--- title: "Meaning & Key Takeaway of: I found that when women were able to act…" description: "\"“I found that when women were able to act in line with their natural inclinations and ambitions -- whether to work or stay at home -- they were general..." image: "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/198/judith-warner-28813_character_i-found-that-when-women-were-able-to-act_1887926.png" --- # I found that when women were able to act in line with… ![“I found that when women were able to act in line with their natural inclinations and ambitions -- whether to work or stay at home -- they were generally happy, and generally felt that their children were happy too. Whereas those whose natural inclinations and ambitions had been thwarted -- whether…” quote by Judith Warner](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/198/judith-warner-28813_character_i-found-that-when-women-were-able-to-act_1887926.png) [Download](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/198/judith-warner-28813_character_i-found-that-when-women-were-able-to-act_1887926.png) [Open image](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/198/judith-warner-28813_character_i-found-that-when-women-were-able-to-act_1887926.png) > ““I found that when women were able to act in line with their natural inclinations and ambitions -- whether to work or stay at home -- they were generally happy, and generally felt that their children were happy too. Whereas those whose natural inclinations and ambitions had been thwarted -- whether they were working or stay-at-home moms -- were sure that they and their kids would be better off if they changed course, and either went to work or went home. The morality of the situation-- whether they felt it was good or bad for their chidlren-- derived, not from some external sense of the morality of their "choices," but from the amount of happiness generated by any given arrangement.”” [Judith Warner](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/judith-warner/) ## About This Quote This interpretation was drafted with AI assistance. It is one reading of the quote, not the author's own explanation. When women follow their true desires, they and their children tend to be happier; forced choices reduce satisfaction for both. **In simple terms:** Following true desires leads to happiness for mothers and kids. Key Takeaway Support personal inclinations for family wellbeing. Themes happiness choice gender roles Mood thoughtful optimistic Type essay analytical When to use this quote - career decisions - parenting styles - work‑life balance - family dynamics Key Concepts psychology social expectations Questions to Reflect On - What would happen if societal expectations changed? - How can families negotiate true desires? A Different Perspective External pressures can still limit perceived options. ★ ★ ★ ★ ★ No ratings yet [Character](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/character/) [Choice](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/choice/) [Choices Happiness](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/choices-happiness-2708368/) [Happiness](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/happiness/) [Home Morality](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/home-morality-2708366/) [Morality](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/morality/) [Morality Choices](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/morality-choices-2708367/) [Motherhood](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/motherhood/) [Natural Inclinations](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/natural-inclinations-1893413/) [Nature](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/nature/) [Stay-at-home-moms](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/stay-at-home-moms-177372/) [Working-moms](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/working-moms-208830/) ## Related quotes > [“I think women should have choices and should be able to do what they like, and I think it's a great choice to stay…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/will-schwalbe/i-think-women-should-have-choices-and-should-be-able-to-do-what-they/) [Will Schwalbe](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/will-schwalbe/) > [“Freedom? That’s easy. It’s in your choices. Happiness? That’s easy. It’s in your choices. Respect of your peers? That too is in the choices…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ryan-holiday/freedom-that-s-easy-it-s-in-your-choices-happiness-that-s-easy-it-s/) [Ryan Holiday](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ryan-holiday/) > [Never based you choices in others happiness because at the end of the day, you are alone regretting you decision.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/mariel-avila/never-based-you-choices-in-others-happiness-because-at-the-end-of-the/) [Mariel Avila](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/mariel-avila/) > [“So many people think that they are not gifted because they don’t have an obvious talent that people can recognize because it doesn’t fall…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/shannon-l-alder/so-many-people-think-that-they-are-not-gifted-because-they-don-t-have/) [Shannon L. 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(TILT-7 Solutions To Be A Guilt-free Working Mom)”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/marci-fair/balance-in-impossible-memories-are-better-tilt-7-solutions-to-be-a/) [Marci Fair](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/marci-fair/) > [“Balance is Impossible; Memories are Better.