---
title: "Meaning & Key Takeaway of: Samuel McDermott or not, I was Ian…"
description: "\"“Samuel McDermott or not, I was Ian McDermott, and the way I saw life was the way I'd live life.”\" — Michael Harmon"
image: "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/46e/michael-harmon-77964_life_samuel-mcdermott-or-not-i-was-ian-mcderm_2964469.jpg"
---

#  Samuel McDermott or not, I was Ian McDermott, and the way…

![“Samuel McDermott or not, I was Ian McDermott, and the way I saw life was the way I'd live life.” quote by Michael Harmon](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/46e/michael-harmon-77964_life_samuel-mcdermott-or-not-i-was-ian-mcderm_2964469.jpg)   [Download](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/46e/michael-harmon-77964_life_samuel-mcdermott-or-not-i-was-ian-mcderm_2964469.jpg) [Open image](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/46e/michael-harmon-77964_life_samuel-mcdermott-or-not-i-was-ian-mcderm_2964469.jpg)

> ““Samuel McDermott or not, I was Ian McDermott, and the way I saw life was the way I'd live life.””

Michael Harmon

## About This Quote

This interpretation was drafted with AI assistance. It is one reading of the quote, not the author's own explanation.

He asserts that his identity defines his life perspective, shaping how he lives.

**In simple terms:** Identity shapes life choices.

Key Takeaway

Align actions with self‑identity.

Themes

identity self‑definition authenticity

Mood

introspective motivational

Type

philosophical personal

When to use this quote

- career counseling
- personal development
- creative writing

Key Concepts

personal narrative philosophy

Questions to Reflect On

- What defines your core identity?
- How does it guide decisions?

A Different Perspective

May ignore external influences.

★ ★ ★ ★ ★   No ratings yet

[Life](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/life/) [Live life](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/live-life/)

## Related quotes

> [I think I have a right to live my life the way I like.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/malala-yousafzai/i-think-i-have-a-right-to-live-my-life-the-way-i-like/)

[Malala Yousafzai](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/malala-yousafzai/)

> [Live your life the way you do and not your parents](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anonymous/live-your-life-the-way-you-do-and-not-your-parents/)

[Anonymous](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anonymous/)

> [Its my life not yours. I will live it the way I want to. You live your life the way you want to.~~~¤¤¤](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anonymous/its-my-life-not-yours-i-will-live-it-the-way-i-want-to-you-live-your/)

[Anonymous](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anonymous/)

> [You don’t have to live your life the way other people expect you to.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/chris-guillebeau/you-don-t-have-to-live-your-life-the-way-other-people-expect-you-to/)

[Chris Guillebeau](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/chris-guillebeau/)

> [Life is too short to care what people think. So live your life the way you want to, be happy, be strong, be yourself…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anonymous/life-is-too-short-to-care-what-people-think-so-live-your-life-the-way/)

[Anonymous](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anonymous/)

> [I'm just going to live my life the way I want to.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/matt-kemp/i-m-just-going-to-live-my-life-the-way-i-want-to/)

[Matt Kemp](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/matt-kemp/)

> [Live life the way you have imagined](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/mike-saquan-wren-iii/live-life-the-way-you-have-imagined/)

[Mike Saquan Wren III](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/mike-saquan-wren-iii/)

> [Juz wana live my life my way.. Gone crazzzzy to be happy...](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/dribbler/juz-wana-live-my-life-my-way-gone-crazzzzy-to-be-happy/)

Dribbler

> [Business could not make dull, nor passion wild; Who saw life steadily, and saw it whole.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/matthew-arnold/business-could-not-make-dull-nor-passion-wild-who-saw-life-steadily/)

[Matthew Arnold](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/matthew-arnold/)

> [“Grandfather always got things wrong. He saw life from outside and never quite understood.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/terry-pratchett/grandfather-always-got-things-wrong-he-saw-life-from-outside-and/)

[Terry Pratchett](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/terry-pratchett/)

> [I didn't want to be an actor. I wanted to design historical movies like 'Ben-Hur'. I saw this as my life.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/dante-ferretti/i-didn-t-want-to-be-an-actor-i-wanted-to-design-historical-movies/)

Dante Ferretti

> [I used to think I saw life in blacks or whites, turns out I was more grey. It is extremely liberating to care for…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/shweta-bachchan-nanda/i-used-to-think-i-saw-life-in-blacks-or-whites-turns-out-i-was-more/)

[Shweta Bachchan Nanda](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/shweta-bachchan-nanda/)

> [I saw my whole life flash before my eyes, boss. It was horrific. I haven’t done anything to regret yet and it’s been way…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/sherrilyn-kenyon/i-saw-my-whole-life-flash-before-my-eyes-boss-it-was-horrific-i-haven/)

[Sherrilyn Kenyon](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/sherrilyn-kenyon/)

> [I saw my whole life in front of me, and I had to let go of past things that I was trying to hold…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/lindsay-lohan/i-saw-my-whole-life-in-front-of-me-and-i-had-to-let-go-of-past-things/)

[Lindsay Lohan](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/lindsay-lohan/)

> [I was brought up in a publishing home, a newspaper man's home, and was excited by that, I suppose. I saw that life at…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/rupert-murdoch/i-was-brought-up-in-a-publishing-home-a-newspaper-man-s-home-and-was/)

[Rupert Murdoch](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/rupert-murdoch/)

## More by Michael Harmon

> [“I'd never seen a guy get the shit kicked out of him without a punch being landed, but there's a first time for everything,…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/michael-harmon/i-d-never-seen-a-guy-get-the-shit-kicked-out-of-him-without-a-punch/)

