--- title: "Meaning & Key Takeaway of: Hiring someone to write your…" description: "\"Hiring someone to write your autobiography is like hiring someone to take a bath for you\" — Mae West" image: "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/077/mae-west-1200_autobiography_hiring-someone-to-write-your-autobiograp_2711952.jpg" --- # Hiring someone to write your autobiography is like hiring… ![“Hiring someone to write your autobiography is like hiring someone to take a bath for you” quote by Mae West](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/077/mae-west-1200_autobiography_hiring-someone-to-write-your-autobiograp_2711952.jpg) [Download](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/077/mae-west-1200_autobiography_hiring-someone-to-write-your-autobiograp_2711952.jpg) [Open image](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/077/mae-west-1200_autobiography_hiring-someone-to-write-your-autobiograp_2711952.jpg) > “Hiring someone to write your autobiography is like hiring someone to take a bath for you” [Mae West](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/mae-west/) ## About This Quote This interpretation was drafted with AI assistance. It is one reading of the quote, not the author's own explanation. Hiring a ghostwriter for your autobiography is likened to outsourcing a personal, intimate act, highlighting absurdity. **In simple terms:** Outsourcing personal stories feels absurd. Key Takeaway Write your own story. Themes authorship identity self‑representation humor Mood witty satirical thought‑provoking Type humorous literary cultural When to use this quote - Memoir writing - public image management - creative control Key Concepts Narrative authenticity personal branding Questions to Reflect On - When is it acceptable to delegate personal storytelling? - How does ghostwriting affect authenticity? A Different Perspective Some may prefer professional polish over personal effort. ★ ★ ★ ★ ★ No ratings yet [Autobiography](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/autobiography/) [Autobiography Like](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/autobiography-like-1154245/) [Baths](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/baths/) [Hiring](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/hiring/) [Hiring Bath](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/hiring-bath-2814874/) [Hiring Write](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/hiring-write-2814875/) [Inspiration](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/inspiration/) [Like Hiring](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/like-hiring-2814876/) [Write Autobiography](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/write-autobiography-266690/) [Writing](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/writing/) ## Related quotes > [I like hiring people based on a feeling - this person gets it - rather than what they've done in the past.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/spike-jonze/i-like-hiring-people-based-on-a-feeling-this-person-gets-it-rather/) [Spike Jonze](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/spike-jonze/) > [Leaving us with Eric is like hiring a babysitter who spends his time sharpening knives.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/veronica-roth/leaving-us-with-eric-is-like-hiring-a-babysitter-who-spends-his-time/) [Veronica Roth](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/veronica-roth/) > [I don't like the word 'autobiography.' I rather like the term 'autofiction.' The second you make a script out of the story of your…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/marjane-satrapi/i-don-t-like-the-word-autobiography-i-rather-like-the-term/) [Marjane Satrapi](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/marjane-satrapi/) > [“Getting help from a guy like you is like hiring a pyromaniac to fix the oil-burner.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/stephen-king/getting-help-from-a-guy-like-you-is-like-hiring-a-pyromaniac-to-fix/) [Stephen King](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/stephen-king/) > [“In a way, an autobiography seems to me like a household book of accounts – what has been acquired, to what purpose has it…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/elizabeth-jane-howard/in-a-way-an-autobiography-seems-to-me-like-a-household-book-of/) [Elizabeth Jane Howard](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/elizabeth-jane-howard/) > [If I'm an entrepreneur and I have an idea, and I don't have the development talent around me but I need to find a…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/david-cohen/if-i-m-an-entrepreneur-and-i-have-an-idea-and-i-don-t-have-the/) [David Cohen](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/david-cohen/) > [Dammit, Dresden, if you want to know about me, wait for the autobiography like everyone else.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jim-butcher/dammit-dresden-if-you-want-to-know-about-me-wait-for-the/) [Jim Butcher](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jim-butcher/) > [I don't feel famous and I didn't want my autobiography to be like a Paris Hilton story.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/beth-ditto/i-don-t-feel-famous-and-i-didn-t-want-my-autobiography-to-be-like-a/) [Beth Ditto](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/beth-ditto/) > [My mother always said that everyone should be required to write an autobiography of their lives.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/diane-keaton/my-mother-always-said-that-everyone-should-be-required-to-write-an/) [Diane Keaton](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/diane-keaton/) > [I've been asked to write an autobiography, and I've started it a couple of times, on different angles, and maybe one day I will,…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/john-saxon/i-ve-been-asked-to-write-an-autobiography-and-i-ve-started-it-a/) [John Saxon](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/john-saxon/) > [I don't want to write an autobiography because I would become public property with no privacy left.