--- title: "Meaning & Key Takeaway of: We can only choose whether we will feel…" description: "\"We can only choose whether we will feel and not what we will feel.\" — Sam Keen" image: "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/67e/sam-keen-4929_choose_we-can-only-choose-whether-we-will-feel_729896.png" --- # We can only choose whether we will feel and not what we… ![“We can only choose whether we will feel and not what we will feel.” quote by Sam Keen](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/67e/sam-keen-4929_choose_we-can-only-choose-whether-we-will-feel_729896.png) [Download](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/67e/sam-keen-4929_choose_we-can-only-choose-whether-we-will-feel_729896.png) [Open image](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/67e/sam-keen-4929_choose_we-can-only-choose-whether-we-will-feel_729896.png) > “We can only choose whether we will feel and not what we will feel.” [Sam Keen](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/sam-keen/) ## About This Quote This interpretation was drafted with AI assistance. It is one reading of the quote, not the author's own explanation. We control our emotional responses, not the emotions themselves. **In simple terms:** We choose reactions, not feelings. Key Takeaway Focus on choosing responses. Themes agency emotion choice Mood thoughtful empowering Type motivational philosophical When to use this quote - stress management - conflict resolution - personal growth Key Concepts psychology mindfulness Questions to Reflect On - What can you control in emotional moments? - How does choice affect emotional well‑being? A Different Perspective Choosing feelings can be limited by circumstances. ★ ★ ★ ★ ★ No ratings yet [Choose](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/choose/) [Choose Feel](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/choose-feel-400245/) [Feel](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/feel/) [Feel Feel](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/feel-feel/) [Feels](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/feels/) ## Related quotes > [There are things in life you cannot choose: how you feel.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/paritoshik-sharma/there-are-things-in-life-you-cannot-choose-how-you-feel/) [Paritoshik Sharma](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/paritoshik-sharma/) > [If I've been working a lot and I've been away from my kids, then I don't go to the gym. It's okay to miss…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/doutzen-kroes/if-i-ve-been-working-a-lot-and-i-ve-been-away-from-my-kids-then-i-don/) [Doutzen Kroes](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/doutzen-kroes/) > [So if you feel as if you feel too much, well then you are not alone. May these words find you like a friend.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jamie-tworkowski/so-if-you-feel-as-if-you-feel-too-much-well-then-you-are-not-alone/) [Jamie Tworkowski](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jamie-tworkowski/) > [Most women would not be happy being me. People say, 'But you're alone.' But I don't feel alone. I feel very un-alone.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/stevie-nicks/most-women-would-not-be-happy-being-me-people-say-but-you-re-alone/) [Stevie Nicks](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/stevie-nicks/) > [My team puts forward a selection of dresses, and I choose the one I feel most natural in.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/marion-cotillard/my-team-puts-forward-a-selection-of-dresses-and-i-choose-the-one-i/) [Marion Cotillard](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/marion-cotillard/) > [“Feel thanks and it is impossible to feel angry. We can only feel one emotion at time. We get to choose which do you…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ann-voskamp/feel-thanks-and-it-is-impossible-to-feel-angry-we-can-only-feel-one/) [Ann Voskamp](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ann-voskamp/) > [You choose how to feel and act every moment of every day. The moment you accept this responsibility completely, you gain total control over…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/marshall-sylver/you-choose-how-to-feel-and-act-every-moment-of-every-day-the-moment/) [Marshall Sylver](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/marshall-sylver/) > [I believe in Love at first sight, I also believe in Hate at first sight, so it's up to you to choose how you…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/chris-kings/i-believe-in-love-at-first-sight-i-also-believe-in-hate-at-first/) [Chris Kings](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/chris-kings/) > [“Would I choose to continually be in this vicious cycle, or would I choose to feel wonderful and happy?”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/richard-dotts/would-i-choose-to-continually-be-in-this-vicious-cycle-or-would-i/) [Richard Dotts](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/richard-dotts/) > [You are responsible for how you feel no matter what someone does to you, so choose to feel confident rather than angry and insecure.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anurag-prakash-ray/you-are-responsible-for-how-you-feel-no-matter-what-someone-does-to/) [Anurag Prakash Ray](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anurag-prakash-ray/) > [Vulcans can choose not to feel. But you are human, share it, let the world know you.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/gulshan-agarwal/vulcans-can-choose-not-to-feel-but-you-are-human-share-it-let-the/) [Gulshan Agarwal](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/gulshan-agarwal/) > [Choose to be at peace with yourself. Choose to feel good about yourself. You are indeed beautiful.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/pontsho-manzi/choose-to-be-at-peace-with-yourself-choose-to-feel-good-about/) [Pontsho Manzi](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/pontsho-manzi/) > [There are things in life you cannot choose, how you feel, whom you love and when you will die.