--- title: "Meaning & Key Takeaway of: Delaying gratification is a process of…" description: "\"“Delaying gratification is a process of scheduling the pain and pleasure of life in such a way as to enhance the pleasure of life in such a way as to e..." image: "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/b72/m-scott-peck-1921_delayed-gratificatio_delaying-gratification-is-a-process-of-s_2772139.jpg" --- # Delaying gratification is a process of scheduling the pain… ![“Delaying gratification is a process of scheduling the pain and pleasure of life in such a way as to enhance the pleasure of life in such a way as to enhance the pleasure by meeting and experiencing the pain first and getting it over with. It is the only decent way to live.” quote by M. Scott Peck](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/b72/m-scott-peck-1921_delayed-gratificatio_delaying-gratification-is-a-process-of-s_2772139.jpg) [Download](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/b72/m-scott-peck-1921_delayed-gratificatio_delaying-gratification-is-a-process-of-s_2772139.jpg) [Open image](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/b72/m-scott-peck-1921_delayed-gratificatio_delaying-gratification-is-a-process-of-s_2772139.jpg) > ““Delaying gratification is a process of scheduling the pain and pleasure of life in such a way as to enhance the pleasure of life in such a way as to enhance the pleasure by meeting and experiencing the pain first and getting it over with. It is the only decent way to live.”” [M. Scott Peck](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/m-scott-peck/) ## About This Quote This interpretation was drafted with AI assistance. It is one reading of the quote, not the author's own explanation. Delaying gratification means confronting discomfort first so later rewards feel stronger and life more meaningful. **In simple terms:** Face pain first to enjoy later rewards. Key Takeaway Accept short‑term pain for long‑term joy. Themes self‑control delayed gratification meaning life philosophy Mood reflective determined Type philosophical motivational When to use this quote - career planning - financial investing - health habits - education - relationships Key Concepts psychology temporal discounting self‑discipline Questions to Reflect On - What discomfort can you face now to improve future satisfaction? - How do you balance short‑term needs with long‑term goals? A Different Perspective May ignore immediate needs and cause burnout if overused. ★ ★ ★ ★ ★ No ratings yet [Delayed gratification](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/delayed-gratification/) [Delaying](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/delaying/) [Delaying Gratification](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/delaying-gratification-766203/) [Enhance Pleasure](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/enhance-pleasure-1318349/) [Gratification](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/gratification/) [Gratification Process](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/gratification-process-1318348/) [Life](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/life/) [Pain and pleasure](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/pain-and-pleasure/) [Procrastination](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/procrastination/) [Suffering](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/suffering/) ## Related quotes > [Delaying gratification is a process of scheduling the pain and pleasure of life in such a way as to enhance the pleasure by meeting…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/m-scott-peck/delaying-gratification-is-a-process-of-scheduling-the-pain-and/) [M. Scott Peck](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/m-scott-peck/) > [Love is the wanting, and the having, and the choosing, and the becoming. Love is the desire to see the person we love be…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/matthew-kelly/love-is-the-wanting-and-the-having-and-the-choosing-and-the-becoming/) [Matthew Kelly](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/matthew-kelly/) > [“Every time you sit down to work, remind yourself: I am delaying gratification by doing this. I am passing the marshmallow test. I am…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ryan-holiday/every-time-you-sit-down-to-work-remind-yourself-i-am-delaying/) [Ryan Holiday](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ryan-holiday/) > [Emotional self-control-- delaying gratification and stifling impulsiveness- underlies accomplishment of every sort](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/daniel-goleman/emotional-self-control-delaying-gratification-and-stifling/) [Daniel Goleman](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/daniel-goleman/) > [“Delaying gratification is one of the most rewarding human pleasures. In almost all cases, the anticipation of an enjoyable experience is as pleasurable as…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/karen-amanda-hooper/delaying-gratification-is-one-of-the-most-rewarding-human-pleasures/) [Karen Amanda Hooper](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/karen-amanda-hooper/) > [“Many a death was precipitated by the food, the job, or the medication whose main function was to postpone it.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/mokokoma-mokhonoana/many-a-death-was-precipitated-by-the-food-the-job-or-the-medication/) [Mokokoma Mokhonoana](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/mokokoma-mokhonoana/) > [“Postpone, not because you are being lazy. Postpone, only because you want to appear in a grand style.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/michael-bassey-johnson/postpone-not-because-you-are-being-lazy-postpone-only-because-you/) [Michael Bassey Johnson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/michael-bassey-johnson/) > [I'm holding back, delaying the information. I'm lingering in the prior moment because it was a time when other outcomes were still possible.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ian-mcewan/i-m-holding-back-delaying-the-information-i-m-lingering-in-the-prior/) [Ian Mcewan](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ian-mcewan/) > [Delaying death is one of my favorite hobbies](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/rick-riordan/delaying-death-is-one-of-my-favorite-hobbies/) [Rick Riordan](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/rick-riordan/) > [Hurrying and delaying are alike ways of trying to resist the present.