---
title: "Meaning & Key Takeaway of: We always have a tendency to see those…"
description: "\"We always have a tendency to see those things that do not exist and to be blind to the great lessons that are right there before our eyes.\" — Paulo Coelho"
image: "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/402/paulo-coelho-10_ur-eyes_we-always-have-a-tendency-to-see-those-t_2193737.jpg"
---

#  We always have a tendency to see those things that do not…

![“We always have a tendency to see those things that do not exist and to be blind to the great lessons that are right there before our eyes.” quote by Paulo Coelho](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/402/paulo-coelho-10_ur-eyes_we-always-have-a-tendency-to-see-those-t_2193737.jpg)   [Download](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/402/paulo-coelho-10_ur-eyes_we-always-have-a-tendency-to-see-those-t_2193737.jpg) [Open image](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/402/paulo-coelho-10_ur-eyes_we-always-have-a-tendency-to-see-those-t_2193737.jpg)

> “We always have a tendency to see those things that do not exist and to be blind to the great lessons that are right there before our eyes.”

[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.

People often focus on imagined problems and miss obvious lessons right in front of them.

**In simple terms:** We ignore obvious truths while chasing imagined ones.

Key Takeaway

Pay attention to what’s directly before you.

Themes

perception awareness learning

Mood

reflective thoughtful

Type

philosophical inspirational

When to use this quote

- personal growth
- decision making
- education
- relationships

Key Concepts

cognitive bias mindfulness

Questions to Reflect On

- What obvious truth are you overlooking?
- How can you train yourself to notice present lessons?

A Different Perspective

Blind spots can lead to missed opportunities and errors.

★ ★ ★ ★ ★   No ratings yet

[Blind](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/blind/)

## Related quotes

> [A great ancient poet was blind. A great classical composer was deaf. Many of us are dumb. What have we to show for it?](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/vera-nazarian/a-great-ancient-poet-was-blind-a-great-classical-composer-was-deaf/)

[Vera Nazarian](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/vera-nazarian/)

> [“Mind you, do not think that my affection for you is blind. You have great, very great faults, at least in my eyes.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/albert-camus/mind-you-do-not-think-that-my-affection-for-you-is-blind-you-have/)

[Albert Camus](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/albert-camus/)

> [The fact I'm blind has been a great help to my career. If I'd been sighted I'd have played baseball and got into trouble…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jose-feliciano/the-fact-i-m-blind-has-been-a-great-help-to-my-career-if-i-d-been/)

[Jose Feliciano](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jose-feliciano/)

> [And I'd say one of the great lessons I've learned over the past couple of decades, from a management perspective, is that really when…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/steve-case/and-i-d-say-one-of-the-great-lessons-i-ve-learned-over-the-past/)

[Steve Case](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/steve-case/)

> [As fathers, we all have great lessons to teach our children.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/naveen-jain/as-fathers-we-all-have-great-lessons-to-teach-our-children/)

[Naveen Jain](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/naveen-jain/)

> [The good times become great memories. The bad times become great lessons.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jesse-joseph/the-good-times-become-great-memories-the-bad-times-become-great/)

[Jesse Joseph](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jesse-joseph/)

> [“My father could have been a great comedian but he didn't believe that that was possible for him, and so he made a conservative…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jim-carrey/my-father-could-have-been-a-great-comedian-but-he-didn-t-believe-that/)

[Jim Carrey](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jim-carrey/)

> [“Love is not a Subject, but it has some great lessons..!”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/sarvesh-jain/love-is-not-a-subject-but-it-has-some-great-lessons/)

[Sarvesh Jain](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/sarvesh-jain/)

> [“There are often great lessons to be learned at the roots of stress, drama, and heartache. Don’t let the magnitude of the circumstance blind…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/steve-maraboli/there-are-often-great-lessons-to-be-learned-at-the-roots-of-stress/)

[Steve Maraboli](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/steve-maraboli/)

> [The beach game taught me great lessons about how to elevate the play of my teammate, or teammates, and how to anticipate and expect…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/karch-kiraly/the-beach-game-taught-me-great-lessons-about-how-to-elevate-the-play/)

[Karch Kiraly](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/karch-kiraly/)

> [“Indiscretions can lead to great lessons.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/julieanne-o-connor/indiscretions-can-lead-to-great-lessons/)

[Julieanne O'Connor](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/julieanne-o-connor/)

> [Bring light to those things that you are not proud of and work on them, you'll learn great lessons, and become a better person…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/senoraroy/bring-light-to-those-things-that-you-are-not-proud-of-and-work-on/)

Senoraroy

> [A judicious reticence is hard to learn, but it is one of the great lessons of life.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/lord-chesterfield/a-judicious-reticence-is-hard-to-learn-but-it-is-one-of-the-great/)

[Lord Chesterfield](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/lord-chesterfield/)

> [I learned many great lessons from my father, not the least of which, was that you can fail at what you don't want so…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jim-carrey/i-learned-many-great-lessons-from-my-father-not-the-least-of-which/)

[Jim Carrey](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jim-carrey/)

> [The Power of WHO provides great lessons about how to succeed in business and in life. If you surround yourself with quality people and…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/wayne-gretzky/the-power-of-who-provides-great-lessons-about-how-to-succeed-in/)

[Wayne Gretzky](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/wayne-gretzky/)

## 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 Blind quotes

> [The Rosary is the book of the blind.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/fulton-j-sheen/the-rosary-is-the-book-of-the-blind/)

