--- title: "Meaning & Key Takeaway of: Ive never met a general yet who could…" description: "\"Ive never met a general yet who could milk a cow.\" — Lennart Meri" image: "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/5d0/lennart-meri-33041_cows_ive-never-met-a-general-yet-who-could-mi_1910138.png" --- # Ive never met a general yet who could milk a cow. ![“Ive never met a general yet who could milk a cow.” quote by Lennart Meri](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/5d0/lennart-meri-33041_cows_ive-never-met-a-general-yet-who-could-mi_1910138.png) [Download](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/5d0/lennart-meri-33041_cows_ive-never-met-a-general-yet-who-could-mi_1910138.png) [Open image](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/5d0/lennart-meri-33041_cows_ive-never-met-a-general-yet-who-could-mi_1910138.png) > “Ive never met a general yet who could milk a cow.” [Lennart Meri](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/lennart-meri/) ## About This Quote This interpretation was drafted with AI assistance. It is one reading of the quote, not the author's own explanation. Leadership requires practical skills; a general should understand everyday tasks like milking a cow. **In simple terms:** Leaders should know basic, tasks. Key Takeaway Develop practical knowledge alongside strategic leadership. Themes leadership practicality humility skill Mood thoughtful inspirational Type philosophical practical When to use this quote - military training - rural development - policy making Key Concepts hands‑on experience grassroots understanding Questions to Reflect On - What everyday skill could improve your leadership? - How does practical knowledge affect decision‑making? A Different Perspective Specialization can limit broader competence. ★ ★ ★ ★ ★ No ratings yet [Cows](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/cows/) [General](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/general/) [General Milk](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/general-milk-2870950/) [Inspirational](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/inspirational/) [Met General](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/met-general-2870951/) [Mets](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/mets/) [Milk](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/milk/) [Milk Cow](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/milk-cow-306670/) ## Related quotes > [I've never met a general yet who could milk a cow.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/lennart-meri/i-ve-never-met-a-general-yet-who-could-milk-a-cow/) [Lennart Meri](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/lennart-meri/) > [If an actor knows how to milk a cow, I always know it will not be difficult to be in business with him,](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/werner-herzog/if-an-actor-knows-how-to-milk-a-cow-i-always-know-it-will-not-be/) [Werner Herzog](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/werner-herzog/) > [It's seldom you make a great picture. you have to milk the cow quite a lot to get plenty of milk to make a…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/henri-cartier-bresson/it-s-seldom-you-make-a-great-picture-you-have-to-milk-the-cow-quite-a/) [Henri Cartier-Bresson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/henri-cartier-bresson/) > [If you do not milk the cow fully, it falls sick.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/lalu-prasad-yadav/if-you-do-not-milk-the-cow-fully-it-falls-sick/) [Lalu Prasad Yadav](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/lalu-prasad-yadav/) > [“You can sit on a brick, and milk a cow with a blanket.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/nicole-mckay/you-can-sit-on-a-brick-and-milk-a-cow-with-a-blanket/) [Nicole McKay](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/nicole-mckay/) > [You can milk a cow the wrong way once and still be a farmer, but vote the wrong way on a water tower and…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/john-f-kennedy/you-can-milk-a-cow-the-wrong-way-once-and-still-be-a-farmer-but-vote/) [John F. Kennedy](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/john-f-kennedy/) > [You can only milk a cow so long, then you're left holding the pail.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/hank-aaron/you-can-only-milk-a-cow-so-long-then-you-re-left-holding-the-pail/) [Hank Aaron](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/hank-aaron/) > [“If you can't lay an egg or milk a cow”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/rebbecca-d-myers/if-you-can-t-lay-an-egg-or-milk-a-cow/) [Rebbecca D. Myers](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/rebbecca-d-myers/) > [“Milk the cow, never feed her. Milk the cow, never feed her.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ken-goldstein/milk-the-cow-never-feed-her-milk-the-cow-never-feed-her/) [Ken Goldstein](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ken-goldstein/) > [“In many modern dairy farms a milk cow usually lives for about five years before being slaughtered. During these five years she is almost…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/yuval-noah-harari/in-many-modern-dairy-farms-a-milk-cow-usually-lives-for-about-five/) [Yuval Noah Harari](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/yuval-noah-harari/) > [North Dakota State. What do you have to do there to graduate? Milk a cow with your left hand?](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/bobby-heenan/north-dakota-state-what-do-you-have-to-do-there-to-graduate-milk-a/) [Bobby Heenan](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/bobby-heenan/) > [“Little Richard was drenched in milk, and the cow was none too happy. But the iron brig door hung open. "Good job," said Slank.…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/dave-barry/little-richard-was-drenched-in-milk-and-the-cow-was-none-too-happy/) [Dave Barry](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/dave-barry/) > [“Don't cry over spilt milk when you can milk another cow.