---
title: "Meaning & Key Takeaway of: I know exactly what I'm doing, but I just…"
description: "\"“I know exactly what I'm doing, but I just can't stop. That's my greatest weakness.”\" — Haruki Murakami"
image: "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/05c/haruki-murakami-21_weakness_i-know-exactly-what-i-m-doing-but-i-just_2090455.jpg"
---

#  I know exactly what I'm doing, but I just can't stop…

![“I know exactly what I'm doing, but I just can't stop. That's my greatest weakness.” quote by Haruki Murakami](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/05c/haruki-murakami-21_weakness_i-know-exactly-what-i-m-doing-but-i-just_2090455.jpg)   [Download](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/05c/haruki-murakami-21_weakness_i-know-exactly-what-i-m-doing-but-i-just_2090455.jpg) [Open image](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/05c/haruki-murakami-21_weakness_i-know-exactly-what-i-m-doing-but-i-just_2090455.jpg)

> ““I know exactly what I'm doing, but I just can't stop. That's my greatest weakness.””

[Haruki Murakami](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/haruki-murakami/)

## About This Quote

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

The narrator knows his actions but cannot stop, seeing it as a weakness.

**In simple terms:** Knowing but unable to stop.

Key Takeaway

Identify and address compulsive habits.

Themes

addiction self‑control weakness

Mood

introspective melancholic

Type

philosophical inspirational

When to use this quote

- habits
- creative work
- mental health
- relationships

Key Concepts

behavioral loops mindfulness

Questions to Reflect On

- What triggers this compulsion?
- What steps could break the cycle?

A Different Perspective

Awareness alone may not change behavior without strategy.

★ ★ ★ ★ ★   No ratings yet

[Weakness](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/weakness/)

## Related quotes

> [Don't let your upbringing, your surroundings, whatever situation you are living in, don't let those stop you from being the greatest you that you…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/aquaria/don-t-let-your-upbringing-your-surroundings-whatever-situation-you/)

[Aquaria](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/aquaria/)

> [Mutability of temper and inconsistency with ourselves is the greatest weakness of human nature.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/joseph-addison/mutability-of-temper-and-inconsistency-with-ourselves-is-the-greatest/)

[Joseph Addison](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/joseph-addison/)

> [The greatest weakness of most humans is their hesitancy to tell others how much they love them while they're still alive.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anonymous/the-greatest-weakness-of-most-humans-is-their-hesitancy-to-tell/)

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

> [Your greatest strength can be your greatest weakness.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/michael-clarke/your-greatest-strength-can-be-your-greatest-weakness/)

[Michael Clarke](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/michael-clarke/)

> [“My greatest strength is an unfocused mind. This is because while you are all thinking of one idea, I’m thinking of five different ideas.…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ben-mitchell/my-greatest-strength-is-an-unfocused-mind-this-is-because-while-you/)

[Ben Mitchell](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ben-mitchell/)

> [The greatest weakness of all is the great fear of appearing weak](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jacques-benigne-bossuel/the-greatest-weakness-of-all-is-the-great-fear-of-appearing-weak/)

Jacques Benigne Bossuel

> [What’s my greatest weakness? Sad stories, people with problems](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/muhammad-ali/what-s-my-greatest-weakness-sad-stories-people-with-problems/)

[Muhammad Ali](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/muhammad-ali/)

> [“Something about knowing exactly what you're doing, and why.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/julie-powell/something-about-knowing-exactly-what-you-re-doing-and-why/)

[Julie Powell](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/julie-powell/)

> [I know exactly what I'm doing on the ice, and I'm in my element.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/apolo-ohno/i-know-exactly-what-i-m-doing-on-the-ice-and-i-m-in-my-element/)

[Apolo Ohno](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/apolo-ohno/)

> [Vogue Magazine does something really interesting here: They make it look like I know exactly what I'm doing. Because Vogue made it look like…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/blake-mycoskie/vogue-magazine-does-something-really-interesting-here-they-make-it/)

[Blake Mycoskie](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/blake-mycoskie/)

> [No matter how drunk you actually get.. there's always that small part inside of you that knows EXACTLY what you're doing.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/christine-ramkran/no-matter-how-drunk-you-actually-get-there-s-always-that-small-part/)

[Christine Ramkran](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/christine-ramkran/)

> [When you feel concentrated within the intensity of making paintings, you know exactly what you are doing.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/luc-tuymans/when-you-feel-concentrated-within-the-intensity-of-making-paintings/)

[Luc Tuymans](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/luc-tuymans/)

> [When you're on tour, you know exactly what you're doing and what's required of you. There's a routine.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/kate-nash/when-you-re-on-tour-you-know-exactly-what-you-re-doing-and-what-s/)

[Kate Nash](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/kate-nash/)

> [The ability to absorb a book and make someone else's words and story your own was exactly was I was doing on stage.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/alan-king/the-ability-to-absorb-a-book-and-make-someone-else-s-words-and-story/)

[Alan King](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/alan-king/)

