--- title: "Meaning & Key Takeaway of: One by one, with my own hands, I had to…" description: "\"“One by one, with my own hands, I had to make this thing I called 'I'-- or, rather, make the things that constituted me.”\" — Haruki Murakami" image: "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/58d/haruki-murakami-21_quote_one-by-one-with-my-own-hands-i-had-to-ma_1565070.jpg" --- # One by one, with my own hands, I had to make this thing I… ![“One by one, with my own hands, I had to make this thing I called 'I'-- or, rather, make the things that constituted me.” quote by Haruki Murakami](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/58d/haruki-murakami-21_quote_one-by-one-with-my-own-hands-i-had-to-ma_1565070.jpg) [Download](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/58d/haruki-murakami-21_quote_one-by-one-with-my-own-hands-i-had-to-ma_1565070.jpg) [Open image](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/58d/haruki-murakami-21_quote_one-by-one-with-my-own-hands-i-had-to-ma_1565070.jpg) > ““One by one, with my own hands, I had to make this thing I called 'I'-- or, rather, make the things that constituted me.”” [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. Self‑construction is a deliberate, hands‑on process of assembling identity from experiences and choices. **In simple terms:** We build ourselves piece by piece. Key Takeaway Take active control of shaping who you become. Themes identity self‑growth agency Mood reflective introspective Type philosophical inspirational When to use this quote - career decisions - creative projects - relationship building - mental health work Key Concepts existentialism personal narrative Questions to Reflect On - What parts of yourself are you actively creating? - How do you recognize the influence of others on your identity? A Different Perspective Identity is also influenced by external expectations and chance. ★ ★ ★ ★ ★ No ratings yet ## Related quotes > [“With my own hands, I had to construct this thing I called ‘I’ –or, rather, make the things that constituted me.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/haruki-murakami/with-my-own-hands-i-had-to-construct-this-thing-i-called-i-or-rather/) [Haruki Murakami](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/haruki-murakami/) > [I like to use my hands and make things... It might seem pretty stupid or pointless but that doesn't matter... some of the most…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/bruce-nauman/i-like-to-use-my-hands-and-make-things-it-might-seem-pretty-stupid-or/) [Bruce Nauman](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/bruce-nauman/) > [I believe that what it is I have been called to do will make itself known when I have made myself ready.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jan-phillips/i-believe-that-what-it-is-i-have-been-called-to-do-will-make-itself/) [Jan Phillips](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jan-phillips/) > [It's called make-up, not crayons.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anonymous/it-s-called-make-up-not-crayons/) [Anonymous](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anonymous/) > [Hands make the world each day.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/pablo-neruda/hands-make-the-world-each-day/) [Pablo Neruda](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/pablo-neruda/) > [“Your hands can make me do all sorts of nice things for you by the littlest touch—make me want to, I mean, but then,…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/hadley-richardson/your-hands-can-make-me-do-all-sorts-of-nice-things-for-you-by-the/) Hadley Richardson > [Idle hands make fretful minds.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/shelley-shepard-gray/idle-hands-make-fretful-minds/) [Shelley Shepard Gray](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/shelley-shepard-gray/) > [I can change the world With my own two hands Make a better place With my own two hands Make a kinder place.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ben-harper/i-can-change-the-world-with-my-own-two-hands-make-a-better-place-with/) [Ben Harper](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ben-harper/) > [“I like spending all my time making things with my hands. Mostly I make love to myself.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jarod-kintz/i-like-spending-all-my-time-making-things-with-my-hands-mostly-i-make/) [Jarod Kintz](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jarod-kintz/) > [It's in your hands to make the world a better place.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/nelson-mandela/it-s-in-your-hands-to-make-the-world-a-better-place/) [Nelson Mandela](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/nelson-mandela/) > [Your life is in your hands, to make of it what you choose.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/john-kehoe/your-life-is-in-your-hands-to-make-of-it-what-you-choose/) [John Kehoe](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/john-kehoe/) > [He could not change the man he had been, but these hands would make him the man he could be](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/alethea-kontis/he-could-not-change-the-man-he-had-been-but-these-hands-would-make/) [Alethea Kontis](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/alethea-kontis/) > [My hands make me a little longer, and that's always a good thing.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/kawhi-leonard/my-hands-make-me-a-little-longer-and-that-s-always-a-good-thing/) [Kawhi Leonard](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/kawhi-leonard/) > [Many hands make light work.