--- title: "Meaning & Key Takeaway of: People say we are defined by the choices…" description: "\"“People say we are defined by the choices that we make;”\" — T. Greenwood" image: "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/5cd/t-greenwood-34107_choice_people-say-we-are-defined-by-the-choices_44499.jpg" --- # People say we are defined by the choices that we make; ![“People say we are defined by the choices that we make;” quote by T. Greenwood](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/5cd/t-greenwood-34107_choice_people-say-we-are-defined-by-the-choices_44499.jpg) [Download](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/5cd/t-greenwood-34107_choice_people-say-we-are-defined-by-the-choices_44499.jpg) [Open image](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/5cd/t-greenwood-34107_choice_people-say-we-are-defined-by-the-choices_44499.jpg) > ““People say we are defined by the choices that we make;”” [T. Greenwood](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/t-greenwood/) ## About This Quote This interpretation was drafted with AI assistance. It is one reading of the quote, not the author's own explanation. The quote suggests identity is shaped by decisions rather than circumstances or innate traits. **In simple terms:** Identity emerges from choices. Key Takeaway Choices define who we become. Themes self-determination responsibility personal agency identity formation decision-making Mood reflective motivational Type philosophical inspirational When to use this quote - career planning - ethical dilemmas - relationship choices - life transitions - personal growth Key Concepts autonomy consequences self-concept Practical Applications - coaching - leadership development Questions to Reflect On - How do your past choices reflect your current self? - What future decisions could reshape your identity? ★ ★ ★ ★ ★ No ratings yet [Choice](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/choice/) [Choices](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/choices/) [Choices Make](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/choices-make/) [Decision making](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/decision-making/) [Defined Choices](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/defined-choices-416638/) [People say](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/people-say/) [Say Defined](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/say-defined-656525/) ## Related quotes > [We, as individuals, are defined by the choices we make. Some of our decisions can have very significant consequences and totally change the courses…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/david-cage/we-as-individuals-are-defined-by-the-choices-we-make-some-of-our/) [David Cage](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/david-cage/) > [“Your PAST nor your CURRENT situation DEFINES you – YOU are defined by the CHOICES you make NOW for your future.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/patricia-dsouza/your-past-nor-your-current-situation-defines-you-you-are-defined-by/) [Patricia Dsouza](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/patricia-dsouza/) > [Who will dare say he has defined art?](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/aleksandr-solzhenitsyn/who-will-dare-say-he-has-defined-art/) [Aleksandr Solzhenitsyn](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/aleksandr-solzhenitsyn/) > [“There are no right and wrong choices,” Tain said trying to keep his voice gentle. “There is only what we do with the choices…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jennifer-ashley/there-are-no-right-and-wrong-choices-tain-said-trying-to-keep-his/) [Jennifer Ashley](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jennifer-ashley/) > [An actor is defined by the choices he or she makes.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/arjun-kapoor/an-actor-is-defined-by-the-choices-he-or-she-makes/) [Arjun Kapoor](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/arjun-kapoor/) > [Are we defined by our choices? Our behavior? Our actions? No. I don't believe that defines our worth.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/nadya-suleman/are-we-defined-by-our-choices-our-behavior-our-actions-no-i-don-t/) [Nadya Suleman](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/nadya-suleman/) > [You are defined by who you are, by your choices in life, in all regards, not just in doing movies.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/andy-garcia/you-are-defined-by-who-you-are-by-your-choices-in-life-in-all-regards/) [Andy Garcia](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/andy-garcia/) > [“We are all only men, defined by our choices.