--- title: "Meaning & Key Takeaway of: It's like that old expression: \"Men plan…" description: "\"It's like that old expression: \"Men plan and god laughs.\" You sort of see that in the television world, where you have an idea where things are heading..." image: "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/974/vince-gilligan-12018_expression_it-s-like-that-old-expression-men-plan-a_379441.jpg" --- # It's like that old expression: "Men plan and god laughs."… ![“It's like that old expression: "Men plan and god laughs." You sort of see that in the television world, where you have an idea where things are heading and you have a plan and sort of start off in that general direction, but you wind up taking all these side paths and whatnot - if you're lucky.” quote by Vince Gilligan](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/974/vince-gilligan-12018_expression_it-s-like-that-old-expression-men-plan-a_379441.jpg) [Download](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/974/vince-gilligan-12018_expression_it-s-like-that-old-expression-men-plan-a_379441.jpg) [Open image](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/974/vince-gilligan-12018_expression_it-s-like-that-old-expression-men-plan-a_379441.jpg) > “It's like that old expression: "Men plan and god laughs." You sort of see that in the television world, where you have an idea where things are heading and you have a plan and sort of start off in that general direction, but you wind up taking all these side paths and whatnot - if you're lucky.” [Vince Gilligan](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/vince-gilligan/) ## About This Quote This interpretation was drafted with AI assistance. It is one reading of the quote, not the author's own explanation. Plans often change unexpectedly; external forces can derail intentions, leading to unforeseen outcomes. **In simple terms:** Plans can be upended by fate. Key Takeaway Adapt and stay flexible. Themes uncertainty control fate Mood thoughtful pragmatic Type philosophical inspirational When to use this quote - project management - creative writing - business strategy - personal goals Key Concepts determinism chaos theory adaptability Questions to Reflect On - Do you accept uncertainty as part of life? - How do you balance planning with openness? A Different Perspective Overemphasis on control may cause anxiety. ★ ★ ★ ★ ★ No ratings yet [Expression](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/expression/) [Humor](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/humor/) [Ideas](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/ideas/) [Lucky](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/lucky/) [Men](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/men/) [Path](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/path/) [Television](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/television/) [Wind](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/wind/) [World](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/world/) ## Related quotes > [“As the old adage goes: ‘Men plan, and God laughs.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/dan-brown/as-the-old-adage-goes-men-plan-and-god-laughs/) [Dan Brown](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/dan-brown/) > [People plan, God laughs.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/nicholas-sparks/people-plan-god-laughs/) [Nicholas Sparks](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/nicholas-sparks/) > [Every time I make a plan, God laughs at me.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jason-isaacs/every-time-i-make-a-plan-god-laughs-at-me/) [Jason Isaacs](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jason-isaacs/) > [“Men plan. Fate Laughs.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jim-butcher/men-plan-fate-laughs/) [Jim Butcher](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jim-butcher/) > [God laughs, it seems, because God knows how it all turns out in the end.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/harvey-cox/god-laughs-it-seems-because-god-knows-how-it-all-turns-out-in-the-end/) [Harvey Cox](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/harvey-cox/) > [God laughs on two occasions. He laughs when the physician says to the patient's mother, 'Don't be afraid, mother; I shall certainly cure your…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ramakrishna/god-laughs-on-two-occasions-he-laughs-when-the-physician-says-to-the/) [Ramakrishna](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ramakrishna/) > [God laughs at men's plans.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/larry-gatlin/god-laughs-at-men-s-plans/) [Larry Gatlin](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/larry-gatlin/) > [“Man plans and God laughs.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/sean-chercover/man-plans-and-god-laughs/) [Sean Chercover](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/sean-chercover/) > [Man makes plans . . . and God laughs.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/michael-chabon/man-makes-plans-and-god-laughs/) [Michael Chabon](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/michael-chabon/) > [They say God laughs when you make plans, that's why I make appointments and sometimes reschedule.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/behdad-sami/they-say-god-laughs-when-you-make-plans-that-s-why-i-make/) [Behdad Sami](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/behdad-sami/) > [I don't suppose God laughs at the people who think He doesn't exist. He's above jokes. But the devil isn't. That's one of his…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/robertson-davies/i-don-t-suppose-god-laughs-at-the-people-who-think-he-doesn-t-exist/) [Robertson Davies](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/robertson-davies/) > [Man plans. God laughs.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/harlan-coben/man-plans-god-laughs/) [Harlan Coben](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/harlan-coben/) > [“Will: I'm looking for fighting men. I plan to sack a castle, and I hear you people are rather good at that.