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/marci-fair/balance-is-impossible-memories-are-better/) [Marci Fair](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/marci-fair/) > [Napping is too luxurious, too sybaritic, too unproductive, and it's free; pleasures for which we don't pay make us anxious. Besides, it seems to…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/barbara-holland/napping-is-too-luxurious-too-sybaritic-too-unproductive-and-it-s-free/) [Barbara Holland](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/barbara-holland/) > [Natural inclinations are present in things from God, who moves all things. So it is impossible for the natural inclinations of a species to…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/thomas-aquinas/natural-inclinations-are-present-in-things-from-god-who-moves-all/) [Thomas Aquinas](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/thomas-aquinas/) > [Mastery is not a question of genetics of luck, but of following your natural inclinations and the deep desires that stirs you from within.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/robert-greene/mastery-is-not-a-question-of-genetics-of-luck-but-of-following-your/) [Robert Greene](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/robert-greene/) > [Natural inclinations are assisted and reinforced by education, but they are hardly ever altered or overcome.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/michel-de-montaigne/natural-inclinations-are-assisted-and-reinforced-by-education-but/) [Michel de Montaigne](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/michel-de-montaigne/) > [“The Greeks would, as it were, devote festivals to all their passions and evil natural inclinations… they took these human, all too human aspects…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/friedrich-nietzsche/the-greeks-would-as-it-were-devote-festivals-to-all-their-passions/) [Friedrich Nietzsche](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/friedrich-nietzsche/) ## More by Judith Warner > [“The Mommy Mystique tells us that we are the luckiest women in the world -- the freest, with the most choices, the broadest horizons,…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/judith-warner/the-mommy-mystique-tells-us-that-we-are-the-luckiest-women-in-the/) [Judith Warner](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/judith-warner/) > [“We seem to feel as though the life our children have -- that we have built for them -- is just a delicate house…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/judith-warner/we-seem-to-feel-as-though-the-life-our-children-have-that-we-have/) [Judith Warner](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/judith-warner/) > [“Too many of us now allow ourselves to be defined by motherhood and direct every ounce of our energy into our children. This sounds…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/judith-warner/too-many-of-us-now-allow-ourselves-to-be-defined-by-motherhood-and/) [Judith Warner](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/judith-warner/) > [What kind of choice is it, really, when motherhood forces you into a delicate balancing act -- not just between work and family, as…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/judith-warner/what-kind-of-choice-is-it-really-when-motherhood-forces-you-into-a/) [Judith Warner](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/judith-warner/) > [“Something is missing, and it's something not so easy to name as semiabsent husbands, not so easy to point to as a lack of…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/judith-warner/something-is-missing-and-it-s-something-not-so-easy-to-name-as/) [Judith Warner](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/judith-warner/) > [“--what's really unique about maternal anxiety today is our belief that if something goes wrong with or for our children, it's a reflection on…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/judith-warner/what-s-really-unique-about-maternal-anxiety-today-is-our-belief-that/) [Judith Warner](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/judith-warner/) > [The American middle class, it seems to me, is looking to politicians now to satisfy a pretty basic - and urgent - level of…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/judith-warner/the-american-middle-class-it-seems-to-me-is-looking-to-politicians/) [Judith Warner](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/judith-warner/) > [“All these things we do bespeak a terrible anxiety: that our children simply will not be able to make it through life if we…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/judith-warner/all-these-things-we-do-bespeak-a-terrible-anxiety-that-our-children/) [Judith Warner](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/judith-warner/) > [“There’s a general sense now that children’s rights, children’s needs, children’s wants and desires have taken on too prominent a place in our family…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/judith-warner/there-s-a-general-sense-now-that-children-s-rights-children-s-needs/) [Judith Warner](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/judith-warner/) > [“I realized, listening to the silences that fell sometimes in my interview groups, that there are things that are sayable and unsayable about motherhood…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/judith-warner/i-realized-listening-to-the-silences-that-fell-sometimes-in-my/) [Judith Warner](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/judith-warner/) > [“I experienced a devastating loss of self...But in the same moment, I also recognized that a profound commitment had taken root inside me, and…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/judith-warner/i-experienced-a-devastating-loss-of-self-but-in-the-same-moment-i/) [Judith Warner](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/judith-warner/) > [“If things are better for women there, it is due to a profound and enduring social consensus that life should be made livable based…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/judith-warner/if-things-are-better-for-women-there-it-is-due-to-a-profound-and/) [Judith Warner](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/judith-warner/) > [“The media not only fans our fears, it comforts us in our hubris. 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