--- title: "Meaning & Key Takeaway of: We are like sailors who on the open sea…" description: "\"“We are like sailors who on the open sea must reconstruct their ship but are never able to start afresh from the bottom.”\" — Otto Neurath" image: "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/52c/otto-neurath-44925_river_we-are-like-sailors-who-on-the-open-sea_762984.jpg" --- # We are like sailors who on the open sea must reconstruct… ![“We are like sailors who on the open sea must reconstruct their ship but are never able to start afresh from the bottom.” quote by Otto Neurath](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/52c/otto-neurath-44925_river_we-are-like-sailors-who-on-the-open-sea_762984.jpg) [Download](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/52c/otto-neurath-44925_river_we-are-like-sailors-who-on-the-open-sea_762984.jpg) [Open image](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/52c/otto-neurath-44925_river_we-are-like-sailors-who-on-the-open-sea_762984.jpg) > ““We are like sailors who on the open sea must reconstruct their ship but are never able to start afresh from the bottom.”” [Otto Neurath](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/otto-neurath/) ## About This Quote This interpretation was drafted with AI assistance. It is one reading of the quote, not the author's own explanation. People must constantly rebuild themselves but never truly start anew, highlighting perpetual adaptation **In simple terms:** Continuous self‑rebuilding without a clean slate Key Takeaway Embrace ongoing growth, accept imperfections Themes growth adaptation impermanence Mood thoughtful determined Type philosophical inspirational When to use this quote - career change - personal development - creative projects Key Concepts self‑construction process philosophy Questions to Reflect On - What aspects of self can truly be reset? - How does perpetual reconstruction affect identity? A Different Perspective A fresh start may be impossible, limiting radical transformation ★ ★ ★ ★ ★ No ratings yet [River](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/river/) [Sailors](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/sailors/) ## Related quotes > [We are like sailors who on the open sea must reconstruct their ship but are never able to start afresh from the bottom. Where…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/otto-neurath/we-are-like-sailors-who-on-the-open-sea-must-reconstruct-their-ship-2/) [Otto Neurath](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/otto-neurath/) > [Men who neglect Christ, and try to win heaven through moralities, are like sailors at sea in a storm, who pull, some at the…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/henry-ward-beecher/men-who-neglect-christ-and-try-to-win-heaven-through-moralities-are/) [Henry Ward Beecher](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/henry-ward-beecher/) > [Our ideals resemble the stars, which illumintate the night. No one will ever be able to touch them. But the men who, like the…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/carl-schurz/our-ideals-resemble-the-stars-which-illumintate-the-night-no-one-will/) [Carl Schurz](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/carl-schurz/) > [We are like sailors who have to rebuild their ship on the open sea, without ever being able to dismantle it in dry-dock and…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/otto-neurath/we-are-like-sailors-who-have-to-rebuild-their-ship-on-the-open-sea/) [Otto Neurath](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/otto-neurath/) > [I feel at home up in the air, just like sailors do at sea and climbers do in the mountains.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/felix-baumgartner/i-feel-at-home-up-in-the-air-just-like-sailors-do-at-sea-and-climbers/) [Felix Baumgartner](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/felix-baumgartner/) > [Politicians who complain about the media are like sailors who complain about the sea.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/enoch-powell/politicians-who-complain-about-the-media-are-like-sailors-who/) [Enoch Powell](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/enoch-powell/) > [We must be careful what we read, and not, like the sailors of Ulysses, take bags of wind for sacks of treasure.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/john-lubbock/we-must-be-careful-what-we-read-and-not-like-the-sailors-of-ulysses/) [John Lubbock](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/john-lubbock/) > [“Because desperate people cling to hope like sailors to their wreaks.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/kate-morton/because-desperate-people-cling-to-hope-like-sailors-to-their-wreaks/) [Kate Morton](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/kate-morton/) > [Ships are but boards, sailors but men.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/william-shakespeare/ships-are-but-boards-sailors-but-men/) [William Shakespeare](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/william-shakespeare/) > [Smooth seas don't produce skillful sailors.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/lynn-austin/smooth-seas-don-t-produce-skillful-sailors/) [Lynn Austin](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/lynn-austin/) > [Sailors on a becalmed sea, we sense the stirring of a breeze.