--- title: "Meaning & Key Takeaway of: Both as workers and as consumers, we feel…" description: "\"“Both as workers and as consumers, we feel we move in channels that have been projected from afar by vast impersonal forces. We worry that we are becom..." image: "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/967/matthew-b-crawford-26537_intellectually_both-as-workers-and-as-consumers-we-feel_3145206.jpg" --- # Both as workers and as consumers, we feel we move in… ![“Both as workers and as consumers, we feel we move in channels that have been projected from afar by vast impersonal forces. We worry that we are becoming stupider, an begin to wonder if getting an adequate grasp on the world, intellectually, depends on getting a handle on it in some literal and…” quote by Matthew B. Crawford](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/967/matthew-b-crawford-26537_intellectually_both-as-workers-and-as-consumers-we-feel_3145206.jpg) [Download](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/967/matthew-b-crawford-26537_intellectually_both-as-workers-and-as-consumers-we-feel_3145206.jpg) [Open image](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/967/matthew-b-crawford-26537_intellectually_both-as-workers-and-as-consumers-we-feel_3145206.jpg) > ““Both as workers and as consumers, we feel we move in channels that have been projected from afar by vast impersonal forces. We worry that we are becoming stupider, an begin to wonder if getting an adequate grasp on the world, intellectually, depends on getting a handle on it in some literal and active sense.”” [Matthew B. Crawford](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/matthew-b-crawford/) ## About This Quote This interpretation was drafted with AI assistance. It is one reading of the quote, not the author's own explanation. We are shaped by distant, impersonal systems, and understanding the world may require active, hands‑on interaction. **In simple terms:** Active engagement clarifies complex systems. Key Takeaway Seek direct involvement to grasp reality. Themes society technology knowledge agency Mood analytical thoughtful Type philosophical inspirational When to use this quote - workplace - consumer behavior - education - political discourse Key Concepts systems theory critical thinking embodied cognition Questions to Reflect On - What practical steps can you take to engage more directly with the world? - How do you balance passive consumption with active participation? A Different Perspective Hands‑on experience may not be feasible for everyone. ★ ★ ★ ★ ★ No ratings yet [Meaning](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/meaning/) [Realization](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/realization/) [Work](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/work/) ## Related quotes > [“We have this extraordinary conceit in the West that while we've been hard at work in the creation of technological wizardry and innovation, somehow…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/edmund-wade-davis/we-have-this-extraordinary-conceit-in-the-west-that-while-we-ve-been/) Edmund Wade Davis > [Delivering a service that consumers feel truly connected to and providing an experience that people love and love to organically share and talk about…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/katrina-lake/delivering-a-service-that-consumers-feel-truly-connected-to-and/) [Katrina Lake](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/katrina-lake/) > [“A world that is intellectually mature but morally infantile is on the road to ruin.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/joshua-loth-liebman/a-world-that-is-intellectually-mature-but-morally-infantile-is-on-the/) [Joshua Loth Liebman](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/joshua-loth-liebman/) > [One cannot enter don Juan's world intellectually, like a dilettante seeking fast and fleeting knowledge. Nor, in don Juan's world, can anything be verified…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/carlos-castaneda/one-cannot-enter-don-juan-s-world-intellectually-like-a-dilettante/) [Carlos Castaneda](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/carlos-castaneda/) > [I never think in terms of how we can compete against the other companies; rather, our primary focus is to make consumers feel the…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/satoru-iwata/i-never-think-in-terms-of-how-we-can-compete-against-the-other/) [Satoru Iwata](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/satoru-iwata/) > [The triumph of advertising in the culture industry is that consumers feel compelled to buy and use its products even though they see through…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/theodor-adorno/the-triumph-of-advertising-in-the-culture-industry-is-that-consumers/) [Theodor Adorno](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/theodor-adorno/) > [For those who struggle with anti-pagan prejudices and stereotypes, Humanist Paganism might be a powerful educational tool. It can show that a pagan can…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/brendan-myers/for-those-who-struggle-with-anti-pagan-prejudices-and-stereotypes/) [Brendan Myers](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/brendan-myers/) > [“Intellectually, they knew a great deal. Practically, they chose to know almost nothing.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/peter-benchley/intellectually-they-knew-a-great-deal-practically-they-chose-to-know/) [Peter Benchley](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/peter-benchley/) > [“Me? Oh, intellectually I believe in having a good heart, a chirpy penis, a lively intelligence, and the courage to say ‘shit!’ in front…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/d-h-lawrence-2/me-oh-intellectually-i-believe-in-having-a-good-heart-a-chirpy-penis/) [D.H. Lawrence](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/d-h-lawrence-2/) > [I'm lucky enough to have a kid with me who is actually really intellectually up with what's going on in the world and actually…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ray-winstone/i-m-lucky-enough-to-have-a-kid-with-me-who-is-actually-really/) [Ray Winstone](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ray-winstone/) > [Being at the top of your game intellectually, philosophically, politically, is not a forever thing.