--- title: "Meaning & Key Takeaway of: I believe that man's noblest endowment is…" description: "\"I believe that man's noblest endowment is his capacity to change.\" — Leonard Bernstein" image: "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/fe6/leonard-bernstein-10475_believe_i-believe-that-man-s-noblest-endowment-i_1933419.jpg" --- # I believe that man's noblest endowment is his capacity to… ![“I believe that man's noblest endowment is his capacity to change.” quote by Leonard Bernstein](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/fe6/leonard-bernstein-10475_believe_i-believe-that-man-s-noblest-endowment-i_1933419.jpg) [Download](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/fe6/leonard-bernstein-10475_believe_i-believe-that-man-s-noblest-endowment-i_1933419.jpg) [Open image](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/fe6/leonard-bernstein-10475_believe_i-believe-that-man-s-noblest-endowment-i_1933419.jpg) > “I believe that man's noblest endowment is his capacity to change.” [Leonard Bernstein](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/leonard-bernstein/) ## About This Quote This interpretation was drafted with AI assistance. It is one reading of the quote, not the author's own explanation. Human greatness lies in our ability to change. **In simple terms:** Change defines human greatness. Key Takeaway Seek growth and transformation. Themes growth change potential Mood reflective optimistic Type philosophical inspirational When to use this quote - career transitions - personal reinvention - education - social activism Key Concepts Self‑actualization human development Questions to Reflect On - What change have you resisted? - How can you foster adaptability? A Different Perspective Change can be resisted by fear or inertia. ★ ★ ★ ★ ★ No ratings yet [Believe](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/believe/) [Capacity](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/capacity/) [Change](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/change/) [Endowment](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/endowment/) [Endowment Capacity](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/endowment-capacity-3039434/) [I believe](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/i-believe/) [Man Noblest](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/man-noblest-758015/) [Men](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/men/) [Noblest](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/noblest/) [Noblest Endowment](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/noblest-endowment-3039433/) ## Related quotes > [An honest man is the noblest work of God.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/alexander-pope/an-honest-man-is-the-noblest-work-of-god/) [Alexander Pope](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/alexander-pope/) > [An honest man's the noblest work of God.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/alexander-pope/an-honest-man-s-the-noblest-work-of-god/) [Alexander Pope](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/alexander-pope/) > [The proof that man is the noblest of all creatures is that no other creature has ever denied it.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/georg-c-lichtenberg/the-proof-that-man-is-the-noblest-of-all-creatures-is-that-no-other/) [Georg C. Lichtenberg](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/georg-c-lichtenberg/) > [“At his best, man is the noblest of all animals; separated from law and justice he is the worst.   —Aristotle”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/greg-iles/at-his-best-man-is-the-noblest-of-all-animals-separated-from-law-and/) [Greg Iles](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/greg-iles/) > [… The most worthy calling in life is that in which man can serve best his fellow man. … The noblest aim in life…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/david-o-mckay/the-most-worthy-calling-in-life-is-that-in-which-man-can-serve-best/) [David O. McKay](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/david-o-mckay/) > [That man is the noblest creature may also be inferred from the fact that no other creature has yet contested this claim.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/georg-c-lichtenberg/that-man-is-the-noblest-creature-may-also-be-inferred-from-the-fact/) [Georg C. Lichtenberg](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/georg-c-lichtenberg/) > [“At his best, man is the noblest of all animals; separated from law & justice he is the worst.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/aristotle/at-his-best-man-is-the-noblest-of-all-animals-separated-from-law/) [Aristotle](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/aristotle/) > [“The Church still prizes the Moral Sense as man's noblest asset today, although the Church knows God had a distinctly poor opinion of it…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/mark-twain/the-church-still-prizes-the-moral-sense-as-man-s-noblest-asset-today/) [Mark Twain](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/mark-twain/) > [“He had killed man, the noblest game of all, and he had killed in the face of the law of club and fang.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jack-london/he-had-killed-man-the-noblest-game-of-all-and-he-had-killed-in-the/) [Jack London](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jack-london/) > [If an honest man is the noblest work of God, then Mr. Lincoln's title to high nobility is clear and unquestioned.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/matthew-simpson/if-an-honest-man-is-the-noblest-work-of-god-then-mr-lincoln-s-title/) [Matthew Simpson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/matthew-simpson/) > [From scenes like these old Scotia's grandeur springs, That makes her loved at home, revered abroad: Princes and lords are but the breath of…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/robert-burns/from-scenes-like-these-old-scotia-s-grandeur-springs-that-makes-her/) [Robert Burns](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/robert-burns/) > [Some innate capacity - some part of the human genetic endowment - enters into language acquisition. That much is uncontroversial among those who believe…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/noam-chomsky/some-innate-capacity-some-part-of-the-human-genetic-endowment-enters/) [Noam Chomsky](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/noam-chomsky/) > [There cannot be a surer rule, nor a stronger exhortation to the observance of it, than when we are taught that all the