--- title: "Meaning & Key Takeaway of: As a Turkish proverb says--it was going…" description: "\"“As a Turkish proverb says--it was going to be like digging a well with a needle.”\" — Terry Hayes" image: "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/89b/terry-hayes-16359_needle_as-a-turkish-proverb-says-it-was-going-t_655947.png" --- # As a Turkish proverb says--it was going to be like digging… ![“As a Turkish proverb says--it was going to be like digging a well with a needle.” quote by Terry Hayes](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/89b/terry-hayes-16359_needle_as-a-turkish-proverb-says-it-was-going-t_655947.png) [Download](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/89b/terry-hayes-16359_needle_as-a-turkish-proverb-says-it-was-going-t_655947.png) [Open image](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/89b/terry-hayes-16359_needle_as-a-turkish-proverb-says-it-was-going-t_655947.png) > ““As a Turkish proverb says--it was going to be like digging a well with a needle.”” [Terry Hayes](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/terry-hayes/) ## About This Quote This interpretation was drafted with AI assistance. It is one reading of the quote, not the author's own explanation. A task is futile when the tools are inadequate for the job. **In simple terms:** Impossible tasks need proper tools. Key Takeaway Match effort to capability. Themes effort tool futility Mood frustrated realistic Type advice cautionary When to use this quote - project planning - DIY repairs - learning new skills Key Concepts resource mismatch practicality Questions to Reflect On - What resources do you lack for this goal? - How can you adapt the task to available tools? A Different Perspective Even with the right tools, execution may still fail. ★ ★ ★ ★ ★ No ratings yet ## Related quotes > [“A Turkish proverb says the one who speaks truth would be expelled from nine villages. This is true; but there always exist the tenth…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/mehmet-murat-ildan/a-turkish-proverb-says-the-one-who-speaks-truth-would-be-expelled/) [Mehmet Murat ildan](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/mehmet-murat-ildan/) > [My work is like digging, it's archaeological research among the arid materials of our times. That's how I understand my first films, and that's…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/michelangelo-antonioni/my-work-is-like-digging-it-s-archaeological-research-among-the-arid/) [Michelangelo Antonioni](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/michelangelo-antonioni/) > [I have a nice house. And when somebody says it's a palace, I always feel like we're digging a little or something.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/dennis-miller/i-have-a-nice-house-and-when-somebody-says-it-s-a-palace-i-always/) [Dennis Miller](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/dennis-miller/) > [I have to dig from myself versus digging from something that I like. Digging from something you like is easy whereas from your inside,…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jlin/i-have-to-dig-from-myself-versus-digging-from-something-that-i-like/) [Jlin](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jlin/) > [“Working in garden is like digging knowledge from the earth.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/karthikeyan-v/working-in-garden-is-like-digging-knowledge-from-the-earth/) Karthikeyan V > [“Thinking about the past is like digging up graves”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/nathan-filer/thinking-about-the-past-is-like-digging-up-graves/) [Nathan Filer](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/nathan-filer/) > [Getting money is like digging with a needle, spending it is like water soaking into sand.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/japanese-proverb/getting-money-is-like-digging-with-a-needle-spending-it-is-like-water/) Japanese Proverb > [“The one who fingered me like he was digging to China”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/kresley-cole/the-one-who-fingered-me-like-he-was-digging-to-china/) [Kresley cole](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/kresley-cole/) > [Sometimes, helping others is like digging your own grave !](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/km-ii/sometimes-helping-others-is-like-digging-your-own-grave/) [KM II](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/km-ii/) > [Creating the record is like digging up the earth, planting your seeds and waiting to see what happens.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jason-mraz/creating-the-record-is-like-digging-up-the-earth-planting-your-seeds/) [Jason Mraz](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jason-mraz/) > [Digging sand is a bit like digging water. You take your trowel out and it all fills back up again, so there are a…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/tony-robinson/digging-sand-is-a-bit-like-digging-water-you-take-your-trowel-out-and/) [Tony Robinson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/tony-robinson/) > [“Every man experiences what you call love for every pretty woman and least of all for his wife. That is what the proverb says,…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/leo-tolstoy/every-man-experiences-what-you-call-love-for-every-pretty-woman-and/) [Leo Tolstoy](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/leo-tolstoy/) > [There is an old African proverb that says if you want to go quickly, go alone, if you want to go far, go together.