> [I knew exactly what I was doing. You can't accidentally take a whole bottle of pills.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/fantasia-barrino/i-knew-exactly-what-i-was-doing-you-can-t-accidentally-take-a-whole/)

[Fantasia Barrino](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/fantasia-barrino/)

## More by Haruki Murakami

> [I always feel like I'm struggling to become someone else. Like I'm trying to find a new place, grab hold of a new life,…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/haruki-murakami/i-always-feel-like-i-m-struggling-to-become-someone-else-like-i-m/)

[Haruki Murakami](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/haruki-murakami/)

> [If writing novels is like planting a forest, then writing short stories is more like planting a garden.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/haruki-murakami/if-writing-novels-is-like-planting-a-forest-then-writing-short/)

[Haruki Murakami](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/haruki-murakami/)

> [“The sad truth is that what I could recall in five seconds all too soon needed ten, then thirty, thena full minute...”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/haruki-murakami/the-sad-truth-is-that-what-i-could-recall-in-five-seconds-all-too/)

[Haruki Murakami](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/haruki-murakami/)

> [“Intelligent teenage girls were often instinctively theatrical, purposely eccentric, mouthing highly suggestive words to confuse people.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/haruki-murakami/intelligent-teenage-girls-were-often-instinctively-theatrical/)

[Haruki Murakami](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/haruki-murakami/)

> [Memory is like fiction; or else it's fiction that's like memory. This really came home to me once I started writing fiction, that memory…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/haruki-murakami/memory-is-like-fiction-or-else-it-s-fiction-that-s-like-memory-this/)

[Haruki Murakami](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/haruki-murakami/)

> [The most dangerous creature here would have to be me. So maybe I'm just scared of my own shadow.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/haruki-murakami/the-most-dangerous-creature-here-would-have-to-be-me-so-maybe-i-m/)

[Haruki Murakami](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/haruki-murakami/)

> [If you listen to the radio for a whole hour there's maybe one decent song. The rest is mass-produced garbage](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/haruki-murakami/if-you-listen-to-the-radio-for-a-whole-hour-there-s-maybe-one-decent/)

[Haruki Murakami](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/haruki-murakami/)

> [“that one of our problems was our inability to recognize and accept our own deformities”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/haruki-murakami/that-one-of-our-problems-was-our-inability-to-recognize-and-accept/)

[Haruki Murakami](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/haruki-murakami/)

> [“When I look back at myself at age twenty, what I remember most is being alone and lonely. I had no girlfriend to warm…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/haruki-murakami/when-i-look-back-at-myself-at-age-twenty-what-i-remember-most-is/)

[Haruki Murakami](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/haruki-murakami/)

> [“There's not a branch of publishing or broadcasting that doesn't depend in some way on advertising. It'd be like an aquarium without water. Why,…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/haruki-murakami/there-s-not-a-branch-of-publishing-or-broadcasting-that-doesn-t/)

[Haruki Murakami](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/haruki-murakami/)

> [“One by one, I'll face the tasks before me and complete them as best I can. Focusing on each stride forward, but at the…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/haruki-murakami/one-by-one-i-ll-face-the-tasks-before-me-and-complete-them-as-best-i/)

[Haruki Murakami](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/haruki-murakami/)

> [“Eleven o'clock had come and gone. I had to find a way to bring this conversation to a successful conclusion and get out of…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/haruki-murakami/eleven-o-clock-had-come-and-gone-i-had-to-find-a-way-to-bring-this/)

[Haruki Murakami](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/haruki-murakami/)

> [“Some people get a kick out of reading railway timetables and that's all they do all day. Some people make huge model boats out…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/haruki-murakami/some-people-get-a-kick-out-of-reading-railway-timetables-and-that-s/)

[Haruki Murakami](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/haruki-murakami/)

> [“When the time comes, everybody’s got to end up where they belong. Only me, I didn’t have a place to call my own. It’s…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/haruki-murakami/when-the-time-comes-everybody-s-got-to-end-up-where-they-belong-only/)

[Haruki Murakami](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/haruki-murakami/)

> [“You let something out of the bag before yourself knew what it was all about”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/haruki-murakami/you-let-something-out-of-the-bag-before-yourself-knew-what-it-was-all/)

[Haruki Murakami](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/haruki-murakami/)

[Explore all 2,928 Haruki Murakami quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/haruki-murakami/)

## More Weakness quotes

> [“Those who know what's wrong with them and take care of themselves accordingly will tend to live a lot longer than those who consider…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/benjamin-hoff/those-who-know-what-s-wrong-with-them-and-take-care-of-themselves/)

[Benjamin Hoff](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/benjamin-hoff/)

> [Broken china lasts longer than unbroken.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jules-renard/broken-china-lasts-longer-than-unbroken/)

[Jules Renard](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jules-renard/)

> [I think that as a writer your responsibility is to search for and stir up the things that are in this world. There is…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/markus-zusak/i-think-that-as-a-writer-your-responsibility-is-to-search-for-and/)