endowments…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/john-calvin/there-cannot-be-a-surer-rule-nor-a-stronger-exhortation-to-the/) [John Calvin](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/john-calvin/) > [Science and art may invent splendid modes of illuminating the apartments of the opulent; but these are all poor and worthless compared with the…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/william-ellery-channing/science-and-art-may-invent-splendid-modes-of-illuminating-the/) [William Ellery Channing](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/william-ellery-channing/) > [I consider the differences between man and animals in propensities, feelings, and intellectual faculties, to be the result of the same cause as that…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/sir-william-lawrence-1st-baronet/i-consider-the-differences-between-man-and-animals-in-propensities/) [Sir William Lawrence, 1st Baronet](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/sir-william-lawrence-1st-baronet/) ## More by Leonard Bernstein > [A liberal is a man or a woman or a child who looks forward to a better day, a more tranquil night, and a…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/leonard-bernstein/a-liberal-is-a-man-or-a-woman-or-a-child-who-looks-forward-to-a/) [Leonard Bernstein](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/leonard-bernstein/) > [I think it is time we learned the lesson of our century: that the progress of the human spirit must keep pace with technological…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/leonard-bernstein/i-think-it-is-time-we-learned-the-lesson-of-our-century-that-the/) [Leonard Bernstein](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/leonard-bernstein/) > [Conducting is like making love to a hundred people at the same time.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/leonard-bernstein/conducting-is-like-making-love-to-a-hundred-people-at-the-same-time/) [Leonard Bernstein](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/leonard-bernstein/) > [I'm no longer quite sure what the question is, but I do know that the answer is Yes.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/leonard-bernstein/i-m-no-longer-quite-sure-what-the-question-is-but-i-do-know-that-the/) [Leonard Bernstein](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/leonard-bernstein/) > [Our most emotionally active life is lived in our dreams, and our cells renew themselves most industriously in sleep. We reach highest in meditation,…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/leonard-bernstein/our-most-emotionally-active-life-is-lived-in-our-dreams-and-our-cells/) [Leonard Bernstein](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/leonard-bernstein/) > [Music can name the unnameable and communicate the unknowable.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/leonard-bernstein/music-can-name-the-unnameable-and-communicate-the-unknowable/) [Leonard Bernstein](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/leonard-bernstein/) > [Any asshole can write a tone-row. It takes a composer to write a tune.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/leonard-bernstein/any-asshole-can-write-a-tone-row-it-takes-a-composer-to-write-a-tune/) [Leonard Bernstein](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/leonard-bernstein/) > [From New Year's on the outlook brightens; good humor lost in a mood of failure returns. I resolve to stop complaining.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/leonard-bernstein/from-new-year-s-on-the-outlook-brightens-good-humor-lost-in-a-mood-of/) [Leonard Bernstein](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/leonard-bernstein/) > [Music, because of its specific and far-reaching metaphorical powers, can name the unnamable and communicate the unknowable.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/leonard-bernstein/music-because-of-its-specific-and-far-reaching-metaphorical-powers/) [Leonard Bernstein](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/leonard-bernstein/) > [Einstein said that the most beautiful experience we can have is the mysterious. So why do so many of us try to explain the…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/leonard-bernstein/einstein-said-that-the-most-beautiful-experience-we-can-have-is-the/) [Leonard Bernstein](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/leonard-bernstein/) > [When the thunder rumbles, Now the age of gold is dead. When the dreams we've clung to Trying to stay young, Have left us…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/leonard-bernstein/when-the-thunder-rumbles-now-the-age-of-gold-is-dead-when-the-dreams/) [Leonard Bernstein](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/leonard-bernstein/) > [Inspiration is wonderful when it happens, but the writer must develop an approach for the rest of the time... The wait is simply too…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/leonard-bernstein/inspiration-is-wonderful-when-it-happens-but-the-writer-must-develop/) [Leonard Bernstein](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/leonard-bernstein/) > [...we can all shut-up and go back to our caves.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/leonard-bernstein/we-can-all-shut-up-and-go-back-to-our-caves/) [Leonard Bernstein](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/leonard-bernstein/) > [“We're neither pure, nor wise, nor good We'll do the best we know. We'll build our house and chop our wood And make our…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/leonard-bernstein/we-re-neither-pure-nor-wise-nor-good-we-ll-do-the-best-we-know-we-ll/) [Leonard Bernstein](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/leonard-bernstein/) > [I have two answers to everything and one answer to nothing.