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/neil-degrasse-tyson/being-at-the-top-of-your-game-intellectually-philosophically/) [Neil deGrasse Tyson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/neil-degrasse-tyson/) > [I had spend a lot of time looking at things intellectually, coming from the head, let's say, rather than the heart, and saying things…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/gord-downie/i-had-spend-a-lot-of-time-looking-at-things-intellectually-coming/) [Gord Downie](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/gord-downie/) > [What's frustrating to me is when, on a low-budget movie, people don't take chances. A big-budget movie, that script's your bible; nobody's going to…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/lance-henriksen/what-s-frustrating-to-me-is-when-on-a-low-budget-movie-people-don-t/) [Lance Henriksen](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/lance-henriksen/) > [It is intellectually dishonest to lump venture investors with hedge fund and buy-out investors.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jose-ferreira/it-is-intellectually-dishonest-to-lump-venture-investors-with-hedge/) [Jose Ferreira](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jose-ferreira/) > [I often feel intellectually frustrated when I'm in a position where I'm not moving forward; when I'm not enquiring about something.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/eleanor-catton/i-often-feel-intellectually-frustrated-when-i-m-in-a-position-where-i/) [Eleanor Catton](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/eleanor-catton/) ## More by Matthew B. Crawford > [“The idea of autonomy denies that we are born into a world that existed prior to us. It posits an essential aloneness; an autonomous…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/matthew-b-crawford/the-idea-of-autonomy-denies-that-we-are-born-into-a-world-that/) [Matthew B. Crawford](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/matthew-b-crawford/) > [“When the point of education becomes the production of credentials rather than the cultivation of knowledge, it forfeits the motive recognized by Aristotle: "All…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/matthew-b-crawford/when-the-point-of-education-becomes-the-production-of-credentials/) [Matthew B. Crawford](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/matthew-b-crawford/) > [“The satisfactions of manifesting oneself concretely in the world through manual competence have been known to make a man quiet and easy. They seem…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/matthew-b-crawford/the-satisfactions-of-manifesting-oneself-concretely-in-the-world/) [Matthew B. Crawford](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/matthew-b-crawford/) > [“I used to try to hypnotize myself into a Zen-like state of resignation at the outset. It doesn't work, not for this grasshopper. I…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/matthew-b-crawford/i-used-to-try-to-hypnotize-myself-into-a-zen-like-state-of/) [Matthew B. Crawford](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/matthew-b-crawford/) > [“...an external reward can affect one's interpretation of one's own motivation, and interpretation that comes to be self-fulfilling. A similar effect may account for…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/matthew-b-crawford/an-external-reward-can-affect-one-s-interpretation-of-one-s-own/) [Matthew B. Crawford](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/matthew-b-crawford/) > [“...if we follow the traces of our own actions to their source, they intimate some understanding of the good life. This understanding may be…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/matthew-b-crawford/if-we-follow-the-traces-of-our-own-actions-to-their-source-they/) [Matthew B. Crawford](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/matthew-b-crawford/) > [“I was nearing a familiar point where I’ve descended through every level of madness and despair, and a certain calm takes over. I was…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/matthew-b-crawford/i-was-nearing-a-familiar-point-where-i-ve-descended-through-every/) [Matthew B. Crawford](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/matthew-b-crawford/) > [“The truth about idiocy... is that it is at once an ethical and cognitive failure... The Greek idios means 'private,' and idiotes means a…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/matthew-b-crawford/the-truth-about-idiocy-is-that-it-is-at-once-an-ethical-and-cognitive/) [Matthew B. Crawford](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/matthew-b-crawford/) > [“The lover of excellence is prone to being drawn out of himself, erotically almost, in a way that the universalist egalitarian is not. The…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/matthew-b-crawford/the-lover-of-excellence-is-prone-to-being-drawn-out-of-himself/) [Matthew B. Crawford](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/matthew-b-crawford/) > [“I did not even look at the scoreboard when my routine was done in 1976. My teammates started pointing because there was this uproar"…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/matthew-b-crawford/i-did-not-even-look-at-the-scoreboard-when-my-routine-was-done-in/) [Matthew B. Crawford](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/matthew-b-crawford/) > [“There is a classic psychology experiment that seems to confirm Brewer's point. Children who enjoy drawing were given marker pens and allowed to go…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/matthew-b-crawford/there-is-a-classic-psychology-experiment-that-seems-to-confirm-brewer/) [Matthew B. Crawford](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/matthew-b-crawford/) > [“Stripped of the kind of judgments that are at the very heart of the idea of "credit", shot through with bad faith, \[the mortgage…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/matthew-b-crawford/stripped-of-the-kind-of-judgments-that-are-at-the-very-heart-of-the/) [Matthew B. Crawford](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/matthew-b-crawford/) > [“...it is often the case that when things get really hairy, you want an experienced human being in control. The preference for algorithms over…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/matthew-b-crawford/it-is-often-the-case-that-when-things-get-really-hairy-you-want-an/) [Matthew B. Crawford](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/matthew-b-crawford/) > [“We're