--- title: "Meaning & Key Takeaway of: Men are not really born either hopelessly…" description: "\"Men are not really born either hopelessly idle, or preternaturally industrious. They may move in one direction or the other as will or circumstances di..." image: "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/e82/max-aitken-lord-beaverbrook-41_born_men-are-not-really-born-either-hopelessl_396029.jpg" --- # Men are not really born either hopelessly idle, or… ![“Men are not really born either hopelessly idle, or preternaturally industrious. They may move in one direction or the other as will or circumstances dictate, but it is open to any man to work.” quote by Max Aitken, Lord Beaverbrook](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/e82/max-aitken-lord-beaverbrook-41_born_men-are-not-really-born-either-hopelessl_396029.jpg) [Download](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/e82/max-aitken-lord-beaverbrook-41_born_men-are-not-really-born-either-hopelessl_396029.jpg) [Open image](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/e82/max-aitken-lord-beaverbrook-41_born_men-are-not-really-born-either-hopelessl_396029.jpg) > “Men are not really born either hopelessly idle, or preternaturally industrious. They may move in one direction or the other as will or circumstances dictate, but it is open to any man to work.” [Max Aitken, Lord Beaverbrook](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/max-aitken-lord-beaverbrook/) ## About This Quote This interpretation was drafted with AI assistance. It is one reading of the quote, not the author's own explanation. People are not inherently lazy or industrious; behavior depends on personal choice and circumstances. **In simple terms:** People can choose to work or not based on situation. Key Takeaway Recognize personal agency in work habits. Themes choice agency work ethic social influence Mood reflective analytical Type philosophical motivational When to use this quote - career decisions - education choices - entrepreneurial ventures - policy making Key Concepts determinism free will motivation Questions to Reflect On - What factors most influence your work ethic? - How can society support those hindered by circumstance? A Different Perspective Assumes equal opportunity, ignoring structural barriers. ★ ★ ★ ★ ★ No ratings yet [Born](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/born/) [Circumstances](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/circumstances/) [Idle](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/idle/) [Industrious](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/industrious/) [Industrious Direction](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/industrious-direction-3561964/) [Man Work](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/man-work/) [May](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/may/) [Men](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/men/) [Men Really](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/men-really/) [Moving](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/moving/) [One direction](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/one-direction/) [Open Man](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/open-man-1841469/) [Preternaturally Industrious](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/preternaturally-industrious-3561965/) ## Related quotes > [The whole universe sat there, open to the man who could make the right decisions.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/frank-herbert/the-whole-universe-sat-there-open-to-the-man-who-could-make-the-right/) [Frank Herbert](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/frank-herbert/) > [I learned how to pass when I was real young. That's one thing I always knew how to do was find the open man.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/kevin-durant/i-learned-how-to-pass-when-i-was-real-young-that-s-one-thing-i-always/) [Kevin Durant](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/kevin-durant/) > [“a open pot can't hide, a inch-opened door can't hide much, but an open man is hiding the universe. she says something else, but…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/robert-jordan/a-open-pot-can-t-hide-a-inch-opened-door-can-t-hide-much-but-an-open/) [robert jordan](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/robert-jordan/) > [The biggest thing I've been working on his just finding the open man.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/donovan-mitchell/the-biggest-thing-i-ve-been-working-on-his-just-finding-the-open-man/) [Donovan Mitchell](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/donovan-mitchell/) > [In all crises of human affairs there are two broad courses open to a man. 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It isn't the man who sits in the limelight like…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/max-aitken-lord-beaverbrook/let-me-say-that-the-credit-belongs-to-the-boys-in-the-back-rooms-it/) [Max Aitken, Lord Beaverbrook](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/max-aitken-lord-beaverbrook/) > [ What a creature of strange moods \[Winston Churchill\] is - always at the top of the wheel of confidence or at the bottom of… ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/max-aitken-lord-beaverbrook/what-a-creature-of-strange-moods-winston-churchill-is-always-at-the/) [Max Aitken, Lord Beaverbrook](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/max-aitken-lord-beaverbrook/) > [Make yourself master of one single subject and the time must come when your knowledge will be valuable.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/max-aitken-lord-beaverbrook/make-yourself-master-of-one-single-subject-and-the-time-must-come/) [Max Aitken, Lord Beaverbrook](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/max-aitken-lord-beaverbrook/) > [Three outstanding qualities make for success: judgment, industry, health. 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And that which has once been born, will always reappear in a new…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/alvar-aalto/nothing-old-is-ever-reborn-but-neither-does-it-totally-disappear-and/) [Alvar Aalto](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/alvar-aalto/) > [I have lifted my plane . . . for perhaps a thousand flights and I have never felt her wheels glide from the Earth…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/beryl-markham/i-have-lifted-my-plane-for-perhaps-a-thousand-flights-and-i-have/) [Beryl Markham](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/beryl-markham/) > [If there is any period one would desire to be born in, is it not the age of Revolution; when the old and the…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ralph-waldo-emerson/if-there-is-any-period-one-would-desire-to-be-born-in-is-it-not-the/) [Ralph Waldo Emerson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ralph-waldo-emerson/) > [Must I go bound while you go free Must I love a manwho doesn't love me Must I be born with so little art…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/cassandra-clare/must-i-go-bound-while-you-go-free-must-i-love-a-manwho-doesn-t-love/) [Cassandra Clare](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/cassandra-clare/) > [I'm not against gay people. I have a relative who is also gay. We can't help it if they were born that way.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/manny-pacquiao/i-m-not-against-gay-people-i-have-a-relative-who-is-also-gay-we-can-t/) [Manny Pacquiao](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/manny-pacquiao/) > [“Every child is born as angel.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/lailah-gifty-akita/every-child-is-born-as-angel/) [Lailah Gifty Akita](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/lailah-gifty-akita/) > [For the glory born of Goodness Never dies, And its flag is not half-masted In the skies.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/bret-harte/for-the-glory-born-of-goodness-never-dies-and-its-flag-is-not-half/) [Bret Harte](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/bret-harte/) > [There are two kinds of beauty; there is a beauty which God gives at birth, and which withers as a flower. 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