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/paritoshik-sharma/there-are-things-in-life-you-cannot-choose-how-you-feel-whom-you-love/) [Paritoshik Sharma](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/paritoshik-sharma/) > [“So I was wrong when I told Rocky you could choose what you feel. It's not true. It's not even true that you can…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/nic-pizzolatto/so-i-was-wrong-when-i-told-rocky-you-could-choose-what-you-feel-it-s/) [Nic Pizzolatto](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/nic-pizzolatto/) > [Of the hundreds of points to enter and exit that are offered to me, I have to choose the one that I feel is…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/abbas-kiarostami/of-the-hundreds-of-points-to-enter-and-exit-that-are-offered-to-me-i/) [Abbas Kiarostami](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/abbas-kiarostami/) ## More by Sam Keen > [Wise people are able to give themselves gracefully to seemingly contradictory experiences, because they know that they belong to different seasons of life, all…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/sam-keen/wise-people-are-able-to-give-themselves-gracefully-to-seemingly/) [Sam Keen](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/sam-keen/) > [To sustain love, a man and a woman must continually be marrying and divorcing, moving with, against, away from, and beyond each other, saying…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/sam-keen/to-sustain-love-a-man-and-a-woman-must-continually-be-marrying-and/) [Sam Keen](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/sam-keen/) > [Mystical experiences (unlike scientific conclusions) cannot be communicated from one person to another. Philosophers and little children are continually amazed that we, unaccountably, find…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/sam-keen/mystical-experiences-unlike-scientific-conclusions-cannot-be/) [Sam Keen](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/sam-keen/) > [In a way, human beings have never been part of the natural order; we're not biological in the normal sense. Normal biological animals stop…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/sam-keen/in-a-way-human-beings-have-never-been-part-of-the-natural-order-we-re/) [Sam Keen](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/sam-keen/) > [To be on a quest is nothing more or less than to become an asker of questions.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/sam-keen/to-be-on-a-quest-is-nothing-more-or-less-than-to-become-an-asker-of/) [Sam Keen](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/sam-keen/) > [There is the extreme of hopelessness and the inevitability of doom, a deep despair that comes from the sense that our industrial, consuming society…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/sam-keen/there-is-the-extreme-of-hopelessness-and-the-inevitability-of-doom-a/) [Sam Keen](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/sam-keen/) > [Chronological time is what we measure by clocks and calendars; it is always linear, orderly, quantifiable, and mechanical. Kairotic time is organic, rhythmic, bodily,…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/sam-keen/chronological-time-is-what-we-measure-by-clocks-and-calendars-it-is/) [Sam Keen](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/sam-keen/) > [Human beings are what I think of as "biomythic" animals: we're controlled largely by the stories we tell. When we get the story wrong,…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/sam-keen/human-beings-are-what-i-think-of-as-biomythic-animals-we-re/) [Sam Keen](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/sam-keen/) > [If we come from good families where we have been supported well, there is a disillusionment we have to undergo in terms of the…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/sam-keen/if-we-come-from-good-families-where-we-have-been-supported-well-there/) [Sam Keen](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/sam-keen/) > [To a large extent, the aged in our society are ghettoized. Old people are seen as useless, bypassed by history, old-fashioned, in the way.…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/sam-keen/to-a-large-extent-the-aged-in-our-society-are-ghettoized-old-people/) [Sam Keen](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/sam-keen/) > [Call it "womb awe" or even "womb worship" but it's not simple envy. I don't remember even wanting to be a woman. But each…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/sam-keen/call-it-womb-awe-or-even-womb-worship-but-it-s-not-simple-envy-i-don/) [Sam Keen](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/sam-keen/) > [Mounting an expedition to actualize a Compassionate Commonwealth of all peoples...is the great spiritual challenge of our time.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/sam-keen/mounting-an-expedition-to-actualize-a-compassionate-commonwealth-of/) [Sam Keen](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/sam-keen/) > [The root of humanly caused evil is not man's animal nature, not territorial aggression, or innate selfishness, but our need to gain self-esteem, deny…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/sam-keen/the-root-of-humanly-caused-evil-is-not-man-s-animal-nature-not/) [Sam Keen](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/sam-keen/) > [If some incarnation of evil as unambiguous as Hitler appeared again, I would have no moral qualms about killing the enemy. But in the…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/sam-keen/if-some-incarnation-of-evil-as-unambiguous-as-hitler-appeared-again-i/) [Sam Keen](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/sam-keen/) > [“A man who does not know how to wage a just battle, first with himself and then with others, has no values worth defending,…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/sam-keen/a-man-who-does-not-know-how-to-wage-a-just-battle-first-with-himself/) [Sam Keen](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/sam-keen/) [Explore all 104 Sam Keen quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/sam-keen/) ## More Choose quotes > [Everyone needs someone to love, and I choose you.