--- title: "Meaning & Key Takeaway of: If you blithely do what you do and you're…" description: "\"If you blithely do what you do and you're good at what you do, and try to be a decent person, you can succeed.\" — Michael Patrick Jann" image: "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/82c/michael-patrick-jann-50273_decent_if-you-blithely-do-what-you-do-and-you-r_3086519.jpg" --- # If you blithely do what you do and you're good at what you… ![“If you blithely do what you do and you're good at what you do, and try to be a decent person, you can succeed.” quote by Michael Patrick Jann](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/82c/michael-patrick-jann-50273_decent_if-you-blithely-do-what-you-do-and-you-r_3086519.jpg) [Download](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/82c/michael-patrick-jann-50273_decent_if-you-blithely-do-what-you-do-and-you-r_3086519.jpg) [Open image](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/82c/michael-patrick-jann-50273_decent_if-you-blithely-do-what-you-do-and-you-r_3086519.jpg) > “If you blithely do what you do and you're good at what you do, and try to be a decent person, you can succeed.” [Michael Patrick Jann](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/michael-patrick-jann/) ## About This Quote This interpretation was drafted with AI assistance. It is one reading of the quote, not the author's own explanation. Skillful, ethical work combined with personal decency leads to success. **In simple terms:** Do good work and be decent to succeed. Key Takeaway Focus on skill and character. Themes career success ethics skill development Mood optimistic thoughtful Type motivational practical When to use this quote - job performance - team collaboration - leadership - creative projects Key Concepts personal growth professionalism Questions to Reflect On - How do you balance integrity with ambition? - What role does luck play in your field? A Different Perspective Success also depends on opportunity and luck. ★ ★ ★ ★ ★ No ratings yet [Success](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/success/) ## Related quotes > [Rather than spend so much time wondering if I'm going to get hired, or is it a problem that I've got this black-tar history,…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/natasha-lyonne/rather-than-spend-so-much-time-wondering-if-i-m-going-to-get-hired-or/) [Natasha Lyonne](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/natasha-lyonne/) > [I never duck out of a fight; I don't care what the hell the odds are, and I'm rough at times, but I try…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jack-kirby/i-never-duck-out-of-a-fight-i-don-t-care-what-the-hell-the-odds-are/) [Jack Kirby](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jack-kirby/) > [It is noble to succeed, but it's nobler still to help the other person to succeed.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/vikrant-parsai/it-is-noble-to-succeed-but-it-s-nobler-still-to-help-the-other-person/) [Vikrant Parsai](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/vikrant-parsai/) > [I still like and admire George W. Bush. I consider him a fundamentally decent person, and I do not believe he or his White…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/scott-mcclellan/i-still-like-and-admire-george-w-bush-i-consider-him-a-fundamentally/) [Scott McClellan](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/scott-mcclellan/) > [Why would I want to read something about somebody that's just a really nice, decent person who overcomes terrible trials? That's not how life…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/tama-janowitz/why-would-i-want-to-read-something-about-somebody-that-s-just-a/) [Tama Janowitz](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/tama-janowitz/) > [Whether it's corporate investigations or comedy, there are certain inherent truths to trying to get what you want while trying to be a decent…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/nick-kroll/whether-it-s-corporate-investigations-or-comedy-there-are-certain/) [Nick Kroll](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/nick-kroll/) > [Any decent person who knows what warfare is can never go into battle with a whole heart.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/orson-scott-card/any-decent-person-who-knows-what-warfare-is-can-never-go-into-battle/) [Orson Scott Card](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/orson-scott-card/) > [A saint is a person who does almost everything any other decent person does, only somewhat better and with a totally different motive.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/coventry-patmore/a-saint-is-a-person-who-does-almost-everything-any-other-decent/) [Coventry Patmore](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/coventry-patmore/) > [I'm trying to make you think I'm a decent person. Telling you I saw you naked while I was another species does not help…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/maggie-stiefvater/i-m-trying-to-make-you-think-i-m-a-decent-person-telling-you-i-saw/) [Maggie Stiefvater](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/maggie-stiefvater/) > [... the English think of an opinion as something which a decent person, if he has the misfortune to have one, does all he…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/margaret-halsey/the-english-think-of-an-opinion-as-something-which-a-decent-person-if/) [Margaret Halsey](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/margaret-halsey/) > [the Bible is only as good and decent as the person reading it.