--- title: "Meaning & Key Takeaway of: You can do something with talent, but…" description: "\"You can do something with talent, but nothing with genius.\" — Margot Asquith" image: "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/480/margot-asquith-11364_can-do_you-can-do-something-with-talent-but-not_1643485.jpg" --- # You can do something with talent, but nothing with genius. ![“You can do something with talent, but nothing with genius.” quote by Margot Asquith](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/480/margot-asquith-11364_can-do_you-can-do-something-with-talent-but-not_1643485.jpg) [Download](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/480/margot-asquith-11364_can-do_you-can-do-something-with-talent-but-not_1643485.jpg) [Open image](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/480/margot-asquith-11364_can-do_you-can-do-something-with-talent-but-not_1643485.jpg) > “You can do something with talent, but nothing with genius.” [Margot Asquith](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/margot-asquith/) ## About This Quote This interpretation was drafted with AI assistance. It is one reading of the quote, not the author's own explanation. Talent allows achievement, but genius implies a deeper, transformative capacity that cannot be easily applied. **In simple terms:** Talent can be used, genius cannot. Key Takeaway Understand the limits of raw ability versus innate brilliance. Themes talent genius achievement Mood reflective inspirational Type philosophical motivational When to use this quote - career development - artistic pursuits - academic research Key Concepts creativity potential limitations Questions to Reflect On - What distinguishes talent from genius in your field? - How can you nurture talent without overreaching? A Different Perspective Genius may be misunderstood or undervalued. ★ ★ ★ ★ ★ No ratings yet [Genius](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/genius/) [Intelligence](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/intelligence/) [Talent](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/talent/) ## Related quotes > [God gives talent. Work transforms talent into genius.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anna-pavlova/god-gives-talent-work-transforms-talent-into-genius/) [Anna Pavlova](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anna-pavlova/) > [It is only occasional that talent becomes genius - radiating sparks, brilliance, energy, and charismatic magnetism... such a talent was Janis Joplin.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/clive-davis/it-is-only-occasional-that-talent-becomes-genius-radiating-sparks/) [Clive Davis](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/clive-davis/) > [Remember, just because Microsoft can do something, doesn't mean you can. Microsoft makes their own gravity. Normal rules don't apply to them.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/joel-spolsky/remember-just-because-microsoft-can-do-something-doesn-t-mean-you-can/) [Joel Spolsky](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/joel-spolsky/) > [Every medium has its own kind of freedom. I don't want to just cross from one to the next. I want to enjoy the…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/takashi-miike/every-medium-has-its-own-kind-of-freedom-i-don-t-want-to-just-cross/) [Takashi Miike](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/takashi-miike/) > [you can do something. You can, even for one person Don't turn away; help. Because those who suffer, often suffer not because of the…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/elie-wiesel/you-can-do-something-you-can-even-for-one-person-don-t-turn-away-help/) [Elie Wiesel](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/elie-wiesel/) > [My advice is don't keep asking yourself if you can do something. Just get out there and do it. You can really surprise yourself.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/roz-savage/my-advice-is-don-t-keep-asking-yourself-if-you-can-do-something-just/) [Roz Savage](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/roz-savage/) > [Government can do something for the people only in proportion as it can do something to the people.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/thomas-jefferson/government-can-do-something-for-the-people-only-in-proportion-as-it/) [Thomas Jefferson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/thomas-jefferson/) > [The probability that a genius can do stupid things is much higher than the probability that a stupid can do genius things.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/mehmet-murat-ildan/the-probability-that-a-genius-can-do-stupid-things-is-much-higher/) [Mehmet Murat Ildan](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/mehmet-murat-ildan/) > [The life's story of great geniuses is a sad one, without much tangible reward, which does not inspire future generations to face a similar…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/joseph-haydn/the-life-s-story-of-great-geniuses-is-a-sad-one-without-much-tangible/) [Joseph Haydn](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/joseph-haydn/) > [It is not because the touch of genius has roused genius to production, but because the admiration of genius has made talent ambitious, that…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/margaret-fuller/it-is-not-because-the-touch-of-genius-has-roused-genius-to-production/) [Margaret Fuller](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/margaret-fuller/) > [There's a lot of controversy online, some people say i'm a genius and other say i'm hugely talented.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/andy-kindler/there-s-a-lot-of-controversy-online-some-people-say-i-m-a-genius-and/) [Andy Kindler](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/andy-kindler/) > [Genius points the way, talent takes it.