---
title: "Meaning & Key Takeaway of: When we have great treasures before us…"
description: "\"When we have great treasures before us, we can never see them.\" — Paulo Coelho"
image: "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/dfc/paulo-coelho-10_inspiration_when-we-have-great-treasures-before-us-w_1325553.jpg"
---

#  When we have great treasures before us, we can never see…

![“When we have great treasures before us, we can never see them.” quote by Paulo Coelho](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/dfc/paulo-coelho-10_inspiration_when-we-have-great-treasures-before-us-w_1325553.jpg)   [Download](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/dfc/paulo-coelho-10_inspiration_when-we-have-great-treasures-before-us-w_1325553.jpg) [Open image](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/dfc/paulo-coelho-10_inspiration_when-we-have-great-treasures-before-us-w_1325553.jpg)

> “When we have great treasures before us, we can never see them.”

[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.

We often overlook valuable opportunities because we are distracted or focused elsewhere.

**In simple terms:** We miss treasures when we look elsewhere.

Key Takeaway

Pay attention to what is right in front of you.

Themes

focus perception opportunity distraction

Mood

contemplative inspired

Type

philosophical motivational

When to use this quote

- career decisions
- relationship choices
- investment decisions
- personal growth

Key Concepts

mindfulness value recognition attention management

Questions to Reflect On

- What valuable thing are you ignoring now?
- How can you train yourself to notice hidden opportunities?

A Different Perspective

If we are too busy, we may still fail to notice even obvious chances.

★ ★ ★ ★ ★   No ratings yet

[Inspiration](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/inspiration/) [Inspirational](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/inspirational/) [Life](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/life/) [Love](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/love/) [Treasure](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/treasure/) [Treasures](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/treasures/)

## Related quotes

> [Salisbury University is one of the great treasures of our state.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/wes-moore/salisbury-university-is-one-of-the-great-treasures-of-our-state/)

[Wes Moore](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/wes-moore/)

> [I need no fantasies to belittle the great treasures that I already possess.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/r-a-salvatore-2/i-need-no-fantasies-to-belittle-the-great-treasures-that-i-already/)

[R. A. Salvatore](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/r-a-salvatore-2/)

> [The diversity of the phenomena of nature is so great, and the treasures hidden in the heavens so rich, precisely in order that the…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/johannes-kepler/the-diversity-of-the-phenomena-of-nature-is-so-great-and-the/)

[Johannes Kepler](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/johannes-kepler/)

> [Take the sum of human achievement in action, in science, in art, in literature subtract the work of the men above forty, and while…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/william-osler/take-the-sum-of-human-achievement-in-action-in-science-in-art-in/)

[William Osler](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/william-osler/)

> [“Great treasures bring out great greed in the hearts of men and great greed has been the downfall of many nations. - from "Opoponax…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/genieve-dawkins/great-treasures-bring-out-great-greed-in-the-hearts-of-men-and-great/)

[Genieve Dawkins](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/genieve-dawkins/)

> [Only those who find life, find treasures.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/paulo-coelho/only-those-who-find-life-find-treasures/)

[Paulo Coelho](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/paulo-coelho/)

> [ “Everyone on earth has a treasure that awaits him. \[...\] We, people hearts, seldom say much about these treasures, because people no longer want… ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/paulo-coelho/everyone-on-earth-has-a-treasure-that-awaits-him-we-people-hearts/)

[Paulo Coelho](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/paulo-coelho/)

> [“When you possess great treasures within you, and you try to tell others of them, seldom are you believed.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/paulo-coelho/when-you-possess-great-treasures-within-you-and-you-try-to-tell/)

[Paulo Coelho](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/paulo-coelho/)

> [The ivory tower of the artist may be the only stronghold left for human values, cultural treasures, man’s cult of beauty.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anais-nin/the-ivory-tower-of-the-artist-may-be-the-only-stronghold-left-for/)

[Anais Nin](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anais-nin/)

> [I have three treasures which I hold and keep. The first is mercy; the second is economy. The third is daring not to be…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/laozi/i-have-three-treasures-which-i-hold-and-keep-the-first-is-mercy-the/)

[Laozi](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/laozi/)

> [What treasures here do Mammon's sons behold! Yet know that all that which glitters is not gold.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/francis-quarles/what-treasures-here-do-mammon-s-sons-behold-yet-know-that-all-that/)

[Francis Quarles](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/francis-quarles/)

> [Collect treasures that have meaning only to you. Put them in a special place, and explain them to no one, except when you're giving…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/gwen-davis/collect-treasures-that-have-meaning-only-to-you-put-them-in-a-special/)

[Gwen Davis](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/gwen-davis/)

> [There are treasures in books that all the money in the world cannot buy, but the poorest laborer can have for nothing.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anonymous/there-are-treasures-in-books-that-all-the-money-in-the-world-cannot/)

[Anonymous](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anonymous/)

> [Year after year, author/historian William Loren Katz continues to mine the lodestone of Black culture, and it is simply amazing how often he manages…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/herb-boyd/year-after-year-author-historian-william-loren-katz-continues-to-mine/)

Herb Boyd

> [The things that seem insignificant to most people such as a note, song or walk become invaluable treasures kept safe in your heart to…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/bob-marley/the-things-that-seem-insignificant-to-most-people-such-as-a-note-song/)

[Bob Marley](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/bob-marley/)

