--- title: "Meaning & Key Takeaway of: When we can do nothing else, we can still…" description: "\"When we can do nothing else, we can still love, without expecting any reward or change or gratitude.\" — Paulo Coelho" image: "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/4c6/paulo-coelho-10_change_when-we-can-do-nothing-else-we-can-still_1216240.jpg" --- # When we can do nothing else, we can still love, without… ![“When we can do nothing else, we can still love, without expecting any reward or change or gratitude.” quote by Paulo Coelho](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/4c6/paulo-coelho-10_change_when-we-can-do-nothing-else-we-can-still_1216240.jpg) [Download](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/4c6/paulo-coelho-10_change_when-we-can-do-nothing-else-we-can-still_1216240.jpg) [Open image](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/4c6/paulo-coelho-10_change_when-we-can-do-nothing-else-we-can-still_1216240.jpg) > “When we can do nothing else, we can still love, without expecting any reward or change or gratitude.” [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. When all else fails, love can still be given freely without expecting anything in return. **In simple terms:** Love without expectation. Key Takeaway Give love unconditionally. Themes love selflessness resilience Mood hopeful empathetic Type philosophical inspirational When to use this quote - relationships - hardship - loss - personal crisis Key Concepts human connection spiritual growth Questions to Reflect On - How can you sustain love amid loss? - What does love mean to you? A Different Perspective Love may not be reciprocated. ★ ★ ★ ★ ★ No ratings yet [Change](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/change/) [Change Gratitude](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/change-gratitude-3707909/) [Expecting](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/expecting/) [Expecting Reward](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/expecting-reward-2248149/) [Gratitude](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/gratitude/) [Love](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/love/) [Love Does](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/love-does/) [Reward](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/reward/) [Rewards](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/rewards/) [Stills](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/stills/) ## Related quotes > [Father monks, why do you fast! Why do you expect reward in heaven for that?...No, saintly monk, you try being virtuous in the world,…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/fyodor-dostoevsky/father-monks-why-do-you-fast-why-do-you-expect-reward-in-heaven-for/) [Fyodor Dostoevsky](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/fyodor-dostoevsky/) > [Doing your best is taking the action because you love it, not because you're expecting a reward. Most people do the exact opposite: They…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/miguel-angel-ruiz/doing-your-best-is-taking-the-action-because-you-love-it-not-because/) [Miguel Angel Ruiz](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/miguel-angel-ruiz/) > [“But love your enemies, do good to them, and lend to them without expecting to get anything back. Then your reward will be great,…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/michele-woolley/but-love-your-enemies-do-good-to-them-and-lend-to-them-without/) [Michele Woolley](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/michele-woolley/) > [“if you take action just for the sake of doing it, without expecting a reward, you will find that you enjoy every action you…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/miguel-ruiz/if-you-take-action-just-for-the-sake-of-doing-it-without-expecting-a/) [Miguel Ruiz](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/miguel-ruiz/) > [The reward is in doing, but doing without expecting anything...doing unselfishly.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anonymous/the-reward-is-in-doing-but-doing-without-expecting-anything-doing/) [Anonymous](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anonymous/) > [Human kindness has no reward. You should give to others in every way you see. expect absolutely nothing from anyone. It should be your…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/louis-c-k/human-kindness-has-no-reward-you-should-give-to-others-in-every-way/) [Louis C. K](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/louis-c-k/) > [When someone wants something, they must know why they are fighting. This is the only reason to seek a reward.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/paulo-coelho/when-someone-wants-something-they-must-know-why-they-are-fighting/) [Paulo Coelho](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/paulo-coelho/) > [Doing your best is taking the action because you love it, not because you're expecting a reward](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/miguel-angel-ruiz/doing-your-best-is-taking-the-action-because-you-love-it-not-because-2/) [Miguel Angel Ruiz](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/miguel-angel-ruiz/) > [ “Research shows that levels of the neurotransmitter dopamine surge when the brain is expecting a reward.\[xi\] Introducing variability multiplies the effect, creating a focused… ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/nir-eyal/research-shows-that-levels-of-the-neurotransmitter-dopamine-surge/) [Nir Eyal](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/nir-eyal/) > [Once you have done a man a service, what more reward would you have? 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The key…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jeffrey-kluger/everybody-loves-to-spend-money-at-least-some-of-the-time-because/) [Jeffrey Kluger](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jeffrey-kluger/) > [We can find meaning and reward by serving some higher purpose than ourselves, a shining purpose, the illumination of a Thousand Points of Light...We…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/george-h-w-bush/we-can-find-meaning-and-reward-by-serving-some-higher-purpose-than/) [George H. W. Bush](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/george-h-w-bush/) > [Do not expect human beings to reward you, don't even think about it, just LOVE, because you know at the end of the day…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/bo-sanchez/do-not-expect-human-beings-to-reward-you-don-t-even-think-about-it/) [Bo Sanchez](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/bo-sanchez/) > [When I'm working on something and I get to the point where I feel it getting interesting, that's my reward.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/hans-peter-lindstr-m/when-i-m-working-on-something-and-i-get-to-the-point-where-i-feel-it/) [Hans-Peter Lindstrøm](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/hans-peter-lindstr-m/) ## 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 Change quotes > [Only within yourself exists the other reality for which you long. 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I want to take on that responsibility to…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/roger-ross-williams/i-can-t-believe-that-i-m-sitting-in-meetings-with-steven-spielberg/) [Roger Ross Williams](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/roger-ross-williams/) > [“…progress isn't necessarily about change but about things turning out as we want them to”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/phil-hogan/progress-isn-t-necessarily-about-change-but-about-things-turning-out/) [Phil Hogan](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/phil-hogan/) > [Nobody can tell me that no changes are necessary in Washington.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/william-weld/nobody-can-tell-me-that-no-changes-are-necessary-in-washington/) [William Weld](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/william-weld/) > [If my campaign is not in the debate, we will not be talking about how we really fix this problem of endless and expanding…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jill-stein/if-my-campaign-is-not-in-the-debate-we-will-not-be-talking-about-how/) [Jill Stein](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jill-stein/) > [When you walk down the street of Kabul your values for life changes, they do change.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/marco-pierre-white/when-you-walk-down-the-street-of-kabul-your-values-for-life-changes/) [Marco Pierre White](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/marco-pierre-white/) > [Your world will change whether or not you choose to change, but you have the power to choose it's direction.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/napoleon-hill/your-world-will-change-whether-or-not-you-choose-to-change-but-you/) [Napoleon Hill](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/napoleon-hill/) > [I hope I continue to evolve.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/charlotte-flair/i-hope-i-continue-to-evolve/) [Charlotte Flair](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/charlotte-flair/) > [“Stay focused on bringing people together and more on positive messaging so that you can be the change you wish to see in the…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/germany-kent/stay-focused-on-bringing-people-together-and-more-on-positive/) [Germany Kent](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/germany-kent/) > [The biggest change for me as a mom was realizing I needed to put someone else before me. 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