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anonymous/everyone-needs-someone-to-love-and-i-choose-you/) [Anonymous](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anonymous/) > [When you have a choice, choose happy!](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/pancho-barnes/when-you-have-a-choice-choose-happy/) [Pancho Barnes](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/pancho-barnes/) > [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/) > [If somebody asks me to choose a biopic, it would be Narain Karthikeyan because I love racing.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/naga-chaitanya/if-somebody-asks-me-to-choose-a-biopic-it-would-be-narain-karthikeyan/) [Naga Chaitanya](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/naga-chaitanya/) > [“Either you soften your ego, or the world will do it for you. Choose!”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/bert-mccoy/either-you-soften-your-ego-or-the-world-will-do-it-for-you-choose/) [Bert McCoy](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/bert-mccoy/) > [I'm aware of who I am and I'm comfortable with who I choose to date.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/shibani-dandekar/i-m-aware-of-who-i-am-and-i-m-comfortable-with-who-i-choose-to-date/) [Shibani Dandekar](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/shibani-dandekar/) > [No actor wants to choose - they just want all of the options available to them all the time; we tend to be pretty…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/gillian-jacobs/no-actor-wants-to-choose-they-just-want-all-of-the-options-available/) [Gillian Jacobs](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/gillian-jacobs/) > [If you choose to work at a larger company over a smaller company, you are more likely to be higher paid.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/julie-sweet/if-you-choose-to-work-at-a-larger-company-over-a-smaller-company-you/) [Julie Sweet](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/julie-sweet/) > [You can't choose what stays and what stays away.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/florence-welch/you-can-t-choose-what-stays-and-what-stays-away/) [Florence Welch](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/florence-welch/) > [It's only a thought and a thought can be changed. Choose good ones.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/wayne-dyer/it-s-only-a-thought-and-a-thought-can-be-changed-choose-good-ones/) [Wayne Dyer](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/wayne-dyer/) > [People come into your life for a reason, a season or a lifetime...so you gotta choose who is good for you! Be wise, be…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anonymous/people-come-into-your-life-for-a-reason-a-season-or-a-lifetime-so-you/) [Anonymous](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anonymous/) > [I'm not opposed - we manufacture a lot of socks in North Carolina - I just choose not to wear them. It's a Southern…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/richard-burr/i-m-not-opposed-we-manufacture-a-lot-of-socks-in-north-carolina-i/) [Richard Burr](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/richard-burr/) > [Having too many options is bad. I want one person, just one. Not a whole bunch to choose from,](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/roderickthefirst/having-too-many-options-is-bad-i-want-one-person-just-one-not-a-whole/) [RoderickTheFirst](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/roderickthefirst/) > [If I could be anyone, I'd choose the lead singer of Arcade Fire, Win Butler.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/rob-kardashian/if-i-could-be-anyone-i-d-choose-the-lead-singer-of-arcade-fire-win/) [Rob Kardashian](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/rob-kardashian/) > [People are as happy as they choose to be.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/henry-ford/people-are-as-happy-as-they-choose-to-be/) [Henry Ford](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/henry-ford/) [Browse all 3,851 Choose quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/choose/) ```json { "@context": "https://schema.org", "@graph": [ { "@type": "Quotation", "text": "We can only choose whether we will feel and not what we will feel.", "creator": { "@type": "Person", "name": "Sam Keen" }, "isPartOf": { "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/#website" }, "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/sam-keen/we-can-only-choose-whether-we-will-feel-and-not-what-we-will-feel/", "about": { "@type": "Thing", "name": "Choose" }, "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/sam-keen/we-can-only-choose-whether-we-will-feel-and-not-what-we-will-feel/#quotation", "image": { "@type": "ImageObject", "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/67e/sam-keen-4929_choose_we-can-only-choose-whether-we-will-feel_729896.png", "contentUrl": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/67e/sam-keen-4929_choose_we-can-only-choose-whether-we-will-feel_729896.png", "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/67e/sam-keen-4929_choose_we-can-only-choose-whether-we-will-feel_729896.png", "width": 1080, "height": 1080, "caption": "“We can only choose whether we will feel and not what we will feel.” — Sam Keen", "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": "Sam Keen", "item": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/sam-keen/" }, { "@type": "ListItem", "position": 4, "name": "We can only choose whether we...", "item": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/sam-keen/we-can-only-choose-whether-we-will-feel-and-not-what-we-will-feel/" } ], "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/sam-keen/we-can-only-choose-whether-we-will-feel-and-not-what-we-will-feel/#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 } } ] } ```