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/matshona-dhliwayo/don-t-cry-over-spilt-milk-when-you-can-milk-another-cow/) [Matshona Dhliwayo](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/matshona-dhliwayo/) > [“You can trick out a milk cow in crupper, crinet, and chamfron, and bard her all in silk, but that dosen't mean that you…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/george-r-r-martin/you-can-trick-out-a-milk-cow-in-crupper-crinet-and-chamfron-and-bard/) [George R.R. Martin](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/george-r-r-martin/) > [Don't milk the cow too hard. She will kick you.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/mason-cooley/don-t-milk-the-cow-too-hard-she-will-kick-you/) [Mason Cooley](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/mason-cooley/) ## More by Lennart Meri > [Science will liberate us from the chains of big cities and lead us back to nature.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/lennart-meri/science-will-liberate-us-from-the-chains-of-big-cities-and-lead-us/) [Lennart Meri](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/lennart-meri/) > [I am not always happy with the compliments Estonia has received.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/lennart-meri/i-am-not-always-happy-with-the-compliments-estonia-has-received/) [Lennart Meri](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/lennart-meri/) > [Looking in the mirror to check if my tie is straight is a waste of my time. I only look in the mirror once…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/lennart-meri/looking-in-the-mirror-to-check-if-my-tie-is-straight-is-a-waste-of-my/) [Lennart Meri](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/lennart-meri/) > [I was too busy looking into Yeltsin's eyes to notice what was under the table.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/lennart-meri/i-was-too-busy-looking-into-yeltsin-s-eyes-to-notice-what-was-under/) [Lennart Meri](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/lennart-meri/) > [With that radio I was always swimming with the current political streams in the West. I was never stranded.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/lennart-meri/with-that-radio-i-was-always-swimming-with-the-current-political/) [Lennart Meri](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/lennart-meri/) > [That radio was very important for me. It meant I always knew what was going on in the world.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/lennart-meri/that-radio-was-very-important-for-me-it-meant-i-always-knew-what-was/) [Lennart Meri](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/lennart-meri/) > [Our civilisation has lost this bond between times, and tends to measure time with a yardstick, bit by bit, from one point to another.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/lennart-meri/our-civilisation-has-lost-this-bond-between-times-and-tends-to/) [Lennart Meri](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/lennart-meri/) > [Throughout Soviet times, I understood what was really happening in the world around me.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/lennart-meri/throughout-soviet-times-i-understood-what-was-really-happening-in-the/) [Lennart Meri](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/lennart-meri/) > [In the past, when I shot films about fishermen and hunters, I always had to admire their ability to perceive time in its entirety.…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/lennart-meri/in-the-past-when-i-shot-films-about-fishermen-and-hunters-i-always/) [Lennart Meri](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/lennart-meri/) > [Traveling is the only passion that doesn't need to feel shy in front of intellect,](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/lennart-meri/traveling-is-the-only-passion-that-doesn-t-need-to-feel-shy-in-front/) [Lennart Meri](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/lennart-meri/) > [History is more interesting than politics.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/lennart-meri/history-is-more-interesting-than-politics/) [Lennart Meri](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/lennart-meri/) > [I've never met a general yet who could milk a cow.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/lennart-meri/i-ve-never-met-a-general-yet-who-could-milk-a-cow/) [Lennart Meri](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/lennart-meri/) > [If geography is prose, maps are iconography,](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/lennart-meri/if-geography-is-prose-maps-are-iconography/) [Lennart Meri](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/lennart-meri/) > [Security is like virginity: you're either a virgin or you're not. You either have security or you don't.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/lennart-meri/security-is-like-virginity-you-re-either-a-virgin-or-you-re-not-you/) [Lennart Meri](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/lennart-meri/) [Explore all 15 Lennart Meri quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/lennart-meri/) ## More Cows quotes > [We were so poor as kids. I didn't even see a bathtub, running water, hot water, commode - we didn't have any of that.…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/phil-robertson/we-were-so-poor-as-kids-i-didn-t-even-see-a-bathtub-running-water-hot/) [Phil Robertson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/phil-robertson/) > [Cows are a lot smarter across the board than bulls.