---
title: "Meaning & Key Takeaway of: Half the time you think your thinking…"
description: "\"Half the time you think your thinking you’re actually listening\" — Terence McKenna"
image: "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/dda/terence-mckenna-287_communication_half-the-time-you-think-your-thinking-yo_1028961.png"
---

#  Half the time you think your thinking you’re actually…

![“Half the time you think your thinking you’re actually listening” quote by Terence McKenna](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/dda/terence-mckenna-287_communication_half-the-time-you-think-your-thinking-yo_1028961.png)   [Download](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/dda/terence-mckenna-287_communication_half-the-time-you-think-your-thinking-yo_1028961.png) [Open image](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/dda/terence-mckenna-287_communication_half-the-time-you-think-your-thinking-yo_1028961.png)

> “Half the time you think your thinking you’re actually listening”

[Terence McKenna](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/terence-mckenna/)

## About This Quote

This interpretation was drafted with AI assistance. It is one reading of the quote, not the author's own explanation.

We often mistake internal dialogue for genuine listening, missing true comprehension.

**In simple terms:** Thinking isn’t listening.

Key Takeaway

Practice active listening, not just mental chatter.

Themes

communication mindfulness self-awareness dialogue perception

Mood

thoughtful insightful

Type

educational philosophical

When to use this quote

- team meetings
- therapy sessions
- educational settings
- personal relationships

Key Concepts

cognitive bias psychology philosophy

Questions to Reflect On

- Do you notice when you’re thinking instead of listening?
- How can you stay present in conversations?

A Different Perspective

Self-talk can dominate, preventing real engagement.

★ ★ ★ ★ ★   No ratings yet

[Communication](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/communication/) [Thinking](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/thinking/) [Time](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/time/)

## Related quotes

> [“The art of hearing what somebody has to say is actually, listening.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/colette-ruland-parrino/the-art-of-hearing-what-somebody-has-to-say-is-actually-listening/)

Colette Ruland Parrino

> [Theres A Difference Between Thinking Of Being With You And Actually Being With You, Being With You By Your Side Makes My Day And…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/elias-cortez/theres-a-difference-between-thinking-of-being-with-you-and-actually/)

[Elias Cortez](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/elias-cortez/)

> [I read a lot. I spend of lot time thinking. It actually looks like I'm doing nothing, but... hanging out with clever and interesting…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/al-murray/i-read-a-lot-i-spend-of-lot-time-thinking-it-actually-looks-like-i-m/)

[Al Murray](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/al-murray/)

> [ I sometimes get in the car \[and\] jump all around hunting for a sample, and then I can get really annoying if anyone's in… ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/girl-talk/i-sometimes-get-in-the-car-and-jump-all-around-hunting-for-a-sample/)

[Girl Talk](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/girl-talk/)

> [Sometimes people talk about music, whether blogs or magazines, in a strange way where it doesn't seem like they're actually listening to it.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/victoria-legrand/sometimes-people-talk-about-music-whether-blogs-or-magazines-in-a/)

[Victoria Legrand](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/victoria-legrand/)

> [There's this freshness that happens within the first few takes of the actors actually listening to each other and actually really reacting.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jennifer-lawrence/there-s-this-freshness-that-happens-within-the-first-few-takes-of-the/)

[Jennifer Lawrence](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jennifer-lawrence/)

> [When I released 'Songs From My Bedroom'... that's the one that people started actually listening to.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/soccer-mommy/when-i-released-songs-from-my-bedroom-that-s-the-one-that-people/)

[Soccer Mommy](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/soccer-mommy/)

> [Thinking should be done beforehand and afterwards - never while actually taking a photograph.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/henri-cartier-bresson/thinking-should-be-done-beforehand-and-afterwards-never-while/)

[Henri Cartier-Bresson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/henri-cartier-bresson/)

> [One of the most sincere forms of respect is actually listening to what another has to say.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/bryant-h-mcgill/one-of-the-most-sincere-forms-of-respect-is-actually-listening-to/)

[Bryant H. McGill](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/bryant-h-mcgill/)

> [When you have a dream, you're thinking about it, but when you're actually living it out, it's surreal.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/uriah-hall/when-you-have-a-dream-you-re-thinking-about-it-but-when-you-re/)

[Uriah Hall](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/uriah-hall/)

> [“Can critical thinking actually be taught? Decades of cognitive research point to a disappointing answer: not really. People who have sought to teach critical…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/terry-marselle/can-critical-thinking-actually-be-taught-decades-of-cognitive/)

[Terry Marselle](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/terry-marselle/)

> [I look like I'm not listening, but I'm actually listening. I like listening to everything, observing everybody, just taking everything in, and then, in…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/joel-embiid/i-look-like-i-m-not-listening-but-i-m-actually-listening-i-like/)

[Joel Embiid](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/joel-embiid/)

> [I always consider myself lucky that I can actually cry listening to some music.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/itzhak-perlman/i-always-consider-myself-lucky-that-i-can-actually-cry-listening-to/)

