--- title: "Meaning & Key Takeaway of: ...if I've learned one thing in my…" description: "\"“...if I've learned one thing in my decades on earth, it's this: Don't argue with your lizard brain; it knows you better than you know yourself.”\" — Sa..." image: "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/740/sara-nelson-39641_learning_if-i-ve-learned-one-thing-in-my-decades_902024.png" --- # ...if I've learned one thing in my decades on earth, it's… ![“...if I've learned one thing in my decades on earth, it's this: Don't argue with your lizard brain; it knows you better than you know yourself.” quote by Sara Nelson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/740/sara-nelson-39641_learning_if-i-ve-learned-one-thing-in-my-decades_902024.png) [Download](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/740/sara-nelson-39641_learning_if-i-ve-learned-one-thing-in-my-decades_902024.png) [Open image](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/740/sara-nelson-39641_learning_if-i-ve-learned-one-thing-in-my-decades_902024.png) > ““...if I've learned one thing in my decades on earth, it's this: Don't argue with your lizard brain; it knows you better than you know yourself.”” [Sara Nelson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/sara-nelson/) ## About This Quote This interpretation was drafted with AI assistance. It is one reading of the quote, not the author's own explanation. Your subconscious mind often anticipates needs before conscious awareness, so fighting it wastes energy. **In simple terms:** Listen to your intuition instead of arguing with it. Key Takeaway Trust your gut instincts. Themes self‑awareness intuition psychology Mood reflective calm Type advice psychological When to use this quote - decision making - stress management - personal growth Key Concepts subconscious bias inner voice Questions to Reflect On - How can you differentiate instinct from fear? - When should you override intuition? A Different Perspective Your brain can misinterpret signals, leading to poor choices. ★ ★ ★ ★ ★ No ratings yet [Learning](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/learning/) [Nature](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/nature/) ## Related quotes > [“But my subconscious mind--the part I've heard writers call the lizard brain--could and did: it told me to reach for Anne Lamott or Edith…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/sara-nelson/but-my-subconscious-mind-the-part-i-ve-heard-writers-call-the-lizard/) [Sara Nelson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/sara-nelson/) > [Sometimes I think if I had the same body and the same natural ability and someone else's brain, who knows how good a player…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/mickey-mantle/sometimes-i-think-if-i-had-the-same-body-and-the-same-natural-ability/) [Mickey Mantle](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/mickey-mantle/) > [The heart has eyes which the brain knows nothing of.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/charles-henry-parkhurst/the-heart-has-eyes-which-the-brain-knows-nothing-of/) [Charles Henry Parkhurst](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/charles-henry-parkhurst/) > [Owl hasn't exactly got Brain, but he Knows Things.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/a-a-milne/owl-hasn-t-exactly-got-brain-but-he-knows-things/) [A. A. Milne](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/a-a-milne/) > [I like to get to work early. Before my brain knows what I'm up to.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/bob-thaves/i-like-to-get-to-work-early-before-my-brain-knows-what-i-m-up-to/) [Bob Thaves](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/bob-thaves/) > [There is a looming chasm between what your brain knows and what your mind is capable of accessing.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/david-eagleman/there-is-a-looming-chasm-between-what-your-brain-knows-and-what-your/) [David Eagleman](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/david-eagleman/) > [It sucks when your brain knows logic but your heart disagrees.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/abhishek-tiwari/it-sucks-when-your-brain-knows-logic-but-your-heart-disagrees/) [Abhishek Tiwari](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/abhishek-tiwari/) > [Your brain knows what's happening, and what's fake, and what's not. Sometimes, the act of engineering certain feelings is physical.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/greta-lee/your-brain-knows-what-s-happening-and-what-s-fake-and-what-s-not/) [Greta Lee](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/greta-lee/) > [The brain knows the real secret of seduction, more effective than even music and martinis. Just keep whispering, 'Gee, you are really special' to…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/alison-gopnik/the-brain-knows-the-real-secret-of-seduction-more-effective-than-even/) [Alison Gopnik](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/alison-gopnik/) > [“This means that, in some sense, free will is a fake. Decisions are made ahead of time by the brain, without the input of…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/michio-kaku/this-means-that-in-some-sense-free-will-is-a-fake-decisions-are-made/) [Michio Kaku](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/michio-kaku/) > [My heart knows the pain. My brain knows the game.