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/leonard-bernstein/i-have-two-answers-to-everything-and-one-answer-to-nothing/) [Leonard Bernstein](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/leonard-bernstein/) [Explore all 65 Leonard Bernstein quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/leonard-bernstein/) ## More Believe quotes > [I actually think acting is a form of self-hypnosis. You have to be hyper, hyper aware of what's going on around you. You have…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/julianne-moore/i-actually-think-acting-is-a-form-of-self-hypnosis-you-have-to-be/) [Julianne Moore](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/julianne-moore/) > [Some people still believe you should just fall in line with what's going on - and that's scary. It makes a mockery of freedom…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/emily-robison/some-people-still-believe-you-should-just-fall-in-line-with-what-s/) [Emily Robison](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/emily-robison/) > [The truth seems to be that propaganda on its own cannot force its way into unwilling minds; neither can it inculcate something wholly new;…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/eric-hoffer/the-truth-seems-to-be-that-propaganda-on-its-own-cannot-force-its-way/) [Eric Hoffer](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/eric-hoffer/) > [Resist discouragement by speaking His Word over your future. Keep standing. Keep hoping; keep believing because He is working behind the scenes. He's going…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/joel-osteen/resist-discouragement-by-speaking-his-word-over-your-future-keep/) [Joel Osteen](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/joel-osteen/) > [I can't believe that I'm sitting in meetings with Steven Spielberg, Tom Hanks, and Annette Bening. I want to take on that responsibility to…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/roger-ross-williams/i-can-t-believe-that-i-m-sitting-in-meetings-with-steven-spielberg/) [Roger Ross Williams](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/roger-ross-williams/) > [There is no such word as item girl in the dictionary. People have created this word and I don't believe that I am an…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/shefali-zariwala/there-is-no-such-word-as-item-girl-in-the-dictionary-people-have/) [Shefali Zariwala](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/shefali-zariwala/) > [I understand that it's the music that keeps me alive... That's my lifeblood. And to give that up for, like, the TV, the cars,…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/bruce-springsteen/i-understand-that-it-s-the-music-that-keeps-me-alive-that-s-my/) [Bruce Springsteen](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/bruce-springsteen/) > [I don't really like too much credit. I know nobody's going to believe this, but I'd rather be able to score goals and nobody…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/bradley-wright-phillips/i-don-t-really-like-too-much-credit-i-know-nobody-s-going-to-believe/) [Bradley Wright-Phillips](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/bradley-wright-phillips/) > [“What I have a problem with is not so much religion or god, but faith. When you say you believe something in your heart…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/penn-jillette/what-i-have-a-problem-with-is-not-so-much-religion-or-god-but-faith/) [Penn Jillette](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/penn-jillette/) > [Bush reiterated his stand to conservatives opposing his decision on stem cell research. He said today he believes life begins at conception and ends…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jay-leno/bush-reiterated-his-stand-to-conservatives-opposing-his-decision-on/) [Jay Leno](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jay-leno/) > [Never underestimate the power of the human mind to believe what it wants to believe, no matter the conflicting evidence.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/brian-herbert/never-underestimate-the-power-of-the-human-mind-to-believe-what-it/) [Brian Herbert](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/brian-herbert/) > [To believe in love, to be ready to give up anything for it, to be willing to risk your life for it, is the…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/leonardo-dicaprio/to-believe-in-love-to-be-ready-to-give-up-anything-for-it-to-be/) [Leonardo DiCaprio](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/leonardo-dicaprio/) > [That's why I don't generally talk about endorsements because I don't believe we have to tell people who to vote for.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/martin-luther-king-iii/that-s-why-i-don-t-generally-talk-about-endorsements-because-i-don-t/) [Martin Luther King III](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/martin-luther-king-iii/) > [Mankind have been slow to believe that order reigns in the universe-that the world is a cosmos and a chaos.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/james-a-garfield/mankind-have-been-slow-to-believe-that-order-reigns-in-the-universe/) [James A. 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It's good for us to explore the depravity of our minds, so we know we…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/krishna-das/we-instantly-believe-everything-we-think-isn-t-that-insane-it-s-good/) [Krishna Das](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/krishna-das/) [Browse all 47,704 Believe quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/believe/) ```json { "@context": "https://schema.org", "@graph": [ { "@type": "Quotation", "text": "I believe that man's noblest endowment is his capacity to change.", "creator": { "@type": "Person", "name": "Leonard Bernstein" }, "isPartOf": { "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/#website" }, "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/leonard-bernstein/i-believe-that-man-s-noblest-endowment-is-his-capacity-to-change/", "about": { "@type": "Thing", "name": "Believe" }, "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/leonard-bernstein/i-believe-that-man-s-noblest-endowment-is-his-capacity-to-change/#quotation", "image": { "@type": "ImageObject", "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/fe6/leonard-bernstein-10475_believe_i-believe-that-man-s-noblest-endowment-i_1933419.jpg", "contentUrl": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/fe6/leonard-bernstein-10475_believe_i-believe-that-man-s-noblest-endowment-i_1933419.jpg", "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/fe6/leonard-bernstein-10475_believe_i-believe-that-man-s-noblest-endowment-i_1933419.jpg", "width": 1080, "height": 1080, "caption": "“I believe that man's noblest endowment is his capacity to change.” — Leonard Bernstein", "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": "Leonard Bernstein", "item": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/leonard-bernstein/" }, { "@type": "ListItem", "position": 4, "name": "I believe that man's noblest endowment...", "item": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/leonard-bernstein/i-believe-that-man-s-noblest-endowment-is-his-capacity-to-change/" } ], "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/leonard-bernstein/i-believe-that-man-s-noblest-endowment-is-his-capacity-to-change/#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 } } ] } ```