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/carl-sagan/sailors-on-a-becalmed-sea-we-sense-the-stirring-of-a-breeze/) [Carl Sagan](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/carl-sagan/) > [I'm fond of anything that comes from the sea, and that includes sailors.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/janet-flanner/i-m-fond-of-anything-that-comes-from-the-sea-and-that-includes-sailors/) [Janet Flanner](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/janet-flanner/) > [I used to own an island in the Seychelles and had a big boat there and one day I came across some Somali pirates…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/wilbur-smith/i-used-to-own-an-island-in-the-seychelles-and-had-a-big-boat-there/) [Wilbur Smith](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/wilbur-smith/) > [In all lands, sailors form a race apart. They profess a congenital contempt for landlubbers. As for the tradesman, he understands nothing of sailors…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/honor-de-balzac/in-all-lands-sailors-form-a-race-apart-they-profess-a-congenital/) [Honore de Balzac](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/honor-de-balzac/) > [We don't have any sailors in Australia, we have rowers.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ben-lexcen/we-don-t-have-any-sailors-in-australia-we-have-rowers/) Ben Lexcen ## More by Otto Neurath > [Words divide, pictures unite.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/otto-neurath/words-divide-pictures-unite/) [Otto Neurath](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/otto-neurath/) > [To remember simplified pictures is better than to forget accurate figures.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/otto-neurath/to-remember-simplified-pictures-is-better-than-to-forget-accurate/) [Otto Neurath](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/otto-neurath/) > [He who knows what best to omit is the best teacher.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/otto-neurath/he-who-knows-what-best-to-omit-is-the-best-teacher/) [Otto Neurath](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/otto-neurath/) > [“We are like sailors who must rebuild their ship on the open sea, never able to dismantle it in dry-dock and to reconstruct it…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/otto-neurath/we-are-like-sailors-who-must-rebuild-their-ship-on-the-open-sea-never/) [Otto Neurath](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/otto-neurath/) > [Modern man receives a large part of his knowledge and general education by way of pictorial impressions, illustrations, photographs, films. Daily newspapers bring more…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/otto-neurath/modern-man-receives-a-large-part-of-his-knowledge-and-general/) [Otto Neurath](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/otto-neurath/) > [We are like sailors who have to rebuild their ship on the open sea, without ever being able to dismantle it in dry-dock and…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/otto-neurath/we-are-like-sailors-who-have-to-rebuild-their-ship-on-the-open-sea/) [Otto Neurath](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/otto-neurath/) > [We are like sailors who on the open sea must reconstruct their ship but are never able to start afresh from the bottom. Where…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/otto-neurath/we-are-like-sailors-who-on-the-open-sea-must-reconstruct-their-ship-2/) [Otto Neurath](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/otto-neurath/) [Explore all 8 Otto Neurath quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/otto-neurath/) ## More River quotes > [The least unhappy persons do, in so fickle and so tempestuous a sea as this world, meet with many more either cross winds or…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/robert-boyle/the-least-unhappy-persons-do-in-so-fickle-and-so-tempestuous-a-sea-as/) [Robert Boyle](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/robert-boyle/) > [Somehow the river is louder when you cover your ears.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/niall-williams/somehow-the-river-is-louder-when-you-cover-your-ears/) [Niall Williams](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/niall-williams/) > [“The river itself is not a hundred yards across, and pa and Vernon and Vardaman and Dewey Dell are the only things in sight…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/william-faulkner/the-river-itself-is-not-a-hundred-yards-across-and-pa-and-vernon-and/) [William Faulkner](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/william-faulkner/) > [One of the unique things is that whether we were out at sea or in the middle of the water tank, a lot of…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/john-c-reilly/one-of-the-unique-things-is-that-whether-we-were-out-at-sea-or-in-the/) [John C. Reilly](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/john-c-reilly/) > [“It’s a big ocean crossed by busy ships. I went slowly, observing much.