---
title: "Meaning & Key Takeaway of: It is very common for us to desire most…"
description: "\"It is very common for us to desire most what we are least qualified to obtain.\" — Samuel Johnson"
image: "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/17c/samuel-johnson-50_common_it-is-very-common-for-us-to-desire-most_1917374.png"
---

#  It is very common for us to desire most what we are least…

![“It is very common for us to desire most what we are least qualified to obtain.” quote by Samuel Johnson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/17c/samuel-johnson-50_common_it-is-very-common-for-us-to-desire-most_1917374.png)   [Download](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/17c/samuel-johnson-50_common_it-is-very-common-for-us-to-desire-most_1917374.png) [Open image](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/17c/samuel-johnson-50_common_it-is-very-common-for-us-to-desire-most_1917374.png)

> “It is very common for us to desire most what we are least qualified to obtain.”

[Samuel Johnson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/samuel-johnson/)

## 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 crave what they are least equipped to achieve.

**In simple terms:** We want what we can’t get.

Key Takeaway

Recognize realistic goals.

Themes

desire qualification aspiration

Mood

reflective cautious

Type

philosophical motivational

When to use this quote

- career planning
- education choices
- relationship expectations

Key Concepts

psychology of longing self-awareness

Questions to Reflect On

- What drives your unattainable desires?
- How can you align goals with abilities?

A Different Perspective

Desire can be unrealistic and lead to frustration.

★ ★ ★ ★ ★   No ratings yet

[Common](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/common/) [Common Desire](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/common-desire-2482021/) [Desire](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/desire/) [Desire Qualified](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/desire-qualified-2923126/) [Obtain](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/obtain/) [Qualified](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/qualified/) [Qualified Obtain](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/qualified-obtain-2923127/)

## Related quotes

> [“Two people can remain "in love"-- a phrase made practically useless by stinking romanticism--only if their common desire for each other unites in a…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/flannery-o-connor/two-people-can-remain-in-love-a-phrase-made-practically-useless-by-2/)

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

> [“First, our common desire and duty as Christians must be to enter into the full purpose of God for us.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/john-r-w-stott/first-our-common-desire-and-duty-as-christians-must-be-to-enter-into/)

[John R.W. Stott](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/john-r-w-stott/)

> [One common desire that every human being has is to love and be loved. At the end of our lives, it's how we measure…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/denise-di-novi/one-common-desire-that-every-human-being-has-is-to-love-and-be-loved/)

[Denise Di Novi](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/denise-di-novi/)

> [I've talked to nearly 30,000, people on this show, and all 30,000, had one thing in common: They all wanted validation...I would tell you…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/oprah-winfrey/i-ve-talked-to-nearly-30-000-people-on-this-show-and-all-30-000-had/)

[Oprah Winfrey](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/oprah-winfrey/)

> [“Love is a certain inborn suffering derived from the sight of and excessive meditation upon the beauty of the opposite sex, which causes each…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/andreas-capellanus/love-is-a-certain-inborn-suffering-derived-from-the-sight-of-and/)

[Andreas Capellanus](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/andreas-capellanus/)

> [Those that have done nothing in life, are not qualified to judge of those that have done little](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/samuel-johnson/those-that-have-done-nothing-in-life-are-not-qualified-to-judge-of/)

[Samuel Johnson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/samuel-johnson/)

> [The good Education of Youth has been esteemed by wise Men in all Ages, as the surest Foundation of the Happiness both of private…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/benjamin-franklin/the-good-education-of-youth-has-been-esteemed-by-wise-men-in-all-ages/)

[Benjamin Franklin](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/benjamin-franklin/)

> [The blessings of the priesthood are available to every righteous man and woman. We may all receive the Holy Ghost, obtain personal revelation, and…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/sheri-l-dew/the-blessings-of-the-priesthood-are-available-to-every-righteous-man/)

[Sheri L. Dew](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/sheri-l-dew/)

> [Since the German people, with unparalleled heroism, but also at the cost of fearful sacrifices, has waged war against half the world, it is…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/bernhard-von-bulow/since-the-german-people-with-unparalleled-heroism-but-also-at-the/)

[Bernhard von Bulow](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/bernhard-von-bulow/)

> [Those only obtain love, for the most part, who seek it not.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/johann-wolfgang-von-goethe/those-only-obtain-love-for-the-most-part-who-seek-it-not/)

[Johann Wolfgang von Goethe](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/johann-wolfgang-von-goethe/)

> [To obtain something, something of equal value must be given.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/hiromu-arakawa/to-obtain-something-something-of-equal-value-must-be-given/)

[Hiromu Arakawa](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/hiromu-arakawa/)

> [Why should I obtain by force that which I can obtain by cheating?](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/doc-holliday/why-should-i-obtain-by-force-that-which-i-can-obtain-by-cheating/)

[Doc Holliday](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/doc-holliday/)

> [The marriage certificate is a licence that is obtained before the driving test.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/vikrant-parsai/the-marriage-certificate-is-a-licence-that-is-obtained-before-the/)