[Markus Zusak](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/markus-zusak/)

> [I don't feel insecure about any of this work anymore. Maybe I don't have what I had when I was younger. I'm not really…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/edward-norton/i-don-t-feel-insecure-about-any-of-this-work-anymore-maybe-i-don-t/)

[Edward Norton](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/edward-norton/)

> [Honesty in politics is the result of strength; hypocrisy is the result of weakness.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/vladimir-lenin/honesty-in-politics-is-the-result-of-strength-hypocrisy-is-the-result/)

[Vladimir Lenin](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/vladimir-lenin/)

> [We often refer to loneliness as something negative. And we look at it as a weakness.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jay-shetty/we-often-refer-to-loneliness-as-something-negative-and-we-look-at-it/)

[Jay Shetty](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jay-shetty/)

> [Don't compare yourself to other people. It won't help. You'll only find what you expect to find. If you think you're weak, everyone else…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/samantha-skye/don-t-compare-yourself-to-other-people-it-won-t-help-you-ll-only-find/)

[Samantha Skye](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/samantha-skye/)

> [What greater weakness can there be than not to know what is the source of one's being, of one's life, of one's senses, of…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jean-de-la-bruyere/what-greater-weakness-can-there-be-than-not-to-know-what-is-the/)

[Jean de la Bruyere](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jean-de-la-bruyere/)

> [It is an interesting law of romance that a truly strong woman will choose a strong man who disagrees with her over a weak…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/roger-ebert/it-is-an-interesting-law-of-romance-that-a-truly-strong-woman-will/)

[Roger Ebert](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/roger-ebert/)

> [Our foibles are really what make us lovable.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/johann-wolfgang-von-goethe/our-foibles-are-really-what-make-us-lovable/)

[Johann Wolfgang von Goethe](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/johann-wolfgang-von-goethe/)

> [What I try to do is find a weakness in my opponent. A way that I can hit you. One good, clean shot. Try…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/keith-thurman/what-i-try-to-do-is-find-a-weakness-in-my-opponent-a-way-that-i-can/)

[Keith Thurman](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/keith-thurman/)

> [The most powerful movement of feeling with a liturgy is the prayer which seeks for nothing special, but is a yearning to escape from…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/george-eliot/the-most-powerful-movement-of-feeling-with-a-liturgy-is-the-prayer/)

[George Eliot](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/george-eliot/)

> [Tomorrow is a satire on today, And shows its weakness.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/edward-young/tomorrow-is-a-satire-on-today-and-shows-its-weakness/)

[Edward Young](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/edward-young/)

> [My first big mistake was made when, in a moment of weakness, I consented to learn the game; for a man who can frankly…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/robert-benchley/my-first-big-mistake-was-made-when-in-a-moment-of-weakness-i/)

[Robert Benchley](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/robert-benchley/)

> [“difficulty is not lack of knowledge, but moral weakness. If you love Jesus with a pure heart, you will know where He feeds His…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/richard-wurmbrand/difficulty-is-not-lack-of-knowledge-but-moral-weakness-if-you-love/)

[Richard Wurmbrand](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/richard-wurmbrand/)

[Browse all 4,076 Weakness quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/weakness/)

```json
{
    "@context": "https://schema.org",
    "@graph": [
        {
            "@type": "Quotation",
            "text": "“I know exactly what I'm doing, but I just can't stop. That's my greatest weakness.”",
            "creator": {
                "@type": "Person",
                "name": "Haruki Murakami"
            },
            "isPartOf": {
                "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/#website"
            },
            "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/haruki-murakami/i-know-exactly-what-i-m-doing-but-i-just-can-t-stop-that-s-my/",
            "about": {
                "@type": "Thing",
                "name": "Weakness"
            },
            "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/haruki-murakami/i-know-exactly-what-i-m-doing-but-i-just-can-t-stop-that-s-my/#quotation",
            "image": {
                "@type": "ImageObject",
                "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/05c/haruki-murakami-21_weakness_i-know-exactly-what-i-m-doing-but-i-just_2090455.jpg",
                "contentUrl": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/05c/haruki-murakami-21_weakness_i-know-exactly-what-i-m-doing-but-i-just_2090455.jpg",
                "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/05c/haruki-murakami-21_weakness_i-know-exactly-what-i-m-doing-but-i-just_2090455.jpg",
                "width": 1080,
                "height": 1080,
                "caption": "“I know exactly what I'm doing, but I just can't stop. That's my greatest weakness.” — Haruki Murakami",
                "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": "Haruki Murakami",
                    "item": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/haruki-murakami/"
                },
                {
                    "@type": "ListItem",
                    "position": 4,
                    "name": "“I know exactly what I'm doing,...",
                    "item": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/haruki-murakami/i-know-exactly-what-i-m-doing-but-i-just-can-t-stop-that-s-my/"
                }
            ],
            "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/haruki-murakami/i-know-exactly-what-i-m-doing-but-i-just-can-t-stop-that-s-my/#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
            }
        }
    ]
}
```