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/yann-martel/it-s-a-big-ocean-crossed-by-busy-ships-i-went-slowly-observing-much/) [Yann Martel](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/yann-martel/) > [Life is like the ocean. It can be calm and still or rough and rigid but in the end, it is always beautiful.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anonymous/life-is-like-the-ocean-it-can-be-calm-and-still-or-rough-and-rigid/) [Anonymous](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anonymous/) > [I always like to look for adventure when I go away. I have gone on several horse adventures with my wife - from Guangxi…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/antony-gormley/i-always-like-to-look-for-adventure-when-i-go-away-i-have-gone-on/) [Antony Gormley](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/antony-gormley/) > [I've never been far from the river. I'm sort of like a Thames-nymph.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/natalie-dormer/i-ve-never-been-far-from-the-river-i-m-sort-of-like-a-thames-nymph/) [Natalie Dormer](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/natalie-dormer/) > [“Mungu akikubariki kipaji chako watu watasema ni laana. Maisha yako ni sawa na mto. Unakoelekea ni baharini. Lakini sasa umefika kwenye mlango wa bahari.…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/enock-maregesi/mungu-akikubariki-kipaji-chako-watu-watasema-ni-laana-maisha-yako-ni/) [Enock Maregesi](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/enock-maregesi/) > [Little leaks sink the ship.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/benjamin-franklin/little-leaks-sink-the-ship/) [Benjamin Franklin](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/benjamin-franklin/) > [“Ships at a distance have every man's wish on board. For some they come in with the tide. For others they sail forever on…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/zora-neale-hurston/ships-at-a-distance-have-every-man-s-wish-on-board-for-some-they-come/) [Zora Neale Hurston](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/zora-neale-hurston/) > [The tides which flow and lapse in the Bristol Channel are often distained by the freshets of many streams falling through wooded coombes below…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/henry-williamson/the-tides-which-flow-and-lapse-in-the-bristol-channel-are-often/) [Henry Williamson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/henry-williamson/) > [If you ask an actor what he'd prefer to act on, he'd probably say a tangible, real set, or even better, a real location…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/luke-evans/if-you-ask-an-actor-what-he-d-prefer-to-act-on-he-d-probably-say-a/) [Luke Evans](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/luke-evans/) > [In the road ships must ride in 30, 40, or 50 fathom water, not above half a mile from the shore at farthest: and…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/william-dampier/in-the-road-ships-must-ride-in-30-40-or-50-fathom-water-not-above/) [William Dampier](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/william-dampier/) > [I finished 'Hell or High Water' and started writing 'Wind River' literally the next day.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/taylor-sheridan/i-finished-hell-or-high-water-and-started-writing-wind-river/) [Taylor Sheridan](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/taylor-sheridan/) [Browse all 3,638 River quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/river/) ```json { "@context": "https://schema.org", "@graph": [ { "@type": "Quotation", "text": "“We are like sailors who on the open sea must reconstruct their ship but are never able to start afresh from the bottom.”", "creator": { "@type": "Person", "name": "Otto Neurath" }, "isPartOf": { "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/#website" }, "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/otto-neurath/we-are-like-sailors-who-on-the-open-sea-must-reconstruct-their-ship/", "about": { "@type": "Thing", "name": "River" }, "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/otto-neurath/we-are-like-sailors-who-on-the-open-sea-must-reconstruct-their-ship/#quotation", "image": { "@type": "ImageObject", "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/52c/otto-neurath-44925_river_we-are-like-sailors-who-on-the-open-sea_762984.jpg", "contentUrl": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/52c/otto-neurath-44925_river_we-are-like-sailors-who-on-the-open-sea_762984.jpg", "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/52c/otto-neurath-44925_river_we-are-like-sailors-who-on-the-open-sea_762984.jpg", "width": 1080, "height": 1080, "caption": "“We are like sailors who on the open sea must reconstruct their ship but are never able to start afresh from…” — Otto Neurath", "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": "Otto Neurath", "item": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/otto-neurath/" }, { "@type": "ListItem", "position": 4, "name": "“We are like sailors who on...", "item": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/otto-neurath/we-are-like-sailors-who-on-the-open-sea-must-reconstruct-their-ship/" } ], "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/otto-neurath/we-are-like-sailors-who-on-the-open-sea-must-reconstruct-their-ship/#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 } } ] } ```