--- title: "Meaning & Key Takeaway of: No, Sir, you will have much more…" description: "\"No, Sir, you will have much more influence by giving or lending money where it is wanted, than by hospitality.\" — Samuel Johnson" image: "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/90a/samuel-johnson-50_borrowing_no-sir-you-will-have-much-more-influence_1781621.png" --- # No, Sir, you will have much more influence by giving or… ![“No, Sir, you will have much more influence by giving or lending money where it is wanted, than by hospitality.” quote by Samuel Johnson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/90a/samuel-johnson-50_borrowing_no-sir-you-will-have-much-more-influence_1781621.png) [Download](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/90a/samuel-johnson-50_borrowing_no-sir-you-will-have-much-more-influence_1781621.png) [Open image](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/90a/samuel-johnson-50_borrowing_no-sir-you-will-have-much-more-influence_1781621.png) > “No, Sir, you will have much more influence by giving or lending money where it is wanted, than by hospitality.” [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. Influence comes more from meeting needs with money than from offering hospitality. **In simple terms:** Money can be more influential than kindness. Key Takeaway Consider impact of resources over gestures. Themes influence money hospitality needs social dynamics Mood thoughtful pragmatic Type sociological ethical When to use this quote - business negotiations - charitable giving - personal relationships - community building Key Concepts Economic theory social exchange Questions to Reflect On - When does generosity outweigh financial aid? - How does money shape power dynamics? A Different Perspective Money may not build lasting trust. ★ ★ ★ ★ ★ No ratings yet [Borrowing](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/borrowing/) [Giving](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/giving/) [Giving Lending](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/giving-lending-1866850/) [Hospitality](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/hospitality/) [Influence](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/influence/) [Influence Giving](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/influence-giving-1866848/) [Lending](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/lending/) [Lending money](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/lending-money/) [Money](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/money/) [Rich](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/rich/) [Wanted](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/wanted/) [Wanted Hospitality](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/wanted-hospitality-1866849/) ## Related quotes > [Neither a borrower nor a lender be, for loan oft loses both itself and friend, and borrowing dulls the edge of husbandry.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/william-shakespeare/neither-a-borrower-nor-a-lender-be-for-loan-oft-loses-both-itself-and-2/) [William Shakespeare](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/william-shakespeare/) > [People cannot live by lending money to one another.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/john-ruskin/people-cannot-live-by-lending-money-to-one-another/) [John Ruskin](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/john-ruskin/) > [What went wrong is we had tremendous concentration in the sense we put a lot of our money to work against U.S. real estate.…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/vikram-pandit/what-went-wrong-is-we-had-tremendous-concentration-in-the-sense-we/) [Vikram Pandit](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/vikram-pandit/) > [If we are lending money that ostensibly we don't have to kids who have no hope of making it back in order to train…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/mike-rowe/if-we-are-lending-money-that-ostensibly-we-don-t-have-to-kids-who/) [Mike Rowe](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/mike-rowe/) > [How long can interest rates stay negative? Think about this. Not only are you lending your money to governments, but you're paying them interest…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/mohamed-el-erian/how-long-can-interest-rates-stay-negative-think-about-this-not-only/) [Mohamed El-Erian](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/mohamed-el-erian/) > [Be careful about lending a friend money. It may damage her memory.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anonymous/be-careful-about-lending-a-friend-money-it-may-damage-her-memory/) [Anonymous](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anonymous/) > [I could write a book - if I could write, ha ha - about how many times I've been ripped off lending money to…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/harry-redknapp/i-could-write-a-book-if-i-could-write-ha-ha-about-how-many-times-i-ve/) [Harry Redknapp](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/harry-redknapp/) > [Seneca devoted much of his time to writing essays in praise of poverty, and in lending money at usurious rates.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/josh-billings/seneca-devoted-much-of-his-time-to-writing-essays-in-praise-of/) [Josh Billings](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/josh-billings/) > [I had no idea that I would ever get involved with something like lending money to poor people, given the circumstances in which I…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/muhammad-yunus/i-had-no-idea-that-i-would-ever-get-involved-with-something-like/) [Muhammad Yunus](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/muhammad-yunus/) > [My history of lending money from banks is that they want to know the ins and outs of the backside of a duck.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/alan-sugar/my-history-of-lending-money-from-banks-is-that-they-want-to-know-the/) [Alan Sugar](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/alan-sugar/) > [We are lending money we don't have to kids who can't pay it back to train them for jobs that no longer exist. That's…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/mike-rowe/we-are-lending-money-we-don-t-have-to-kids-who-can-t-pay-it-back-to/) [Mike Rowe](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/mike-rowe/) > [So you know, everyone points out Greece's default record, but the history of a lot of sovereign nations is not a good one when…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/james-chanos/so-you-know-everyone-points-out-greece-s-default-record-but-the/) [James Chanos](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/james-chanos/) > [Friendship Day is the perfect time to thank you for lending me money and to see if I can borrow more.