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/marie-von-ebner-eschenbach/genius-points-the-way-talent-takes-it/) [Marie von Ebner-Eschenbach](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/marie-von-ebner-eschenbach/) > [But I don't think I have any particular talent for prediction, because when you have three or four elements in hand, you don't have…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/antonio-tabucchi/but-i-don-t-think-i-have-any-particular-talent-for-prediction-because/) [Antonio Tabucchi](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/antonio-tabucchi/) > [Genius differs from talent not by the amount of original thoughts, but by making the latter fertile and by positioning them properly, in other…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/franz-grillparzer/genius-differs-from-talent-not-by-the-amount-of-original-thoughts-but/) [Franz Grillparzer](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/franz-grillparzer/) > [Mediocrity knows nothing higher than itself, but talent instantly recognizes genius.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/arthur-conan-doyle/mediocrity-knows-nothing-higher-than-itself-but-talent-instantly/) [Arthur Conan Doyle](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/arthur-conan-doyle/) ## More by Margot Asquith > [She tells enough white lies to ice a wedding cake.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/margot-asquith/she-tells-enough-white-lies-to-ice-a-wedding-cake/) [Margot Asquith](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/margot-asquith/) > [If Kitchener was not a great man, he was, at least, a great poster.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/margot-asquith/if-kitchener-was-not-a-great-man-he-was-at-least-a-great-poster/) [Margot Asquith](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/margot-asquith/) > [Too much brilliance has its disadvantages, and misplaced wit may raise a laugh, but often beheads a topic of profound interest.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/margot-asquith/too-much-brilliance-has-its-disadvantages-and-misplaced-wit-may-raise/) [Margot Asquith](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/margot-asquith/) > [the announcement that you are going to tell a good story (and the chuckle that precedes it) is always a dangerous opening.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/margot-asquith/the-announcement-that-you-are-going-to-tell-a-good-story-and-the/) [Margot Asquith](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/margot-asquith/) > [“We desire no conquest, no dominion, we seek no indemnities, no material compensation for the sacrifices we shall freely make.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/margot-asquith/we-desire-no-conquest-no-dominion-we-seek-no-indemnities-no-material/) [Margot Asquith](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/margot-asquith/) > [Haunted from my early youth by the transitoriness and pathos of life, I was aware that it is not enough to say "I am…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/margot-asquith/haunted-from-my-early-youth-by-the-transitoriness-and-pathos-of-life/) [Margot Asquith](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/margot-asquith/) > [My sort of looks are of the kind that bore me when I see them on other people.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/margot-asquith/my-sort-of-looks-are-of-the-kind-that-bore-me-when-i-see-them-on/) [Margot Asquith](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/margot-asquith/) > [“The home the military top brass had created for themselves was "picturesque, romantic and unreal", he wrote. "It was as though men were playing…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/margot-asquith/the-home-the-military-top-brass-had-created-for-themselves-was/) [Margot Asquith](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/margot-asquith/) > [I have no face, only two profiles clapped together.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/margot-asquith/i-have-no-face-only-two-profiles-clapped-together/) [Margot Asquith](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/margot-asquith/) > [ \[On Austen Chamberlain:\] He is more loyal to his friends than to his convictions. ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/margot-asquith/on-austen-chamberlain-he-is-more-loyal-to-his-friends-than-to-his/) [Margot Asquith](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/margot-asquith/) > [His modesty amounts to deformity.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/margot-asquith/his-modesty-amounts-to-deformity/) [Margot Asquith](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/margot-asquith/) > [Lloyd George? There is no Lloyd George. There is a marvellous brain; but if you were to shut him in a room and look…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/margot-asquith/lloyd-george-there-is-no-lloyd-george-there-is-a-marvellous-brain-but/) [Margot Asquith](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/margot-asquith/) > [“The French suffered 531,000 casualties (dead, wounded and captured) in those three months, roughly as many as in the eight months of Verdun in…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/margot-asquith/the-french-suffered-531-000-casualties-dead-wounded-and-captured-in/) [Margot Asquith](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/margot-asquith/) > [It is always dangerous to generalize, but the American people, while infinitely generous, are a hard and strong race and, but for the few…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/margot-asquith/it-is-always-dangerous-to-generalize-but-the-american-people-while/) [Margot Asquith](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/margot-asquith/) > [It is not dying, but living, that is a preparation for Death.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/margot-asquith/it-is-not-dying-but-living-that-is-a-preparation-for-death/) [Margot Asquith](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/margot-asquith/) [Explore all 60 Margot Asquith quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/margot-asquith/) ## More Can do quotes > [Changes before your eyes, things you can do and things you can't. My attitude is always let it keep rolling.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/terrence-malick/changes-before-your-eyes-things-you-can-do-and-things-you-can-t-my/) [Terrence Malick](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/terrence-malick/) > [The happy medium is television. And if you find a good suitor, you can do it for years. With movies, you roll the dice.