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i-e-castellano/we-are-all-only-men-defined-by-our-choices/) [I.E. Castellano](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/i-e-castellano/) > [Life is choice. All day, everyday. Who we talk to, where we sit, what we say, how we say it. And our lives become…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/louise-penny/life-is-choice-all-day-everyday-who-we-talk-to-where-we-sit-what-we/) [Louise Penny](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/louise-penny/) > [“You are not defined by the clothes on your body, the shoes on your feet, or the money in your pocket. You are defined…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/quinn-loftis/you-are-not-defined-by-the-clothes-on-your-body-the-shoes-on-your/) [quinn loftis](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/quinn-loftis/) > [I like to think that we’re not defined by what happens to us…because so many times they’re beyond our control. I like to think…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/elizabeth-smart/i-like-to-think-that-we-re-not-defined-by-what-happens-to-us-because/) [Elizabeth Smart](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/elizabeth-smart/) > [“You are not defined by whoever happened to give you your DNA, Son. You’re defined by your choices. And the choices you make are…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ryan-winfield/you-are-not-defined-by-whoever-happened-to-give-you-your-dna-son-you/) [Ryan Winfield](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ryan-winfield/) > [Life is a full of choices. So when you make your decision; before you make it, you better analyze. It is your life that…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/pacifiersucker/life-is-a-full-of-choices-so-when-you-make-your-decision-before-you/) [Pacifiersucker](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/pacifiersucker/) > [I think all of us are shaped by the choices we make.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jim-courier/i-think-all-of-us-are-shaped-by-the-choices-we-make/) [Jim Courier](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jim-courier/) > [“Our destiny becomes the accumulation of the choices that we make; the choices of which paths we took in life.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/steven-redhead/our-destiny-becomes-the-accumulation-of-the-choices-that-we-make-the/) [Steven Redhead](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/steven-redhead/) ## More by T. Greenwood > [“This is the thing about a lie: over time, it not only obscures the truth but consumes it. Those who pursue veracity (those dogooders,…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/t-greenwood/this-is-the-thing-about-a-lie-over-time-it-not-only-obscures-the/) [T. Greenwood](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/t-greenwood/) > [“Time does not heal wounds. It's a body's ritual that does. The instinctual cleansing with rain or other waters, the application of salves. Despite…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/t-greenwood/time-does-not-heal-wounds-it-s-a-body-s-ritual-that-does-the/) [T. Greenwood](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/t-greenwood/) > [“... I thought about things stolen from me. I thought about the thieves I had known.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/t-greenwood/i-thought-about-things-stolen-from-me-i-thought-about-the-thieves-i/) [T. Greenwood](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/t-greenwood/) > [“We lived among people whose poverty could be seen in the length of their faces, in their tired speech and in the heaviness of…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/t-greenwood/we-lived-among-people-whose-poverty-could-be-seen-in-the-length-of/) [T. Greenwood](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/t-greenwood/) > [“... I'm a half-empty kind of girl.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/t-greenwood/i-m-a-half-empty-kind-of-girl/) [T. Greenwood](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/t-greenwood/) > [“The Chinese philosopher Mencius believed that man is innately good. He argued that anyone who saw a child falling into a well would immediately…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/t-greenwood/the-chinese-philosopher-mencius-believed-that-man-is-innately-good-he/) [T. Greenwood](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/t-greenwood/) > [“And I think about how I used to be the one who fixed things. How I used to be the strong one. When did…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/t-greenwood/and-i-think-about-how-i-used-to-be-the-one-who-fixed-things-how-i/) [T. Greenwood](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/t-greenwood/) > [“Sometimes things need to get broken”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/t-greenwood/sometimes-things-need-to-get-broken/) [T. Greenwood](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/t-greenwood/) > [“We pretended she'd only gotten lost in the colors of fall. Piper”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/t-greenwood/we-pretended-she-d-only-gotten-lost-in-the-colors-of-fall-piper/) [T. Greenwood](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/t-greenwood/) > [“Sometimes I felt like the mundane details of our lives were the only things tethering me to the world. I could hold onto them…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/t-greenwood/sometimes-i-felt-like-the-mundane-details-of-our-lives-were-the-only/) [T. Greenwood](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/t-greenwood/) > [The secret to happiness is counting your blessings while others are adding up their troubles.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/t-greenwood/the-secret-to-happiness-is-counting-your-blessings-while-others-are/) [T. Greenwood](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/t-greenwood/) > [“And everything with you is always so, I don't know, fucking heavy.