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/john-flanagan/will-i-m-looking-for-fighting-men-i-plan-to-sack-a-castle-and-i-hear/) [John Flanagan](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/john-flanagan/) > [Men plan. Fate Laughs. Guis Alera, First Lord](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jim-butcher/men-plan-fate-laughs-guis-alera-first-lord/) [Jim Butcher](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jim-butcher/) > [“Will to Gundar: I'm looking for fighting men. I plan to sack a castle, and I hear you people are rather good at that.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/john-flanagan/will-to-gundar-i-m-looking-for-fighting-men-i-plan-to-sack-a-castle/) [John Flanagan](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/john-flanagan/) ## More by Vince Gilligan > [There are two ways of knowing if something ends badly: If you're honest with yourself, you just kind of know it. And then there's…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/vince-gilligan/there-are-two-ways-of-knowing-if-something-ends-badly-if-you-re/) [Vince Gilligan](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/vince-gilligan/) > [I do see the world in pretty dark terms. I find it colder and scarier the older I get.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/vince-gilligan/i-do-see-the-world-in-pretty-dark-terms-i-find-it-colder-and-scarier/) [Vince Gilligan](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/vince-gilligan/) > [Sometimes when you're creating something, it takes on a life of its own, and you can be surprised at how sad or dramatic it…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/vince-gilligan/sometimes-when-you-re-creating-something-it-takes-on-a-life-of-its/) [Vince Gilligan](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/vince-gilligan/) > [If religion is a reaction of man, and nothing more, it seems to me that it represents a human desire for wrongdoers to be…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/vince-gilligan/if-religion-is-a-reaction-of-man-and-nothing-more-it-seems-to-me-that/) [Vince Gilligan](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/vince-gilligan/) > [There's nothing more powerful to a showrunner than a truly invested writer.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/vince-gilligan/there-s-nothing-more-powerful-to-a-showrunner-than-a-truly-invested/) [Vince Gilligan](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/vince-gilligan/) > [The thing that intrigued me about 'Breaking Bad' from day one was the idea of taking a character and transforming him.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/vince-gilligan/the-thing-that-intrigued-me-about-breaking-bad-from-day-one-was-the/) [Vince Gilligan](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/vince-gilligan/) > [Our rational, realistic goals for 'Better Call Saul' were simply that it wouldn't suck, and it wouldn't embarrass us. It didn't rise much higher…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/vince-gilligan/our-rational-realistic-goals-for-better-call-saul-were-simply-that-it/) [Vince Gilligan](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/vince-gilligan/) > ['SpongeBob SquarePants' is a great show, and it centers on a character that is courageously nice. Why is SpongeBob interesting? It's because he has…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/vince-gilligan/spongebob-squarepants-is-a-great-show-and-it-centers-on-a-character/) [Vince Gilligan](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/vince-gilligan/) > [It's often the case with successful TV shows that they kind of inadvertently live on past their prime. It's best to leave the audience…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/vince-gilligan/it-s-often-the-case-with-successful-tv-shows-that-they-kind-of/) [Vince Gilligan](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/vince-gilligan/) > [We all put on faces, as Walter White does. We put on faces when we meet our friends, when we meet new people, when…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/vince-gilligan/we-all-put-on-faces-as-walter-white-does-we-put-on-faces-when-we-meet/) [Vince Gilligan](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/vince-gilligan/) > [How do you find a better actor than Michael McKean? How do you find someone who's just that good? They don't grow on trees.…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/vince-gilligan/how-do-you-find-a-better-actor-than-michael-mckean-how-do-you-find/) [Vince Gilligan](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/vince-gilligan/) > [I was always the kid who wanted Christmas to not come, because I realized at a pretty early age that no matter what you…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/vince-gilligan/i-was-always-the-kid-who-wanted-christmas-to-not-come-because-i/) [Vince Gilligan](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/vince-gilligan/) > [We shot 'Breaking Bad' on film; we capture 'Better Call Saul' digitally. In the shooting of 'Breaking Bad,' we would have this steady, handheld,…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/vince-gilligan/we-shot-breaking-bad-on-film-we-capture-better-call-saul-digitally-in/) [Vince Gilligan](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/vince-gilligan/) > [I want to believe there's a heaven. But I can't not believe there's a hell.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/vince-gilligan/i-want-to-believe-there-s-a-heaven-but-i-can-t-not-believe-there-s-a/) [Vince Gilligan](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/vince-gilligan/) > [People want what they want, for as long as they want it, then tastes change and something else works.