--- title: "Meaning & Key Takeaway of: It's a terrible thing, I think, in life…" description: "\"It's a terrible thing, I think, in life to wait until you're ready. I have this feeling now that actually no one is ever ready to do anything. There is..." image: "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/814/hugh-laurie-2413_feelings_it-s-a-terrible-thing-i-think-in-life-to_1887035.png" --- # It's a terrible thing, I think, in life to wait until… ![“It's a terrible thing, I think, in life to wait until you're ready. I have this feeling now that actually no one is ever ready to do anything. There is almost no such thing as ready. There is only now. And you may as well do it now. Generally speaking, now is as good a time as any.” quote by Hugh Laurie](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/814/hugh-laurie-2413_feelings_it-s-a-terrible-thing-i-think-in-life-to_1887035.png) [Download](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/814/hugh-laurie-2413_feelings_it-s-a-terrible-thing-i-think-in-life-to_1887035.png) [Open image](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/814/hugh-laurie-2413_feelings_it-s-a-terrible-thing-i-think-in-life-to_1887035.png) > “It's a terrible thing, I think, in life to wait until you're ready. I have this feeling now that actually no one is ever ready to do anything. There is almost no such thing as ready. There is only now. And you may as well do it now. Generally speaking, now is as good a time as any.” [Hugh Laurie](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/hugh-laurie/) ## About This Quote This interpretation was drafted with AI assistance. It is one reading of the quote, not the author's own explanation. Waiting for perfect readiness is an illusion; action should be taken in the present moment. **In simple terms:** No one is ever truly ready; act now. Key Takeaway Act now, don’t wait. Themes action timeliness imperfection motivation Mood urgent determined optimistic Type motivational practical inspirational When to use this quote - career moves - personal projects - health decisions - creative endeavors - learning new skills Key Concepts existentialism psychology decision theory Questions to Reflect On - What would you do if you weren’t afraid of being unready? - How does waiting affect your progress? A Different Perspective If you act impulsively you may overlook preparation, leading to mistakes. ★ ★ ★ ★ ★ No ratings yet [Feelings](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/feelings/) [Hard times](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/hard-times/) [Life](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/life/) [Thinking](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/thinking/) ## Related quotes > [“It's a terrible thing, I think, in life to wait until you're ready. I have this feeling now that actually no one is ever…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/hugh-laurie/it-s-a-terrible-thing-i-think-in-life-to-wait-until-you-re-ready-i/) [Hugh Laurie](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/hugh-laurie/) > [If we wait until were ready, well be waiting for the rest of our lives.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anonymous/if-we-wait-until-were-ready-well-be-waiting-for-the-rest-of-our-lives/) [Anonymous](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anonymous/) > [I've wanted to go out with you from the first moment I saw you. I just had to wait until you were ready.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/nicholas-sparks/i-ve-wanted-to-go-out-with-you-from-the-first-moment-i-saw-you-i-just/) [Nicholas Sparks](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/nicholas-sparks/) > [If we wait until we're ready, we'll be waiting for the rest of our lives.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anonymous/if-we-wait-until-we-re-ready-we-ll-be-waiting-for-the-rest-of-our/) [Anonymous](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anonymous/) > [“If you always wait until your are ready to do something, you will never do anything.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anton-swanepoel/if-you-always-wait-until-your-are-ready-to-do-something-you-will/) Anton Swanepoel > [A perfect method of adding drama to life is to wait until the deadline looms large.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/alyce-cornyn-selby/a-perfect-method-of-adding-drama-to-life-is-to-wait-until-the/) Alyce Cornyn-Selby > [“Already she was learning that you must not follow a boy around when he had other things on his mind. If you did, he…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/nancy-barnes/already-she-was-learning-that-you-must-not-follow-a-boy-around-when/) Nancy Barnes > [If you wait until you are ready, it is almost certainly too late.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/seth-godin/if-you-wait-until-you-are-ready-it-is-almost-certainly-too-late/) [Seth Godin](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/seth-godin/) > [“Yes, baby girl. I'll wait until you're ready, until you know for sure that you want me. Because once you say yes, I'll never…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/tina-folsom/yes-baby-girl-i-ll-wait-until-you-re-ready-until-you-know-for-sure/) [Tina Folsom](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/tina-folsom/) > [I pray that we will not wait until we are ready to die before we truly learn to live.