--- title: "Meaning & Key Takeaway of: If opportunity doesn't knock, build a…" description: "\"If opportunity doesn't knock, build a door, but only as long as it's not visible from the street.\" — Milton Berle" image: "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/951/milton-berle-3246_door_if-opportunity-doesn-t-knock-build-a-doo_2656438.png" --- # If opportunity doesn't knock, build a door, but only as… ![“If opportunity doesn't knock, build a door, but only as long as it's not visible from the street.” quote by Milton Berle](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/951/milton-berle-3246_door_if-opportunity-doesn-t-knock-build-a-doo_2656438.png) [Download](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/951/milton-berle-3246_door_if-opportunity-doesn-t-knock-build-a-doo_2656438.png) [Open image](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/951/milton-berle-3246_door_if-opportunity-doesn-t-knock-build-a-doo_2656438.png) > “If opportunity doesn't knock, build a door, but only as long as it's not visible from the street.” [Milton Berle](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/milton-berle/) ## About This Quote This interpretation was drafted with AI assistance. It is one reading of the quote, not the author's own explanation. If opportunity doesn’t appear, create one yourself, but keep it discreet enough not to attract unwanted attention. **In simple terms:** Make your own chances while staying low‑key. Key Takeaway Create opportunities quietly. Themes initiative strategy visibility self‑reliance Mood motivational strategic Type practical inspirational When to use this quote - job hunting - networking events - product launches - personal branding - political campaigns Key Concepts entrepreneurship psychology risk management Questions to Reflect On - When have you built a hidden opportunity? - How do you balance visibility and privacy? A Different Perspective Being too hidden may cause the opportunity to be missed entirely. ★ ★ ★ ★ ★ No ratings yet [Build Door](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/build-door-291688/) [Door](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/door/) [Door Long](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/door-long-2392555/) [Doors](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/doors/) [Ifs](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/ifs/) [Long](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/long/) [Opportunity](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/opportunity/) [Opportunity Doesn](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/opportunity-doesn-265686/) [Streets](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/streets/) [Visible](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/visible/) [Visible Street](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/visible-street-2392554/) ## Related quotes > [“If opportunity doesn't knock, build a door and open it, stop waiting around for someone to give it to you”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/tilica-haridat/if-opportunity-doesn-t-knock-build-a-door-and-open-it-stop-waiting/) [Tilica Haridat](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/tilica-haridat/) > [“If opportunity doesn't knock, build a door. Milton Berle.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/samna-ghani/if-opportunity-doesn-t-knock-build-a-door-milton-berle/) [Samna Ghani](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/samna-ghani/) > [If opportunity doesn't knock, build a door.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anonymous/if-opportunity-doesn-t-knock-build-a-door/) [Anonymous](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anonymous/) > [If opportunity doesn't knock, build a door. Don't go through life, grow through life.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/eric-butterworth/if-opportunity-doesn-t-knock-build-a-door-don-t-go-through-life-grow/) [Eric Butterworth](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/eric-butterworth/) > [“When opportunity doesn't knock, create a door”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/milton-berle/when-opportunity-doesn-t-knock-create-a-door/) [Milton Berle](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/milton-berle/) > [You keep knocking on the devil's door long enough and sooner or later someone's gonna answer you.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/terrence-howard/you-keep-knocking-on-the-devil-s-door-long-enough-and-sooner-or-later/) [Terrence Howard](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/terrence-howard/) > [You keep knocking on the devils door long enough, soon someone is gonna answer you.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/four-brothers/you-keep-knocking-on-the-devils-door-long-enough-soon-someone-is/) [Four Brothers](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/four-brothers/) > [If opportunity dosen't knock,build a door.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/milton-berle/if-opportunity-dosen-t-knock-build-a-door/) [Milton Berle](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/milton-berle/) > [If opportunity doesnt knock, build a door…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anonymous/if-opportunity-doesnt-knock-build-a-door/) [Anonymous](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anonymous/) > [Opportunity doesn't knock on my door, I go and break its door down.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/behdad-sami/opportunity-doesn-t-knock-on-my-door-i-go-and-break-its-door-down/) [Behdad Sami](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/behdad-sami/) > [“If there is no door open for me, I build a door”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/hadi-farnoud/if-there-is-no-door-open-for-me-i-build-a-door/) [Hadi Farnoud](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/hadi-farnoud/) > [If opportunity doesnt knock, build a door..so.. Dont wait for things to come to you; take your fate into your own hands](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/melchor-lim/if-opportunity-doesnt-knock-build-a-door-so-dont-wait-for-things-to/) [Melchor Lim](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/melchor-lim/) > [If opportunity doesnt knock at your door then build a door.