---
title: "Meaning & Key Takeaway of: I was engaged in all the required courses…"
description: "\"I was engaged in all the required courses of math and geometry, but the area that I blossomed in was the art program.\" — Paul Smith"
image: "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/c89/paul-smith-10839_areas_i-was-engaged-in-all-the-required-course_2747686.png"
---

#  I was engaged in all the required courses of math and…

![“I was engaged in all the required courses of math and geometry, but the area that I blossomed in was the art program.” quote by Paul Smith](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/c89/paul-smith-10839_areas_i-was-engaged-in-all-the-required-course_2747686.png)   [Download](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/c89/paul-smith-10839_areas_i-was-engaged-in-all-the-required-course_2747686.png) [Open image](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/c89/paul-smith-10839_areas_i-was-engaged-in-all-the-required-course_2747686.png)

> “I was engaged in all the required courses of math and geometry, but the area that I blossomed in was the art program.”

[Paul Smith](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/paul-smith/)

## About This Quote

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

The speaker studied math and geometry but found true passion and growth in art.

**In simple terms:** Math was required, art was where they thrived.

Key Takeaway

Follow your passion over obligation.

Themes

education creativity self‑discovery

Mood

reflective inspired

Type

personal motivational

When to use this quote

- school curriculum
- career choice
- hobby development

Key Concepts

personal growth artistic expression

Questions to Reflect On

- What hidden talents could you be neglecting?
- How can you integrate required skills with your passion?

A Different Perspective

Passion may not be recognized in formal settings.

★ ★ ★ ★ ★   No ratings yet

[Art](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/art/) [Artist](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/artist/) [Geometry](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/geometry/) [Math](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/math/) [Mathematics](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/mathematics/)

## Related quotes

> [It was only when I got to high school and was in the art program that my artistic talent was recognized. The art program…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/paul-smith/it-was-only-when-i-got-to-high-school-and-was-in-the-art-program-that/)

[Paul Smith](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/paul-smith/)

> [As I very much liked to draw and paint as a child, I entered a special art program in high school, which was very…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jerome-isaac-friedman/as-i-very-much-liked-to-draw-and-paint-as-a-child-i-entered-a-special/)

[Jerome Isaac Friedman](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jerome-isaac-friedman/)

> [I feel that if I had not had an art program in my school, I would have failed in a big way. My teachers…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/david-small/i-feel-that-if-i-had-not-had-an-art-program-in-my-school-i-would-have/)

[David Small](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/david-small/)

> [In order to give meaning to the world, one has to feel oneself involved in what he frames. This attitude requires concentration, a discipline…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/henri-cartier-bresson/in-order-to-give-meaning-to-the-world-one-has-to-feel-oneself/)

[Henri Cartier-Bresson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/henri-cartier-bresson/)

> [I have an infamously low capacity for visualizing relationships, which made the study of geometry and all subjects derived from it impossible for me.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/sigmund-freud/i-have-an-infamously-low-capacity-for-visualizing-relationships-which/)

[Sigmund Freud](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/sigmund-freud/)

> [“A circle has no end.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/isaac-asimov/a-circle-has-no-end/)

[Isaac Asimov](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/isaac-asimov/)

> [Let no-one ignorant of geometry enter. Said to have been inscribed above the door of Plato's Academy.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/plato/let-no-one-ignorant-of-geometry-enter-said-to-have-been-inscribed/)

[Plato](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/plato/)

> [“This relationship, often called the Golden mean, has been discovered and rediscovered at various times in history as a unique proportion believed to have…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/john-pile/this-relationship-often-called-the-golden-mean-has-been-discovered/)

John Pile

> [Cryptography has generated number theory, algebraic geometry over finite fields, algebra, combinatorics and computers.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/vladimir-arnold/cryptography-has-generated-number-theory-algebraic-geometry-over/)

[Vladimir Arnold](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/vladimir-arnold/)

> [No one fully understands spinors. Their algebra is formally understood but their general significance is mysterious. In some sense they describe the 'square root'…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/michael-atiyah/no-one-fully-understands-spinors-their-algebra-is-formally-understood/)

[Michael Atiyah](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/michael-atiyah/)

> [Geometry is the most complete science.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/david-hilbert/geometry-is-the-most-complete-science/)

[David Hilbert](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/david-hilbert/)

> [Regular geometry, the geometry of Euclid, is concerned with shapes which are smooth, except perhaps for corners and lines, special lines which are singularities,…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/benoit-mandelbrot/regular-geometry-the-geometry-of-euclid-is-concerned-with-shapes/)

[Benoit Mandelbrot](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/benoit-mandelbrot/)

> [Geometry existed before creation.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/plato/geometry-existed-before-creation/)

[Plato](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/plato/)

> [. . . by natural selection our mind has adapted itself to the conditions of the external world. It has adopted the geometry most…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/henri-poincare/by-natural-selection-our-mind-has-adapted-itself-to-the-conditions-of/)

