-they-continued-to/)

[Han Nolan](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/han-nolan/)

[Explore all 20 Han Nolan quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/han-nolan/)

## More Depends quotes

> [It all depends on you. You can go on sleeping forever, you can wake up right this moment.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/rajneesh/it-all-depends-on-you-you-can-go-on-sleeping-forever-you-can-wake-up/)

[Rajneesh](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/rajneesh/)

> [Surely to root politics out of art is a highly necessary undertaking: for the freedom of art, like that of science, depends entirely upon…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/wyndham-lewis/surely-to-root-politics-out-of-art-is-a-highly-necessary-undertaking/)

[Wyndham Lewis](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/wyndham-lewis/)

> [Peace is an ongoing process. It begins with the first step and it does not end. We, all of us alive today, are the…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/david-krieger/peace-is-an-ongoing-process-it-begins-with-the-first-step-and-it-does/)

[David Krieger](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/david-krieger/)

> [The average condition of the people improving or deteriorating, depends upon whether population is advancing faster than improvement, or improvement than population.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/john-stuart-mill/the-average-condition-of-the-people-improving-or-deteriorating/)

[John Stuart Mill](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/john-stuart-mill/)

> [India may be overtaking China as the world's most polluted country. Even now, which country is worse depends on the day.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/steve-inskeep/india-may-be-overtaking-china-as-the-world-s-most-polluted-country/)

[Steve Inskeep](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/steve-inskeep/)

> [What my day is like depends on where I am.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/daniela-pestova/what-my-day-is-like-depends-on-where-i-am/)

[Daniela Pestova](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/daniela-pestova/)

> [Our security depends on having good relationships with our allies. Donald Trump mainly shows contempt for them.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/paul-wolfowitz/our-security-depends-on-having-good-relationships-with-our-allies/)

[Paul Wolfowitz](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/paul-wolfowitz/)

> [Politics...You see, it depends on what kind of politics. What we did during my father's generation was a duty. And it was beautiful because…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/indira-gandhi/politics-you-see-it-depends-on-what-kind-of-politics-what-we-did/)

[Indira Gandhi](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/indira-gandhi/)

> [A free society depends upon a high degree of mutual trust. The public will not give that trust to officials who are not seen…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/archibald-cox/a-free-society-depends-upon-a-high-degree-of-mutual-trust-the-public/)

[Archibald Cox](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/archibald-cox/)

> [In proportion as our inward life fails, we go more constantly and desperately to the post office. You may depend on it, that the…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/henry-david-thoreau/in-proportion-as-our-inward-life-fails-we-go-more-constantly-and/)

[Henry David Thoreau](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/henry-david-thoreau/)

> [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/)

> [Every crucial experience can be regarded either as a setback, or the start of a wonderful new adventure, it depends on your perspective!](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/mary-roberts-rinehart/every-crucial-experience-can-be-regarded-either-as-a-setback-or-the/)

[Mary Roberts Rinehart](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/mary-roberts-rinehart/)

> [Unless we are prepared to search our souls to discover what to say, and then how to say it effectively, we cannot expect to…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/everett-case/unless-we-are-prepared-to-search-our-souls-to-discover-what-to-say/)

Everett Case

> [What you can do and what it became the Depends are Only your Attitude](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/mak-786/what-you-can-do-and-what-it-became-the-depends-are-only-your-attitude/)

Mak\_786

> [Every man will have his own criterion in forming his judgment of others. I depend very much on the effect of affliction. I consider…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/richard-cecil/every-man-will-have-his-own-criterion-in-forming-his-judgment-of/)

[Richard Cecil](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/richard-cecil/)

Browse all 3,689 Depends quotes

```json
{
    "@context": "https://schema.org",
    "@graph": [
        {
            "@type": "Quotation",
            "text": "“Our survival depends on not just what we can get in life but also what we can give”",
            "creator": {
                "@type": "Person",
                "name": "Han Nolan"
            },
            "isPartOf": {
                "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/#website"
            },
            "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/han-nolan/our-survival-depends-on-not-just-what-we-can-get-in-life-but-also/",
            "about": {
                "@type": "Thing",
                "name": "Depends"
            },
            "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/han-nolan/our-survival-depends-on-not-just-what-we-can-get-in-life-but-also/#quotation",
            "image": {
                "@type": "ImageObject",
                "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/1f6/han-nolan-27297_depends_our-survival-depends-on-not-just-what-we_361089.png",
                "contentUrl": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/1f6/han-nolan-27297_depends_our-survival-depends-on-not-just-what-we_361089.png",
                "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/1f6/han-nolan-27297_depends_our-survival-depends-on-not-just-what-we_361089.png",
                "width": 1080,
                "height": 1080,
                "caption": "“Our survival depends on not just what we can get in life but also what we can give” — Han Nolan",
                "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": "Han Nolan",
                    "item": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/han-nolan/"
                },
                {
                    "@type": "ListItem",
                    "position": 4,
                    "name": "“Our survival depends on not just...",
                    "item": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/han-nolan/our-survival-depends-on-not-just-what-we-can-get-in-life-but-also/"
                }
            ],
            "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/han-nolan/our-survival-depends-on-not-just-what-we-can-get-in-life-but-also/#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
            }
        }
    ]
}
```
