--- title: "Meaning & Key Takeaway of: Don't try to be brave when it is enough…" description: "\"Don't try to be brave when it is enough to be intelligent.\" — Paulo Coelho" image: "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/1b4/paulo-coelho-10_be-brave_don-t-try-to-be-brave-when-it-is-enough_940477.jpg" --- # Don't try to be brave when it is enough to be intelligent. ![“Don't try to be brave when it is enough to be intelligent.” quote by Paulo Coelho](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/1b4/paulo-coelho-10_be-brave_don-t-try-to-be-brave-when-it-is-enough_940477.jpg) [Download](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/1b4/paulo-coelho-10_be-brave_don-t-try-to-be-brave-when-it-is-enough_940477.jpg) [Open image](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/1b4/paulo-coelho-10_be-brave_don-t-try-to-be-brave-when-it-is-enough_940477.jpg) > “Don't try to be brave when it is enough to be intelligent.” [Paulo Coelho](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/paulo-coelho/) ## About This Quote This interpretation was drafted with AI assistance. It is one reading of the quote, not the author's own explanation. Intelligence can be more effective than forced bravery; thoughtful action often solves problems better than reckless courage. **In simple terms:** Think before acting bravely; use intelligence. Key Takeaway Prioritize thoughtful problem‑solving over reckless bravery. Themes intelligence bravery wisdom decision‑making Mood inspirational thoughtful Type advice philosophical When to use this quote - Everyday decisions - career challenges - personal growth - conflict resolution Key Concepts Philosophy Psychology Literature Questions to Reflect On - When is bravery essential despite intelligence? - How can intelligence and bravery complement each other? A Different Perspective Bravery can be necessary in some urgent situations. ★ ★ ★ ★ ★ No ratings yet [Brave](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/brave/) [Bravery](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/bravery/) [Courage](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/courage/) [Inspiration](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/inspiration/) [Inspirational](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/inspirational/) [Intelligence](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/intelligence/) [Intelligent life](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/intelligent-life/) [Life](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/life/) [Wise words](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/wise-words/) ## Related quotes > [To try to be brave is to be brave.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/george-macdonald/to-try-to-be-brave-is-to-be-brave/) [George MacDonald](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/george-macdonald/) > [You can plan to be brave - it's even better if you just try to be brave.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/clive-barker/you-can-plan-to-be-brave-it-s-even-better-if-you-just-try-to-be-brave/) [Clive Barker](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/clive-barker/) > [I used to think that putting in effort wasn't cool. But now I'm older, I'm like... it's pretty cool to try. It's brave to…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ellie-rowsell/i-used-to-think-that-putting-in-effort-wasn-t-cool-but-now-i-m-older/) [Ellie Rowsell](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ellie-rowsell/) > [Have faith, little one, til your hopes and your wishes come true. You must try to be brave.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/the-rescuers/have-faith-little-one-til-your-hopes-and-your-wishes-come-true-you/) The Rescuers > [You want to try to put on a brave face, but I think I'm learning that that's not the case.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/becca-kufrin/you-want-to-try-to-put-on-a-brave-face-but-i-think-i-m-learning-that/) [Becca Kufrin](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/becca-kufrin/) > [“Be brave-or at least, try to be brave-and good things can happen.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/tommy-greenwald/be-brave-or-at-least-try-to-be-brave-and-good-things-can-happen/) [Tommy Greenwald](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/tommy-greenwald/) > [“It is brave to believe that you are a unique, precious young lady no matter what your feelings might be saying.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/sofi-benitez/it-is-brave-to-believe-that-you-are-a-unique-precious-young-lady-no/) [Sofi Benitez](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/sofi-benitez/) > [No man can be brave who thinks pain the greatest evil; nor temperate, who considers pleasure the highest good.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/marcus-tullius-cicero/no-man-can-be-brave-who-thinks-pain-the-greatest-evil-nor-temperate/) [Marcus Tullius Cicero](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/marcus-tullius-cicero/) > [ Brave men are brave from the very first. \[Fr., Les hommes valeureux le sont au premier coup.\] ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/pierre-corneille/brave-men-are-brave-from-the-very-first-fr-les-hommes-valeureux-le/) [Pierre Corneille](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/pierre-corneille/) > [He told me once to be brave, and though I have stood still while knives spun toward my face and jumped off a roof,…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/veronica-roth/he-told-me-once-to-be-brave-and-though-i-have-stood-still-while/) [Veronica Roth](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/veronica-roth/) > [You don't have to fight to be brave. Millions of good, fine, decent folks show more bravery than heavyweight champs just by getting out…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/john-wayne/you-don-t-have-to-fight-to-be-brave-millions-of-good-fine-decent/) [John Wayne](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/john-wayne/) > [Tis not too late to-morrow to be brave.