[Henri Poincare](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/henri-poincare/)

> [Geometry, which should only obey Physics, when united with it sometimes commands it. If it happens that the question which we wish to examine…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jean-le-rond-d-alembert/geometry-which-should-only-obey-physics-when-united-with-it-sometimes/)

[Jean le Rond d'Alembert](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jean-le-rond-d-alembert/)

## More by Paul Smith

> [I became a bit of a teacher's pet, and it became known in the school by both faculty and students that I really excelled…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/paul-smith/i-became-a-bit-of-a-teacher-s-pet-and-it-became-known-in-the-school/)

[Paul Smith](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/paul-smith/)

> [I've always been a keen cyclist, I'm very close to the world of cycling. Not just cycling really - also walking, adventures, being a…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/paul-smith/i-ve-always-been-a-keen-cyclist-i-m-very-close-to-the-world-of/)

[Paul Smith](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/paul-smith/)

> [I learned from books that I picked up. That was something that just came out of nowhere but continued to be an attraction. So…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/paul-smith/i-learned-from-books-that-i-picked-up-that-was-something-that-just/)

[Paul Smith](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/paul-smith/)

> [At the end of the elementary program, I then had to move onto high school. Simultaneously, my parents moved to Attica to a suburban…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/paul-smith/at-the-end-of-the-elementary-program-i-then-had-to-move-onto-high/)

[Paul Smith](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/paul-smith/)

> [You can find inspiration in everything. If you can't, then you're not looking properly.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/paul-smith/you-can-find-inspiration-in-everything-if-you-can-t-then-you-re-not/)

[Paul Smith](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/paul-smith/)

> [I think I was really naïve. I had no context to think about what I wanted to do. Each step was a next stage…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/paul-smith/i-think-i-was-really-na-ve-i-had-no-context-to-think-about-what-i/)

[Paul Smith](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/paul-smith/)

> [One association with the arts that I vividly remember was a magazine called Normal Instructor, a teachers' magazine, that Miss George would hold up…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/paul-smith/one-association-with-the-arts-that-i-vividly-remember-was-a-magazine/)

[Paul Smith](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/paul-smith/)

> [ The class situation \[at Art Institute on Elmwood Avenue\] was such that one would be very much on their own to paint or draw.… ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/paul-smith/the-class-situation-at-art-institute-on-elmwood-avenue-was-such-that/)

[Paul Smith](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/paul-smith/)

> [Fortunately, I had cousins who lived in Buffalo and would often go to visit them, which I loved to do because I liked Buffalo…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/paul-smith/fortunately-i-had-cousins-who-lived-in-buffalo-and-would-often-go-to/)

[Paul Smith](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/paul-smith/)

> [I was painting furniture, learning to stencil, and explore all kinds of traditional techniques of decoration. I learned from books that I picked up.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/paul-smith/i-was-painting-furniture-learning-to-stencil-and-explore-all-kinds-of/)

[Paul Smith](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/paul-smith/)

> [At one point I had dreams of being in the school band, but I didn't play an instrument that qualified me, and that was…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/paul-smith/at-one-point-i-had-dreams-of-being-in-the-school-band-but-i-didn-t/)

[Paul Smith](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/paul-smith/)

> [When life closes a door, God opens a window.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/paul-smith/when-life-closes-a-door-god-opens-a-window/)

[Paul Smith](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/paul-smith/)

> [My parents never prevented me from doing anything, but they didn't have the knowledge of the arts that Mrs. Ranger had.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/paul-smith/my-parents-never-prevented-me-from-doing-anything-but-they-didn-t/)

[Paul Smith](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/paul-smith/)

> [Being born in '31 was during the Depression and in my earlier youth World War II took place - so it was not the…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/paul-smith/being-born-in-31-was-during-the-depression-and-in-my-earlier-youth/)

[Paul Smith](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/paul-smith/)

> [In a social studies class I did a paper on the history of Attica, which ended up being a little book that I created.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/paul-smith/in-a-social-studies-class-i-did-a-paper-on-the-history-of-attica/)

[Paul Smith](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/paul-smith/)

[Explore all 63 Paul Smith quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/paul-smith/)

## More Areas quotes

> [The very purpose for being in this body, for every one of us, is to live and rejoice in that virgin area, that untouched,…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/sri-sri-ravi-shankar/the-very-purpose-for-being-in-this-body-for-every-one-of-us-is-to/)

[Sri Sri Ravi Shankar](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/sri-sri-ravi-shankar/)

> [I am somewhat influenced by the years that I've spent trying to actually get things done, whether it was reforming education in Arkansas or…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/hillary-clinton/i-am-somewhat-influenced-by-the-years-that-i-ve-spent-trying-to/)

[Hillary Clinton](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/hillary-clinton/)

> [The earliest language was body language and, since this language is the language of questions, if we limit the questions, and if we only…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/paulo-freire/the-earliest-language-was-body-language-and-since-this-language-is/)

