--- title: "Meaning & Key Takeaway of: As a rule, with me an unfinished [idea]…" description: "\"As a rule, with me an unfinished [idea] is a thing that might as well be rubbed out. It's better, if there's something good in it that I might make use..." image: "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/6ff/t-s-eliot-633_drawers_as-a-rule-with-me-an-unfinished-idea-is_1669405.png" --- # As a rule, with me an unfinished \[idea\] is a thing that… ![“As a rule, with me an unfinished [idea] is a thing that might as well be rubbed out. It's better, if there's something good in it that I might make use of elsewhere, to leave it at the back of my mind than on paper in a drawer. If I leave it in a drawer it remains the same thing but if it's in the…” quote by T. S. Eliot](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/6ff/t-s-eliot-633_drawers_as-a-rule-with-me-an-unfinished-idea-is_1669405.png) [Download](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/6ff/t-s-eliot-633_drawers_as-a-rule-with-me-an-unfinished-idea-is_1669405.png) [Open image](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/6ff/t-s-eliot-633_drawers_as-a-rule-with-me-an-unfinished-idea-is_1669405.png) > “As a rule, with me an unfinished \[idea\] is a thing that might as well be rubbed out. It's better, if there's something good in it that I might make use of elsewhere, to leave it at the back of my mind than on paper in a drawer. If I leave it in a drawer it remains the same thing but if it's in the memory it becomes transformed into something else.” [T. S. Eliot](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/t-s-eliot/) ## About This Quote This interpretation was drafted with AI assistance. It is one reading of the quote, not the author's own explanation. Eliot argues that unfinished ideas should stay in the mind, where they can evolve, rather than be recorded and stagnate. **In simple terms:** Keep ideas in thought, not on paper, to let them change. Key Takeaway Let ideas incubate in memory. Themes creativity ideas mental\_process evolution productivity Mood reflective thoughtful Type philosophical advisory When to use this quote - writing - research - problem\_solving - artistic\_creation - innovation Key Concepts psychology cognitive\_flexibility conceptual\_transformation Questions to Reflect On - How do you decide when to record an idea? - What mental habits help ideas evolve? A Different Perspective Ideas may become rigid if prematurely documented, limiting their potential. ★ ★ ★ ★ ★ No ratings yet [Idea](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/idea/) [Ideas](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/ideas/) [Memories](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/memories/) [Mind](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/mind/) [Psychology](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/psychology/) ## Related quotes > [ \[My novel\] took up the sweetest part of my mind and the rarest part of my imagination; it was like being in love and… ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/muriel-spark/my-novel-took-up-the-sweetest-part-of-my-mind-and-the-rarest-part-of/) [Muriel Spark](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/muriel-spark/) > [“It all starts with a tiny, stupid idea, then one thing leads to another, and suddenly, you find something amazing: yourself.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/richie-norton/it-all-starts-with-a-tiny-stupid-idea-then-one-thing-leads-to-another/) [Richie Norton](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/richie-norton/) > [Ideas are of themselves extraordinarily valuable, but an idea is just an idea. Almost anyone can think up an idea. The thing that counts…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/henry-ford/ideas-are-of-themselves-extraordinarily-valuable-but-an-idea-is-just-2/) [Henry Ford](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/henry-ford/) > [“Ideas are of themselves extraordinarily valuable, but an idea is just an idea. Almost any one can think up an idea. The thing that…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/henry-ford/ideas-are-of-themselves-extraordinarily-valuable-but-an-idea-is-just/) [Henry Ford](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/henry-ford/) > [The idea is that that there is no such thing as an external enemy.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/guy-ritchie/the-idea-is-that-that-there-is-no-such-thing-as-an-external-enemy/) [Guy Ritchie](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/guy-ritchie/) > [The artist should be intoxicated with the idea of the thing he wants to express.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/robert-henri/the-artist-should-be-intoxicated-with-the-idea-of-the-thing-he-wants/) [Robert Henri](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/robert-henri/) > [To have an idea of a thing is not just to get certain sensations from it. It is to be able to respond to…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/john-dewey/to-have-an-idea-of-a-thing-is-not-just-to-get-certain-sensations-from/) [John Dewey](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/john-dewey/) > [Sometimes a good quote is risen when you feel you have no idea about one thing](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/tivea/sometimes-a-good-quote-is-risen-when-you-feel-you-have-no-idea-about/) [Tivea](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/tivea/) > [“Almost anyone can think up an idea. The thing that counts is developing it into a practical product. 4 Henry Ford”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/richard-koch/almost-anyone-can-think-up-an-idea-the-thing-that-counts-is/) [Richard Koch](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/richard-koch/) > [In a mind charged with an eager purpose and an unfinished vindictiveness, there is no room for new feelings.