--- title: "Meaning & Key Takeaway of: Self-pity is our worst enemy and if we…" description: "\"“Self-pity is our worst enemy and if we yield to it, we can never do anything good in the world.”\" — Helen Keller" image: "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/abf/helen-keller-429_pity_self-pity-is-our-worst-enemy-and-if-we-y_312047.png" --- # Self-pity is our worst enemy and if we yield to it, we can… ![“Self-pity is our worst enemy and if we yield to it, we can never do anything good in the world.” quote by Helen Keller](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/abf/helen-keller-429_pity_self-pity-is-our-worst-enemy-and-if-we-y_312047.png) [Download](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/abf/helen-keller-429_pity_self-pity-is-our-worst-enemy-and-if-we-y_312047.png) [Open image](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/abf/helen-keller-429_pity_self-pity-is-our-worst-enemy-and-if-we-y_312047.png) > ““Self-pity is our worst enemy and if we yield to it, we can never do anything good in the world.”” [Helen Keller](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/helen-keller/) ## About This Quote This interpretation was drafted with AI assistance. It is one reading of the quote, not the author's own explanation. Self‑pity paralyzes action and prevents positive contribution to the world. **In simple terms:** Self‑pity stops us from doing good. Key Takeaway Avoid self‑pity, act for others. Themes self‑pity motivation service Mood reflective determined Type inspirational motivational When to use this quote - personal setbacks - community work - mental health challenges - overcoming despair Key Concepts psychology resilience altruism Questions to Reflect On - What triggers your self‑pity? - How can you turn self‑pity into constructive action? 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It's crippling.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/shelley-terrell/self-pity-is-the-worst-disability-a-person-can-have-callie-it-s/) [Shelley Terrell](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/shelley-terrell/) > [Self pity is the worst possible emotion anyone can have. And the most destructive. It is, to slightly paraphrase what Wilde said about hatred,…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/stephen-fry/self-pity-is-the-worst-possible-emotion-anyone-can-have-and-the-most/) [Stephen Fry](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/stephen-fry/) > [The best of our theater is standing on tiptoe, striving to see over the shoulders of father and mother. The worst is exploiting and…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/arthur-miller/the-best-of-our-theater-is-standing-on-tiptoe-striving-to-see-over/) [Arthur Miller](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/arthur-miller/) > [“Self pity, Orito reminds herself yet again, is a noose dangling from a rafter.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/david-mitchell/self-pity-orito-reminds-herself-yet-again-is-a-noose-dangling-from-a/) [David Mitchell](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/david-mitchell/) > [All self-importance is a form of self-pity in disguise.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/deepak-chopra/all-self-importance-is-a-form-of-self-pity-in-disguise/) [Deepak Chopra](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/deepak-chopra/) > [Everybody who undergoes a death and finds themselves grieving is obsessed with — or maybe overly focused on — the idea that they can’t…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/joan-didion/everybody-who-undergoes-a-death-and-finds-themselves-grieving-is/) [Joan Didion](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/joan-didion/) > [My name is Nwori Joshua and I am the world's most sorrowful young man on earth and the world's biggest Jerk. I sought for…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/nwori-joshua/my-name-is-nwori-joshua-and-i-am-the-world-s-most-sorrowful-young-man/) [Nwori Joshua](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/nwori-joshua/) > [The teeth of self-pity had gnawed away her essential self.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/willa-gibbs/the-teeth-of-self-pity-had-gnawed-away-her-essential-self/) [Willa Gibbs](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/willa-gibbs/) > [I must learn that the purpose of my life belongs to God, not me. 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Boss up and find a way to get going again.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/germany-kent/wallowing-in-self-pity-hurts-no-one-except-you-boss-up-and-find-a-way/) [Germany Kent](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/germany-kent/) > [But victimhood was seductive, a release from responsibility and caring. Fear would be transmuted into weary resignation; failure would no longer generate guilt but,…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/dean-koontz/but-victimhood-was-seductive-a-release-from-responsibility-and-caring/) [Dean Koontz](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/dean-koontz/) ## More by Helen Keller > [He who is content with what has been done is an obstacle in the path of progress.