…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/al-gore/there-is-an-old-african-proverb-that-says-if-you-want-to-go-quickly/) [Al Gore](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/al-gore/) > [Any man may make a mistake; none but a fool will stick to it. Second thoughts are best as the proverb says. \[Lat., Cujusvis…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/marcus-tullius-cicero/any-man-may-make-a-mistake-none-but-a-fool-will-stick-to-it-second/) [Marcus Tullius Cicero](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/marcus-tullius-cicero/) > [“There is an ancient Arab proverb that says, 'You should write the bad things that happen to you in the sand; that way they…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anthony-j-does/there-is-an-ancient-arab-proverb-that-says-you-should-write-the-bad/) Anthony J. Does ## More by Terry Hayes > [“with bee-stung lips and bolt-on boobs,”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/terry-hayes/with-bee-stung-lips-and-bolt-on-boobs/) [Terry Hayes](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/terry-hayes/) > [“The interior of the arms dealer's private jet was so ugly it hurt my feelings as well as my eyeballs.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/terry-hayes/the-interior-of-the-arms-dealer-s-private-jet-was-so-ugly-it-hurt-my/) [Terry Hayes](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/terry-hayes/) > [“Protected by a security gate and an electronic keypad. You”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/terry-hayes/protected-by-a-security-gate-and-an-electronic-keypad-you/) [Terry Hayes](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/terry-hayes/) > [“the complex of seven luxurious homes, swimming pools and lavish stables was surrounded by a twelve-foot wall patrolled by what we believed to be…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/terry-hayes/the-complex-of-seven-luxurious-homes-swimming-pools-and-lavish/) [Terry Hayes](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/terry-hayes/) > [“so hot that the locals claimed a pervert was a man who preferred women to beer”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/terry-hayes/so-hot-that-the-locals-claimed-a-pervert-was-a-man-who-preferred/) [Terry Hayes](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/terry-hayes/) > [“The driver thought I was crazy—but then his religion thinks stoning a woman to death for adultery is reasonable, so I figured we were…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/terry-hayes/the-driver-thought-i-was-crazy-but-then-his-religion-thinks-stoning-a/) [Terry Hayes](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/terry-hayes/) > [“Like people say—if you want to make God laugh, tell him you’ve got plans.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/terry-hayes/like-people-say-if-you-want-to-make-god-laugh-tell-him-you-ve-got/) [Terry Hayes](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/terry-hayes/) > [“I've always been pretty much on the outside of any side you can find.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/terry-hayes/i-ve-always-been-pretty-much-on-the-outside-of-any-side-you-can-find/) [Terry Hayes](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/terry-hayes/) > [“was the maître d’ and, unlike his clientele he was class all the way: French was my guess, Berluti handmade shoes, lightweight Brioni suit,…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/terry-hayes/was-the-ma-tre-d-and-unlike-his-clientele-he-was-class-all-the-way/) [Terry Hayes](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/terry-hayes/) > [“We wanted a labour force, but human beings came.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/terry-hayes/we-wanted-a-labour-force-but-human-beings-came/) [Terry Hayes](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/terry-hayes/) > [“ If Only --but it has been my unfortunate experience that you can't rely on divine intervention and that fate favors the bad as…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/terry-hayes/if-only-but-it-has-been-my-unfortunate-experience-that-you-can-t-rely/) [Terry Hayes](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/terry-hayes/) > [“there was this book I'd read by somebody whose name I couldn't remember and he had this expression 'sorrow floats”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/terry-hayes/there-was-this-book-i-d-read-by-somebody-whose-name-i-couldn-t/) [Terry Hayes](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/terry-hayes/) > [“In war, the first casualty is truth.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/terry-hayes/in-war-the-first-casualty-is-truth/) [Terry Hayes](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/terry-hayes/) > [“Better not, I decided: hope was even more dangerous than despair. What”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/terry-hayes/better-not-i-decided-hope-was-even-more-dangerous-than-despair-what/) [Terry Hayes](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/terry-hayes/) > [“I was angry about injustice--about the uncaring way the world works. I knew a lot of ordinary people had died that day, not because…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/terry-hayes/i-was-angry-about-injustice-about-the-uncaring-way-the-world-works-i/) [Terry Hayes](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/terry-hayes/) [Explore all 38 Terry Hayes quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/terry-hayes/) ## More Needle quotes > [“Like all sentient beings, Fat Charlie had a weirdness quotient. For some days the needle had been over in the red, occasionally banging jerkily…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/neil-gaiman/like-all-sentient-beings-fat-charlie-had-a-weirdness-quotient-for/) [Neil Gaiman](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/neil-gaiman/) > [“That is the fastest way to ruin a woman’s reputation, after all—to imply that she has not adequately threaded the needle that is being…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/taylor-jenkins-reid/that-is-the-fastest-way-to-ruin-a-woman-s-reputation-after-all-to/) [Taylor Jenkins Reid](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/taylor-jenkins-reid/) > [Most haystacks do not even have a needle.