[Paulo Freire](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/paulo-freire/)

> [This ball was so crowded that it took me - a trained professional journalist with vast experience in this area - forty five minutes…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/dave-barry/this-ball-was-so-crowded-that-it-took-me-a-trained-professional/)

[Dave Barry](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/dave-barry/)

> [People don't want to believe that technology is broken. Pharmaceuticals, robotics, artificial intelligence, nanotechnology - all these areas where the progress has been a…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/peter-thiel/people-don-t-want-to-believe-that-technology-is-broken/)

[Peter Thiel](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/peter-thiel/)

> [It's absolutely fun to walk around and have people respect you. When Michael Jackson did Thriller, I was in the park one day, and…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/rick-ross/it-s-absolutely-fun-to-walk-around-and-have-people-respect-you-when/)

[Rick Ross](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/rick-ross/)

> [Software will get to be somewhat more mature, ah, but it will never be as predictable as most areas of engineering.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/bill-gates/software-will-get-to-be-somewhat-more-mature-ah-but-it-will-never-be/)

[Bill Gates](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/bill-gates/)

> [If I were entering adulthood now instead of in the environment of fifty years ago, I would choose a career that kept me in…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/charles-lindbergh/if-i-were-entering-adulthood-now-instead-of-in-the-environment-of/)

[Charles Lindbergh](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/charles-lindbergh/)

> [The discrepancy between what actually happened and the version of what happened provided by sources is an enormous gray area.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/edward-jay-epstein/the-discrepancy-between-what-actually-happened-and-the-version-of/)

[Edward Jay Epstein](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/edward-jay-epstein/)

> [Louisville is a place with no labels. It’s not the South, it’s not Chicago, and you don’t think of it as you think of…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jim-james/louisville-is-a-place-with-no-labels-it-s-not-the-south-it-s-not/)

[Jim James](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jim-james/)

> [It turns out that this part of the brain is one of the first areas that's attacked by Alzheimer's disease. So we can now…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/john-o-keefe/it-turns-out-that-this-part-of-the-brain-is-one-of-the-first-areas/)

[John O'Keefe](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/john-o-keefe/)

> [Engaging the city around us and ministering to its needs reveal to us the remaining bastions of sin in our lives, the areas we…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/matt-chandler/engaging-the-city-around-us-and-ministering-to-its-needs-reveal-to-us/)

[Matt Chandler](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/matt-chandler/)

> [I believe it is a mistake to isolate arms control from other areas of policy.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/henry-a-kissinger/i-believe-it-is-a-mistake-to-isolate-arms-control-from-other-areas-of/)

[Henry A. Kissinger](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/henry-a-kissinger/)

> [Well, the U.N. Security Council resolution 1973 is very clear. It says all necessary measures to be taken to protect civilians and civilian areas.…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/mike-jackson/well-the-u-n-security-council-resolution-1973-is-very-clear-it-says/)

[Mike Jackson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/mike-jackson/)

> [When in one area of the world the standard of living and the size of the middle class increases, it is going to have…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/christine-lagarde/when-in-one-area-of-the-world-the-standard-of-living-and-the-size-of/)

[Christine Lagarde](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/christine-lagarde/)

Browse all 2,612 Areas quotes

```json
{
    "@context": "https://schema.org",
    "@graph": [
        {
            "@type": "Quotation",
            "text": "I was engaged in all the required courses of math and geometry, but the area that I blossomed in was the art program.",
            "creator": {
                "@type": "Person",
                "name": "Paul Smith"
            },
            "isPartOf": {
                "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/#website"
            },
            "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/paul-smith/i-was-engaged-in-all-the-required-courses-of-math-and-geometry-but/",
            "about": {
                "@type": "Thing",
                "name": "Areas"
            },
            "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/paul-smith/i-was-engaged-in-all-the-required-courses-of-math-and-geometry-but/#quotation",
            "image": {
                "@type": "ImageObject",
                "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/c89/paul-smith-10839_areas_i-was-engaged-in-all-the-required-course_2747686.png",
                "contentUrl": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/c89/paul-smith-10839_areas_i-was-engaged-in-all-the-required-course_2747686.png",
                "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/c89/paul-smith-10839_areas_i-was-engaged-in-all-the-required-course_2747686.png",
                "width": 1080,
                "height": 1080,
                "caption": "“I was engaged in all the required courses of math and geometry, but the area that I blossomed in was the art…” — Paul Smith",
                "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": "Paul Smith",
                    "item": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/paul-smith/"
                },
                {
                    "@type": "ListItem",
                    "position": 4,
                    "name": "I was engaged in all the...",
                    "item": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/paul-smith/i-was-engaged-in-all-the-required-courses-of-math-and-geometry-but/"
                }
            ],
            "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/paul-smith/i-was-engaged-in-all-the-required-courses-of-math-and-geometry-but/#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
            }
        }
    ]
}
```