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/stephen-hawking/i-don-t-want-to-write-an-autobiography-because-i-would-become-public/) [Stephen Hawking](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/stephen-hawking/) > [I've been asked to write my autobiography and really they only want 8 years (1962-1970), and I keep saying it would be five volumes…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ringo-starr/i-ve-been-asked-to-write-my-autobiography-and-really-they-only-want-8/) [Ringo Starr](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ringo-starr/) > [Because I write fiction, I don't write autobiography, and to me they are very different things. The first-person narrative is a very intimate thing,…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/kate-atkinson/because-i-write-fiction-i-don-t-write-autobiography-and-to-me-they/) [Kate Atkinson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/kate-atkinson/) > [If you wish to understand me at all (and to write an autobiography is only to open a window into one's heart) you must…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/nellie-melba/if-you-wish-to-understand-me-at-all-and-to-write-an-autobiography-is/) [Nellie Melba](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/nellie-melba/) > [The way I would live my life is: never do something in real life that I would not want to write about in my…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/siddharth-katragadda/the-way-i-would-live-my-life-is-never-do-something-in-real-life-that/) [Siddharth Katragadda](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/siddharth-katragadda/) ## More by Mae West > [Reason was nowhere, time was an immovable object nailed high on the wall, except where the world kept shop.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/mae-west/reason-was-nowhere-time-was-an-immovable-object-nailed-high-on-the/) [Mae West](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/mae-west/) > [I've been in 'Who's Who' and I know what's what, but it'll be the first time I ever made the dictionary.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/mae-west/i-ve-been-in-who-s-who-and-i-know-what-s-what-but-it-ll-be-the-first/) [Mae West](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/mae-west/) > [Look your best - who said love is blind?](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/mae-west/look-your-best-who-said-love-is-blind/) [Mae West](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/mae-west/) > [Don't let a man put anything over on you except an umbrella.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/mae-west/don-t-let-a-man-put-anything-over-on-you-except-an-umbrella/) [Mae West](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/mae-west/) > [In my long and colorful career, one thing stands out: I have been misunderstood.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/mae-west/in-my-long-and-colorful-career-one-thing-stands-out-i-have-been/) [Mae West](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/mae-west/) > [The finest woman that ever walked the streets.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/mae-west/the-finest-woman-that-ever-walked-the-streets/) [Mae West](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/mae-west/) > [The best way to hold a man is in your arms.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/mae-west/the-best-way-to-hold-a-man-is-in-your-arms/) [Mae West](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/mae-west/) > [Live close, visit often.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/mae-west/live-close-visit-often/) [Mae West](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/mae-west/) > [A real farmer. He spent his childhood in the wheat, and his marriage in the hay.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/mae-west/a-real-farmer-he-spent-his-childhood-in-the-wheat-and-his-marriage-in/) [Mae West](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/mae-west/) > [Marriage? I ain't got time for a husband or child. All my life I've looked after myself as if I was my own child.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/mae-west/marriage-i-ain-t-got-time-for-a-husband-or-child-all-my-life-i-ve/) [Mae West](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/mae-west/) > [“If I can't a man with a million dollars, I'll a million men with one dollar.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/mae-west/if-i-can-t-a-man-with-a-million-dollars-i-ll-a-million-men-with-one/) [Mae West](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/mae-west/) > [Sometimes I don't drink so the next day I can remember having fun.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/mae-west/sometimes-i-don-t-drink-so-the-next-day-i-can-remember-having-fun/) [Mae West](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/mae-west/) > [Positive thoughts generate positive feelings and attract positive life experiences. You only live once, but if you do it right, once is enough.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/mae-west/positive-thoughts-generate-positive-feelings-and-attract-positive/) [Mae West](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/mae-west/) > [I believe in the single standard -- for men and women.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/mae-west/i-believe-in-the-single-standard-for-men-and-women/) [Mae West](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/mae-west/) > [“Goodness had nothing to do with it.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/mae-west/goodness-had-nothing-to-do-with-it/) [Mae West](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/mae-west/) [Explore all 271 Mae West quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/mae-west/) ## More Autobiography quotes > [I think anything that anyone writes thats any good is going to have a lot of autobiography.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/stephen-adly-guirgis/i-think-anything-that-anyone-writes-thats-any-good-is-going-to-have-a/) [Stephen Adly Guirgis](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/stephen-adly-guirgis/) > [“I am not and autobiographical writer--one can't be without a solid and explicable self--and read all autobiographical writers with the same curiosity. What kind…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/yiyun-li/i-am-not-and-autobiographical-writer-one-can-t-be-without-a-solid-and/) [Yiyun Li](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/yiyun-li/) > [“Someday, I want to write an unauthorized autobiography of myself.