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/dieter-f-uchtdorf/i-pray-that-we-will-not-wait-until-we-are-ready-to-die-before-we/) [Dieter F. Uchtdorf](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/dieter-f-uchtdorf/) > [If we wait until we are ready, we'd be waiting for the rest of our lives.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/cee-montenegro/if-we-wait-until-we-are-ready-we-d-be-waiting-for-the-rest-of-our/) Cee Montenegro > [“Good things don’t wait until you’re ready. Sometimes they come right before, when you’re almost there. And I figured when that happens, you can…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/taylor-jenkins-reid/good-things-don-t-wait-until-you-re-ready-sometimes-they-come-right/) [Taylor Jenkins Reid](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/taylor-jenkins-reid/) > [“I know it's too soon right now," he murmured into my hair, "but just so you know, I'll wait. When you're ready, I'll be…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/julie-kagawa/i-know-it-s-too-soon-right-now-he-murmured-into-my-hair-but-just-so/) [Julie Kagawa](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/julie-kagawa/) > [“The man who goes alone can start today; but he who travels with another must wait until that other is ready, and it may…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/henry-david-thoreau/the-man-who-goes-alone-can-start-today-but-he-who-travels-with/) [Henry David Thoreau](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/henry-david-thoreau/) > [Death does not wait for you to be ready! Death is not considerate or fair. And make no mistake: here, you face death.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/henri/death-does-not-wait-for-you-to-be-ready-death-is-not-considerate-or/) [Henri](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/henri/) ## More by Hugh Laurie > [“It's a terrible thing, I think, in life to wait until you're ready. I have this feeling now that actually no one is ever…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/hugh-laurie/it-s-a-terrible-thing-i-think-in-life-to-wait-until-you-re-ready-i/) [Hugh Laurie](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/hugh-laurie/) > [Ideas are 10 a penny. It's the execution that's the hard thing to do. House is standing up against a tide of sentiment and…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/hugh-laurie/ideas-are-10-a-penny-it-s-the-execution-that-s-the-hard-thing-to-do/) [Hugh Laurie](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/hugh-laurie/) > [To be a head boy, you have to be very clever, you have to be a scholar, and I was never a scholar in…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/hugh-laurie/to-be-a-head-boy-you-have-to-be-very-clever-you-have-to-be-a-scholar/) [Hugh Laurie](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/hugh-laurie/) > [To me, he's a hero, ... He's not polite. He's not someone you want to take home to meet your mother, necessarily. This is…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/hugh-laurie/to-me-he-s-a-hero-he-s-not-polite-he-s-not-someone-you-want-to-take/) [Hugh Laurie](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/hugh-laurie/) > [People will survive, and they will find happiness. Happiness only comes when you're not looking for it.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/hugh-laurie/people-will-survive-and-they-will-find-happiness-happiness-only-comes/) [Hugh Laurie](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/hugh-laurie/) > [It alarms me to think of all that I have read and how little of it has stayed with me.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/hugh-laurie/it-alarms-me-to-think-of-all-that-i-have-read-and-how-little-of-it/) [Hugh Laurie](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/hugh-laurie/) > [This was the tricky bit. The really tricky bit, trickiness cubed.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/hugh-laurie/this-was-the-tricky-bit-the-really-tricky-bit-trickiness-cubed/) [Hugh Laurie](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/hugh-laurie/) > [“We want different things. Men want to have sex with a woman. Then they want to have sex with another woman. And then another.…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/hugh-laurie/we-want-different-things-men-want-to-have-sex-with-a-woman-then-they/) [Hugh Laurie](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/hugh-laurie/) > [I travel to work on my motorcycle, so it's jeans, boots and a brown Aero leather jacket that weighs as much as I do.