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/john-armstrong/tis-not-too-late-to-morrow-to-be-brave/) [John Armstrong](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/john-armstrong/) > [It is hard to be brave, when you're only a Very Small Animal.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anonymous/it-is-hard-to-be-brave-when-you-re-only-a-very-small-animal/) [Anonymous](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anonymous/) > [To heal my wounds, I need to be brave enough to face them.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/paulo-coelho/to-heal-my-wounds-i-need-to-be-brave-enough-to-face-them/) [Paulo Coelho](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/paulo-coelho/) > [To be able to live and train in Iraq under these circumstances you need to be brave.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anonymous/to-be-able-to-live-and-train-in-iraq-under-these-circumstances-you/) [Anonymous](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anonymous/) ## More by Paulo Coelho > [I have inside me the winds, the deserts, the oceans, the stars, and everything created in the universe. We were all made by the…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/paulo-coelho/i-have-inside-me-the-winds-the-deserts-the-oceans-the-stars-and/) [Paulo Coelho](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/paulo-coelho/) > [Love will never separate a man from his personal legend.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/paulo-coelho/love-will-never-separate-a-man-from-his-personal-legend/) [Paulo Coelho](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/paulo-coelho/) > [The world has a soul and whoever understands that soul can also understand the language of many things.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/paulo-coelho/the-world-has-a-soul-and-whoever-understands-that-soul-can-also/) [Paulo Coelho](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/paulo-coelho/) > [You dont choose your life; it chooses you. Theres no point asking why life has reserved certain joys or griefs, you just accept them…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/paulo-coelho/you-dont-choose-your-life-it-chooses-you-theres-no-point-asking-why/) [Paulo Coelho](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/paulo-coelho/) > [To love is to be in communion with the other and to discover in that other the spark of God.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/paulo-coelho/to-love-is-to-be-in-communion-with-the-other-and-to-discover-in-that/) [Paulo Coelho](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/paulo-coelho/) > [It is not enough to dream of the Impossible Love - it is necessary to conquer it too.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/paulo-coelho/it-is-not-enough-to-dream-of-the-impossible-love-it-is-necessary-to/) [Paulo Coelho](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/paulo-coelho/) > [Eat when it is time to eat. And walk when it is time to walk.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/paulo-coelho/eat-when-it-is-time-to-eat-and-walk-when-it-is-time-to-walk/) [Paulo Coelho](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/paulo-coelho/) > [People are reading more and writing more because of the internet. So the virtual world is a way for me to listen to my…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/paulo-coelho/people-are-reading-more-and-writing-more-because-of-the-internet-so/) [Paulo Coelho](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/paulo-coelho/) > [“Joy is like sex – it begins and ends. I want pleasure. I want to be contended, but happiness? I no longer fall into…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/paulo-coelho/joy-is-like-sex-it-begins-and-ends-i-want-pleasure-i-want-to-be/) [Paulo Coelho](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/paulo-coelho/) > [“Trudi se da zivis, sjecanja su za starije ljude.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/paulo-coelho/trudi-se-da-zivis-sjecanja-su-za-starije-ljude/) [Paulo Coelho](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/paulo-coelho/) > [I've always been a very restless person. I work hard, spend too much time looking after my son, I dance like a mad thing,…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/paulo-coelho/i-ve-always-been-a-very-restless-person-i-work-hard-spend-too-much/) [Paulo Coelho](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/paulo-coelho/) > [When someone leaves, it's because someone else is about to arrive.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/paulo-coelho/when-someone-leaves-it-s-because-someone-else-is-about-to-arrive/) [Paulo Coelho](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/paulo-coelho/) > [The past and the future become unimportant. There is only that moment, and the incredible certainty that everything under the sun has been written…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/paulo-coelho/the-past-and-the-future-become-unimportant-there-is-only-that-moment/) [Paulo Coelho](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/paulo-coelho/) > [She didn't need to understand the meaning of life; it was enough to find someone who did, and then fall asleep in his arms…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/paulo-coelho/she-didn-t-need-to-understand-the-meaning-of-life-it-was-enough-to/) [Paulo Coelho](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/paulo-coelho/) > [“The simpler the pose, the better; the more sober, the more beautiful.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/paulo-coelho/the-simpler-the-pose-the-better-the-more-sober-the-more-beautiful/) [Paulo Coelho](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/paulo-coelho/) [Explore all 3,665 Paulo Coelho quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/paulo-coelho/) ## More Be brave quotes > [If You Love Someone, Be Brave Enough To Tell Them., Otherwise Be Brave Enough To Watch Them To Be Loved By Someone Else.