## 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 Great quotes

> [It's always great to see old friends, especially those I have not been able to see in 15 months.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/william-regal/it-s-always-great-to-see-old-friends-especially-those-i-have-not-been/)

[William Regal](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/william-regal/)

> [You have to have a great director to make a great movie.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/thelma-schoonmaker/you-have-to-have-a-great-director-to-make-a-great-movie/)

[Thelma Schoonmaker](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/thelma-schoonmaker/)

> [Scepticism and cynicism about politics is so great that one of the best counters to it is what you can do at a local…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ed-miliband/scepticism-and-cynicism-about-politics-is-so-great-that-one-of-the/)

[Ed Miliband](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ed-miliband/)

> [I'm very proud of some of the stories I've been given thanks to the team at 'Emmerdale,' they've been great over the years so…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/kelvin-fletcher/i-m-very-proud-of-some-of-the-stories-i-ve-been-given-thanks-to-the/)

[Kelvin Fletcher](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/kelvin-fletcher/)

> [Real people speak in my books about the main events of the age, such as the war, the Chernobyl disaster, and the downfall of…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/svetlana-alexievich/real-people-speak-in-my-books-about-the-main-events-of-the-age-such/)

[Svetlana Alexievich](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/svetlana-alexievich/)

> [To me, Caribbean food is about fresh, seasonal produce - using what's in season to create vibrant and great tasting food. The spicing is…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ainsley-harriott/to-me-caribbean-food-is-about-fresh-seasonal-produce-using-what-s-in/)

[Ainsley Harriott](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ainsley-harriott/)

> [Ambition drives you on, ability certainly helps, but the fickle finger of fate and luck are great things.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/fergus-henderson/ambition-drives-you-on-ability-certainly-helps-but-the-fickle-finger/)

[Fergus Henderson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/fergus-henderson/)

> [No matter how many great things you say about Jacques Pepin, there's always more. Through his books and videos, he taught me the importance…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/j-kenji-lopez-alt/no-matter-how-many-great-things-you-say-about-jacques-pepin-there-s/)

[J. Kenji Lopez-Alt](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/j-kenji-lopez-alt/)

> [I would have done well as a gypsy child, I think. A circus baby. I coulda played a great street urchin or ragamuffin. Or…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/natasha-lyonne/i-would-have-done-well-as-a-gypsy-child-i-think-a-circus-baby-i/)

[Natasha Lyonne](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/natasha-lyonne/)

> [A lot of people have been saying 'The 100' reminds them of 'Lord Of The Flies,' 'Lost' and 'Battlestar Galactica,' and all of those…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/marie-avgeropoulos/a-lot-of-people-have-been-saying-the-100-reminds-them-of-lord-of-the/)

[Marie Avgeropoulos](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/marie-avgeropoulos/)

> [I always bump into people that Ive met. Not great friends, but if I bump into somebody Ive known and I wont recognise them.…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/dario-franchitti/i-always-bump-into-people-that-ive-met-not-great-friends-but-if-i/)

[Dario Franchitti](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/dario-franchitti/)

> [Performance matters because games are built on great performance, but form factor and energy efficiency matter incredibly because they want to build something that's…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jensen-huang/performance-matters-because-games-are-built-on-great-performance-but/)

[Jensen Huang](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jensen-huang/)

> [I'm a lot of things, but none of them are great.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/don-nelson/i-m-a-lot-of-things-but-none-of-them-are-great/)

[Don Nelson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/don-nelson/)

> [I get afraid of the dark if I'm in a great deal of dark, and I have to move around inside of that fear...…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/emil-ferris/i-get-afraid-of-the-dark-if-i-m-in-a-great-deal-of-dark-and-i-have-to/)

[Emil Ferris](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/emil-ferris/)

> [I've always been a believer in research. It's great to have an instinctual human reaction to a character, too, of course, but it has…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/chiwetel-ejiofor/i-ve-always-been-a-believer-in-research-it-s-great-to-have-an/)

[Chiwetel Ejiofor](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/chiwetel-ejiofor/)

Browse all 24,273 Great quotes

```json
{
    "@context": "https://schema.org",
    "@graph": [
        {
            "@type": "Quotation",
            "text": "When we have great treasures before us, we can never see them.",
            "creator": {
                "@type": "Person",
                "name": "Paulo Coelho"
            },
            "isPartOf": {
                "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/#website"
            },
            "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/paulo-coelho/when-we-have-great-treasures-before-us-we-can-never-see-them/",
            "about": {
                "@type": "Thing",
                "name": "Great"
            },
            "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/paulo-coelho/when-we-have-great-treasures-before-us-we-can-never-see-them/#quotation",
            "image": {
                "@type": "ImageObject",
                "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/dfc/paulo-coelho-10_inspiration_when-we-have-great-treasures-before-us-w_1325553.jpg",
                "contentUrl": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/dfc/paulo-coelho-10_inspiration_when-we-have-great-treasures-before-us-w_1325553.jpg",
                "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/dfc/paulo-coelho-10_inspiration_when-we-have-great-treasures-before-us-w_1325553.jpg",
                "width": 1080,
                "height": 1080,
                "caption": "“When we have great treasures before us, we can never see them.” — 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": "When we have great treasures before...",
                    "item": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/paulo-coelho/when-we-have-great-treasures-before-us-we-can-never-see-them/"
                }
            ],
            "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/paulo-coelho/when-we-have-great-treasures-before-us-we-can-never-see-them/#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
            }
        }
    ]
}
```