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/t-s-eliot/in-a-mind-charged-with-an-eager-purpose-and-an-unfinished/) [T. S. Eliot](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/t-s-eliot/) > [You must keep sending work out; you must never let a manuscript do nothing but eat its head off in a drawer. You send…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/isaac-asimov/you-must-keep-sending-work-out-you-must-never-let-a-manuscript-do/) [Isaac Asimov](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/isaac-asimov/) > [ I sometimes try a variance of the drawer trick - \[I write it\] and then come back to it and see if it blows. ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/travis-morrison/i-sometimes-try-a-variance-of-the-drawer-trick-i-write-it-and-then/) [Travis Morrison](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/travis-morrison/) > [Uh... ," Ivy stammered, and I glanced up to see her eyes wide in consideration. "I'm kidding," I said. "It passed the lethal-amulet test,…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/kim-harrison/uh-ivy-stammered-and-i-glanced-up-to-see-her-eyes-wide-in/) [Kim Harrison](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/kim-harrison/) > [Compliments of congratulation are always kindly taken, and cost nothing but pen, ink and paper. I consider them as draughts upon good breeding, where…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/lord-chesterfield/compliments-of-congratulation-are-always-kindly-taken-and-cost/) [Lord Chesterfield](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/lord-chesterfield/) > [Wow," Liv said, when I dropped the mallet back into the drawer. "That looked like fun. I call dibs on the next over-the-top destruction…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/rachel-vincent/wow-liv-said-when-i-dropped-the-mallet-back-into-the-drawer-that/) [Rachel Vincent](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/rachel-vincent/) ## More by T. S. Eliot > [The Nobel is a ticket to one's own funeral. No one has ever done anything after he got it.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/t-s-eliot/the-nobel-is-a-ticket-to-one-s-own-funeral-no-one-has-ever-done/) [T. S. Eliot](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/t-s-eliot/) > [Dear Mother, I am getting on nicely in my work at the bank, and like it ... I want to find out something about…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/t-s-eliot/dear-mother-i-am-getting-on-nicely-in-my-work-at-the-bank-and-like-it/) [T. S. Eliot](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/t-s-eliot/) > [For love would be love of the wrong thing; there is yet faith, But the faith and the love and the hope are all…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/t-s-eliot/for-love-would-be-love-of-the-wrong-thing-there-is-yet-faith-but-the/) [T. S. Eliot](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/t-s-eliot/) > [We must always take risks. That is our destiny.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/t-s-eliot/we-must-always-take-risks-that-is-our-destiny/) [T. S. Eliot](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/t-s-eliot/) > [All significant truths are private truths. As they become public they cease to become truths; they become facts, or at best, part of the…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/t-s-eliot/all-significant-truths-are-private-truths-as-they-become-public-they/) [T. S. Eliot](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/t-s-eliot/) > [When forced to work within a strict framework, the imagination is taxed to its utmost and will produce its richest ideas. Given total freedom,…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/t-s-eliot/when-forced-to-work-within-a-strict-framework-the-imagination-is/) [T. S. Eliot](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/t-s-eliot/) > [Honest criticism and sensitive appreciation are directed not upon the poet but upon the poetry.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/t-s-eliot/honest-criticism-and-sensitive-appreciation-are-directed-not-upon-the/) [T. S. Eliot](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/t-s-eliot/) > [Desire itself is movement Not in itself desirable; Love is itself unmoving, Only the cause and end of movement, Timeless, and undesiring Except in…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/t-s-eliot/desire-itself-is-movement-not-in-itself-desirable-love-is-itself/) [T. S. Eliot](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/t-s-eliot/) > [ the ordinary man's experience is chaotic, irregular, fragmentary. \[He\] falls in love or reads Spinoza, and these two experiences have nothing to do with… ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/t-s-eliot/the-ordinary-man-s-experience-is-chaotic-irregular-fragmentary-he/) [T. S. Eliot](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/t-s-eliot/) > [We had the experience, but we missed the meaning.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/t-s-eliot/we-had-the-experience-but-we-missed-the-meaning/) [T. S. Eliot](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/t-s-eliot/) > [The end is in the beginning.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/t-s-eliot/the-end-is-in-the-beginning/) [T. S. Eliot](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/t-s-eliot/) > [You have learned enough to see that cats are much like you and me.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/t-s-eliot/you-have-learned-enough-to-see-that-cats-are-much-like-you-and-me/) [T. S. Eliot](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/t-s-eliot/) > [The good poet welds his theft into a whole of feeling which is unique, utterly different than that from which it is torn.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/t-s-eliot/the-good-poet-welds-his-theft-into-a-whole-of-feeling-which-is-unique/) [T. S. Eliot](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/t-s-eliot/) > [It's strange that words are so inadequate. Yet, like the asthmatic struggling for breath, so the lover must struggle for words.