[Vikrant Parsai](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/vikrant-parsai/)

> [“For their never-ending endeavours to obtain or retain wealth, countries desperately need companies, because they—unlike most human beings—have the means of production, and human…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/mokokoma-mokhonoana/for-their-never-ending-endeavours-to-obtain-or-retain-wealth/)

[Mokokoma Mokhonoana](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/mokokoma-mokhonoana/)

> [Pray to Saint Philomena, What ever you ask from her, She will obtain for you.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/pope-gregory-xvi/pray-to-saint-philomena-what-ever-you-ask-from-her-she-will-obtain/)

[Pope Gregory XVI](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/pope-gregory-xvi/)

## More by Samuel Johnson

> [The size of a man's understanding might always be justly measured by his mirth.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/samuel-johnson/the-size-of-a-man-s-understanding-might-always-be-justly-measured-by/)

[Samuel Johnson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/samuel-johnson/)

> [Pound St. Paul's Church into atoms, and consider any single atom; it is to be sure, good for nothing; but put all these atoms…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/samuel-johnson/pound-st-paul-s-church-into-atoms-and-consider-any-single-atom-it-is/)

[Samuel Johnson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/samuel-johnson/)

> [You can never be wise unless you love reading.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/samuel-johnson/you-can-never-be-wise-unless-you-love-reading/)

[Samuel Johnson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/samuel-johnson/)

> [If our aim is to praise, we should forget to criticize; if our aim is to criticize, we should remember to praise](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/samuel-johnson/if-our-aim-is-to-praise-we-should-forget-to-criticize-if-our-aim-is/)

[Samuel Johnson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/samuel-johnson/)

> [All theory is against free will; all experience is for it.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/samuel-johnson/all-theory-is-against-free-will-all-experience-is-for-it/)

[Samuel Johnson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/samuel-johnson/)

> [Had I learned to fiddle, I should have done nothing else.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/samuel-johnson/had-i-learned-to-fiddle-i-should-have-done-nothing-else/)

[Samuel Johnson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/samuel-johnson/)

> [It is as foolish to make experiments upon the constancy of a friend, as upon the chastity of a wife.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/samuel-johnson/it-is-as-foolish-to-make-experiments-upon-the-constancy-of-a-friend/)

[Samuel Johnson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/samuel-johnson/)

> [Resolve not to be poor: whatever you have, spend less. Poverty is a great enemy to human happiness; it certainly destroys liberty, and it…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/samuel-johnson/resolve-not-to-be-poor-whatever-you-have-spend-less-poverty-is-a/)

[Samuel Johnson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/samuel-johnson/)

> [The basis of all excellence is truth: he that professes love ought to feel its power.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/samuel-johnson/the-basis-of-all-excellence-is-truth-he-that-professes-love-ought-to/)

[Samuel Johnson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/samuel-johnson/)

> [Words are daughters of earth but ideas are sons of heaven.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/samuel-johnson/words-are-daughters-of-earth-but-ideas-are-sons-of-heaven/)

[Samuel Johnson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/samuel-johnson/)

> [“The composition of Shakespeare is a forest, in which oaks extend in the air, interspersed sometimes with weeds and brambles, and sometimes giving shelting…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/samuel-johnson/the-composition-of-shakespeare-is-a-forest-in-which-oaks-extend-in/)

[Samuel Johnson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/samuel-johnson/)

> [“The cherubim were never intended as an object of worship, because they were only the appendices to another thing. But a thing is then…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/samuel-johnson/the-cherubim-were-never-intended-as-an-object-of-worship-because-they/)

[Samuel Johnson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/samuel-johnson/)

> [Nobody has the right to put another under such a difficulty that he must either hurt the person by telling the truth or hurt…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/samuel-johnson/nobody-has-the-right-to-put-another-under-such-a-difficulty-that-he/)

[Samuel Johnson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/samuel-johnson/)

> [That kind of life is most happy which affords us most opportunities of gaining our own self-esteem](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/samuel-johnson/that-kind-of-life-is-most-happy-which-affords-us-most-opportunities/)

[Samuel Johnson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/samuel-johnson/)

> [The time will come to every human being when it must be known how well he can bear to die.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/samuel-johnson/the-time-will-come-to-every-human-being-when-it-must-be-known-how/)

[Samuel Johnson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/samuel-johnson/)

[Explore all 1,998 Samuel Johnson quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/samuel-johnson/)

## More Common quotes

> [I'm Fine!, the most common LIE in the world...](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/punkinhead-abhishek/i-m-fine-the-most-common-lie-in-the-world/)

[Punkinhead Abhishek](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/punkinhead-abhishek/)

> [A flourishing, morally credible media is a vital component in the maintenance of genuinely public talk, argument about common good.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/rowan-williams/a-flourishing-morally-credible-media-is-a-vital-component-in-the/)

[Rowan Williams](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/rowan-williams/)

> [We find few historians who have been diligent enough in their search for truth; it is their common method to take on trust what…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/john-dryden/we-find-few-historians-who-have-been-diligent-enough-in-their-search/)

