--- title: "Meaning & Key Takeaway of: They misunderstand us, they unwittingly…" description: "\"They misunderstand us, they unwittingly belittle us, they do something that they think is nice that instead just makes us mad. And those are the good o..." image: "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/3b7/joanne-lipman-69258_belittle_they-misunderstand-us-they-unwittingly-b_49547.png" --- # They misunderstand us, they unwittingly belittle us, they… ![“They misunderstand us, they unwittingly belittle us, they do something that they think is nice that instead just makes us mad. And those are the good ones.” quote by Joanne Lipman](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/3b7/joanne-lipman-69258_belittle_they-misunderstand-us-they-unwittingly-b_49547.png) [Download](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/3b7/joanne-lipman-69258_belittle_they-misunderstand-us-they-unwittingly-b_49547.png) [Open image](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/3b7/joanne-lipman-69258_belittle_they-misunderstand-us-they-unwittingly-b_49547.png) > “They misunderstand us, they unwittingly belittle us, they do something that they think is nice that instead just makes us mad. And those are the good ones.” Joanne Lipman ## About This Quote This interpretation was drafted with AI assistance. It is one reading of the quote, not the author's own explanation. People often misinterpret our actions, unintentionally diminishing us, and their misguided attempts at kindness can provoke frustration, yet these are the individuals whose intentions are genuinely positive. **In simple terms:** Misunderstanding can breed unintended offense. Key Takeaway Intentional kindness may be misread as condescension. Themes miscommunication intentional kindness social perception emotional response human interaction Mood reflective irritated hopeful Type observation reflection When to use this quote - receiving unsolicited advice - being praised in a patronizing way - collaborating with well-meaning but clueless colleagues Key Concepts empathy self-awareness social dynamics Practical Applications - improving communication strategies - training on emotional intelligence Questions to Reflect On - How can we better convey our needs when faced with misguided kindness? - What steps can we take to interpret others' intentions more accurately? ★ ★ ★ ★ ★ No ratings yet [Thinking](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/thinking/) ## Related quotes > [If somebody, without knowing me, comes up to me and wants to upset or belittle me, I think that reflects badly on them, not…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/sinead-burke/if-somebody-without-knowing-me-comes-up-to-me-and-wants-to-upset-or/) [Sinead Burke](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/sinead-burke/) > [“The minute you think you have the right to belittle others because you think you’re better than them is the same minute you’ve proven…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/joanne-crisner-alcayaga/the-minute-you-think-you-have-the-right-to-belittle-others-because/) [Joanne Crisner Alcayaga](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/joanne-crisner-alcayaga/) > [“How dare you belittle me this way?' 'What the hell are you talking about?' 'I have never, not even once in my life, given…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/julia-quinn/how-dare-you-belittle-me-this-way-what-the-hell-are-you-talking-about/) [Julia Quinn](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/julia-quinn/) > [I can't stop myself from finding information that makes me mad and writing about it.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/tim-commerford/i-can-t-stop-myself-from-finding-information-that-makes-me-mad-and/) [Tim Commerford](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/tim-commerford/) > [The whole Hollywood thing where people want to put me into this 'quirky-fashionista, daughter of' category makes me mad because it's promoting something that…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/zoe-kravitz/the-whole-hollywood-thing-where-people-want-to-put-me-into-this/) [Zoe Kravitz](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/zoe-kravitz/) > [You can tell the size of a man by the size of the thing that makes him mad.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/adlai-e-stevenson/you-can-tell-the-size-of-a-man-by-the-size-of-the-thing-that-makes/) [Adlai E. Stevenson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/adlai-e-stevenson/) > [“Where that rage comes from? Partly, I would say it's a sense that a life can be taken away from you, quickly, in a…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/michka-assayas/where-that-rage-comes-from-partly-i-would-say-it-s-a-sense-that-a/) [Michka Assayas](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/michka-assayas/) > [“And I don’t care if that makes you mad, Luxa. Get mad! Don’t talk to me! How will that be different from about ninety-five…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/suzanne-collins/and-i-don-t-care-if-that-makes-you-mad-luxa-get-mad-don-t-talk-to-me/) [Suzanne Collins](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/suzanne-collins/) > [I hate when a guy says if you love me… It really makes me mad](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/cassandra-crosby/i-hate-when-a-guy-says-if-you-love-me-it-really-makes-me-mad/) [Cassandra Crosby](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/cassandra-crosby/) > [“...that much gold, and great store of riches makes them mad, insomuch as they endeavour to destroy each other...”