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/raghib-clitso/my-heart-knows-the-pain-my-brain-knows-the-game/) [Raghib Clitso](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/raghib-clitso/) > [“We became an intelligent species by solving problems, and now that we are entering a technological era where we no longer need to solve…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/abhijit-naskar/we-became-an-intelligent-species-by-solving-problems-and-now-that-we/) [Abhijit Naskar](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/abhijit-naskar/) > [In my experience, you always think you know what you're doing; you always think you can explain, but you always discover, years later, that…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/dave-hickey/in-my-experience-you-always-think-you-know-what-you-re-doing-you/) [Dave Hickey](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/dave-hickey/) > [“A lizard brain fired the gun that wounded you, but it was the combination of three brains that orchestrated the elaborate circumstances in which…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/richard-finney/a-lizard-brain-fired-the-gun-that-wounded-you-but-it-was-the/) [Richard Finney](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/richard-finney/) > [Tell your lizard (brain) to shut up.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/seth-godin/tell-your-lizard-brain-to-shut-up/) [Seth Godin](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/seth-godin/) ## More by Sara Nelson > [Interest in reading memoirs is universal. What has happened is that people are writing about more and more outrageous things. Our threshold for weirdness…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/sara-nelson/interest-in-reading-memoirs-is-universal-what-has-happened-is-that/) [Sara Nelson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/sara-nelson/) > [“Clearly she knew that between book lovers, a novel is not a novel is not a novel. It's a symbol, an offering -- and…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/sara-nelson/clearly-she-knew-that-between-book-lovers-a-novel-is-not-a-novel-is/) [Sara Nelson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/sara-nelson/) > [“Why bother with other people's worlds made of words? was his philosophy.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/sara-nelson/why-bother-with-other-people-s-worlds-made-of-words-was-his-philosophy/) [Sara Nelson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/sara-nelson/) > [“But my subconscious mind--the part I've heard writers call the lizard brain--could and did: it told me to reach for Anne Lamott or Edith…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/sara-nelson/but-my-subconscious-mind-the-part-i-ve-heard-writers-call-the-lizard/) [Sara Nelson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/sara-nelson/) > [“Reading's ability to beam you up to a different world is a good part of the reason why people like me do it in…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/sara-nelson/reading-s-ability-to-beam-you-up-to-a-different-world-is-a-good-part/) [Sara Nelson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/sara-nelson/) > [“You know you're in a bad patch when the most interesting part of the book you're reading is the acknowledgments page.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/sara-nelson/you-know-you-re-in-a-bad-patch-when-the-most-interesting-part-of-the/) [Sara Nelson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/sara-nelson/) > [Explaining the moment of connection between a reader and book to someone who's never experienced it is like trying to describe sex to a…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/sara-nelson/explaining-the-moment-of-connection-between-a-reader-and-book-to/) [Sara Nelson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/sara-nelson/) > [When things go right, I read. When things go wrong, I read more.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/sara-nelson/when-things-go-right-i-read-when-things-go-wrong-i-read-more/) [Sara Nelson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/sara-nelson/) > [“I m not about to tell him that I am just like Anna and Emma, an adulteress. My books are my secret lovers, the…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/sara-nelson/i-m-not-about-to-tell-him-that-i-am-just-like-anna-and-emma-an/) [Sara Nelson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/sara-nelson/) > [Allowing yourself to stop reading a book - at page 25, 50, or even, less frequently, a few chapters from the end - is…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/sara-nelson/allowing-yourself-to-stop-reading-a-book-at-page-25-50-or-even-less/) [Sara Nelson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/sara-nelson/) [Explore all 11 Sara Nelson quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/sara-nelson/) ## More Learning quotes > [The one thing that I keep learning over and over again is that I don't know nothing. 