…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/hugh-laurie/i-travel-to-work-on-my-motorcycle-so-it-s-jeans-boots-and-a-brown/) [Hugh Laurie](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/hugh-laurie/) > [I just read an 800-page history of the Scottish Enlightenment and, honestly, I may as well just start it again now, because I cannot…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/hugh-laurie/i-just-read-an-800-page-history-of-the-scottish-enlightenment-and/) [Hugh Laurie](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/hugh-laurie/) > [The only good thing I've ever noticed about money, the only positive aspect of an otherwise pretty vulgar commodity, is that you can use…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/hugh-laurie/the-only-good-thing-i-ve-ever-noticed-about-money-the-only-positive/) [Hugh Laurie](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/hugh-laurie/) > [“Plus laid aussi qu'un parking”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/hugh-laurie/plus-laid-aussi-qu-un-parking/) [Hugh Laurie](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/hugh-laurie/) > [I was too shy, I think, to sing publicly. It takes a particular kind of person. And when I was young, I was not…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/hugh-laurie/i-was-too-shy-i-think-to-sing-publicly-it-takes-a-particular-kind-of/) [Hugh Laurie](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/hugh-laurie/) > [Acting is largely about putting on masks, and music is about removing them.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/hugh-laurie/acting-is-largely-about-putting-on-masks-and-music-is-about-removing/) [Hugh Laurie](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/hugh-laurie/) > [“I said no thank you a dozen times, and fuck off once.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/hugh-laurie/i-said-no-thank-you-a-dozen-times-and-fuck-off-once/) [Hugh Laurie](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/hugh-laurie/) [Explore all 159 Hugh Laurie quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/hugh-laurie/) ## More Feelings quotes > [I have a strong feeling about this quick movement and changing of society and populations growing - something scary.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/hiroshi-sugimoto/i-have-a-strong-feeling-about-this-quick-movement-and-changing-of/) [Hiroshi Sugimoto](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/hiroshi-sugimoto/) > [Gratitude isn't just a feeling, it's an action. Expressing gratitude by writing in a journal, taking a photo, or shooting a video creates a…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/janice-kaplan/gratitude-isn-t-just-a-feeling-it-s-an-action-expressing-gratitude-by/) [Janice Kaplan](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/janice-kaplan/) > [We never realize the importance of any our action until we be the hunt of same situation in reaction.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/fadi/we-never-realize-the-importance-of-any-our-action-until-we-be-the/) [Fadi](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/fadi/) > [Sometimes we wish for the feel but we never understand that we have to give a lot to get the feel !](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/robert-reynolds/sometimes-we-wish-for-the-feel-but-we-never-understand-that-we-have/) [Robert Reynolds](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/robert-reynolds/) > [When you're scared - and I mean really scared, not just hearing a noise in the night, or standing toe to toe with someone…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/alexander-gordon-smith/when-you-re-scared-and-i-mean-really-scared-not-just-hearing-a-noise/) [Alexander Gordon Smith](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/alexander-gordon-smith/) > [My feeling has always been that 'Good Eats' would have never happened had it been left to a committee.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/alton-brown/my-feeling-has-always-been-that-good-eats-would-have-never-happened/) [Alton Brown](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/alton-brown/) > [Jobs and money are never the primary cause of stress. Thinking, negative thinking causes stress. The real cause of all problems lie in our…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/bob-proctor/jobs-and-money-are-never-the-primary-cause-of-stress-thinking/) [Bob Proctor](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/bob-proctor/) > [If someone really loves you, no matter how many other people they meet, their feelings for you wouldn't change. A real lover cant be…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anonymous/if-someone-really-loves-you-no-matter-how-many-other-people-they-meet/) [Anonymous](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anonymous/) > [It can sometimes make people fold into themselves and kind of run away, but I think in this case these characters are being forced…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/emily-deschanel/it-can-sometimes-make-people-fold-into-themselves-and-kind-of-run/) [Emily Deschanel](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/emily-deschanel/) > [“I urge you: don't cut short these thought-trains of yours. Follow them through to their end. Your thoughts and your feelings. Follow them through…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/j-m-coetzee/i-urge-you-don-t-cut-short-these-thought-trains-of-yours-follow-them/) [J.M. Coetzee](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/j-m-coetzee/) > [If the media is sending girls the message that their value lies in their bodies, this can only leave them feeling disempowered and distract…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jennifer-siebel-newsom/if-the-media-is-sending-girls-the-message-that-their-value-lies-in/) Jennifer Siebel Newsom > [Good girls don't hurt other people's feelings. Good girls are not overly aggressive, competitive, or boastful. Good girls please others. 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