[Itzhak Perlman](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/itzhak-perlman/)

> [I've always thought I had the game. But there's a difference between thinking it and then actually doing it and executing it on a…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jessica-pegula/i-ve-always-thought-i-had-the-game-but-there-s-a-difference-between/)

[Jessica Pegula](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jessica-pegula/)

> [It takes patience to listen... It takes skill to pretend that you are actually listening.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/nikhil-saluja/it-takes-patience-to-listen-it-takes-skill-to-pretend-that-you-are/)

[Nikhil Saluja](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/nikhil-saluja/)

## More by Terence McKenna

> [History was an incredibly damaging experience, and now it's over . . . in a sense.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/terence-mckenna/history-was-an-incredibly-damaging-experience-and-now-it-s-over-in-a/)

[Terence McKenna](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/terence-mckenna/)

> [We are somehow the children of the planet, we are somehow its finest hour; we bind time, we bind the past, we anticipate the…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/terence-mckenna/we-are-somehow-the-children-of-the-planet-we-are-somehow-its-finest/)

[Terence McKenna](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/terence-mckenna/)

> [The history of man that you don't know is what your unconscious is made out of. Just as the history of yourself that you…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/terence-mckenna/the-history-of-man-that-you-don-t-know-is-what-your-unconscious-is/)

[Terence McKenna](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/terence-mckenna/)

> [We are consciousness. We may not always be monkeys.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/terence-mckenna/we-are-consciousness-we-may-not-always-be-monkeys/)

[Terence McKenna](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/terence-mckenna/)

> [What is happening here is we are living past the age, by the millions, living past the age where cultural values make any sense…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/terence-mckenna/what-is-happening-here-is-we-are-living-past-the-age-by-the-millions/)

[Terence McKenna](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/terence-mckenna/)

> [What history is, essentially, is a careening, out-of-control effort to find our way back to this state of primordial balance.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/terence-mckenna/what-history-is-essentially-is-a-careening-out-of-control-effort-to/)

[Terence McKenna](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/terence-mckenna/)

> [And what is the primary datum? It's the felt presence of immediate experience. In other words, being here now is the primary datum.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/terence-mckenna/and-what-is-the-primary-datum-it-s-the-felt-presence-of-immediate/)

[Terence McKenna](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/terence-mckenna/)

> [Our culture difinitely takes an egocentric dominator view. The fear of the psychedelic experience is quite literally the fear of losing control. Dominator types…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/terence-mckenna/our-culture-difinitely-takes-an-egocentric-dominator-view-the-fear-of/)

[Terence McKenna](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/terence-mckenna/)

> [Every step into freedom contains within it the potential for greater bondage.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/terence-mckenna/every-step-into-freedom-contains-within-it-the-potential-for-greater/)

[Terence McKenna](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/terence-mckenna/)

> [This is the message of your life and my life - it’s that nothing lasts. Heraclitus said it: Panta Rhei. All flows, nothing lasts.…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/terence-mckenna/this-is-the-message-of-your-life-and-my-life-it-s-that-nothing-lasts/)

[Terence McKenna](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/terence-mckenna/)

> [I often like to think that our map of the world is wrong, that where we have centered physics, we should actually place literature…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/terence-mckenna/i-often-like-to-think-that-our-map-of-the-world-is-wrong-that-where/)

[Terence McKenna](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/terence-mckenna/)

> [Knowledge, or verbal facility, is no proof that you know what you're talking about.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/terence-mckenna/knowledge-or-verbal-facility-is-no-proof-that-you-know-what-you-re/)

[Terence McKenna](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/terence-mckenna/)

> [No culture on earth is as heavily narcotized as the industrial West in terms of being inured to the consequences of maladaptive behavior. We…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/terence-mckenna/no-culture-on-earth-is-as-heavily-narcotized-as-the-industrial-west/)

[Terence McKenna](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/terence-mckenna/)

> [Man was not put on this planet to toil in the mud. Or the god who put us on this planet to toil in…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/terence-mckenna/man-was-not-put-on-this-planet-to-toil-in-the-mud-or-the-god-who-put/)

[Terence McKenna](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/terence-mckenna/)

> [If you take psychedelics and the Internet and music and put all of that together you have the basis for a new community that…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/terence-mckenna/if-you-take-psychedelics-and-the-internet-and-music-and-put-all-of/)

[Terence McKenna](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/terence-mckenna/)

[Explore all 745 Terence McKenna quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/terence-mckenna/)

## More Communication quotes

> [Some people still believe you should just fall in line with what's going on - and that's scary. It makes a mockery of freedom…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/emily-robison/some-people-still-believe-you-should-just-fall-in-line-with-what-s/)

[Emily Robison](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/emily-robison/)

> [The problem posed by indirect speech acts is the problem of how it is possible for the speaker to say one thing and mean…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/john-searle/the-problem-posed-by-indirect-speech-acts-is-the-problem-of-how-it-is/)

[John Searle](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/john-searle/)