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The earth…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/robert-harris/men-mistook-measurement-for-understanding-and-they-always-had-to-put/) [Robert Harris](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/robert-harris/) > [Sometimes we wish for the feel but we never understand that we have to give a lot to get the feel !](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/robert-reynolds/sometimes-we-wish-for-the-feel-but-we-never-understand-that-we-have/) [Robert Reynolds](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/robert-reynolds/) > [Where I grew up, learning was a collective activity. But when I got to school and tried to share learning with other students that…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/henry-giroux/where-i-grew-up-learning-was-a-collective-activity-but-when-i-got-to/) [Henry Giroux](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/henry-giroux/) > [Learning from the best, you will eventually become the best if you have the talent already, if you have that potential.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/randy-orton/learning-from-the-best-you-will-eventually-become-the-best-if-you/) [Randy Orton](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/randy-orton/) > [Everything I do is more memorable and I understand music more than ever now. It's not a burden to me.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/seungri/everything-i-do-is-more-memorable-and-i-understand-music-more-than/) [Seungri](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/seungri/) > [“let us not teach / what we have learned badly / and not profited by”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/h-d-hilda-doolittle/let-us-not-teach-what-we-have-learned-badly-and-not-profited-by/) H.D. 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Shakespeare is just like learning a new, exciting language.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/samuel-barnett/it-s-like-saying-french-shouldn-t-be-taught-because-you-don-t/) [Samuel Barnett](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/samuel-barnett/) > [I learned a lot about myself at Oakmont.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/shane-lowry/i-learned-a-lot-about-myself-at-oakmont/) [Shane Lowry](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/shane-lowry/) > [Would she understand that time had stopped while she was gone.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/miranda-july/would-she-understand-that-time-had-stopped-while-she-was-gone/) [Miranda July](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/miranda-july/) > [It's difficult for people to come to the understanding that only a small minority of the people ever really get the word about life,…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/earl-nightingale/it-s-difficult-for-people-to-come-to-the-understanding-that-only-a/) [Earl Nightingale](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/earl-nightingale/) > [“Damen's understanding of Laurent rearranged itself, in order that he might despise him more accurately.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/s-u-pacat/damen-s-understanding-of-laurent-rearranged-itself-in-order-that-he/) [S.U. Pacat](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/s-u-pacat/) [Browse all 22,300 Learning quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/learning/) ```json { "@context": "https://schema.org", "@graph": [ { "@type": "Quotation", "text": "“...if I've learned one thing in my decades on earth, it's this: Don't argue with your lizard brain; it knows you better than you know yourself.”", "creator": { "@type": "Person", "name": "Sara Nelson" }, "isPartOf": { "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/#website" }, "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/sara-nelson/if-i-ve-learned-one-thing-in-my-decades-on-earth-it-s-this-don-t/", "about": { "@type": "Thing", "name": "Learning" }, "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/sara-nelson/if-i-ve-learned-one-thing-in-my-decades-on-earth-it-s-this-don-t/#quotation", "image": { "@type": "ImageObject", "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/740/sara-nelson-39641_learning_if-i-ve-learned-one-thing-in-my-decades_902024.png", "contentUrl": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/740/sara-nelson-39641_learning_if-i-ve-learned-one-thing-in-my-decades_902024.png", "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/740/sara-nelson-39641_learning_if-i-ve-learned-one-thing-in-my-decades_902024.png", "width": 1080, "height": 1080, "caption": "“...if I've learned one thing in my decades on earth, it's this: Don't argue with your lizard brain; it knows…” — Sara Nelson", "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": "Sara Nelson", "item": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/sara-nelson/" }, { "@type": "ListItem", "position": 4, "name": "“...if I've learned one thing in...", "item": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/sara-nelson/if-i-ve-learned-one-thing-in-my-decades-on-earth-it-s-this-don-t/" } ], "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/sara-nelson/if-i-ve-learned-one-thing-in-my-decades-on-earth-it-s-this-don-t/#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 } } ] } ```