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/helen-keller/he-who-is-content-with-what-has-been-done-is-an-obstacle-in-the-path/) [Helen Keller](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/helen-keller/) > [I rejoice to live in such a splendidly disturbing time!](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/helen-keller/i-rejoice-to-live-in-such-a-splendidly-disturbing-time/) [Helen Keller](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/helen-keller/) > [The clatter of a changing world is not pleasant, and those who have enjoyed the comforts and protection of the old order may be…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/helen-keller/the-clatter-of-a-changing-world-is-not-pleasant-and-those-who-have/) [Helen Keller](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/helen-keller/) > [Be of good cheer. Do not think of today's failures, but of the success that may come tomorrow. You have set yourselves a difficult…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/helen-keller/be-of-good-cheer-do-not-think-of-today-s-failures-but-of-the-success/) [Helen Keller](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/helen-keller/) > [When indeed shall we learn that we are all related one to the other, that we are all members of one body? Until the…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/helen-keller/when-indeed-shall-we-learn-that-we-are-all-related-one-to-the-other/) [Helen Keller](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/helen-keller/) > [I have visited sweatshops, factories, and crowded slums. If I could not see it, I could smell it. The foundation of society is laid…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/helen-keller/i-have-visited-sweatshops-factories-and-crowded-slums-if-i-could-not/) [Helen Keller](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/helen-keller/) > [If we do not like our work, and do not try to get happiness out of it, we are a menace to our profession…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/helen-keller/if-we-do-not-like-our-work-and-do-not-try-to-get-happiness-out-of-it/) [Helen Keller](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/helen-keller/) > [Alone we can do so little; together we can do so much.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/helen-keller/alone-we-can-do-so-little-together-we-can-do-so-much/) [Helen Keller](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/helen-keller/) > [I do not want the peace which passeth understanding, I want the understanding which bringeth peace.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/helen-keller/i-do-not-want-the-peace-which-passeth-understanding-i-want-the/) [Helen Keller](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/helen-keller/) > [Although the world is full of suffering, it is also full of the overcoming of it.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/helen-keller/although-the-world-is-full-of-suffering-it-is-also-full-of-the/) [Helen Keller](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/helen-keller/) > [Love? Why ... it is what everybody feels for everybody else.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/helen-keller/love-why-it-is-what-everybody-feels-for-everybody-else/) [Helen Keller](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/helen-keller/) > [Blindness separates us from things but deafness separates us from people.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/helen-keller/blindness-separates-us-from-things-but-deafness-separates-us-from/) [Helen Keller](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/helen-keller/) > [A simple, childlike faith in a Divine Friend solves all the problems that come to us by land or sea](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/helen-keller/a-simple-childlike-faith-in-a-divine-friend-solves-all-the-problems/) [Helen Keller](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/helen-keller/) > [“A beam from the everlasting sun of God. Rude and unresponsive are the stones; Yet in them divine things lie concealed; I hear their…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/helen-keller/a-beam-from-the-everlasting-sun-of-god-rude-and-unresponsive-are-the/) [Helen Keller](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/helen-keller/) > [I can see in what you call the dark, but which to me is golden.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/helen-keller/i-can-see-in-what-you-call-the-dark-but-which-to-me-is-golden/) [Helen Keller](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/helen-keller/) [Explore all 568 Helen Keller quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/helen-keller/) ## More Pity quotes > [It's a pity that there's such a negative connotation about paying for sex.