--- title: "Meaning & Key Takeaway of: Freedom comes with the impossibility of…" description: "\"Freedom comes with the impossibility of choosing.\" — Stephen Hough" image: "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/d68/stephen-hough-6372_choosing_freedom-comes-with-the-impossibility-of_1912627.jpg" --- # Freedom comes with the impossibility of choosing. ![“Freedom comes with the impossibility of choosing.” quote by Stephen Hough](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/d68/stephen-hough-6372_choosing_freedom-comes-with-the-impossibility-of_1912627.jpg) [Download](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/d68/stephen-hough-6372_choosing_freedom-comes-with-the-impossibility-of_1912627.jpg) [Open image](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/d68/stephen-hough-6372_choosing_freedom-comes-with-the-impossibility-of_1912627.jpg) > “Freedom comes with the impossibility of choosing.” [Stephen Hough](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/stephen-hough/) ## About This Quote This interpretation was drafted with AI assistance. It is one reading of the quote, not the author's own explanation. Freedom entails the paradox that true choice is impossible, highlighting the tension between desire and limitation. **In simple terms:** Freedom means you cannot truly choose. Key Takeaway Accept limits, seek meaning within them. Themes freedom choice paradox existentialism Mood reflective thoughtful Type philosophical existential When to use this quote - personal decisions - political rights - ethical dilemmas Key Concepts determinism agency responsibility Questions to Reflect On - How do you define freedom in your life? - Can true choice exist without constraints? A Different Perspective Freedom may be constrained by external forces and internal biases. ★ ★ ★ ★ ★ No ratings yet [Choosing](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/choosing/) [Comes Impossibility](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/comes-impossibility-2890436/) [Freedom](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/freedom/) [Freedom Comes](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/freedom-comes/) [Impossibility](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/impossibility/) [Impossibility Choosing](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/impossibility-choosing-2890435/) ## Related quotes > [“No pain in love is so hard to bear as that which comes from the impossibility of doing any service from the well-beloved, and…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/w-somerset-maugham/no-pain-in-love-is-so-hard-to-bear-as-that-which-comes-from-the/) [W. Somerset Maugham](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/w-somerset-maugham/) > [“freedom comes with understand who you are..”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/semanyenzi-richard/freedom-comes-with-understand-who-you-are/) [Semanyenzi Richard](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/semanyenzi-richard/) > [The real freedom comes to us when we can learn to go inside and connect with that voice. Then, we're not relying on outsiders.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/echo-bodine/the-real-freedom-comes-to-us-when-we-can-learn-to-go-inside-and/) [Echo Bodine](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/echo-bodine/) > [Freedom isn't the right or ability to do whatever you please. Freedom comes from understanding the limits of our own power and the inherent…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/epictetus/freedom-isn-t-the-right-or-ability-to-do-whatever-you-please-freedom/) [Epictetus](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/epictetus/) > [Freedom comes when you learn to let go, creation comes when you learn to say 'no'](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anonymous/freedom-comes-when-you-learn-to-let-go-creation-comes-when-you-learn/) [Anonymous](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anonymous/) > [Freedom comes only to those who no longer ask of life that it shall yield them any of those personal goods that are subject…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/bertrand-russell/freedom-comes-only-to-those-who-no-longer-ask-of-life-that-it-shall/) [Bertrand Russell](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/bertrand-russell/) > [There's no freedom like the freedom that comes from accepting yourself.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/camila-cabello/there-s-no-freedom-like-the-freedom-that-comes-from-accepting-yourself/) [Camila Cabello](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/camila-cabello/) > [Freedom comes when you see the built-in contradiction of trying to manipulate something that is going right to begin with… Stop trying to steer…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/deepak-chopra/freedom-comes-when-you-see-the-built-in-contradiction-of-trying-to/) [Deepak Chopra](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/deepak-chopra/) > [Freedom comes with responsibility.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/david-cage/freedom-comes-with-responsibility/) [David Cage](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/david-cage/) > [Freedom comes in individual packages.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/shirley-boone/freedom-comes-in-individual-packages/) [Shirley Boone](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/shirley-boone/) > [Freedom is a double-edged ideal, because true freedom comes without the protection of laws that also enslave us by defining us--female, male; Christian, Islamic;…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ellen-hopkins/freedom-is-a-double-edged-ideal-because-true-freedom-comes-without/) [Ellen Hopkins](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ellen-hopkins/) > [“True freedom comes about through confidence in liberating any & all thought states.