--- title: "Meaning & Key Takeaway of: When I was the NIH director, I often…" description: "\"When I was the NIH director, I often expressed envy of institute directors: they had the money and ran the scientific programmes.\" — Harold E. Varmus" image: "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/0fb/harold-e-varmus-19562_director_when-i-was-the-nih-director-i-often-expr_3136084.jpg" --- # When I was the NIH director, I often expressed envy of… ![“When I was the NIH director, I often expressed envy of institute directors: they had the money and ran the scientific programmes.” quote by Harold E. Varmus](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/0fb/harold-e-varmus-19562_director_when-i-was-the-nih-director-i-often-expr_3136084.jpg) [Download](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/0fb/harold-e-varmus-19562_director_when-i-was-the-nih-director-i-often-expr_3136084.jpg) [Open image](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/0fb/harold-e-varmus-19562_director_when-i-was-the-nih-director-i-often-expr_3136084.jpg) > “When I was the NIH director, I often expressed envy of institute directors: they had the money and ran the scientific programmes.” [Harold E. Varmus](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/harold-e-varmus/) ## About This Quote This interpretation was drafted with AI assistance. It is one reading of the quote, not the author's own explanation. He expresses envy of peers with more resources, reflecting on the challenges of leading scientific research. **In simple terms:** He envies directors with more money and programs. Key Takeaway Seek collaboration and resource sharing. Themes science leadership resource management Mood thoughtful analytical Type professional reflective When to use this quote - grant writing - policy advocacy - team building Key Concepts research funding institutional dynamics career development Questions to Reflect On - How can leaders maximize impact with limited resources? - What strategies improve resource allocation? A Different Perspective Envy may hinder appreciation of one's own influence. ★ ★ ★ ★ ★ No ratings yet [Director](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/director/) [Directors](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/directors/) [Envy](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/envy/) [Envy Institute](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/envy-institute-5566781/) [Expressed](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/expressed/) [Expressed Envy](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/expressed-envy-5566780/) [Had](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/had/) [Institute](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/institute/) [Institute Directors](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/institute-directors-5566783/) [Money](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/money/) [Nih Director](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/nih-director-5566782/) [Often](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/often/) [Programmes](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/programmes/) [Ran](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/ran/) [Science](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/science/) [Scientific](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/scientific/) ## Related quotes > [“To be in a place where God’s glory is expressed is to be at the right place”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/sunday-adelaja/to-be-in-a-place-where-god-s-glory-is-expressed-is-to-be-at-the-right/) [Sunday Adelaja](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/sunday-adelaja/) > [Ideas are inflammable. 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When Care Is Expressed Truly,People Get Impressed Naturally... !!](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/keren-zhims/care-is-to-express-not-to-impress-people-when-care-is-expressed-truly/) [Keren Zhims](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/keren-zhims/) > [“Every expression is not to be expressed,,,”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/kish/every-expression-is-not-to-be-expressed/) [Kish](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/kish/) > [The modern rise of Alzheimer's Disease in the twentieth century is not a sign of failure. It's a sign of success. Success in living…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/s-jay-olshansky/the-modern-rise-of-alzheimer-s-disease-in-the-twentieth-century-is/) [S. Jay Olshansky](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/s-jay-olshansky/) > [Where I came from, just nodding and smiling when someone expressed views was the ultimate insult. If people weren't yelling about politics in our…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ezekiel-emanuel/where-i-came-from-just-nodding-and-smiling-when-someone-expressed/) [Ezekiel Emanuel](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ezekiel-emanuel/) > [Harper Lee and Truman Capote became friends as next-door neighbors in the late 1920s, when they were about kindergarten age. From the start, they…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/charles-j-shields/harper-lee-and-truman-capote-became-friends-as-next-door-neighbors-in/) [Charles J. Shields](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/charles-j-shields/) ## More by Harold E. Varmus > [As an undergraduate at Amherst College, I was devoted to Dickensian novels and antiestablishment journalism while marginally fulfilling premedical requirements.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/harold-e-varmus/as-an-undergraduate-at-amherst-college-i-was-devoted-to-dickensian/) [Harold E. Varmus](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/harold-e-varmus/) > [A cancer is not simply a lung cancer. It doesn't simply have a certain kind of appearance under the microscope or a certain behavior,…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/harold-e-varmus/a-cancer-is-not-simply-a-lung-cancer-it-doesn-t-simply-have-a-certain/) [Harold E. Varmus](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/harold-e-varmus/) > [Every cancer looks different. Every cancer has similarities to other cancers. And we're trying to milk those differences and similarities to do a better…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/harold-e-varmus/every-cancer-looks-different-every-cancer-has-similarities-to-other/) [Harold E. Varmus](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/harold-e-varmus/) > [Tobacco, UV rays, viruses, heredity, and age are the main causes of cancer.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/harold-e-varmus/tobacco-uv-rays-viruses-heredity-and-age-are-the-main-causes-of-cancer/) [Harold E. Varmus](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/harold-e-varmus/) > [I had learned that science is a rewarding, active process of discovery, not the passive absorption of what others had discovered.