…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/bruce-campbell/the-happy-medium-is-television-and-if-you-find-a-good-suitor-you-can/) [Bruce Campbell](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/bruce-campbell/) > [If I had a million dollars, I just wouldn't just completely set back. I'd have to get out there and show my face to…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/muddy-waters/if-i-had-a-million-dollars-i-just-wouldn-t-just-completely-set-back-i/) [Muddy Waters](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/muddy-waters/) > [Anybody can be Prince Charming one day a year, with the dinner and the flowers and all that. But you know what impresses me?…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ryan-howard/anybody-can-be-prince-charming-one-day-a-year-with-the-dinner-and-the/) [Ryan Howard](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ryan-howard/) > [And if the mind thinks with a believing attitude one can do amazing things.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/norman-vincent-peale/and-if-the-mind-thinks-with-a-believing-attitude-one-can-do-amazing/) [Norman Vincent Peale](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/norman-vincent-peale/) > [The amount of things you can do with a kettlebell is unsurpassed by any other training equipment - dumbbells, resistance machines, free weights.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/laird-hamilton/the-amount-of-things-you-can-do-with-a-kettlebell-is-unsurpassed-by/) [Laird Hamilton](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/laird-hamilton/) > [It's nice when you've done enough movies that you can do your own anthology.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/john-lithgow/it-s-nice-when-you-ve-done-enough-movies-that-you-can-do-your-own/) [John Lithgow](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/john-lithgow/) > [If people don't have their own vision, all they can do is 'sign-up' for someone else's.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/peter-senge/if-people-don-t-have-their-own-vision-all-they-can-do-is-sign-up-for/) [Peter Senge](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/peter-senge/) > [The one thing that flies in the face of all human history and experience, is that the government can do a superior job than…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/james-cook/the-one-thing-that-flies-in-the-face-of-all-human-history-and/) [James Cook](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/james-cook/) > [...what I can do is offer myself, wholehearted and present, to walk with the people I love through the fear and the mess. That's…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/shauna-niequist/what-i-can-do-is-offer-myself-wholehearted-and-present-to-walk-with/) [Shauna Niequist](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/shauna-niequist/) > [Whether that's speaking up in your job or asking for a promotion or saying, 'I think I can do that.' Using your voice in…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/maria-shriver/whether-that-s-speaking-up-in-your-job-or-asking-for-a-promotion-or/) [Maria Shriver](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/maria-shriver/) > [The average ordinary citizen can do a lot of different things when it comes to the climate crisis.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/lawrence-bender/the-average-ordinary-citizen-can-do-a-lot-of-different-things-when-it/) [Lawrence Bender](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/lawrence-bender/) > [A professional is a man who can do his job when he doesn't feel like it. An amateur is a man who can't do…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/james-agate/a-professional-is-a-man-who-can-do-his-job-when-he-doesn-t-feel-like/) [James Agate](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/james-agate/) > [The Lord gives and the Lord takes away, as it pleases him, for he can do all things.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/homer/the-lord-gives-and-the-lord-takes-away-as-it-pleases-him-for-he-can/) [Homer](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/homer/) > [I'm not an educated man. I only know what I'm told, and I'm not told that much; I have no frame of reference for…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/maynard-james-keenan/i-m-not-an-educated-man-i-only-know-what-i-m-told-and-i-m-not-told/) [Maynard James Keenan](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/maynard-james-keenan/) Browse all 5,673 Can do quotes ```json { "@context": "https://schema.org", "@graph": [ { "@type": "Quotation", "text": "You can do something with talent, but nothing with genius.", "creator": { "@type": "Person", "name": "Margot Asquith" }, "isPartOf": { "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/#website" }, "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/margot-asquith/you-can-do-something-with-talent-but-nothing-with-genius/", "about": { "@type": "Thing", "name": "Can do" }, "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/margot-asquith/you-can-do-something-with-talent-but-nothing-with-genius/#quotation", "image": { "@type": "ImageObject", "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/480/margot-asquith-11364_can-do_you-can-do-something-with-talent-but-not_1643485.jpg", "contentUrl": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/480/margot-asquith-11364_can-do_you-can-do-something-with-talent-but-not_1643485.jpg", "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/480/margot-asquith-11364_can-do_you-can-do-something-with-talent-but-not_1643485.jpg", "width": 1080, "height": 1080, "caption": "“You can do something with talent, but nothing with genius.” — Margot Asquith", "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": "Margot Asquith", "item": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/margot-asquith/" }, { "@type": "ListItem", "position": 4, "name": "You can do something with talent,...", "item": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/margot-asquith/you-can-do-something-with-talent-but-nothing-with-genius/" } ], "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/margot-asquith/you-can-do-something-with-talent-but-nothing-with-genius/#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 } } ] } ```