--- title: "Meaning & Key Takeaway of: You’re trying to take something that can…" description: "\"You’re trying to take something that can be described in many, many sentences and pages of prose, but you can convert it into a couple lines of poetry ..." image: "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/441/satya-nadella-2082_code_you-re-trying-to-take-something-that-can_556993.png" --- # You’re trying to take something that can be described in… ![“You’re trying to take something that can be described in many, many sentences and pages of prose, but you can convert it into a couple lines of poetry and you still get the essence, so it’s that compression. The best code is poetry.” quote by Satya Nadella](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/441/satya-nadella-2082_code_you-re-trying-to-take-something-that-can_556993.png) [Download](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/441/satya-nadella-2082_code_you-re-trying-to-take-something-that-can_556993.png) [Open image](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/441/satya-nadella-2082_code_you-re-trying-to-take-something-that-can_556993.png) > “You’re trying to take something that can be described in many, many sentences and pages of prose, but you can convert it into a couple lines of poetry and you still get the essence, so it’s that compression. The best code is poetry.” [Satya Nadella](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/satya-nadella/) ## About This Quote This interpretation was drafted with AI assistance. It is one reading of the quote, not the author's own explanation. Distilling complex ideas into concise poetic form captures their essence efficiently. **In simple terms:** Compressing ideas into poetry preserves core meaning. Key Takeaway Use brevity to convey complex concepts. Themes communication creativity efficiency technology poetry Mood inspired thoughtful Type philosophical inspirational When to use this quote - marketing - technical writing - education - creative brainstorming Key Concepts Information compression artistic expression software design Questions to Reflect On - What essential details might be omitted? - How does brevity affect understanding? A Different Perspective Over‑compression may lose nuance or detail. ★ ★ ★ ★ ★ No ratings yet [Code](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/code/) [Couple](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/couple/) [Essence](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/essence/) [Poetry](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/poetry/) [Prose](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/prose/) [Writing](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/writing/) ## Related quotes > [I like bringing poetry's focus on figurative language and compression into the essay. 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Read the writers of great prose dialogue-people like Robert Stone and Joan Didion.…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/janet-fitch/this-involves-more-than-i-can-discuss-here-but-do-it-read-the-writers/) [Janet Fitch](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/janet-fitch/) > [I like to compete in a suit that will help me save me time and energy by reducing drag, so I race in Aqua…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/timothy-o-donnell/i-like-to-compete-in-a-suit-that-will-help-me-save-me-time-and-energy/) [Timothy O'Donnell](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/timothy-o-donnell/) > [ Do they \[the publishers of Murphy\] not understand that if the book is slightly obscure it is because it is a compression and thatto… ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/samuel-beckett/do-they-the-publishers-of-murphy-not-understand-that-if-the-book-is/) [Samuel Beckett](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/samuel-beckett/) > [She once complained that her stories were like 'birds bred in cages,' but that concentrated atmosphere, that claustrophobic hothouse of emotion, was her talent.…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/katie-roiphe/she-once-complained-that-her-stories-were-like-birds-bred-in-cages/) [Katie Roiphe](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/katie-roiphe/) > [“I was fitted with a specially designed compression filter that allows excessive information to lie dormant until I need to access it. It’s only…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jessica-park/i-was-fitted-with-a-specially-designed-compression-filter-that-allows/) [Jessica Park](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jessica-park/) > [We were interested in this notion of compression- a lot of the songs were really short so that you'd absorb them in memory rather…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/arto-lindsay/we-were-interested-in-this-notion-of-compression-a-lot-of-the-songs/) [Arto Lindsay](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/arto-lindsay/) > [ Only when the kulak refused to deliver grain to the State did \[Joseph\] Stalin, under the pressure of the Left Opposition, accomplish a sharp… ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/leon-trotsky/only-when-the-kulak-refused-to-deliver-grain-to-the-state-did-joseph/) [Leon Trotsky](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/leon-trotsky/) > [Compression is a necessary evil. The artists I know want to sound competitive. You don't want your track to sound quieter or wimpier by…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/butch-vig/compression-is-a-necessary-evil-the-artists-i-know-want-to-sound/) [Butch Vig](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/butch-vig/) > [ At that time \[90th in Lagos\], if you drove through the city, you drove through a foreground that always seemed to be incredibly dramatic… ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/rem-koolhaas/at-that-time-90th-in-lagos-if-you-drove-through-the-city-you-drove/) [Rem Koolhaas](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/rem-koolhaas/) > [Visualizing information is a form of knowledge compression.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/david-mccandless/visualizing-information-is-a-form-of-knowledge-compression/) [David Mccandless](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/david-mccandless/) > [I don't like the compression on compact discs. It's lacking in air, and it's lacking in majesty.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/marianne-faithfull/i-don-t-like-the-compression-on-compact-discs-it-s-lacking-in-air-and/) [Marianne Faithfull](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/marianne-faithfull/) > [The thing I see happening is that there's a real compression between generations. There used to be about 20 years difference (in technology use).…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/paul-saffo/the-thing-i-see-happening-is-that-there-s-a-real-compression-between/) [Paul Saffo](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/paul-saffo/) > [Such compression of large amounts of information into a few exformation-rich macrostates with small quantities of nominal information are not only intelligent: they are…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/tor-n-rretranders/such-compression-of-large-amounts-of-information-into-a-few/) Tor Nørretranders ## More by Satya Nadella > [Microsoft is the productivity and platform company for the mobile-first and cloud-first world.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/satya-nadella/microsoft-is-the-productivity-and-platform-company-for-the-mobile/) [Satya Nadella](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/satya-nadella/) > [“The bigger a company, the more responsibility its leader has to think about the world, its citizens and their long term opportunities.