[Fulton J. Sheen](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/fulton-j-sheen/)

> [Love is so blind, it feels right when it's wrong.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/beyonce-knowles/love-is-so-blind-it-feels-right-when-it-s-wrong/)

[Beyonce Knowles](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/beyonce-knowles/)

> [... Arthur Gride, whose bleared eyes gloated only over the outward beauties, and were blind to the spirit which reigned within, evinced - a…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/charles-dickens/arthur-gride-whose-bleared-eyes-gloated-only-over-the-outward/)

[Charles Dickens](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/charles-dickens/)

> [“A man who saw has turned blind, A hearer deaf, A leader now leads astray!”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/miriam-lichtheim/a-man-who-saw-has-turned-blind-a-hearer-deaf-a-leader-now-leads-astray/)

[Miriam Lichtheim](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/miriam-lichtheim/)

> [“What I shall feel to-morrow I cannot tell. Maybe I shall go blind again, for women are never two days alike in their minds…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/gilbert-parker/what-i-shall-feel-to-morrow-i-cannot-tell-maybe-i-shall-go-blind/)

[Gilbert Parker](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/gilbert-parker/)

> [Now the stage today is to know that Self Realization gives you experiences and then your faith is established. Not blind but open enlightened…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/nirmala-srivastava/now-the-stage-today-is-to-know-that-self-realization-gives-you/)

[Nirmala Srivastava](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/nirmala-srivastava/)

> [The more I produce, the less I am certain. On the road along which the artist walks, night falls ever more densely. Finally, he…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/albert-camus/the-more-i-produce-the-less-i-am-certain-on-the-road-along-which-the/)

[Albert Camus](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/albert-camus/)

> [“The heart’s blind. It’s the head that causes all the trouble. Sometimes both are stupid.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/k-bromberg/the-heart-s-blind-it-s-the-head-that-causes-all-the-trouble-sometimes/)

[K. Bromberg](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/k-bromberg/)

> [“In the story of the blind men and the elephant, what’s usually ignored is the fact that each man’s description was correct. What Faye…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/nathan-hill/in-the-story-of-the-blind-men-and-the-elephant-what-s-usually-ignored/)

[Nathan Hill](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/nathan-hill/)

> [My favorite performance would definitely be "Toxic," which was my blind audition song. It was the start of it all and it was a…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/melanie-martinez/my-favorite-performance-would-definitely-be-toxic-which-was-my-blind/)

[Melanie Martinez](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/melanie-martinez/)

> [Our attitude towards evil must be freed from hatred, and has itself need to be enlightened in character...Satan rejoices when he succeeds in inspiring…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/nikolai-berdyaev/our-attitude-towards-evil-must-be-freed-from-hatred-and-has-itself/)

[Nikolai Berdyaev](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/nikolai-berdyaev/)

> [If you are the master be sometimes blind, if you are the servant be sometimes deaf.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/r-buckminster-fuller/if-you-are-the-master-be-sometimes-blind-if-you-are-the-servant-be/)

[R. Buckminster Fuller](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/r-buckminster-fuller/)

> [I'm glad I'm blind and can't see it.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/stevie-wonder/i-m-glad-i-m-blind-and-can-t-see-it/)

[Stevie Wonder](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/stevie-wonder/)

> [Shut your eyes and you will know what I mean by thought entombed in darkness. Light comes through the senses, and not only through…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/charles-lindbergh/shut-your-eyes-and-you-will-know-what-i-mean-by-thought-entombed-in/)

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

> [Blind with love, my daughter has cried nightly for horses, those long-necked marchers and churners that she has mastered, any and all, reigning them…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anne-sexton/blind-with-love-my-daughter-has-cried-nightly-for-horses-those-long/)

[Anne Sexton](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anne-sexton/)

[Browse all 3,877 Blind quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/blind/)

```json
{
    "@context": "https://schema.org",
    "@graph": [
        {
            "@type": "Quotation",
            "text": "We always have a tendency to see those things that do not exist and to be blind to the great lessons that are right there before our eyes.",
            "creator": {
                "@type": "Person",
                "name": "Paulo Coelho"
            },
            "isPartOf": {
                "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/#website"
            },
            "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/paulo-coelho/we-always-have-a-tendency-to-see-those-things-that-do-not-exist-and/",
            "about": {
                "@type": "Thing",
                "name": "Blind"
            },
            "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/paulo-coelho/we-always-have-a-tendency-to-see-those-things-that-do-not-exist-and/#quotation",
            "image": {
                "@type": "ImageObject",
                "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/402/paulo-coelho-10_ur-eyes_we-always-have-a-tendency-to-see-those-t_2193737.jpg",
                "contentUrl": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/402/paulo-coelho-10_ur-eyes_we-always-have-a-tendency-to-see-those-t_2193737.jpg",
                "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/402/paulo-coelho-10_ur-eyes_we-always-have-a-tendency-to-see-those-t_2193737.jpg",
                "width": 1080,
                "height": 1080,
                "caption": "“We always have a tendency to see those things that do not exist and to be blind to the great lessons that…” — 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": "We always have a tendency to...",
                    "item": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/paulo-coelho/we-always-have-a-tendency-to-see-those-things-that-do-not-exist-and/"
                }
            ],
            "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/paulo-coelho/we-always-have-a-tendency-to-see-those-things-that-do-not-exist-and/#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
            }
        }
    ]
}
```