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/tsoknyi-rinpoche/true-freedom-comes-about-through-confidence-in-liberating-any-all/) [Tsoknyi Rinpoche](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/tsoknyi-rinpoche/) > [And freedom comes with grace, kindness, understanding, and love. Don't take anything personal, folks. Whatever is said about you or rumored or you heard…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/gary-busey/and-freedom-comes-with-grace-kindness-understanding-and-love-don-t/) [Gary Busey](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/gary-busey/) > [“Tremendous freedom comes when we can laugh at ourselves and whisper to him, "So! It's been you all along!" In some ways that day…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/timothy-j-keller/tremendous-freedom-comes-when-we-can-laugh-at-ourselves-and-whisper/) [Timothy J. Keller](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/timothy-j-keller/) > [“one soldier walked infront of the troop and asked me :"President ,will there be injustice when freedom comes?", I was surprised by the question…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/alija-izetbegovic/one-soldier-walked-infront-of-the-troop-and-asked-me-president-will/) [Alija Izetbegović](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/alija-izetbegovic/) ## More by Stephen Hough > [One of the things that touches me most when I play for an audience is that although we may be unable to communicate in…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/stephen-hough/one-of-the-things-that-touches-me-most-when-i-play-for-an-audience-is/) [Stephen Hough](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/stephen-hough/) > [Unlike sport, music is not about winning or keeping fit or promoting your town or school; it's about celebrating, to a level approaching ecstasy,…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/stephen-hough/unlike-sport-music-is-not-about-winning-or-keeping-fit-or-promoting/) [Stephen Hough](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/stephen-hough/) > [In Britten or Berg, there's a tension between the sweet and the sour, between the familiar and the unfamiliar, the tonal and the atonal,…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/stephen-hough/in-britten-or-berg-there-s-a-tension-between-the-sweet-and-the-sour/) [Stephen Hough](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/stephen-hough/) > [The things I do outside of playing the piano are done out of an inner necessity, not just because I want to try my…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/stephen-hough/the-things-i-do-outside-of-playing-the-piano-are-done-out-of-an-inner/) [Stephen Hough](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/stephen-hough/) > [There are artists who delight listeners with their wild and daring individuality; there are others who uncover the written score with reverence. There are…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/stephen-hough/there-are-artists-who-delight-listeners-with-their-wild-and-daring/) [Stephen Hough](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/stephen-hough/) > [They both changed the way we hear the sound of the piano, both of them inventors of sonority: Chopin took bel canto singing lines…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/stephen-hough/they-both-changed-the-way-we-hear-the-sound-of-the-piano-both-of-them/) [Stephen Hough](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/stephen-hough/) > [Classical music thinks in centuries, not four-year terms.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/stephen-hough/classical-music-thinks-in-centuries-not-four-year-terms/) [Stephen Hough](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/stephen-hough/) > [I was such a lazy teenager: I didn't read or play the piano beyond the bare minimum.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/stephen-hough/i-was-such-a-lazy-teenager-i-didn-t-read-or-play-the-piano-beyond-the/) [Stephen Hough](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/stephen-hough/) > [I think there are very few people that I would give the title of genius to, really, but Beethoven unquestionably is one of them.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/stephen-hough/i-think-there-are-very-few-people-that-i-would-give-the-title-of/) [Stephen Hough](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/stephen-hough/) > [Before the 20th century, to be a successful musician was merely to be one who was employed. A few, such as Liszt, Paderewski and…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/stephen-hough/before-the-20th-century-to-be-a-successful-musician-was-merely-to-be/) [Stephen Hough](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/stephen-hough/) > [In school, my favourite class was when we were given a subject for an essay on which we could freewheel. And poetry: I've always…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/stephen-hough/in-school-my-favourite-class-was-when-we-were-given-a-subject-for-an/) [Stephen Hough](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/stephen-hough/) > [If I'm walking along the street, ideas come. Ideas about things that I'm interested in. I've jotted them down in the past on bits…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/stephen-hough/if-i-m-walking-along-the-street-ideas-come-ideas-about-things-that-i/) [Stephen Hough](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/stephen-hough/) > [I can admire music where you feel the composer has everything organized and perfectly shaped, but it doesn't touch me. I like to feel…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/stephen-hough/i-can-admire-music-where-you-feel-the-composer-has-everything/) [Stephen Hough](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/stephen-hough/) > [I was out of the U.K. as a care-free, fun-loving student for much of Mrs. Thatcher's time in Downing Street, and as I didn't…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/stephen-hough/i-was-out-of-the-u-k-as-a-care-free-fun-loving-student-for-much-of/) [Stephen Hough](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/stephen-hough/) > [Before Liszt, a conductor was someone who just facilitated the performance, who would keep people together or beat the time, indicate the entries. After…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/stephen-hough/before-liszt-a-conductor-was-someone-who-just-facilitated-the/) [Stephen Hough](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/stephen-hough/) [Explore all 99 Stephen Hough quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/stephen-hough/) ## More Choosing quotes > [Our world is drowning in a sea of self-centeredness. You can make yourself quite unique right away by leaving this ocean of selfishness and…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/john-bytheway/our-world-is-drowning-in-a-sea-of-self-centeredness-you-can-make/) [John Bytheway](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/john-bytheway/) > [Choosing a job or business is the same thing. I'm not the best one to advise someone how to make billions of dollars; I…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/rachel-roy/choosing-a-job-or-business-is-the-same-thing-i-m-not-the-best-one-to/) [Rachel Roy](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/rachel-roy/) > [Choosing how you live should be up to you not the people that would criticise your well being](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/courtney-hayward/choosing-how-you-live-should-be-up-to-you-not-the-people-that-would/) [Courtney Hayward](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/courtney-hayward/) > [I'm very smart when it comes to choosing dancers and trying to show the world that there's a whole lot of dancing going on.