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/satya-nadella/the-bigger-a-company-the-more-responsibility-its-leader-has-to-think/) [Satya Nadella](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/satya-nadella/) > [If you are going to have a risk-taking culture, you can't really look at every failure as a failure, you've got to be able…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/satya-nadella/if-you-are-going-to-have-a-risk-taking-culture-you-can-t-really-look/) [Satya Nadella](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/satya-nadella/) > [“anyone who feels like an outsider can be successful, but it requires both an enlightened management and a dedicated employee.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/satya-nadella/anyone-who-feels-like-an-outsider-can-be-successful-but-it-requires/) [Satya Nadella](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/satya-nadella/) > [I think the combination of graduate education in a field like Computer Science and the opportunity to apply this in a work environment like…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/satya-nadella/i-think-the-combination-of-graduate-education-in-a-field-like/) [Satya Nadella](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/satya-nadella/) > [There are always going to be people who are experts in security or end-user devices or collaboration or databases. 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That’s both because of the…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/satya-nadella/in-the-post-snowden-world-you-need-to-enable-others-to-build-their/) [Satya Nadella](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/satya-nadella/) > [I believe men and women should get equal pay for equal work.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/satya-nadella/i-believe-men-and-women-should-get-equal-pay-for-equal-work/) [Satya Nadella](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/satya-nadella/) > [When we think about even the PC market and what is required in the student as well as in the consumer market, we want…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/satya-nadella/when-we-think-about-even-the-pc-market-and-what-is-required-in-the/) [Satya Nadella](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/satya-nadella/) > [“Success can cause people to unlearn the habits that made them successful in the first place.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/satya-nadella/success-can-cause-people-to-unlearn-the-habits-that-made-them/) [Satya Nadella](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/satya-nadella/) > [The opportunity ahead for Microsoft is vast, but to seize it, we must focus clearly, move faster and continue to transform. A big part…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/satya-nadella/the-opportunity-ahead-for-microsoft-is-vast-but-to-seize-it-we-must/) [Satya Nadella](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/satya-nadella/) > [“the importance of putting your team first, ahead of your personal statistics and recognition.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/satya-nadella/the-importance-of-putting-your-team-first-ahead-of-your-personal/) [Satya Nadella](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/satya-nadella/) [Explore all 185 Satya Nadella quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/satya-nadella/) ## More Code quotes > [At the deepest level, all living things that have ever been looked at have the same DNA code. And many of the same genes.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/richard-dawkins/at-the-deepest-level-all-living-things-that-have-ever-been-looked-at/) [Richard Dawkins](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/richard-dawkins/) > [It is no secret that I have read 'The Da Vinci Code' several times. I genuinely believe that 'The Da Vinci Code' and 'Angels…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ashwin-sanghi/it-is-no-secret-that-i-have-read-the-da-vinci-code-several-times-i/) [Ashwin Sanghi](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ashwin-sanghi/) > [Programmers are always surrounded by complexity; we cannot avoid it… If our basic tool, the language in which we design and code our programs,…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/tony-hoare/programmers-are-always-surrounded-by-complexity-we-cannot-avoid-it-if/) [Tony Hoare](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/tony-hoare/) > [One of my most productive days was throwing away 1,000 lines of code.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ken-thompson/one-of-my-most-productive-days-was-throwing-away-1-000-lines-of-code/) [Ken Thompson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ken-thompson/) > [Writing code means always having to say you're sorry.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/paul-ford/writing-code-means-always-having-to-say-you-re-sorry/) [Paul Ford](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/paul-ford/) > [It would be a piece of ingenuousness to accuse the man of today of his lack of moral code. The accusation would leave him…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jose-ortega-y-gasset/it-would-be-a-piece-of-ingenuousness-to-accuse-the-man-of-today-of/) [Jose Ortega y Gasset](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jose-ortega-y-gasset/) > [I loved 'Chicago Code;' I watched that a lot. It was great because it really captured the city - I'm from Chicago, too.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jessy-schram/i-loved-chicago-code-i-watched-that-a-lot-it-was-great-because-it/) [Jessy Schram](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jessy-schram/) > [I kind of pride myself on coming onto things that are well-oiled machines and finding a way to bring what I bring and fit…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/rob-lowe/i-kind-of-pride-myself-on-coming-onto-things-that-are-well-oiled/) [Rob Lowe](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/rob-lowe/) > [When we're done simplifying the tax code, getting the lobbyist carve outs our of the tax code, lowering our rates and letting people have…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/paul-ryan/when-we-re-done-simplifying-the-tax-code-getting-the-lobbyist-carve/) [Paul Ryan](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/paul-ryan/) > [The tax code is 10 times the size of the Bible with none of the good news.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/paul-ryan/the-tax-code-is-10-times-the-size-of-the-bible-with-none-of-the-good/) [Paul Ryan](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/paul-ryan/) > [The Cheney team had, for example, technological supremacy over the National Security Council staff. That is to say, they could read their e-mails. I…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/lawrence-wilkerson/the-cheney-team-had-for-example-technological-supremacy-over-the/) [Lawrence Wilkerson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/lawrence-wilkerson/) > [ \[T\]he tax code has been piling up, year after year, a symbol of everything gone wrong in America, of arrogant rulers and lost freedom,… ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/dick-armey/t-he-tax-code-has-been-piling-up-year-after-year-a-symbol-of/) [Dick Armey](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/dick-armey/) > [In open source, you really have to be near the watershed to have an impact on the source code. Customers want to be near…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/peter-fenton/in-open-source-you-really-have-to-be-near-the-watershed-to-have-an/) [Peter Fenton](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/peter-fenton/) > [We can use our art to become political, to become something you want to talk about. 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