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/lorenzo-lamas/most-haystacks-do-not-even-have-a-needle/) [Lorenzo Lamas](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/lorenzo-lamas/) > [“I didn’t answer, occupied in dissolving the penicillin tablets in the vial of sterile water. I selected a glass barrel, fitted a needle, and…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/diana-gabaldon/i-didn-t-answer-occupied-in-dissolving-the-penicillin-tablets-in-the/) [Diana Gabaldon](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/diana-gabaldon/) > [“I need you like a needle needs a vein. ”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/tim-mcgraw/i-need-you-like-a-needle-needs-a-vein/) [Tim McGraw](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/tim-mcgraw/) > [“You cannot look into a cradle and read the secret message traced by a divine hand and wrapped up in that bit of clay,…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/orison-swett-marden/you-cannot-look-into-a-cradle-and-read-the-secret-message-traced-by-a/) [Orison Swett Marden](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/orison-swett-marden/) > [“When you prick a person with a needle, red blood comes out- that's the real world.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/haruki-murakami/when-you-prick-a-person-with-a-needle-red-blood-comes-out-that-s-the/) [Haruki Murakami](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/haruki-murakami/) > [You know, a dame with a rod is like a guy with a knitting needle.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/daniel-mainwaring/you-know-a-dame-with-a-rod-is-like-a-guy-with-a-knitting-needle/) [Daniel Mainwaring](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/daniel-mainwaring/) > [“I'd felt the pop of the needle sliding into my veins, like a fang into flesh. I'd been enveloped in the golden haze where…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/taylor-rhodes/i-d-felt-the-pop-of-the-needle-sliding-into-my-veins-like-a-fang-into/) [Taylor Rhodes](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/taylor-rhodes/) > [Because I don't produce insulin, I have to put insulin into my body, which means that I have a pen with a needle on…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jay-cutler/because-i-don-t-produce-insulin-i-have-to-put-insulin-into-my-body/) [Jay Cutler](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jay-cutler/) > [I am in the needle in your vain, I am the high you can't sustain. I am the pusher, I am a whore, I…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/nine-inch-nails/i-am-in-the-needle-in-your-vain-i-am-the-high-you-can-t-sustain-i-am/) [Nine Inch Nails](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/nine-inch-nails/) > [“You can take that needle out of my leg now. I'd like to pull up my pants.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/alison-kemper/you-can-take-that-needle-out-of-my-leg-now-i-d-like-to-pull-up-my/) [Alison Kemper](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/alison-kemper/) > [Finding a good kid actor is like finding a needle in a massive haystack.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/lee-unkrich/finding-a-good-kid-actor-is-like-finding-a-needle-in-a-massive/) [Lee Unkrich](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/lee-unkrich/) > [By the needle you shall draw the thread, and by that which is past, see how that which is to come will be drawne…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/george-herbert/by-the-needle-you-shall-draw-the-thread-and-by-that-which-is-past-see/) [George Herbert](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/george-herbert/) > [Three times a day Petrovich showed up at the nurse's office for his injections, always using the hypodermic needle himself like the most craven…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jeffrey-eugenides/three-times-a-day-petrovich-showed-up-at-the-nurse-s-office-for-his/) [Jeffrey Eugenides](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jeffrey-eugenides/) Browse all 132 Needle quotes ```json { "@context": "https://schema.org", "@graph": [ { "@type": "Quotation", "text": "“As a Turkish proverb says--it was going to be like digging a well with a needle.”", "creator": { "@type": "Person", "name": "Terry Hayes" }, "isPartOf": { "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/#website" }, "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/terry-hayes/as-a-turkish-proverb-says-it-was-going-to-be-like-digging-a-well-with/", "about": { "@type": "Thing", "name": "Needle" }, "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/terry-hayes/as-a-turkish-proverb-says-it-was-going-to-be-like-digging-a-well-with/#quotation", "image": { "@type": "ImageObject", "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/89b/terry-hayes-16359_needle_as-a-turkish-proverb-says-it-was-going-t_655947.png", "contentUrl": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/89b/terry-hayes-16359_needle_as-a-turkish-proverb-says-it-was-going-t_655947.png", "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/89b/terry-hayes-16359_needle_as-a-turkish-proverb-says-it-was-going-t_655947.png", "width": 1080, "height": 1080, "caption": "“As a Turkish proverb says--it was going to be like digging a well with a needle.” — Terry Hayes", "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": "Terry Hayes", "item": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/terry-hayes/" }, { "@type": "ListItem", "position": 4, "name": "“As a Turkish proverb says--it was...", "item": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/terry-hayes/as-a-turkish-proverb-says-it-was-going-to-be-like-digging-a-well-with/" } ], "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/terry-hayes/as-a-turkish-proverb-says-it-was-going-to-be-like-digging-a-well-with/#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 } } ] } ```