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/t-s-eliot/it-s-strange-that-words-are-so-inadequate-yet-like-the-asthmatic/) [T. S. Eliot](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/t-s-eliot/) > [Every end is a beginning...And every beginning is an end.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/t-s-eliot/every-end-is-a-beginning-and-every-beginning-is-an-end/) [T. S. Eliot](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/t-s-eliot/) [Explore all 433 T. S. Eliot quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/t-s-eliot/) ## More Drawers quotes > [Wow," Liv said, when I dropped the mallet back into the drawer. "That looked like fun. I call dibs on the next over-the-top destruction…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/rachel-vincent/wow-liv-said-when-i-dropped-the-mallet-back-into-the-drawer-that/) [Rachel Vincent](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/rachel-vincent/) > [Compliments of congratulation are always kindly taken, and cost nothing but pen, ink and paper. I consider them as draughts upon good breeding, where…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/lord-chesterfield/compliments-of-congratulation-are-always-kindly-taken-and-cost/) [Lord Chesterfield](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/lord-chesterfield/) > [Uh... ," Ivy stammered, and I glanced up to see her eyes wide in consideration. "I'm kidding," I said. "It passed the lethal-amulet test,…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/kim-harrison/uh-ivy-stammered-and-i-glanced-up-to-see-her-eyes-wide-in/) [Kim Harrison](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/kim-harrison/) > [ I sometimes try a variance of the drawer trick - \[I write it\] and then come back to it and see if it blows. ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/travis-morrison/i-sometimes-try-a-variance-of-the-drawer-trick-i-write-it-and-then/) [Travis Morrison](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/travis-morrison/) > [You must keep sending work out; you must never let a manuscript do nothing but eat its head off in a drawer. You send…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/isaac-asimov/you-must-keep-sending-work-out-you-must-never-let-a-manuscript-do/) [Isaac Asimov](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/isaac-asimov/) > [I do triage on everything that comes through the door, and if it's not something we need (now, for real-not maybe someday) or something…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/michelle-herman/i-do-triage-on-everything-that-comes-through-the-door-and-if-it-s-not/) Michelle Herman > [Gary Burnetts office is shelved with theological books, guitars fill the floor, and the drawers are crammed with CDs. In The Gospel According to…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/steve-stockman/gary-burnetts-office-is-shelved-with-theological-books-guitars-fill/) [Steve Stockman](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/steve-stockman/) > [I found something" Simon said as he walked in. He whipped out an old-fashioned key from his pocket and grinned at me. "It was…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/kelley-armstrong/i-found-something-simon-said-as-he-walked-in-he-whipped-out-an-old/) [Kelley Armstrong](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/kelley-armstrong/) > [“The hearts of women are like those little pieces of furniture with secret hiding - places, full of drawers fitted into each other; you…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/gustave-flaubert/the-hearts-of-women-are-like-those-little-pieces-of-furniture-with/) [Gustave Flaubert](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/gustave-flaubert/) > [I always wanted a father. Any kind. A strict one, a funny one, one who bought me pink dresses, one who wished I was…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/judy-blundell/i-always-wanted-a-father-any-kind-a-strict-one-a-funny-one-one-who/) [Judy Blundell](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/judy-blundell/) > [I think memory is the most important asset of human beings. It's a kind of fuel; it burns and it warms you. My memory…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/haruki-murakami/i-think-memory-is-the-most-important-asset-of-human-beings-it-s-a/) [Haruki Murakami](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/haruki-murakami/) > [In the ordinary jumble of my literary drawer, I sometimes find texts I wrote ten, fifteen, or even more years ago. And many of…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/fernando-pessoa/in-the-ordinary-jumble-of-my-literary-drawer-i-sometimes-find-texts-i/) [Fernando Pessoa](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/fernando-pessoa/) > [The best advice I can give on this is, once it's done, to put it away until you can read it with new eyes.…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/neil-gaiman/the-best-advice-i-can-give-on-this-is-once-it-s-done-to-put-it-away/) [Neil Gaiman](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/neil-gaiman/) > [I was slowly taking on the dimensions of a chest of drawers.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/maria-franziska-von-trapp/i-was-slowly-taking-on-the-dimensions-of-a-chest-of-drawers/) [Maria Franziska von Trapp](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/maria-franziska-von-trapp/) > [We older women in Europe are lucky not to be shoved away in a drawer.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/kristin-scott-thomas/we-older-women-in-europe-are-lucky-not-to-be-shoved-away-in-a-drawer/) [Kristin Scott Thomas](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/kristin-scott-thomas/) Browse all 229 Drawers quotes ```json { "@context": "https://schema.org", "@graph": [ { "@type": "Quotation", "text": "As a rule, with me an unfinished [idea] is a thing that might as well be rubbed out. 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