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/thomas-haden-church/cows-are-a-lot-smarter-across-the-board-than-bulls/) [Thomas Haden Church](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/thomas-haden-church/) > [ Gonna rain like a cow pissin' on a flat rock" \[drugstore clerk to detective Virgil Flowers\] Dark of the Moon, p.7 ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/john-sandford/gonna-rain-like-a-cow-pissin-on-a-flat-rock-drugstore-clerk-to/) [John Sandford](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/john-sandford/) > [In most agencies, account executives outnumber the copywriters two to one. If you were a dairy farmer, would you employ twice as many milkers…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/david-ogilvy/in-most-agencies-account-executives-outnumber-the-copywriters-two-to/) [David Ogilvy](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/david-ogilvy/) > [My dad's idea of punishment was to dress me up in all green to disguise me as grass, and then throw me in the…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/bryan-callen/my-dad-s-idea-of-punishment-was-to-dress-me-up-in-all-green-to/) [Bryan Callen](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/bryan-callen/) > [To isolate mathematics from the practical demands of the sciences is to invite the sterility of a cow shut away from the bulls.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/pafnuty-chebyshev/to-isolate-mathematics-from-the-practical-demands-of-the-sciences-is/) [Pafnuty Chebyshev](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/pafnuty-chebyshev/) > [Sometimes you look in a field and you see a cow and you think it's a better cow than the one you've got in…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/alex-ferguson/sometimes-you-look-in-a-field-and-you-see-a-cow-and-you-think-it-s-a/) [Alex Ferguson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/alex-ferguson/) > [The thing that bothers me the most is the recklessness and greed of the local ranchers, who run too many cattle back here, choking…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/merle-haggard/the-thing-that-bothers-me-the-most-is-the-recklessness-and-greed-of/) [Merle Haggard](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/merle-haggard/) > [Spring comes with joyous laugh, and song, and sunshine, and the burnt sacrifice of the over-ripe boot and the hoary overshoe. The cowboy and…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/edgar-wilson-nye/spring-comes-with-joyous-laugh-and-song-and-sunshine-and-the-burnt/) [Edgar Wilson Nye](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/edgar-wilson-nye/) > [Talking to animals' isn't a matter of words used, it is a matter of your thoughts, your expression, and above all the tone of…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/barbara-woodhouse/talking-to-animals-isn-t-a-matter-of-words-used-it-is-a-matter-of/) [Barbara Woodhouse](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/barbara-woodhouse/) > [Learning is like a cow of desire. It, like her, yields in all seasons. Like a mother, it feeds you on your journey. Therefore…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/chanakya/learning-is-like-a-cow-of-desire-it-like-her-yields-in-all-seasons/) [Chanakya](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/chanakya/) > [The velocity of light occupies an extraordinary place in modern physics. It is lèse-majesté to make any criticism of the velocity of light. It…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anthony-standen/the-velocity-of-light-occupies-an-extraordinary-place-in-modern/) [Anthony Standen](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anthony-standen/) > [The friendly cow, all red and white, I love with all my heart; She gives me cream with all her might, To eat with…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/robert-louis-stevenson/the-friendly-cow-all-red-and-white-i-love-with-all-my-heart-she-gives/) [Robert Louis Stevenson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/robert-louis-stevenson/) > [We are shut up in school and college recitation rooms for ten to fifteen years, and come out at last with a bellyful of…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ralph-waldo-emerson/we-are-shut-up-in-school-and-college-recitation-rooms-for-ten-to/) [Ralph Waldo Emerson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ralph-waldo-emerson/) > [Every lecture should state one main point and repeat it over and over, like a theme with variations. An audience is like a herd…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/gian-carlo-rota/every-lecture-should-state-one-main-point-and-repeat-it-over-and-over/) [Gian-Carlo Rota](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/gian-carlo-rota/) [Browse all 903 Cows quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/cows/) ```json { "@context": "https://schema.org", "@graph": [ { "@type": "Quotation", "text": "Ive never met a general yet who could milk a cow.", "creator": { "@type": "Person", "name": "Lennart Meri" }, "isPartOf": { "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/#website" }, "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/lennart-meri/ive-never-met-a-general-yet-who-could-milk-a-cow/", "about": { "@type": "Thing", "name": "Cows" }, "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/lennart-meri/ive-never-met-a-general-yet-who-could-milk-a-cow/#quotation", "image": { "@type": "ImageObject", "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/5d0/lennart-meri-33041_cows_ive-never-met-a-general-yet-who-could-mi_1910138.png", "contentUrl": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/5d0/lennart-meri-33041_cows_ive-never-met-a-general-yet-who-could-mi_1910138.png", "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/5d0/lennart-meri-33041_cows_ive-never-met-a-general-yet-who-could-mi_1910138.png", "width": 1080, "height": 1080, "caption": "“Ive never met a general yet who could milk a cow.” — Lennart Meri", "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": "Lennart Meri", "item": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/lennart-meri/" }, { "@type": "ListItem", "position": 4, "name": "Ive never met a general yet...", "item": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/lennart-meri/ive-never-met-a-general-yet-who-could-milk-a-cow/" } ], "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/lennart-meri/ive-never-met-a-general-yet-who-could-milk-a-cow/#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 } } ] } ```