not as free and independent as we thought. Street-level work that disrupts the infrastructure (the sewer system below or the electrical grid above)…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/matthew-b-crawford/we-re-not-as-free-and-independent-as-we-thought-street-level-work/) [Matthew B. Crawford](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/matthew-b-crawford/) > [“His treatment of mechanical problems wasn't divorced from the worldly situations in which they arise, and as a result \[John Muir's service manual on…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/matthew-b-crawford/his-treatment-of-mechanical-problems-wasn-t-divorced-from-the-worldly/) [Matthew B. Crawford](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/matthew-b-crawford/) [Explore all 19 Matthew B. Crawford quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/matthew-b-crawford/) ## More Intellectually quotes > [I often feel intellectually frustrated when I'm in a position where I'm not moving forward; when I'm not enquiring about something.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/eleanor-catton/i-often-feel-intellectually-frustrated-when-i-m-in-a-position-where-i/) [Eleanor Catton](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/eleanor-catton/) > [It is intellectually dishonest to lump venture investors with hedge fund and buy-out investors.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jose-ferreira/it-is-intellectually-dishonest-to-lump-venture-investors-with-hedge/) [Jose Ferreira](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jose-ferreira/) > [What's frustrating to me is when, on a low-budget movie, people don't take chances. A big-budget movie, that script's your bible; nobody's going to…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/lance-henriksen/what-s-frustrating-to-me-is-when-on-a-low-budget-movie-people-don-t/) [Lance Henriksen](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/lance-henriksen/) > [I had spend a lot of time looking at things intellectually, coming from the head, let's say, rather than the heart, and saying things…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/gord-downie/i-had-spend-a-lot-of-time-looking-at-things-intellectually-coming/) [Gord Downie](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/gord-downie/) > [“We have this extraordinary conceit in the West that while we've been hard at work in the creation of technological wizardry and innovation, somehow…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/edmund-wade-davis/we-have-this-extraordinary-conceit-in-the-west-that-while-we-ve-been/) Edmund Wade Davis > [“Intellectually, they knew a great deal. Practically, they chose to know almost nothing.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/peter-benchley/intellectually-they-knew-a-great-deal-practically-they-chose-to-know/) [Peter Benchley](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/peter-benchley/) > [For those who struggle with anti-pagan prejudices and stereotypes, Humanist Paganism might be a powerful educational tool. It can show that a pagan can…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/brendan-myers/for-those-who-struggle-with-anti-pagan-prejudices-and-stereotypes/) [Brendan Myers](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/brendan-myers/) > [“Me? Oh, intellectually I believe in having a good heart, a chirpy penis, a lively intelligence, and the courage to say ‘shit!’ in front…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/d-h-lawrence-2/me-oh-intellectually-i-believe-in-having-a-good-heart-a-chirpy-penis/) [D.H. Lawrence](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/d-h-lawrence-2/) > [I'm lucky enough to have a kid with me who is actually really intellectually up with what's going on in the world and actually…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ray-winstone/i-m-lucky-enough-to-have-a-kid-with-me-who-is-actually-really/) [Ray Winstone](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ray-winstone/) > [Being at the top of your game intellectually, philosophically, politically, is not a forever thing.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/neil-degrasse-tyson/being-at-the-top-of-your-game-intellectually-philosophically/) [Neil deGrasse Tyson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/neil-degrasse-tyson/) > [“I usually dumb down around the intellectually deficient so I don’t come off like a complete prick.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/krista-ritchie/i-usually-dumb-down-around-the-intellectually-deficient-so-i-don-t/) [Krista Ritchie](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/krista-ritchie/) > [I've known Dennis Kucinich for a long time, and I don't think I have illusions about him. Sometimes I find him pompous, male chauvinistic,…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/marianne-williamson/i-ve-known-dennis-kucinich-for-a-long-time-and-i-don-t-think-i-have/) [Marianne Williamson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/marianne-williamson/) > [Every minute of every day, we should be challenging ourselves to grow intellectually and to stay curious about the world.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/trish-regan/every-minute-of-every-day-we-should-be-challenging-ourselves-to-grow/) [Trish Regan](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/trish-regan/) > [How am I immature? Intellectually, emotionally, and sexually. Yeah, but in what other ways?](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/woody-allen/how-am-i-immature-intellectually-emotionally-and-sexually-yeah-but-in/) [Woody Allen](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/woody-allen/) > [It is only the intellectually lost who ever argue.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/oscar-wilde/it-is-only-the-intellectually-lost-who-ever-argue/) [Oscar Wilde](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/oscar-wilde/) Browse all 145 Intellectually quotes ```json { "@context": "https://schema.org", "@graph": [ { "@type": "Quotation", "text": "“Both as workers and as consumers, we feel we move in channels that have been projected from afar by vast impersonal forces. We worry that we are becoming stupider, an begin to wonder if getting an adequate grasp on the world, intellectually, depends on getting a handle on it in some literal and active sense.”", "creator": { "@type": "Person", "name": "Matthew B. 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