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/annie-sprinkle/it-s-a-pity-that-there-s-such-a-negative-connotation-about-paying-for/) [Annie Sprinkle](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/annie-sprinkle/) > [But victimhood was seductive, a release from responsibility and caring. Fear would be transmuted into weary resignation; failure would no longer generate guilt but,…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/dean-koontz/but-victimhood-was-seductive-a-release-from-responsibility-and-caring/) [Dean Koontz](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/dean-koontz/) > [It is a pity that, commonly, more care is had--yea, and that among very wise men--to find out rather a cunning man for their…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/roger-ascham/it-is-a-pity-that-commonly-more-care-is-had-yea-and-that-among-very/) [Roger Ascham](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/roger-ascham/) > [It is thus only this personal feeling of misery that we get rid of by acts of pity.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/friedrich-nietzsche/it-is-thus-only-this-personal-feeling-of-misery-that-we-get-rid-of-by/) [Friedrich Nietzsche](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/friedrich-nietzsche/) > [“How dare I, Mrs Reed? How dare I? Because it is the truth. 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The Holy Spirit teaches us to love…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/silouan-the-athonite/whoever-will-not-love-his-enemies-cannot-know-the-lord-and-the/) [Silouan the Athonite](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/silouan-the-athonite/) > [Pity the planet, all joy gone from this sweet volcanic cone; peace to our children when they fall in small war on the heel…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/robert-lowell/pity-the-planet-all-joy-gone-from-this-sweet-volcanic-cone-peace-to/) [Robert Lowell](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/robert-lowell/) > [Please dont say you dont miss him. Just to pity me.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/william-yap/please-dont-say-you-dont-miss-him-just-to-pity-me/) [William Yap](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/william-yap/) > [It's really a pity that there are observers who view political events like comic strips. There has to be a Zorro, there has to…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/thomas-sankara/it-s-really-a-pity-that-there-are-observers-who-view-political-events/) [Thomas Sankara](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/thomas-sankara/) > [Do not be proud of your inconsistency. It is a pity, it is a pity that we should be equipped like this. It is…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/e-m-forster/do-not-be-proud-of-your-inconsistency-it-is-a-pity-it-is-a-pity-that/) [E. M. Forster](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/e-m-forster/) > [The only justice is to follow the sincere intuition of the soul, angry or gentle. 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It's crippling.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/shelley-terrell/self-pity-is-the-worst-disability-a-person-can-have-callie-it-s/) [Shelley Terrell](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/shelley-terrell/) [Browse all 2,046 Pity quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/pity/) ```json { "@context": "https://schema.org", "@graph": [ { "@type": "Quotation", "text": "“Self-pity is our worst enemy and if we yield to it, we can never do anything good in the world.”", "creator": { "@type": "Person", "name": "Helen Keller" }, "isPartOf": { "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/#website" }, "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/helen-keller/self-pity-is-our-worst-enemy-and-if-we-yield-to-it-we-can-never-do/", "about": { "@type": "Thing", "name": "Pity" }, "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/helen-keller/self-pity-is-our-worst-enemy-and-if-we-yield-to-it-we-can-never-do/#quotation", "image": { "@type": "ImageObject", "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/abf/helen-keller-429_pity_self-pity-is-our-worst-enemy-and-if-we-y_312047.png", "contentUrl": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/abf/helen-keller-429_pity_self-pity-is-our-worst-enemy-and-if-we-y_312047.png", "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/abf/helen-keller-429_pity_self-pity-is-our-worst-enemy-and-if-we-y_312047.png", "width": 1080, "height": 1080, "caption": "“Self-pity is our worst enemy and if we yield to it, we can never do anything good in the world.” — Helen Keller", "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": "Helen Keller", "item": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/helen-keller/" }, { "@type": "ListItem", "position": 4, "name": "“Self-pity is our worst enemy and...", "item": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/helen-keller/self-pity-is-our-worst-enemy-and-if-we-yield-to-it-we-can-never-do/" } ], "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/helen-keller/self-pity-is-our-worst-enemy-and-if-we-yield-to-it-we-can-never-do/#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 } } ] } ```