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/dan-savage/the-bible-is-only-as-good-and-decent-as-the-person-reading-it/) [Dan Savage](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/dan-savage/) > [You get out of life what you put into it. I think you need a bit of luck but you also make a bit…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/john-key/you-get-out-of-life-what-you-put-into-it-i-think-you-need-a-bit-of/) [John Key](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/john-key/) > [Breaking Bad' - I've heard that question phrased in many directions, and it always means the same thing. It's when someone can't... when a…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/rj-mitte/breaking-bad-i-ve-heard-that-question-phrased-in-many-directions-and/) [RJ Mitte](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/rj-mitte/) > [The person who is to succeed will never let his mind dwell on past mistakes. He will forgive the past in his life and…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ernest-holmes/the-person-who-is-to-succeed-will-never-let-his-mind-dwell-on-past/) [Ernest Holmes](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ernest-holmes/) > [If I hadn't lost my hearing, I wouldn't be where I am now. It forced me to maximize my own potential. I have to…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/lou-ferrigno/if-i-hadn-t-lost-my-hearing-i-wouldn-t-be-where-i-am-now-it-forced-me/) [Lou Ferrigno](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/lou-ferrigno/) ## More by Michael Patrick Jann > [Usually you talk about directors in terms of the way they choose camera lenses or a kind of light to create a certain effect.…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/michael-patrick-jann/usually-you-talk-about-directors-in-terms-of-the-way-they-choose/) [Michael Patrick Jann](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/michael-patrick-jann/) > [I come from a background of hanging out with friends and shooting videos with them, with funny stuff coming out of the group. I…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/michael-patrick-jann/i-come-from-a-background-of-hanging-out-with-friends-and-shooting/) [Michael Patrick Jann](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/michael-patrick-jann/) > [Knowing what I do now, I don't know if I'd ever have the balls to go to film school, with no connections and no…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/michael-patrick-jann/knowing-what-i-do-now-i-don-t-know-if-i-d-ever-have-the-balls-to-go/) [Michael Patrick Jann](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/michael-patrick-jann/) > [And shooting things in a documentary style was a good way to create tension and energy without money.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/michael-patrick-jann/and-shooting-things-in-a-documentary-style-was-a-good-way-to-create/) [Michael Patrick Jann](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/michael-patrick-jann/) > [It was a wealthy family, and they heard me talk about movies, and they told me I should go into movies. That's the benefit…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/michael-patrick-jann/it-was-a-wealthy-family-and-they-heard-me-talk-about-movies-and-they/) [Michael Patrick Jann](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/michael-patrick-jann/) > [Basically, when I look at my life, I think I'm lucky to be given the opportunities I've had.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/michael-patrick-jann/basically-when-i-look-at-my-life-i-think-i-m-lucky-to-be-given-the/) [Michael Patrick Jann](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/michael-patrick-jann/) [Explore all 7 Michael Patrick Jann quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/michael-patrick-jann/) ## More Decent quotes > [Be neither too early in the fashion, nor too long out of it, nor too precisely in it; what custom hath civilized is become…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/francis-quarles/be-neither-too-early-in-the-fashion-nor-too-long-out-of-it-nor-too/) [Francis Quarles](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/francis-quarles/) > [Peace is an ongoing process. It begins with the first step and it does not end. We, all of us alive today, are the…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/david-krieger/peace-is-an-ongoing-process-it-begins-with-the-first-step-and-it-does/) [David Krieger](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/david-krieger/) > [As long as I can sing halfway decent, I'd rather sing than act. There's nothing like being in good voice, feeling good, having good…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/howard-keel/as-long-as-i-can-sing-halfway-decent-i-d-rather-sing-than-act-there-s/) [Howard Keel](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/howard-keel/) > [You weren't a decent man and you didn't do your best. We none of us were and none of us did.