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/margaret-cavendish/that-much-gold-and-great-store-of-riches-makes-them-mad-insomuch-as/) [Margaret Cavendish](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/margaret-cavendish/) > [Anger makes you mad, makes for go crazy trying to be perfect like her,What does she got that I don't?What makes all the boys…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/melchor-lim/anger-makes-you-mad-makes-for-go-crazy-trying-to-be-perfect-like-her/) [Melchor Lim](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/melchor-lim/) > [You ask me why I'm crabby, You ask why I am sad. You never ever realize, It's you that makes me mad. I cannot…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/rebekah1999/you-ask-me-why-i-m-crabby-you-ask-why-i-am-sad-you-never-ever-realize/) Rebekah1999 > [If something always makes you mad or busy or impatient or promiscuous or full of self-pity, the something is likely in you.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anonymous/if-something-always-makes-you-mad-or-busy-or-impatient-or-promiscuous/) [Anonymous](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anonymous/) > [Those whom God wishes to destroy, he first makes mad.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/euripides/those-whom-god-wishes-to-destroy-he-first-makes-mad/) [Euripides](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/euripides/) > [Today oon my way to work, I saw somebody flip off the person working on the road for making him stop for a sec.…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/kenzie-ann/today-oon-my-way-to-work-i-saw-somebody-flip-off-the-person-working/) [Kenzie-ann](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/kenzie-ann/) ## More by Joanne Lipman > [Hollywood has its Oscars. Television has its Emmys. Broadway has its Tonys. And advertising has its Clios. And its Andys, Addys, Effies and Obies.…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/joanne-lipman/hollywood-has-its-oscars-television-has-its-emmys-broadway-has-its/) Joanne Lipman > [MUSIC MAY NOT MAKE YOU A GENIUS, or rich, or even a better person. But it helps train you to think differently, to process…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/joanne-lipman/music-may-not-make-you-a-genius-or-rich-or-even-a-better-person-but/) Joanne Lipman > [“Yet there was something intoxicating about a teacher who had such absolute confidence—faith, really—in my ability to do better. Whatever I managed to achieve,…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/joanne-lipman/yet-there-was-something-intoxicating-about-a-teacher-who-had-such/) Joanne Lipman Explore all 4 Joanne Lipman quotes ## More Belittle quotes > [Most adults would not dream of belittling, humiliating, or bullying (verbally or physically) another adult. But many of the same adults think nothing of…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/laurence-steinberg/most-adults-would-not-dream-of-belittling-humiliating-or-bullying/) [Laurence Steinberg](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/laurence-steinberg/) > [Do not, under any circumstances, belittle a work of fiction by trying to turn it into a carbon copy of real life; what we…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/azar-nafisi/do-not-under-any-circumstances-belittle-a-work-of-fiction-by-trying/) [Azar Nafisi](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/azar-nafisi/) > [Occasionally, I like to select a mentor, a master, and let him guide me through a revision of one of my paintings... I try…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/rico-lebrun/occasionally-i-like-to-select-a-mentor-a-master-and-let-him-guide-me/) [Rico Lebrun](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/rico-lebrun/) > [The cross of Christ is the response of God to men for belittling His name.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/matt-chandler/the-cross-of-christ-is-the-response-of-god-to-men-for-belittling-his/) [Matt Chandler](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/matt-chandler/) > [“Do not share your thoughts with people who think that what you are thinking is not worth thinking.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/michael-bassey-johnson/do-not-share-your-thoughts-with-people-who-think-that-what-you-are/) [Michael Bassey Johnson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/michael-bassey-johnson/) > [Besides, anyone with an Internet connection feels they have the credentials to critique or belittle anything these days.