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/david-mcmullen-sullivan/someday-i-want-to-write-an-unauthorized-autobiography-of-myself/) [David McMullen-Sullivan](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/david-mcmullen-sullivan/) > [“As well as writing, 2004 saw my first attempt at wine making: the elixir of life. Unfortunately, my effort tasted more like the elixir…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/craig-briggs/as-well-as-writing-2004-saw-my-first-attempt-at-wine-making-the/) [Craig Briggs](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/craig-briggs/) > [I caught a cold and didn't have time to work on my autobiography.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/julie-doucet/i-caught-a-cold-and-didn-t-have-time-to-work-on-my-autobiography/) [Julie Doucet](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/julie-doucet/) > [Who ever heard, indeed, of an autobiography that was not (interesting)? I can recall none in all the literature of the world](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anonymous/who-ever-heard-indeed-of-an-autobiography-that-was-not-interesting-i/) [Anonymous](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anonymous/) > [I don't really think of my essays as being about myself. I know it sounds insane, but I just don't think of them as…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/sloane-crosley/i-don-t-really-think-of-my-essays-as-being-about-myself-i-know-it/) [Sloane Crosley](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/sloane-crosley/) > [The way I would live my life is: never do something in real life that I would not want to write about in my…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/siddharth-katragadda/the-way-i-would-live-my-life-is-never-do-something-in-real-life-that/) [Siddharth Katragadda](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/siddharth-katragadda/) > [biography cannot be separated from autobiography: that is, the life written about is inextricably entangled with the life of the biographer.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/linda-simon/biography-cannot-be-separated-from-autobiography-that-is-the-life/) [Linda Simon](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/linda-simon/) > [I think I'm like most novelists in that my books have gotten farther and farther away from autobiography the longer I've been writing them.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anna-quindlen/i-think-i-m-like-most-novelists-in-that-my-books-have-gotten-farther/) [Anna Quindlen](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anna-quindlen/) > [If you wish to understand me at all (and to write an autobiography is only to open a window into one's heart) you must…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/nellie-melba/if-you-wish-to-understand-me-at-all-and-to-write-an-autobiography-is/) [Nellie Melba](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/nellie-melba/) > [I want an autobiography without revealing any personal information.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/diana-ross/i-want-an-autobiography-without-revealing-any-personal-information/) [Diana Ross](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/diana-ross/) > [I don't like the word 'autobiography.' I rather like the term 'autofiction.' The second you make a script out of the story of your…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/marjane-satrapi/i-don-t-like-the-word-autobiography-i-rather-like-the-term/) [Marjane Satrapi](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/marjane-satrapi/) > [Because I write fiction, I don't write autobiography, and to me they are very different things. The first-person narrative is a very intimate thing,…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/kate-atkinson/because-i-write-fiction-i-don-t-write-autobiography-and-to-me-they/) [Kate Atkinson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/kate-atkinson/) > [“I don't think anyone could write a completely honest autobiography. I am sure no one could bear to read it: My Past Was An…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/william-s-burroughs/i-don-t-think-anyone-could-write-a-completely-honest-autobiography-i/) [William S. Burroughs](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/william-s-burroughs/) [Browse all 642 Autobiography quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/autobiography/) ```json { "@context": "https://schema.org", "@graph": [ { "@type": "Quotation", "text": "Hiring someone to write your autobiography is like hiring someone to take a bath for you", "creator": { "@type": "Person", "name": "Mae West" }, "isPartOf": { "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/#website" }, "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/mae-west/hiring-someone-to-write-your-autobiography-is-like-hiring-someone-to/", "about": { "@type": "Thing", "name": "Autobiography" }, "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/mae-west/hiring-someone-to-write-your-autobiography-is-like-hiring-someone-to/#quotation", "image": { "@type": "ImageObject", "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/077/mae-west-1200_autobiography_hiring-someone-to-write-your-autobiograp_2711952.jpg", "contentUrl": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/077/mae-west-1200_autobiography_hiring-someone-to-write-your-autobiograp_2711952.jpg", "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/077/mae-west-1200_autobiography_hiring-someone-to-write-your-autobiograp_2711952.jpg", "width": 1080, "height": 1080, "caption": "“Hiring someone to write your autobiography is like hiring someone to take a bath for you” — Mae West", "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": "Mae West", "item": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/mae-west/" }, { "@type": "ListItem", "position": 4, "name": "Hiring someone to write your autobiography...", "item": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/mae-west/hiring-someone-to-write-your-autobiography-is-like-hiring-someone-to/" } ], "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/mae-west/hiring-someone-to-write-your-autobiography-is-like-hiring-someone-to/#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 } } ] } ```