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anonymous/you-weren-t-a-decent-man-and-you-didn-t-do-your-best-we-none-of-us/) [Anonymous](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anonymous/) > [Sometimes the challenge of beating the jet lag and getting a decent sleep can be as hard to solve as finding the right setup…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/romain-grosjean/sometimes-the-challenge-of-beating-the-jet-lag-and-getting-a-decent/) [Romain Grosjean](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/romain-grosjean/) > [For it is an absurdity to call a country civilized in which a decent and industrious man, laboriously mastering a trade which is valuble…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/h-l-mencken/for-it-is-an-absurdity-to-call-a-country-civilized-in-which-a-decent/) [H. L. Mencken](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/h-l-mencken/) > [If you listen to the radio for a whole hour there's maybe one decent song. The rest is mass-produced garbage](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/haruki-murakami/if-you-listen-to-the-radio-for-a-whole-hour-there-s-maybe-one-decent/) [Haruki Murakami](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/haruki-murakami/) > [Music and the arts feed our souls, but a decent wage puts food on the table. Musicians, fans of music, and grassroots political organizations…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/tom-morello/music-and-the-arts-feed-our-souls-but-a-decent-wage-puts-food-on-the/) [Tom Morello](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/tom-morello/) > [The 'key-log' which must be moved to release the evolutionary process for an ethic is simply this: quit thinking about decent land-use as solely…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/land-ethic/the-key-log-which-must-be-moved-to-release-the-evolutionary-process/) Land ethic > [The recurrent laryngeal nerve - which runs from the head to the voice box - goes all the way down into the chest, loops…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/richard-dawkins/the-recurrent-laryngeal-nerve-which-runs-from-the-head-to-the-voice/) [Richard Dawkins](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/richard-dawkins/) > [Every New Yorker spends a certain amount of nervous energy thinking, "How can I afford to stay here? What do I have to sell…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/sharon-zukin/every-new-yorker-spends-a-certain-amount-of-nervous-energy-thinking/) [Sharon Zukin](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/sharon-zukin/) > [It is something that most parents hope for in life: That their children will be moderately successful, polite, decent human beings. Anything on top…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jerry-kramer/it-is-something-that-most-parents-hope-for-in-life-that-their/) [Jerry Kramer](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jerry-kramer/) > [ \[Religion\] attacks us in our deepest integrity - the core of our self-respect. Religion says that we would not know right from wrong, we… ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/christopher-hitchens/religion-attacks-us-in-our-deepest-integrity-the-core-of-our-self/) [Christopher Hitchens](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/christopher-hitchens/) > [takes a devil to make a decent angel.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/tom-spanbauer/takes-a-devil-to-make-a-decent-angel/) [Tom Spanbauer](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/tom-spanbauer/) > [I guess the only thing to do now is meet his parents. I'm sure they're decent people. I mean they gotta be if they…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/robert-de-niro/i-guess-the-only-thing-to-do-now-is-meet-his-parents-i-m-sure-they-re/) [Robert De Niro](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/robert-de-niro/) Browse all 1,392 Decent quotes ```json { "@context": "https://schema.org", "@graph": [ { "@type": "Quotation", "text": "If you blithely do what you do and you're good at what you do, and try to be a decent person, you can succeed.", "creator": { "@type": "Person", "name": "Michael Patrick Jann" }, "isPartOf": { "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/#website" }, "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/michael-patrick-jann/if-you-blithely-do-what-you-do-and-you-re-good-at-what-you-do-and-try/", "about": { "@type": "Thing", "name": "Decent" }, "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/michael-patrick-jann/if-you-blithely-do-what-you-do-and-you-re-good-at-what-you-do-and-try/#quotation", "image": { "@type": "ImageObject", "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/82c/michael-patrick-jann-50273_decent_if-you-blithely-do-what-you-do-and-you-r_3086519.jpg", "contentUrl": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/82c/michael-patrick-jann-50273_decent_if-you-blithely-do-what-you-do-and-you-r_3086519.jpg", "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/82c/michael-patrick-jann-50273_decent_if-you-blithely-do-what-you-do-and-you-r_3086519.jpg", "width": 1080, "height": 1080, "caption": "“If you blithely do what you do and you're good at what you do, and try to be a decent person, you can succeed.” — Michael Patrick Jann", "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 Patrick Jann", "item": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/michael-patrick-jann/" }, { "@type": "ListItem", "position": 4, "name": "If you blithely do what you...", "item": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/michael-patrick-jann/if-you-blithely-do-what-you-do-and-you-re-good-at-what-you-do-and-try/" } ], "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/michael-patrick-jann/if-you-blithely-do-what-you-do-and-you-re-good-at-what-you-do-and-try/#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 } } ] } ```