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/alan-watts/hurrying-and-delaying-are-alike-ways-of-trying-to-resist-the-present/) [Alan Watts](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/alan-watts/) > [“If you can't avoid it, there is no use denying it by delaying it.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/sartika-kurniali/if-you-can-t-avoid-it-there-is-no-use-denying-it-by-delaying-it/) [Sartika Kurniali](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/sartika-kurniali/) > [“Experiment with delaying commitments until you know enough and see if that leads to success.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anonymous/experiment-with-delaying-commitments-until-you-know-enough-and-see-if/) [Anonymous](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anonymous/) > [“People relying on others or someone to complete them are delaying the opportunity to discover the person they are meant to be.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/dodinsky/people-relying-on-others-or-someone-to-complete-them-are-delaying-the/) [Dodinsky](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/dodinsky/) > [“Don't rush in order to have things done early. Be prepared before you set off. That's the rule. However, this does not mean that…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/israelmore-ayivor/don-t-rush-in-order-to-have-things-done-early-be-prepared-before-you/) [Israelmore Ayivor](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/israelmore-ayivor/) > [“Many do not acknowledge the preciousness of time, until one day, they behold time slipping away from their very hands.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/michael-bassey-johnson/many-do-not-acknowledge-the-preciousness-of-time-until-one-day-they/) [Michael Bassey Johnson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/michael-bassey-johnson/) ## More by M. Scott Peck > [But I already saw no great difference between the psyche and spirituality. To amass knowledge without becoming wise is not my idea of progress…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/m-scott-peck/but-i-already-saw-no-great-difference-between-the-psyche-and/) [M. Scott Peck](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/m-scott-peck/) > [As I grow through love, so grows my joy, ever more present, ever more constant.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/m-scott-peck/as-i-grow-through-love-so-grows-my-joy-ever-more-present-ever-more/) [M. Scott Peck](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/m-scott-peck/) > [“Life is difficult.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/m-scott-peck/life-is-difficult/) [M. Scott Peck](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/m-scott-peck/) > [“The second most common misconception about love is the idea that dependency is love...Its effect is seen most dramatically in an individual who makes…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/m-scott-peck/the-second-most-common-misconception-about-love-is-the-idea-that/) [M. Scott Peck](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/m-scott-peck/) > [Although I was raised in a profoundly secular home, I had a belief, an awareness of God, from as far back as I can…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/m-scott-peck/although-i-was-raised-in-a-profoundly-secular-home-i-had-a-belief-an/) [M. Scott Peck](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/m-scott-peck/) > [I've gone to great lengths not to be a guru. I think the notion of guruhood is utterly pathological, and I couldn't live that…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/m-scott-peck/i-ve-gone-to-great-lengths-not-to-be-a-guru-i-think-the-notion-of/) [M. Scott Peck](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/m-scott-peck/) > [The whole course of human history may depend on a change of heart in one solitary and even humble individual - for it is…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/m-scott-peck/the-whole-course-of-human-history-may-depend-on-a-change-of-heart-in/) [M. Scott Peck](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/m-scott-peck/) > [The act of loving is an act of self-evolution even when the purpose of the act is someone else's growth.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/m-scott-peck/the-act-of-loving-is-an-act-of-self-evolution-even-when-the-purpose/) [M. Scott Peck](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/m-scott-peck/) > [“Benjamin Franklin said, “Those things that hurt, instruct.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/m-scott-peck/benjamin-franklin-said-those-things-that-hurt-instruct/) [M. Scott Peck](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/m-scott-peck/) > [Abandon the urge to simplify everything, to look for formulas and easy answers, and to begin to think multidimensionally, to glory in the mystery…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/m-scott-peck/abandon-the-urge-to-simplify-everything-to-look-for-formulas-and-easy/) [M. Scott Peck](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/m-scott-peck/) > [Listening well is an exercise of attention and by necessity hard work. It is because they do not realize this or because they are…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/m-scott-peck/listening-well-is-an-exercise-of-attention-and-by-necessity-hard-work/) [M. Scott Peck](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/m-scott-peck/) > [“It is not selfishness or unselfishness that distinguishes love from non-love; it is the aim of the action.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/m-scott-peck/it-is-not-selfishness-or-unselfishness-that-distinguishes-love-from/) [M. Scott Peck](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/m-scott-peck/) > [Love is too large, too deep ever to be truly understood or measured or limited within the framework of words.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/m-scott-peck/love-is-too-large-too-deep-ever-to-be-truly-understood-or-measured-or/) [M. Scott Peck](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/m-scott-peck/) > [There is no act of love that is not an act of work or courage. No exceptions.