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anurag-prakash-ray/if-opportunity-doesnt-knock-at-your-door-then-build-a-door/) [Anurag Prakash Ray](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anurag-prakash-ray/) > [“He spent so long building walls to protect his privacy that I think he forgot to build a door.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/j-kenner/he-spent-so-long-building-walls-to-protect-his-privacy-that-i-think/) [J. Kenner](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/j-kenner/) > [If you knock on doors and no one answers, build your own door of success, knock, open, and leap through.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/bl-brown/if-you-knock-on-doors-and-no-one-answers-build-your-own-door-of/) [BL Brown](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/bl-brown/) ## More by Milton Berle > [A man falls down a flight of stairs and somebody rushes over to him and asks, Did you miss a step? No, he answers,…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/milton-berle/a-man-falls-down-a-flight-of-stairs-and-somebody-rushes-over-to-him/) [Milton Berle](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/milton-berle/) > [Anytime a person goes into a delicatessen and orders a pastrami on white bread, somewhere a Jew dies.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/milton-berle/anytime-a-person-goes-into-a-delicatessen-and-orders-a-pastrami-on/) [Milton Berle](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/milton-berle/) > [Like every comedian, if I heard a joke that I thought would work, I used it.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/milton-berle/like-every-comedian-if-i-heard-a-joke-that-i-thought-would-work-i/) [Milton Berle](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/milton-berle/) > [My sister-in-law found a real surprise in her stockings - my brother.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/milton-berle/my-sister-in-law-found-a-real-surprise-in-her-stockings-my-brother/) [Milton Berle](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/milton-berle/) > [When I was in school, one of my teachers was crazy about me. I once heard her tell another teacher, "I wish he was…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/milton-berle/when-i-was-in-school-one-of-my-teachers-was-crazy-about-me-i-once/) [Milton Berle](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/milton-berle/) > [I'd rather be a could-be if I cannot be an are; because a could-be is a maybe who is reaching for a star. I'd…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/milton-berle/i-d-rather-be-a-could-be-if-i-cannot-be-an-are-because-a-could-be-is/) [Milton Berle](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/milton-berle/) > [Every year my boss used to give me a bottle of expensive brandy because I'd told him that my doctor suggested a drink once…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/milton-berle/every-year-my-boss-used-to-give-me-a-bottle-of-expensive-brandy/) [Milton Berle](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/milton-berle/) > [The problem with life is, by the time you can read women like a book, your library card has expired.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/milton-berle/the-problem-with-life-is-by-the-time-you-can-read-women-like-a-book/) [Milton Berle](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/milton-berle/) > [If you hire relatives, you'll have a payroll that won't quit.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/milton-berle/if-you-hire-relatives-you-ll-have-a-payroll-that-won-t-quit/) [Milton Berle](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/milton-berle/) > [It's amazing how fast later comes when you buy now!](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/milton-berle/it-s-amazing-how-fast-later-comes-when-you-buy-now/) [Milton Berle](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/milton-berle/) > [I don't mind personal insults, but when you insult the jokes that I tell you're insulting Fred Allen, Bob Hope, Burns and Allen, Trevor…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/milton-berle/i-don-t-mind-personal-insults-but-when-you-insult-the-jokes-that-i/) [Milton Berle](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/milton-berle/) > [I like to think of myself as the middleman between Fred Allen and Henny Youngman.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/milton-berle/i-like-to-think-of-myself-as-the-middleman-between-fred-allen-and/) [Milton Berle](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/milton-berle/) > [What an orchestra! They just sit there, but their minds are thousands of miles away with their bookies.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/milton-berle/what-an-orchestra-they-just-sit-there-but-their-minds-are-thousands/) [Milton Berle](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/milton-berle/) > [My son gave me a nice bottle of cologne - Eau de Owe.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/milton-berle/my-son-gave-me-a-nice-bottle-of-cologne-eau-de-owe/) [Milton Berle](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/milton-berle/) > [I was in a department store and I saw a weird-looking gadget. I asked the young saleslady what it was. She answered, "It doesn't…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/milton-berle/i-was-in-a-department-store-and-i-saw-a-weird-looking-gadget-i-asked/) [Milton Berle](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/milton-berle/) [Explore all 135 Milton Berle quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/milton-berle/) ## More Door quotes > [Strange - is it not? That of the myriads who Before us passed the door of Darkness through, Not one returns to tell us…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/horace/strange-is-it-not-that-of-the-myriads-who-before-us-passed-the-door/) [Horace](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/horace/) > [When one door closes another doesn't just open, you can either open the same door or open a different one...](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anonymous/when-one-door-closes-another-doesn-t-just-open-you-can-either-open/) [Anonymous](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anonymous/) > [I wonder: when a Jehovah's Witness dies and goes to Heaven, does God hide behind the door and pretend He's not home?](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/brian-celio/i-wonder-when-a-jehovah-s-witness-dies-and-goes-to-heaven-does-god/) [Brian Celio](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/brian-celio/) > [We can't love a place or a person if we always have one foot out the door.