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/t-greenwood/and-everything-with-you-is-always-so-i-don-t-know-fucking-heavy/) [T. Greenwood](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/t-greenwood/) > [“My mother, stuck in Two Rivers with a head full of unfulfilled dreams, escaped every chance she got via the Two Rivers Free Library…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/t-greenwood/my-mother-stuck-in-two-rivers-with-a-head-full-of-unfulfilled-dreams/) [T. Greenwood](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/t-greenwood/) [Explore all 14 T. Greenwood quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/t-greenwood/) ## More Choice quotes > [Making the right decision is hard,telling someone your decision is even harder.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/abhishek-tiwari/making-the-right-decision-is-hard-telling-someone-your-decision-is/) [Abhishek Tiwari](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/abhishek-tiwari/) > [“That’s all! Now either leave us alone or join us as a father rather than a receiver of sacrifices. You have the choice of…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/dan-simmons/that-s-all-now-either-leave-us-alone-or-join-us-as-a-father-rather/) [Dan Simmons](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/dan-simmons/) > [“In a world of fixed future, there can be no right or wrong. Right and wrong demand freedom of choice, but if each action…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/alan-lightman/in-a-world-of-fixed-future-there-can-be-no-right-or-wrong-right-and/) [Alan Lightman](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/alan-lightman/) > [“Exactly. So, what can't you take? Decide which of the two options is harder, and do the other. That way, no matter how hard…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/josephine-angelini/exactly-so-what-can-t-you-take-decide-which-of-the-two-options-is/) [Josephine Angelini](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/josephine-angelini/) > [“too—I realized that my only hope was to give up the life that had been, in order to make room for the life that…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/elizabeth-lesser/too-i-realized-that-my-only-hope-was-to-give-up-the-life-that-had/) [Elizabeth Lesser](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/elizabeth-lesser/) > [When you have a choice, choose happy!](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/pancho-barnes/when-you-have-a-choice-choose-happy/) [Pancho Barnes](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/pancho-barnes/) > [You dont choose your life; it chooses you. Theres no point asking why life has reserved certain joys or griefs, you just accept them…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/paulo-coelho/you-dont-choose-your-life-it-chooses-you-theres-no-point-asking-why/) [Paulo Coelho](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/paulo-coelho/) > [There has always been a feeling with people that they love my singing but not always the choice of material.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/alison-moyet/there-has-always-been-a-feeling-with-people-that-they-love-my-singing/) [Alison Moyet](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/alison-moyet/) > [I have too many options when it comes to guitars.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/rick-nielsen/i-have-too-many-options-when-it-comes-to-guitars/) [Rick Nielsen](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/rick-nielsen/) > [“Amazing how a small choice can change your life forever.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/randy-c-dockens/amazing-how-a-small-choice-can-change-your-life-forever/) [Randy C. Dockens](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/randy-c-dockens/) > [Change is inevitable but personal growth is a choice.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/bob-proctor/change-is-inevitable-but-personal-growth-is-a-choice/) [Bob Proctor](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/bob-proctor/) > [If you choose to draw from the inner well of free will, then you can make choices that are outside your current karmic patterns.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/frederick-lenz/if-you-choose-to-draw-from-the-inner-well-of-free-will-then-you-can/) [Frederick Lenz](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/frederick-lenz/) > [Since I don't outline my books very much, I feel like sometimes I don't have a choice in what the characters do; they just…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anna-todd/since-i-don-t-outline-my-books-very-much-i-feel-like-sometimes-i-don/) [Anna Todd](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anna-todd/) > [Act always so as to increase the number of choices](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/heinz-von-foerster/act-always-so-as-to-increase-the-number-of-choices/) [Heinz von Foerster](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/heinz-von-foerster/) > [Words can only have an effect on you if you choose to listen to them.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/bernajoy-vaal/words-can-only-have-an-effect-on-you-if-you-choose-to-listen-to-them/) [Bernajoy Vaal](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/bernajoy-vaal/) [Browse all 8,092 Choice quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/choice/) ```json { "@context": "https://schema.org", "@graph": [ { "@type": "Quotation", "text": "“People say we are defined by the choices that we make;”", "creator": { "@type": "Person", "name": "T. 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