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/harold-e-varmus/i-had-learned-that-science-is-a-rewarding-active-process-of-discovery/) [Harold E. Varmus](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/harold-e-varmus/) > [Following graduation from Amherst, a Woodrow Wilson Fellowship enabled me to test the depth of my interest in literary scholarship by beginning graduate studies…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/harold-e-varmus/following-graduation-from-amherst-a-woodrow-wilson-fellowship-enabled/) [Harold E. Varmus](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/harold-e-varmus/) > [From some dilatory reading in the early 1960s, I knew enough about viruses and their association with tumors in animals to understand that they…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/harold-e-varmus/from-some-dilatory-reading-in-the-early-1960s-i-knew-enough-about/) [Harold E. Varmus](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/harold-e-varmus/) > [I keep encouraging the pharmaceutical companies to put more money into R&D.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/harold-e-varmus/i-keep-encouraging-the-pharmaceutical-companies-to-put-more-money/) [Harold E. Varmus](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/harold-e-varmus/) > [Science can improve lives in ways that are elegant in design and moving in practice.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/harold-e-varmus/science-can-improve-lives-in-ways-that-are-elegant-in-design-and/) [Harold E. Varmus](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/harold-e-varmus/) > [I begin with the premise that behavior is an incredibly important element in medicine. Peoples habits, their willingness to quit smoking, their willingness to…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/harold-e-varmus/i-begin-with-the-premise-that-behavior-is-an-incredibly-important/) [Harold E. Varmus](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/harold-e-varmus/) > [Just after graduation in 1966, like many of my contemporaries, I applied for research training at the National Institutes of Health. Perhaps because his…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/harold-e-varmus/just-after-graduation-in-1966-like-many-of-my-contemporaries-i/) [Harold E. Varmus](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/harold-e-varmus/) > [The public schools I attended were dominated by athletics and rarely inspiring intellectually, but I enjoyed a small circle of interesting friends despite my…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/harold-e-varmus/the-public-schools-i-attended-were-dominated-by-athletics-and-rarely/) [Harold E. Varmus](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/harold-e-varmus/) > [My ideal summer day was reading on the porch.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/harold-e-varmus/my-ideal-summer-day-was-reading-on-the-porch/) [Harold E. Varmus](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/harold-e-varmus/) > [In preparation for a career in academic medicine, I worked as a medical house officer at Columbia-Presbyterian Hospital from 1966 to 1968 and then…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/harold-e-varmus/in-preparation-for-a-career-in-academic-medicine-i-worked-as-a/) [Harold E. Varmus](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/harold-e-varmus/) > [Our biggest single theme is trying to make the NIH work better with the same amount of money.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/harold-e-varmus/our-biggest-single-theme-is-trying-to-make-the-nih-work-better-with/) [Harold E. Varmus](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/harold-e-varmus/) [Explore all 32 Harold E. Varmus quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/harold-e-varmus/) ## More Director quotes > [You have to have a great director to make a great movie.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/thelma-schoonmaker/you-have-to-have-a-great-director-to-make-a-great-movie/) [Thelma Schoonmaker](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/thelma-schoonmaker/) > [Professionally speaking, the proudest moment was when I booked the 'Human Stain.' 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My music director, who knew…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/john-tesh/when-i-was-playing-piano-it-was-like-i-m-going-to-write-a-song-using/) [John Tesh](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/john-tesh/) > [The director's job should give you a sense of music without drawing attention to itself.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/taylor-hackford/the-director-s-job-should-give-you-a-sense-of-music-without-drawing/) [Taylor Hackford](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/taylor-hackford/) > [During script narrations, if I feel the screenplay mood jumping abruptly, I tell the director, and they work on it.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/vijay-sethupathi/during-script-narrations-if-i-feel-the-screenplay-mood-jumping/) [Vijay Sethupathi](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/vijay-sethupathi/) > [I'm publicist, patron of nine charities, creative director, food consultant, recipe developer - and mum.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jack-monroe/i-m-publicist-patron-of-nine-charities-creative-director-food/) [Jack Monroe](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jack-monroe/) > [I've always wanted to be a director; it's just how my mind has always worked. If I hear music, I see music videos and…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/noel-wells/i-ve-always-wanted-to-be-a-director-it-s-just-how-my-mind-has-always/) [Noel Wells](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/noel-wells/) > [There was always a part of me that wanted to be an old-time director. But I couldn't do that. I'm not a pro.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/martin-scorsese/there-was-always-a-part-of-me-that-wanted-to-be-an-old-time-director/) [Martin Scorsese](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/martin-scorsese/) > [Steven Spielberg seems to have wanted to be a director from 13. 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Sometimes you don't want to find the director on a movie set.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/stanley-tucci/sometimes-you-can-t-even-find-the-director-on-a-movie-set-sometimes/) [Stanley Tucci](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/stanley-tucci/) > [First of all the criteria that I have that goes into any career decision is whether or not I have the life experience, emotional…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/nicolas-cage/first-of-all-the-criteria-that-i-have-that-goes-into-any-career/) [Nicolas Cage](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/nicolas-cage/) > [As a director, people are trusting you with their lives, with their stories.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/elizabeth-chai-vasarhelyi/as-a-director-people-are-trusting-you-with-their-lives-with-their/) [Elizabeth Chai Vasarhelyi](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/elizabeth-chai-vasarhelyi/) > [I loved working with Stephen Frears. He's a really fantastic director. He knows what he wants and how to get it.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anjelica-huston/i-loved-working-with-stephen-frears-he-s-a-really-fantastic-director/) [Anjelica Huston](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anjelica-huston/) [Browse all 2,786 Director quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/director/) ```json { "@context": "https://schema.org", "@graph": [ { "@type": "Quotation", "text": "When I was the NIH director, I often expressed envy of institute directors: they had the money and ran the scientific programmes.", "creator": { "@type": "Person", "name": "Harold E. 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