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/m-scott-peck/there-is-no-act-of-love-that-is-not-an-act-of-work-or-courage-no/) [M. Scott Peck](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/m-scott-peck/) > [To be free people we must assume total responsibility for ourselves, but in doing so must possess the capacity to reject responsibility that is…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/m-scott-peck/to-be-free-people-we-must-assume-total-responsibility-for-ourselves/) [M. Scott Peck](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/m-scott-peck/) [Explore all 198 M. Scott Peck quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/m-scott-peck/) ## More Delayed gratification quotes > [“Actually, the substitution of the reality-principle for the pleasure-principle denotes no dethronement of the pleasure-principle, but only a safeguarding of it. A momentary pleasure,…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/sigmund-freud/actually-the-substitution-of-the-reality-principle-for-the-pleasure/) [Sigmund Freud](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/sigmund-freud/) > [“Resistance outwits the amateur with the oldest trick in the book: It uses his own enthusiasm against him. Resistance gets us to plunge into…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/steven-pressfield/resistance-outwits-the-amateur-with-the-oldest-trick-in-the-book-it/) [Steven Pressfield](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/steven-pressfield/) > [Great investing requires a lot of delayed gratification.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/charlie-munger/great-investing-requires-a-lot-of-delayed-gratification/) [Charlie Munger](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/charlie-munger/) > [I am convinced that it will not be long before the whole world acknowledges the results of my work.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/gregor-mendel/i-am-convinced-that-it-will-not-be-long-before-the-whole-world/) [Gregor Mendel](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/gregor-mendel/) > [“success awaits those who steadfastly commit to any requisite sacrifice”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ken-poirot/success-awaits-those-who-steadfastly-commit-to-any-requisite-sacrifice/) [Ken Poirot](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ken-poirot/) > [All things come to those who wait,](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/violet-fane/all-things-come-to-those-who-wait/) [Violet Fane](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/violet-fane/) > [“Global warming, environmental degradation, global flows of economic speculation and risk taking, overpopulation, global debt, new viruses, terrorism and warfare, and political polarization are…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/james-paul-gee/global-warming-environmental-degradation-global-flows-of-economic/) [James Paul Gee](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/james-paul-gee/) > [“high-reactive child’s ideal parent: someone who “can read your cues and respect your individuality; is warm and firm in placing demands on you without…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/susan-cain/high-reactive-child-s-ideal-parent-someone-who-can-read-your-cues-and/) [Susan Cain](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/susan-cain/) > [Delayed gratification is the one thing we ignore these days. And if you delay it, it becomes more pleasurable later in life.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/greg-gutfeld/delayed-gratification-is-the-one-thing-we-ignore-these-days-and-if/) [Greg Gutfeld](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/greg-gutfeld/) > [Delayed gratification is a sweet lesson whose teacher knows the best is not right now, it is yet to be.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/maximillian-degenerez/delayed-gratification-is-a-sweet-lesson-whose-teacher-knows-the-best/) [Maximillian Degenerez](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/maximillian-degenerez/) > [Reading a novel in which all characters illustrate patience, hard work, chastity, and delayed gratification could be a pretty dull experience.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/thomas-perry/reading-a-novel-in-which-all-characters-illustrate-patience-hard-work/) [Thomas Perry](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/thomas-perry/) > [Love is the wanting, and the having, and the choosing, and the becoming. Love is the desire to see the person we love be…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/matthew-kelly/love-is-the-wanting-and-the-having-and-the-choosing-and-the-becoming/) [Matthew Kelly](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/matthew-kelly/) > [If there is one thing that marks families with money in the long term it is this: delayed gratification.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/bill-bonner/if-there-is-one-thing-that-marks-families-with-money-in-the-long-term/) [Bill Bonner](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/bill-bonner/) > [“The results of these and other studies were eye-opening. The children who exhibited delayed gratification scored higher on almost every measure of success in…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/michio-kaku/the-results-of-these-and-other-studies-were-eye-opening-the-children/) [Michio Kaku](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/michio-kaku/) > [“Most of us don’t respond well to delayed gratification; we are much more interested in immediate rewards. This is why we procrastinate, fail to…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/uri-gneezy/most-of-us-don-t-respond-well-to-delayed-gratification-we-are-much/) [Uri Gneezy](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/uri-gneezy/) [Browse all 32 Delayed gratification quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/delayed-gratification/) ```json { "@context": "https://schema.org", "@graph": [ { "@type": "Quotation", "text": "“Delaying gratification is a process of scheduling the pain and pleasure of life in such a way as to enhance the pleasure of life in such a way as to enhance the pleasure by meeting and experiencing the pain first and getting it over with. It is the only decent way to live.”", "creator": { "@type": "Person", "name": "M. 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