> [We should have a conversation when we hang up.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/benedict-cumberbatch/we-should-have-a-conversation-when-we-hang-up/)

[Benedict Cumberbatch](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/benedict-cumberbatch/)

> [Sing like no one's listening, love like you've never been hurt, dance like nobody's watching, and live like its heaven on earth.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/mark-twain/sing-like-no-one-s-listening-love-like-you-ve-never-been-hurt-dance/)

[Mark Twain](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/mark-twain/)

> [A poet is wounded into speech, and he examines these wounds, meticulously, to discover how to heal them. The bad poet harangues at the…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/samuel-r-delany/a-poet-is-wounded-into-speech-and-he-examines-these-wounds/)

[Samuel R. Delany](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/samuel-r-delany/)

> [“To engage in dialogue is to serve others via whatever is real inside you; to engage in debate is to ultimately serve the illusions…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/oli-anderson/to-engage-in-dialogue-is-to-serve-others-via-whatever-is-real-inside/)

[Oli Anderson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/oli-anderson/)

> [What it comes down to for me is this: Will the technologies of communication in our culture, serve to enlighten us and help us…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/roger-waters/what-it-comes-down-to-for-me-is-this-will-the-technologies-of/)

[Roger Waters](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/roger-waters/)

> [In dialogue, there is opposition, yes, but no head-on collision. Smashing heads does not open minds.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/deborah-tannen/in-dialogue-there-is-opposition-yes-but-no-head-on-collision-smashing/)

[Deborah Tannen](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/deborah-tannen/)

> [A dialogue is very important. It is a form of communication in which question and answer continue till a question is left without an…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jiddu-krishnamurti/a-dialogue-is-very-important-it-is-a-form-of-communication-in-which/)

[Jiddu Krishnamurti](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jiddu-krishnamurti/)

> [I get afraid of the dark if I'm in a great deal of dark, and I have to move around inside of that fear...…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/emil-ferris/i-get-afraid-of-the-dark-if-i-m-in-a-great-deal-of-dark-and-i-have-to/)

[Emil Ferris](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/emil-ferris/)

> [I've been in a serious conversation with one of my children, and a fan has come up. I've been in a public bathroom and…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/helen-reddy/i-ve-been-in-a-serious-conversation-with-one-of-my-children-and-a-fan/)

[Helen Reddy](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/helen-reddy/)

> [Life as we know it is fundamentally unsatisfying. I think most folks feel this to be true. They know that a life of aimless…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/michael-yates/life-as-we-know-it-is-fundamentally-unsatisfying-i-think-most-folks/)

[Michael Yates](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/michael-yates/)

> [Disability, in general, hasn't been included in the conversation about inclusivity.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jason-winston-george/disability-in-general-hasn-t-been-included-in-the-conversation-about/)

[Jason Winston George](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jason-winston-george/)

> [“Women will be at least 50 percent of the communications community workforce … from executive suite to interns. Why? The “integrated” agency will be…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/yoram-wind/women-will-be-at-least-50-percent-of-the-communications-community/)

Yoram Wind

> [There are certain things you must not say in spite of the fact that supposedly democracy means free speech. No. You are not allowed…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/chris-eubank-sr/there-are-certain-things-you-must-not-say-in-spite-of-the-fact-that/)

[Chris Eubank Sr](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/chris-eubank-sr/)

[Browse all 21,506 Communication quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/communication/)

```json
{
    "@context": "https://schema.org",
    "@graph": [
        {
            "@type": "Quotation",
            "text": "Half the time you think your thinking you’re actually listening",
            "creator": {
                "@type": "Person",
                "name": "Terence McKenna"
            },
            "isPartOf": {
                "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/#website"
            },
            "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/terence-mckenna/half-the-time-you-think-your-thinking-you-re-actually-listening/",
            "about": {
                "@type": "Thing",
                "name": "Communication"
            },
            "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/terence-mckenna/half-the-time-you-think-your-thinking-you-re-actually-listening/#quotation",
            "image": {
                "@type": "ImageObject",
                "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/dda/terence-mckenna-287_communication_half-the-time-you-think-your-thinking-yo_1028961.png",
                "contentUrl": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/dda/terence-mckenna-287_communication_half-the-time-you-think-your-thinking-yo_1028961.png",
                "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/dda/terence-mckenna-287_communication_half-the-time-you-think-your-thinking-yo_1028961.png",
                "width": 1080,
                "height": 1080,
                "caption": "“Half the time you think your thinking you’re actually listening” — Terence McKenna",
                "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": "Terence McKenna",
                    "item": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/terence-mckenna/"
                },
                {
                    "@type": "ListItem",
                    "position": 4,
                    "name": "Half the time you think your...",
                    "item": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/terence-mckenna/half-the-time-you-think-your-thinking-you-re-actually-listening/"
                }
            ],
            "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/terence-mckenna/half-the-time-you-think-your-thinking-you-re-actually-listening/#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
            }
        }
    ]
}
```