Michael Harmon

> [“Sometimes the worst-tasting crap is the best for you.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/michael-harmon/sometimes-the-worst-tasting-crap-is-the-best-for-you/)

Michael Harmon

Explore all 3 Michael Harmon quotes

## More Life quotes

> [Of all the people who have affected my life and influenced the choices I've made, none has been more important than my father. I…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/teddy-atlas/of-all-the-people-who-have-affected-my-life-and-influenced-the/)

[Teddy Atlas](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/teddy-atlas/)

> [What sets worlds in motion is the interplay of differences, their attractions and repulsions. Life is plurality, death is uniformity. By suppressing differences and…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/octavio-paz/what-sets-worlds-in-motion-is-the-interplay-of-differences-their/)

[Octavio Paz](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/octavio-paz/)

> [Life is full of change. That's how we learn and grow.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anonymous/life-is-full-of-change-that-s-how-we-learn-and-grow/)

[Anonymous](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anonymous/)

> [Life works most perfectly when a reciprocal love relationship is in place between man and God.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/beth-moore/life-works-most-perfectly-when-a-reciprocal-love-relationship-is-in/)

[Beth Moore](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/beth-moore/)

> [I value the experiences that come with life too much to sit by and not put my full effort into them.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jim-miller/i-value-the-experiences-that-come-with-life-too-much-to-sit-by-and/)

[Jim Miller](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jim-miller/)

> [Entertainment is a sacred pursuit when done well. When done well, it raises the quality of human life.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/michael-chabon/entertainment-is-a-sacred-pursuit-when-done-well-when-done-well-it/)

[Michael Chabon](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/michael-chabon/)

> [“There's more to life than you can see. Your sight is limited.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/tammy-kling/there-s-more-to-life-than-you-can-see-your-sight-is-limited/)

[Tammy Kling](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/tammy-kling/)

> [“I've spent much of my life calling my intuition "something wrong with me.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/deanna-l-lawlis/i-ve-spent-much-of-my-life-calling-my-intuition-something-wrong-with/)

Deanna L. Lawlis

> [When you do things they're absolutely right at that time for you and it can always teach you something about yourself. You can take…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/kym-marsh/when-you-do-things-they-re-absolutely-right-at-that-time-for-you-and/)

[Kym Marsh](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/kym-marsh/)

> [The only people who think the Internet is a calamity are people whose lives have been hurt by it; the only people who insist…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/chuck-klosterman/the-only-people-who-think-the-internet-is-a-calamity-are-people-whose/)

[Chuck Klosterman](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/chuck-klosterman/)

> [The one thing that I keep learning over and over again is that I don't know nothing. I mean, that's my life lesson.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/dwayne-johnson/the-one-thing-that-i-keep-learning-over-and-over-again-is-that-i-don/)

[Dwayne Johnson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/dwayne-johnson/)

> [“THIS tale of my sore-troubled life I write,    To thank the God of nature, who conveyed    My soul to me, and with such care…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anonymous/this-tale-of-my-sore-troubled-life-i-write-to-thank-the-god-of-nature/)

[Anonymous](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anonymous/)

> [“The future is only an indifferent void no one cares about, but the past is filled with life, and its countenance is irritating, repellent,…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/milan-kundera/the-future-is-only-an-indifferent-void-no-one-cares-about-but-the/)

[Milan Kundera](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/milan-kundera/)

> [Two things revolutionised life: moving to the countryside and falling in love.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/nick-love/two-things-revolutionised-life-moving-to-the-countryside-and-falling/)

[Nick Love](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/nick-love/)

> [But just remember, life without me would be even more unbearable.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anne-rice/but-just-remember-life-without-me-would-be-even-more-unbearable/)

[Anne Rice](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anne-rice/)

[Browse all 265,290 Life quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/life/)

```json
{
    "@context": "https://schema.org",
    "@graph": [
        {
            "@type": "Quotation",
            "text": "“Samuel McDermott or not, I was Ian McDermott, and the way I saw life was the way I'd live life.”",
            "creator": {
                "@type": "Person",
                "name": "Michael Harmon"
            },
            "isPartOf": {
                "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/#website"
            },
            "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/michael-harmon/samuel-mcdermott-or-not-i-was-ian-mcdermott-and-the-way-i-saw-life/",
            "about": {
                "@type": "Thing",
                "name": "Life"
            },
            "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/michael-harmon/samuel-mcdermott-or-not-i-was-ian-mcdermott-and-the-way-i-saw-life/#quotation",
            "image": {
                "@type": "ImageObject",
                "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/46e/michael-harmon-77964_life_samuel-mcdermott-or-not-i-was-ian-mcderm_2964469.jpg",
                "contentUrl": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/46e/michael-harmon-77964_life_samuel-mcdermott-or-not-i-was-ian-mcderm_2964469.jpg",
                "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/46e/michael-harmon-77964_life_samuel-mcdermott-or-not-i-was-ian-mcderm_2964469.jpg",
                "width": 1080,
                "height": 1080,
                "caption": "“Samuel McDermott or not, I was Ian McDermott, and the way I saw life was the way I'd live life.” — Michael Harmon",
                "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": "Michael Harmon",
                    "item": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/michael-harmon/"
                },
                {
                    "@type": "ListItem",
                    "position": 4,
                    "name": "“Samuel McDermott or not, I was...",
                    "item": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/michael-harmon/samuel-mcdermott-or-not-i-was-ian-mcdermott-and-the-way-i-saw-life/"
                }
            ],
            "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/michael-harmon/samuel-mcdermott-or-not-i-was-ian-mcdermott-and-the-way-i-saw-life/#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
            }
        }
    ]
}
```