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/eric-weiner/we-can-t-love-a-place-or-a-person-if-we-always-have-one-foot-out-the/) [Eric Weiner](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/eric-weiner/) > [Kindness unlocks doors that were thought to be closed forever.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/unkown/kindness-unlocks-doors-that-were-thought-to-be-closed-forever/) [Unkown](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/unkown/) > [Dear parents,knocking while open the door to my bedroom kind of defeats the purpose of knocking.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anonymous/dear-parents-knocking-while-open-the-door-to-my-bedroom-kind-of/) [Anonymous](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anonymous/) > [There are times when we can feel destiny close around us like a fist around a doorknob. Sure, we can resist. But a knob…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/tom-robbins/there-are-times-when-we-can-feel-destiny-close-around-us-like-a-fist/) [Tom Robbins](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/tom-robbins/) > [I won't be managing the Mets. I am closing the door on managing the Mets and probably everybody else.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/joe-torre/i-won-t-be-managing-the-mets-i-am-closing-the-door-on-managing-the/) [Joe Torre](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/joe-torre/) > [If opportunity doesnt knock, build a door…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anonymous/if-opportunity-doesnt-knock-build-a-door/) [Anonymous](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anonymous/) > [Couples Therapy' is pretty big for me because it's opening the door to a new audience - a hip-hop following, which I feel is…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/carmen-carrera/couples-therapy-is-pretty-big-for-me-because-it-s-opening-the-door-to/) [Carmen Carrera](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/carmen-carrera/) > [“Happiness isn't something that you plan for. It comes knocking unexpectedly, just like opportunity. And it's up to you to answer the door and…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/autumn-doughton/happiness-isn-t-something-that-you-plan-for-it-comes-knocking/) [Autumn Doughton](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/autumn-doughton/) > [Nothing attracts me like a closed door.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/margaret-bourke-white/nothing-attracts-me-like-a-closed-door/) [Margaret Bourke-White](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/margaret-bourke-white/) > [They never opened the door which leads to the soul.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/henry-miller/they-never-opened-the-door-which-leads-to-the-soul/) [Henry Miller](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/henry-miller/) > [“Hayley Haslett raised her hand and tapped on the door.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/carol-rose/hayley-haslett-raised-her-hand-and-tapped-on-the-door/) [Carol Rose](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/carol-rose/) > [I think you've still got to try to be good, day-to-day. You see a granny, you hold the door open for her. You just…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/sami-zayn/i-think-you-ve-still-got-to-try-to-be-good-day-to-day-you-see-a/) [Sami Zayn](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/sami-zayn/) [Browse all 3,104 Door quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/door/) ```json { "@context": "https://schema.org", "@graph": [ { "@type": "Quotation", "text": "If opportunity doesn't knock, build a door, but only as long as it's not visible from the street.", "creator": { "@type": "Person", "name": "Milton Berle" }, "isPartOf": { "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/#website" }, "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/milton-berle/if-opportunity-doesn-t-knock-build-a-door-but-only-as-long-as-it-s/", "about": { "@type": "Thing", "name": "Door" }, "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/milton-berle/if-opportunity-doesn-t-knock-build-a-door-but-only-as-long-as-it-s/#quotation", "image": { "@type": "ImageObject", "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/951/milton-berle-3246_door_if-opportunity-doesn-t-knock-build-a-doo_2656438.png", "contentUrl": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/951/milton-berle-3246_door_if-opportunity-doesn-t-knock-build-a-doo_2656438.png", "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/951/milton-berle-3246_door_if-opportunity-doesn-t-knock-build-a-doo_2656438.png", "width": 1080, "height": 1080, "caption": "“If opportunity doesn't knock, build a door, but only as long as it's not visible from the street.” — Milton Berle", "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": "Milton Berle", "item": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/milton-berle/" }, { "@type": "ListItem", "position": 4, "name": "If opportunity doesn't knock, build a...", "item": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/milton-berle/if-opportunity-doesn-t-knock-build-a-door-but-only-as-long-as-it-s/" } ], "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/milton-berle/if-opportunity-doesn-t-knock-build-a-door-but-only-as-long-as-it-s/#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 } } ] } ```