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/john-heywood/many-hands-make-light-work/) [John Heywood](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/john-heywood/) > [With my hands I can make you do a lot of things, have you engaged in some activities you cant explain.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/plies/with-my-hands-i-can-make-you-do-a-lot-of-things-have-you-engaged-in/) [Plies](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/plies/) ## More by Haruki Murakami > [I always feel like I'm struggling to become someone else. 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We like to make things with our hands. Better than the pleasure of making money is the…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jacques-torres/i-come-from-a-family-of-craftsmen-we-like-to-make-things-with-our/) [Jacques Torres](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jacques-torres/) > [Making a movie is so hard, you'd better make movies about something you really know about. And even more, it's really good to make…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/mike-mills/making-a-movie-is-so-hard-you-d-better-make-movies-about-something/) [Mike Mills](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/mike-mills/) > [I enjoy the crafts on the show enormously, too, when we have experts in showing how to make things. You watch them thinking you'll…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jane-asher/i-enjoy-the-crafts-on-the-show-enormously-too-when-we-have-experts-in/) [Jane Asher](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jane-asher/) > [It's possible to make things that aren't just money-makers. Something wonderful for its own sake.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jonathan-safran-foer/it-s-possible-to-make-things-that-aren-t-just-money-makers-something/) [Jonathan Safran Foer](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jonathan-safran-foer/) > [I wish I could go back & make things right.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anonymous/i-wish-i-could-go-back-make-things-right/) [Anonymous](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anonymous/) > [I just want to make things that people want to buy. I have no confusion about this.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/sergio-marchionne/i-just-want-to-make-things-that-people-want-to-buy-i-have-no/) [Sergio Marchionne](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/sergio-marchionne/) > [“When you only had words, you had to make up for things, say what you might not need to otherwise.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/sarah-dessen/when-you-only-had-words-you-had-to-make-up-for-things-say-what-you/) [Sarah Dessen](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/sarah-dessen/) > [The inclination of my life...has been to do things & make things which will give pleasure to people in new and amazing ways.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/walt-disney/the-inclination-of-my-life-has-been-to-do-things-make-things-which/) [Walt Disney](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/walt-disney/) > [Babies make you do things for them. They get you up and they get you moving.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ann-hood/babies-make-you-do-things-for-them-they-get-you-up-and-they-get-you/) [Ann Hood](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ann-hood/) > [Depending on the kind of code you write, depending on the kind of ideas you have, you can be creative in problem-solving and you…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jacky-rosen/depending-on-the-kind-of-code-you-write-depending-on-the-kind-of/) [Jacky Rosen](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jacky-rosen/) Browse all 192 Make Things quotes ```json { "@context": "https://schema.org", "@graph": [ { "@type": "Quotation", "text": "“One by one, with my own hands, I had to make this thing I called 'I'-- or, rather, make the things that constituted me.”", "creator": { "@type": "Person", "name": "Haruki Murakami" }, "isPartOf": { "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/#website" }, "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/haruki-murakami/one-by-one-with-my-own-hands-i-had-to-make-this-thing-i-called-i-or/", "about": { "@type": "Thing", "name": "Make Things" }, "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/haruki-murakami/one-by-one-with-my-own-hands-i-had-to-make-this-thing-i-called-i-or/#quotation", "image": { "@type": "ImageObject", "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/58d/haruki-murakami-21_quote_one-by-one-with-my-own-hands-i-had-to-ma_1565070.jpg", "contentUrl": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/58d/haruki-murakami-21_quote_one-by-one-with-my-own-hands-i-had-to-ma_1565070.jpg", "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/58d/haruki-murakami-21_quote_one-by-one-with-my-own-hands-i-had-to-ma_1565070.jpg", "width": 1080, "height": 1080, "caption": "“One by one, with my own hands, I had to make this thing I called 'I'-- or, rather, make the things that…” — 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": "“One by one, with my own...", "item": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/haruki-murakami/one-by-one-with-my-own-hands-i-had-to-make-this-thing-i-called-i-or/" } ], "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/haruki-murakami/one-by-one-with-my-own-hands-i-had-to-make-this-thing-i-called-i-or/#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 } } ] } ```