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/chris-colfer/besides-anyone-with-an-internet-connection-feels-they-have-the/) [Chris Colfer](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/chris-colfer/) > [“People who belittle people, will be LITTLE people, and will accomplish very Little”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/norman-vincent-peale/people-who-belittle-people-will-be-little-people-and-will-accomplish/) [Norman Vincent Peale](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/norman-vincent-peale/) > [“People will oppose your progress. They will remind you of your past failures, belittle you, etc. The only way to stand against such opposition…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/d-s-mashego/people-will-oppose-your-progress-they-will-remind-you-of-your-past/) [D.S. Mashego](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/d-s-mashego/) > [“And she looked upon the mirror that was given as a gift. She hated everything about it, from the circular size of it, to…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anthony-liccione/and-she-looked-upon-the-mirror-that-was-given-as-a-gift-she-hated/) [Anthony Liccione](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anthony-liccione/) > [When my wife and I met, I couldn't talk to her - and my defense mechanism is sarcasm. I belittle someone with verbal pokes…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/mike-vogel/when-my-wife-and-i-met-i-couldn-t-talk-to-her-and-my-defense/) [Mike Vogel](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/mike-vogel/) > [People want to know those details. They think it gives them greater insight into a piece of art, but when they approach a painting…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/charles-de-lint/people-want-to-know-those-details-they-think-it-gives-them-greater/) [Charles de Lint](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/charles-de-lint/) > [A person is bound to lose when he talks about himself; if he belittles himself, he is believed; if he praises himself, he isn't…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/michel-de-montaigne/a-person-is-bound-to-lose-when-he-talks-about-himself-if-he-belittles/) [Michel de Montaigne](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/michel-de-montaigne/) > [I would permit no man, no matter what his colour might be, to narrow and degrade my soul by making me hate him.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/booker-t-washington/i-would-permit-no-man-no-matter-what-his-colour-might-be-to-narrow/) [Booker T. Washington](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/booker-t-washington/) > [Only those beneath me can envy or hate me. I have never been envied nor hated; I am above no one. Only those above…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/khalil-gibran/only-those-beneath-me-can-envy-or-hate-me-i-have-never-been-envied/) [Khalil Gibran](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/khalil-gibran/) > [The imagination enlarges little objects so as to fill our souls with a fantastic estimate; and, with rash insolence, it belittles the great to…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/blaise-pascal/the-imagination-enlarges-little-objects-so-as-to-fill-our-souls-with/) [Blaise Pascal](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/blaise-pascal/) Browse all 171 Belittle quotes ```json { "@context": "https://schema.org", "@graph": [ { "@type": "Quotation", "text": "They misunderstand us, they unwittingly belittle us, they do something that they think is nice that instead just makes us mad. And those are the good ones.", "creator": { "@type": "Person", "name": "Joanne Lipman" }, "isPartOf": { "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/#website" }, "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/joanne-lipman/they-misunderstand-us-they-unwittingly-belittle-us-they-do-something/", "about": { "@type": "Thing", "name": "Belittle" }, "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/joanne-lipman/they-misunderstand-us-they-unwittingly-belittle-us-they-do-something/#quotation", "image": { "@type": "ImageObject", "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/3b7/joanne-lipman-69258_belittle_they-misunderstand-us-they-unwittingly-b_49547.png", "contentUrl": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/3b7/joanne-lipman-69258_belittle_they-misunderstand-us-they-unwittingly-b_49547.png", "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/3b7/joanne-lipman-69258_belittle_they-misunderstand-us-they-unwittingly-b_49547.png", "width": 1080, "height": 1080, "caption": "“They misunderstand us, they unwittingly belittle us, they do something that they think is nice that instead…” — Joanne Lipman", "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": "Joanne Lipman", "item": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/joanne-lipman/" }, { "@type": "ListItem", "position": 4, "name": "They misunderstand us, they unwittingly belittle...", "item": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/joanne-lipman/they-misunderstand-us-they-unwittingly-belittle-us-they-do-something/" } ], "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/joanne-lipman/they-misunderstand-us-they-unwittingly-belittle-us-they-do-something/#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 } } ] } ```