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anonymous/friendship-day-is-the-perfect-time-to-thank-you-for-lending-me-money/) [Anonymous](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anonymous/) > [The rich nations of the world are acting like ancient usurers, lending money to the desperate poor on terms that cannot possibly be met…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/william-greider/the-rich-nations-of-the-world-are-acting-like-ancient-usurers-lending/) [William Greider](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/william-greider/) > [There is one bit of advice given us by the ancient Greeks, and by the Jews in the Old Testament, and by the great…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/c-s-lewis/there-is-one-bit-of-advice-given-us-by-the-ancient-greeks-and-by-the/) [C. S. Lewis](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/c-s-lewis/) ## 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 Borrowing quotes > [I would borrow money all day long, if the cost of borrowing is less than the expected return.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/brad-schneider/i-would-borrow-money-all-day-long-if-the-cost-of-borrowing-is-less/) [Brad Schneider](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/brad-schneider/) > [ When the fountains of government \[borrowing\] abundance began to dry up, when through lack of funds and the impossibility of negotiating fresh loans the… ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/john-t-flynn/when-the-fountains-of-government-borrowing-abundance-began-to-dry-up/) [John T. Flynn](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/john-t-flynn/) > [By taking out a loan, I am committing myself to years of interest repayments, and therefore to years of wage slavery. And the UK…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/tom-hodgkinson/by-taking-out-a-loan-i-am-committing-myself-to-years-of-interest/) [Tom Hodgkinson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/tom-hodgkinson/) > [Perhaps art criticism cannot be reformed in a logical sense because it was never well-formed in the first place. Art criticism has long been…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/james-elkins/perhaps-art-criticism-cannot-be-reformed-in-a-logical-sense-because/) [James Elkins](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/james-elkins/) > [It’s always going to be easy to live like others or other’s life, because creating or innovating something of own is always difficult in…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anuj/it-s-always-going-to-be-easy-to-live-like-others-or-other-s-life/) [Anuj](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anuj/) > [A poet ought not to pick nature's pocket. Let him borrow, and so borrow as to repay by the very act of borrowing. Examine…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/samuel-taylor-coleridge/a-poet-ought-not-to-pick-nature-s-pocket-let-him-borrow-and-so-borrow/) [Samuel Taylor Coleridge](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/samuel-taylor-coleridge/) > [Several southern actors are coming to Mumbai. Likewise, many Bollywood actors are appearing down South or borrowing ideas from southern films.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ram-charan/several-southern-actors-are-coming-to-mumbai-likewise-many-bollywood/) [Ram Charan](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ram-charan/) > [As for borrowing Mr. Whistler's ideas about art, the only thoroughly original ideas I have heard him express have had reference to his own…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/oscar-wilde/as-for-borrowing-mr-whistler-s-ideas-about-art-the-only-thoroughly/) [Oscar Wilde](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/oscar-wilde/) > [Saints and ordinary folks are the same from the start. Inquiring about a difference is like asking to borrow string when you've got a…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/hsu-yun/saints-and-ordinary-folks-are-the-same-from-the-start-inquiring-about/) [Hsu Yun](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/hsu-yun/) > [Borrowing money on what's called 'easy terms,' is a one-way ticket to the Poor House. If you think it ain't a Sucker Game, why…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/will-rogers/borrowing-money-on-what-s-called-easy-terms-is-a-one-way-ticket-to/) [Will Rogers](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/will-rogers/) > [What I'm concerned about is endless borrowing, which is going to compromise our economy not only today but in the future. Because we know…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/paul-ryan/what-i-m-concerned-about-is-endless-borrowing-which-is-going-to/) [Paul Ryan](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/paul-ryan/) > [Debt is a bottomless sea.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anonymous/debt-is-a-bottomless-sea/) [Anonymous](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anonymous/) > [There is a big problem. The problem is the country borrowed too much. We went on a borrowing binge, there was a housing boom.…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/george-osborne/there-is-a-big-problem-the-problem-is-the-country-borrowed-too-much/) [George Osborne](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/george-osborne/) > [Debtor countries may postpone the inevitable by borrowing from the IMF or U.S. Treasury to buy out bondholders. This saves the latter from taking…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/michael-hudson/debtor-countries-may-postpone-the-inevitable-by-borrowing-from-the/) [Michael Hudson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/michael-hudson/) > [We do not project power from bankruptcy court. We're borrowing a million dollars a minute.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/rand-paul/we-do-not-project-power-from-bankruptcy-court-we-re-borrowing-a/) [Rand Paul](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/rand-paul/) [Browse all 303 Borrowing quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/borrowing/) ```json { "@context": "https://schema.org", "@graph": [ { "@type": "Quotation", "text": "No, Sir, you will have much more influence by giving or lending money where it is wanted, than by hospitality.", "creator": { "@type": "Person", "name": "Samuel Johnson" }, "isPartOf": { "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/#website" }, "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/samuel-johnson/no-sir-you-will-have-much-more-influence-by-giving-or-lending-money/", "about": { "@type": "Thing", "name": "Borrowing" }, "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/samuel-johnson/no-sir-you-will-have-much-more-influence-by-giving-or-lending-money/#quotation", "image": { "@type": "ImageObject", "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/90a/samuel-johnson-50_borrowing_no-sir-you-will-have-much-more-influence_1781621.png", "contentUrl": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/90a/samuel-johnson-50_borrowing_no-sir-you-will-have-much-more-influence_1781621.png", "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/90a/samuel-johnson-50_borrowing_no-sir-you-will-have-much-more-influence_1781621.png", "width": 1080, "height": 1080, "caption": "“No, Sir, you will have much more influence by giving or lending money where it is wanted, than by hospitality.” — 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": "No, Sir, you will have much...", "item": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/samuel-johnson/no-sir-you-will-have-much-more-influence-by-giving-or-lending-money/" } ], "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/samuel-johnson/no-sir-you-will-have-much-more-influence-by-giving-or-lending-money/#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 } } ] } ```