--- title: "Meaning & Key Takeaway of: One of the things that Ivar knew about…" description: "\"One of the things that Ivar knew about Mrs. Walker was that she would only tell him what she knew if he asked the right question, so he spent a portion..." image: "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/813/jane-smiley-2120_asks_one-of-the-things-that-ivar-knew-about-m_256335.png" --- # One of the things that Ivar knew about Mrs. Walker was… ![“One of the things that Ivar knew about Mrs. Walker was that she would only tell him what she knew if he asked the right question, so he spent a portion of his time meditating over what he might ask Mrs. Walker and how he might phrase the question.” quote by Jane Smiley](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/813/jane-smiley-2120_asks_one-of-the-things-that-ivar-knew-about-m_256335.png) [Download](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/813/jane-smiley-2120_asks_one-of-the-things-that-ivar-knew-about-m_256335.png) [Open image](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/813/jane-smiley-2120_asks_one-of-the-things-that-ivar-knew-about-m_256335.png) > “One of the things that Ivar knew about Mrs. Walker was that she would only tell him what she knew if he asked the right question, so he spent a portion of his time meditating over what he might ask Mrs. Walker and how he might phrase the question.” [Jane Smiley](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jane-smiley/) ## About This Quote This interpretation was drafted with AI assistance. It is one reading of the quote, not the author's own explanation. Understanding others often requires asking the right question, prompting thoughtful reflection before speaking. **In simple terms:** Ask the right question to understand others. Key Takeaway Think before you ask. Themes communication curiosity reflection Mood thoughtful inquisitive Type advice philosophical When to use this quote - interviews - mentoring - conflict resolution - learning - teaching Key Concepts active listening question framing mindfulness Questions to Reflect On - What question could you ask to gain deeper insight? - How can you phrase a question to encourage openness? A Different Perspective If you ask too many questions, you may seem intrusive. ★ ★ ★ ★ ★ No ratings yet [Heart](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/heart/) [Intellectual](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/intellectual/) [Intelligence](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/intelligence/) [Meditating](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/meditating/) [Right questions](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/right-questions/) [Time](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/time/) [Truth Seeking](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/truth-seeking/) ## Related quotes > [I knew Mrs. Liberace. Lee and I were great friends. 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The right question is whether it is living or…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/richard-holloway/the-wrong-question-to-ask-of-a-myth-is-whether-it-is-true-or-false/) [Richard Holloway](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/richard-holloway/) > [The most successful scientists in the history of the world are those who posed the right questions](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/neil-degrasse-tyson/the-most-successful-scientists-in-the-history-of-the-world-are-those/) [Neil deGrasse Tyson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/neil-degrasse-tyson/) > [The right question is usually more important than the right answer.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/plato/the-right-question-is-usually-more-important-than-the-right-answer/) [Plato](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/plato/) ## More by Jane Smiley > [Some novelists are luckier than others in the eras of their formative intellectual years, but all Weltanschauungs return, which means that most novelists have…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jane-smiley/some-novelists-are-luckier-than-others-in-the-eras-of-their-formative/) [Jane Smiley](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jane-smiley/) > [There can never be such a thing as a free market, because it is human nature to cheat, monopolize, and buy off others so…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jane-smiley/there-can-never-be-such-a-thing-as-a-free-market-because-it-is-human/) [Jane Smiley](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jane-smiley/) > [The only siblings I have are half-siblings. 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Wright lived into his 90s, and one…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jane-smiley/there-are-hundreds-of-frank-lloyd-wright-buildings-around-the-united/) [Jane Smiley](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jane-smiley/) [Explore all 185 Jane Smiley quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jane-smiley/) ## More Asks quotes > [If you ask an introvert a question, wait until she thinks about it. Introverts think before speaking, not through speaking. If you want to…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/laurie-helgoe/if-you-ask-an-introvert-a-question-wait-until-she-thinks-about-it/) [Laurie Helgoe](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/laurie-helgoe/) > [I don't wear a watch because I want my arms to weigh the same. 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And suddenly forever seems like too short a time.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/brian-andreas/there-is-nothing-more-i-ask-of-this-life-than-this-moment-exactly-so/) [Brian Andreas](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/brian-andreas/) > [Success will come when the societal attitude changes and not a single woman in America asks herself the question 'What did I do?'.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/joe-biden/success-will-come-when-the-societal-attitude-changes-and-not-a-single/) [Joe Biden](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/joe-biden/) > [The most fundamental question we can ever ask ourselves is whether or not the universe we live in is friendly or hostile.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/albert-einstein/the-most-fundamental-question-we-can-ever-ask-ourselves-is-whether-or/) [Albert Einstein](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/albert-einstein/) > [The rich people are apparently leaving America. They're giving up their citizenship. 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That's th' appliance only Which your disease requires.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/william-shakespeare/ask-god-for-temp-rance-that-s-th-appliance-only-which-your-disease/) [William Shakespeare](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/william-shakespeare/) > [I don't know how to say it exactly. Only...I want to die as myself. Does that make any sense?' he asks. I shake my…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/suzanne-collins/i-don-t-know-how-to-say-it-exactly-only-i-want-to-die-as-myself-does/) [Suzanne Collins](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/suzanne-collins/) > [Physicist Isador Isaac Rabi, who won a Nobel Prize for inventing a technique that permitted scientists to probe the structure of atoms and molecules…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/richard-saul-wurman/physicist-isador-isaac-rabi-who-won-a-nobel-prize-for-inventing-a/) [Richard Saul Wurman](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/richard-saul-wurman/) Browse all 7,138 Asks quotes ```json { "@context": "https://schema.org", "@graph": [ { "@type": "Quotation", "text": "One of the things that Ivar knew about Mrs. Walker was that she would only tell him what she knew if he asked the right question, so he spent a portion of his time meditating over what he might ask Mrs. Walker and how he might phrase the question.", "creator": { "@type": "Person", "name": "Jane Smiley" }, "isPartOf": { "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/#website" }, "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jane-smiley/one-of-the-things-that-ivar-knew-about-mrs-walker-was-that-she-would/", "about": { "@type": "Thing", "name": "Asks" }, "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jane-smiley/one-of-the-things-that-ivar-knew-about-mrs-walker-was-that-she-would/#quotation", "image": { "@type": "ImageObject", "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/813/jane-smiley-2120_asks_one-of-the-things-that-ivar-knew-about-m_256335.png", "contentUrl": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/813/jane-smiley-2120_asks_one-of-the-things-that-ivar-knew-about-m_256335.png", "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/813/jane-smiley-2120_asks_one-of-the-things-that-ivar-knew-about-m_256335.png", "width": 1080, "height": 1080, "caption": "“One of the things that Ivar knew about Mrs. Walker was that she would only tell him what she knew if he…” — Jane Smiley", "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": "Jane Smiley", "item": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jane-smiley/" }, { "@type": "ListItem", "position": 4, "name": "One of the things that Ivar...", "item": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jane-smiley/one-of-the-things-that-ivar-knew-about-mrs-walker-was-that-she-would/" } ], "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jane-smiley/one-of-the-things-that-ivar-knew-about-mrs-walker-was-that-she-would/#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 } } ] } ```