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/judith-jamison/i-m-very-smart-when-it-comes-to-choosing-dancers-and-trying-to-show/) [Judith Jamison](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/judith-jamison/) > [Anyone who will look at my life from the outside won't see the struggles inside. Sometimes, things are not always as we see or…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/chanda-kaushik/anyone-who-will-look-at-my-life-from-the-outside-won-t-see-the/) [Chanda Kaushik](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/chanda-kaushik/) > [I can always choose, but I ought to know that if I do not choose, I am still choosing.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jean-paul-sartre/i-can-always-choose-but-i-ought-to-know-that-if-i-do-not-choose-i-am/) [Jean-Paul Sartre](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jean-paul-sartre/) > [Choosing what you want to do, and when to do it, is an act of creation.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/peter-mcwilliams/choosing-what-you-want-to-do-and-when-to-do-it-is-an-act-of-creation/) [Peter McWilliams](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/peter-mcwilliams/) > [“So much must be established at birth . . . in the random choosing of a name.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/bill-barich/so-much-must-be-established-at-birth-in-the-random-choosing-of-a-name/) [Bill Barich](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/bill-barich/) > [The thing that counts most in the pursuit of happiness is choosing the right companion](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/nate/the-thing-that-counts-most-in-the-pursuit-of-happiness-is-choosing/) [Nate](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/nate/) > [“In choosing a mate, don't pick the tallest and most handsome or the most beautiful. Don't choose one just because that person raises your…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/helen-quist-milligan/in-choosing-a-mate-don-t-pick-the-tallest-and-most-handsome-or-the/) [Helen Quist Milligan](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/helen-quist-milligan/) > [I see myself as a roving mosquito, choosing it's target.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/kenneth-williams/i-see-myself-as-a-roving-mosquito-choosing-it-s-target/) [Kenneth Williams](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/kenneth-williams/) > [Travel, I was coming to realize, was a metaphor not only for the countless options life offers but also for the fact that choosing…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/rolf-potts/travel-i-was-coming-to-realize-was-a-metaphor-not-only-for-the/) [Rolf Potts](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/rolf-potts/) > [“If I am to choose between integrity and wealth, I will go for integrity because I believe that lack of integrity is the first…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/israelmore-ayivor/if-i-am-to-choose-between-integrity-and-wealth-i-will-go-for/) [Israelmore Ayivor](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/israelmore-ayivor/) > [Every time I've gotten myself into trouble, it's because I'm choosing a project based on a long-term career goal as opposed to something that…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ryan-reynolds/every-time-i-ve-gotten-myself-into-trouble-it-s-because-i-m-choosing/) [Ryan Reynolds](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ryan-reynolds/) > [Growing up as a singer, and a cast member, and now as an adult, a songwriter, I get the luxury of choosing the kinds…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jason-mraz/growing-up-as-a-singer-and-a-cast-member-and-now-as-an-adult-a/) [Jason Mraz](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jason-mraz/) [Browse all 585 Choosing quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/choosing/) ```json { "@context": "https://schema.org", "@graph": [ { "@type": "Quotation", "text": "Freedom comes with the impossibility of choosing.", "creator": { "@type": "Person", "name": "Stephen Hough" }, "isPartOf": { "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/#website" }, "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/stephen-hough/freedom-comes-with-the-impossibility-of-choosing/", "about": { "@type": "Thing", "name": "Choosing" }, "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/stephen-hough/freedom-comes-with-the-impossibility-of-choosing/#quotation", "image": { "@type": "ImageObject", "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/d68/stephen-hough-6372_choosing_freedom-comes-with-the-impossibility-of_1912627.jpg", "contentUrl": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/d68/stephen-hough-6372_choosing_freedom-comes-with-the-impossibility-of_1912627.jpg", "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/d68/stephen-hough-6372_choosing_freedom-comes-with-the-impossibility-of_1912627.jpg", "width": 1080, "height": 1080, "caption": "“Freedom comes with the impossibility of choosing.” — Stephen Hough", "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": "Stephen Hough", "item": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/stephen-hough/" }, { "@type": "ListItem", "position": 4, "name": "Freedom comes with the impossibility of...", "item": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/stephen-hough/freedom-comes-with-the-impossibility-of-choosing/" } ], "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/stephen-hough/freedom-comes-with-the-impossibility-of-choosing/#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 } } ] } ```