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/bilal-zahoor/if-you-love-someone-be-brave-enough-to-tell-them-otherwise-be-brave/) [Bilal Zahoor](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/bilal-zahoor/) > [Be convinced that to be happy means to be free and that to be free means to be brave. Therefore do not take lightly…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/thucydides/be-convinced-that-to-be-happy-means-to-be-free-and-that-to-be-free/) [Thucydides](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/thucydides/) > [I admire machinery as much is any man, and am as thankful to it as any man can be for what it does for…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/charles-dickens/i-admire-machinery-as-much-is-any-man-and-am-as-thankful-to-it-as-any/) [Charles Dickens](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/charles-dickens/) > [To be able to live and train in Iraq under these circumstances you need to be brave.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anonymous/to-be-able-to-live-and-train-in-iraq-under-these-circumstances-you/) [Anonymous](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anonymous/) > [Be brave! Be strong! Be fearless! Once you have taken up the spiritual life, fight as long as there is any life in you.…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/swami-vivekananda/be-brave-be-strong-be-fearless-once-you-have-taken-up-the-spiritual/) [Swami Vivekananda](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/swami-vivekananda/) > [Sometimes I think I'm a nihilist because it doesn't matter, none of this matters. We're all following the will of some unknowable higher power,…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ottessa-moshfegh/sometimes-i-think-i-m-a-nihilist-because-it-doesn-t-matter-none-of/) [Ottessa Moshfegh](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ottessa-moshfegh/) > [Let us be brave in the face of adversity.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/seneca-the-elder/let-us-be-brave-in-the-face-of-adversity/) [Seneca the Elder](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/seneca-the-elder/) > [So that my life be brave, what though not long?](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/william-drummond/so-that-my-life-be-brave-what-though-not-long/) [William Drummond](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/william-drummond/) > [You can plan to be brave - it's even better if you just try to be brave.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/clive-barker/you-can-plan-to-be-brave-it-s-even-better-if-you-just-try-to-be-brave/) [Clive Barker](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/clive-barker/) > [We are in a tight corner, now, I agree. But we have been in tight corners before and come out of them. You have…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/mary-hoffman/we-are-in-a-tight-corner-now-i-agree-but-we-have-been-in-tight/) [Mary Hoffman](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/mary-hoffman/) > [ Before \[Hindus and Moslems\] dare think of freedom, they must be brave enough to love one another, to tolerate one another's religion, even prejudices… ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/mahatma-gandhi/before-hindus-and-moslems-dare-think-of-freedom-they-must-be-brave/) [Mahatma Gandhi](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/mahatma-gandhi/) > [The real problem with big issues like Medicare is that both parties have to be brave at the same time. Every pollster will tell…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jim-cooper/the-real-problem-with-big-issues-like-medicare-is-that-both-parties/) [Jim Cooper](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jim-cooper/) > [Fear is the raw material from which courage is manufactured. Without it, we wouldn't even know what it means to be brave.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/martha-beck/fear-is-the-raw-material-from-which-courage-is-manufactured-without/) [Martha Beck](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/martha-beck/) > [Pain nourishes courage. You can't be brave if you've only had wonderful things happen to you. Pain is inevitable. Misery is optional. Physical pain…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/barbara/pain-nourishes-courage-you-can-t-be-brave-if-you-ve-only-had/) [Barbara](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/barbara/) > [You make choices and sometimes they're good and sometimes they backfire. The most important thing is to be brave, forgive yourself when you do…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/kiersey-clemons/you-make-choices-and-sometimes-they-re-good-and-sometimes-they/) [Kiersey Clemons](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/kiersey-clemons/) Browse all 333 Be brave quotes ```json { "@context": "https://schema.org", "@graph": [ { "@type": "Quotation", "text": "Don't try to be brave when it is enough to be intelligent.", "creator": { "@type": "Person", "name": "Paulo Coelho" }, "isPartOf": { "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/#website" }, "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/paulo-coelho/don-t-try-to-be-brave-when-it-is-enough-to-be-intelligent/", "about": { "@type": "Thing", "name": "Be brave" }, "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/paulo-coelho/don-t-try-to-be-brave-when-it-is-enough-to-be-intelligent/#quotation", "image": { "@type": "ImageObject", "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/1b4/paulo-coelho-10_be-brave_don-t-try-to-be-brave-when-it-is-enough_940477.jpg", "contentUrl": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/1b4/paulo-coelho-10_be-brave_don-t-try-to-be-brave-when-it-is-enough_940477.jpg", "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/1b4/paulo-coelho-10_be-brave_don-t-try-to-be-brave-when-it-is-enough_940477.jpg", "width": 1080, "height": 1080, "caption": "“Don't try to be brave when it is enough to be intelligent.” — Paulo Coelho", "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": "Paulo Coelho", "item": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/paulo-coelho/" }, { "@type": "ListItem", "position": 4, "name": "Don't try to be brave when...", "item": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/paulo-coelho/don-t-try-to-be-brave-when-it-is-enough-to-be-intelligent/" } ], "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/paulo-coelho/don-t-try-to-be-brave-when-it-is-enough-to-be-intelligent/#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 } } ] } ```