[John Dryden](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/john-dryden/)

> [The ability of the gospel to unite us on common strengths and common truths is one of the great miracles . . . of the gospel.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jeffrey-r-holland/the-ability-of-the-gospel-to-unite-us-on-common-strengths-and-common/)

[Jeffrey R. Holland](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jeffrey-r-holland/)

> [Our times demand the declaration of the world's resources as the common heritage of all people.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jacque-fresco/our-times-demand-the-declaration-of-the-world-s-resources-as-the/)

[Jacque Fresco](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jacque-fresco/)

> [ Neither Italian fascism nor German national "socialism" have anything in common with such a \[Soviet socialistic\] society, primarily because private ownership of factories, plants,… ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/joseph-stalin/neither-italian-fascism-nor-german-national-socialism-have-anything/)

[Joseph Stalin](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/joseph-stalin/)

> [When you have a cavity in your tooth and you let it get worse, eventually you have to get a root canal. If you…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/olivia-newton-john/when-you-have-a-cavity-in-your-tooth-and-you-let-it-get-worse/)

[Olivia Newton-John](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/olivia-newton-john/)

> [There is nothing that we can properly call our own but our time, and yet everybody fools us out of it who has a…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/seneca-the-younger/there-is-nothing-that-we-can-properly-call-our-own-but-our-time-and/)

[Seneca the Younger](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/seneca-the-younger/)

> [Common sense is nothing more than a deposit of prejudices laid down in the mind before you reach eighteen.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/albert-einstein/common-sense-is-nothing-more-than-a-deposit-of-prejudices-laid-down/)

[Albert Einstein](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/albert-einstein/)

> [A common fallacy in much of the adverse criticism to which science is subjected today is that it claims certainty, infallibility and complete emotional…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/cyril-norman-hinshelwood/a-common-fallacy-in-much-of-the-adverse-criticism-to-which-science-is/)

[Cyril Norman Hinshelwood](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/cyril-norman-hinshelwood/)

> [We can find common qualities and common values that have made Britain the country it is. Our belief in tolerance and liberty which shines…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/gordon-brown/we-can-find-common-qualities-and-common-values-that-have-made-britain/)

[Gordon Brown](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/gordon-brown/)

> [A time will come when the science of destruction shall bend before the arts of peace; when the genius which multiplies our powers, which…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/francois-arago/a-time-will-come-when-the-science-of-destruction-shall-bend-before/)

[Francois Arago](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/francois-arago/)

> [… and so he tried to accept the ache in his heart as what Dr. Larch would call the common symptoms of normal life.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/john-irving/and-so-he-tried-to-accept-the-ache-in-his-heart-as-what-dr-larch/)

[John Irving](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/john-irving/)

> [It is a tragedy that we live in a world where physical courage is so common, and moral courage is so rare.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/claude-monet/it-is-a-tragedy-that-we-live-in-a-world-where-physical-courage-is-so/)

[Claude Monet](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/claude-monet/)

> [Those who advocate common usage in philosophy sometimes speak in a manner that suggests the mystique of the 'common man.'](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/bertrand-russell/those-who-advocate-common-usage-in-philosophy-sometimes-speak-in-a/)

[Bertrand Russell](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/bertrand-russell/)

[Browse all 7,866 Common quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/common/)

```json
{
    "@context": "https://schema.org",
    "@graph": [
        {
            "@type": "Quotation",
            "text": "It is very common for us to desire most what we are least qualified to obtain.",
            "creator": {
                "@type": "Person",
                "name": "Samuel Johnson"
            },
            "isPartOf": {
                "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/#website"
            },
            "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/samuel-johnson/it-is-very-common-for-us-to-desire-most-what-we-are-least-qualified/",
            "about": {
                "@type": "Thing",
                "name": "Common"
            },
            "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/samuel-johnson/it-is-very-common-for-us-to-desire-most-what-we-are-least-qualified/#quotation",
            "image": {
                "@type": "ImageObject",
                "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/17c/samuel-johnson-50_common_it-is-very-common-for-us-to-desire-most_1917374.png",
                "contentUrl": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/17c/samuel-johnson-50_common_it-is-very-common-for-us-to-desire-most_1917374.png",
                "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/17c/samuel-johnson-50_common_it-is-very-common-for-us-to-desire-most_1917374.png",
                "width": 1080,
                "height": 1080,
                "caption": "“It is very common for us to desire most what we are least qualified to obtain.” — Samuel Johnson",
                "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": "Samuel Johnson",
                    "item": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/samuel-johnson/"
                },
                {
                    "@type": "ListItem",
                    "position": 4,
                    "name": "It is very common for us...",
                    "item": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/samuel-johnson/it-is-very-common-for-us-to-desire-most-what-we-are-least-qualified/"
                }
            ],
            "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/samuel-johnson/it-is-very-common-for-us-to-desire-most-what-we-are-least-qualified/#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
            }
        }
    ]
}
```