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/vince-gilligan/people-want-what-they-want-for-as-long-as-they-want-it-then-tastes/) [Vince Gilligan](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/vince-gilligan/) [Explore all 56 Vince Gilligan quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/vince-gilligan/) ## More Expression quotes > [The sublime in art is the attempt to express the infinite without finding in the realm of phenomena any object which proves itself fitting…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/georg-wilhelm-friedrich-hegel/the-sublime-in-art-is-the-attempt-to-express-the-infinite-without/) [Georg Wilhelm Friedrich Hegel](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/georg-wilhelm-friedrich-hegel/) > [“What does it mean to be a self-conscious animal? The idea is ludicrous, if it is not monstrous. It means to know that one…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ernest-becker/what-does-it-mean-to-be-a-self-conscious-animal-the-idea-is-ludicrous/) [Ernest Becker](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ernest-becker/) > [Instead of asking a girl how she feels, try looking through her recently listened to songs. The lyrics are the answer to all your…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anonymous/instead-of-asking-a-girl-how-she-feels-try-looking-through-her/) [Anonymous](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anonymous/) > [The concept of humanity is an especially useful ideological instrument of imperialist expansion, and in its ethical-humanitarian form it is a specific vehicle of…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/carl-schmitt/the-concept-of-humanity-is-an-especially-useful-ideological/) [Carl Schmitt](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/carl-schmitt/) > [To evoke in oneself a feeling one has once experienced, and having evoked it in oneself, then by means of movements, lines, colors, sounds,…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/leo-tolstoy/to-evoke-in-oneself-a-feeling-one-has-once-experienced-and-having/) [Leo Tolstoy](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/leo-tolstoy/) > [Our fashion for us, it's an expression; first of all of life, I put all of myself in my fashion. Sometimes it's good, sometimes…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/stefano-gabbana/our-fashion-for-us-it-s-an-expression-first-of-all-of-life-i-put-all/) [Stefano Gabbana](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/stefano-gabbana/) > [We can see nothing whatever of the soul unless it is visible in the expression of the countenance; one might call the faces at…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/georg-c-lichtenberg/we-can-see-nothing-whatever-of-the-soul-unless-it-is-visible-in-the/) [Georg C. Lichtenberg](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/georg-c-lichtenberg/) > [Early experience shapes the structure and function of the brain. This reveals the fundamental way in which gene expression is determined by experience.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/daniel-j-siegel/early-experience-shapes-the-structure-and-function-of-the-brain-this/) [Daniel J. Siegel](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/daniel-j-siegel/) > [Singing has always seemed to me the most perfect means of expression. It is so spontaneous. And after singing, I think the violin. Since…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/georgia-o-keeffe/singing-has-always-seemed-to-me-the-most-perfect-means-of-expression/) [Georgia O'Keeffe](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/georgia-o-keeffe/) > [Every genuine expression of love grows out of a consistent and total surrender to God.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/martin-luther-king-jr/every-genuine-expression-of-love-grows-out-of-a-consistent-and-total/) [Martin Luther King, Jr](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/martin-luther-king-jr/) > [Nick looked vaguely homicidal, but that was sort of his default expression.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/sarah-rees-brennan/nick-looked-vaguely-homicidal-but-that-was-sort-of-his-default/) [Sarah Rees Brennan](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/sarah-rees-brennan/) > [They are the gateway for our modern esthetic development, the prophets of the new time. They are most of all, the primitives of the…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/marsden-hartley/they-are-the-gateway-for-our-modern-esthetic-development-the-prophets/) [Marsden Hartley](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/marsden-hartley/) > [The mountain receives our expressions and becomes part of us; we imprint our memories upon it and trust it with out dearest divisions of…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/bruce-barcott/the-mountain-receives-our-expressions-and-becomes-part-of-us-we/) [Bruce Barcott](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/bruce-barcott/) > [In science, the most exciting expression isn’t ‘Eureka!’ It’s ‘Huh?’](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/michael-hawley/in-science-the-most-exciting-expression-isn-t-eureka-it-s-huh/) Michael Hawley > [A commitment to lifelong learning is a natural expression of the practice of living consciously.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/nathaniel-branden/a-commitment-to-lifelong-learning-is-a-natural-expression-of-the/) [Nathaniel Branden](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/nathaniel-branden/) [Browse all 5,024 Expression quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/expression/) ```json { "@context": "https://schema.org", "@graph": [ { "@type": "Quotation", "text": "It's like that old expression: \"Men plan and god laughs.\" You sort of see that in the television world, where you have an idea where things are heading and you have a plan and sort of start off in that general direction, but you wind up taking all these side paths and whatnot - if you're lucky.", "creator": { "@type": "Person", "name": "Vince Gilligan" }, "isPartOf": { "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/#website" }, "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/vince-gilligan/it-s-like-that-old-expression-men-plan-and-god-laughs-you-sort-of-see/", "about": { "@type": "Thing", "name": "Expression" }, "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/vince-gilligan/it-s-like-that-old-expression-men-plan-and-god-laughs-you-sort-of-see/#quotation", "image": { "@type": "ImageObject", "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/974/vince-gilligan-12018_expression_it-s-like-that-old-expression-men-plan-a_379441.jpg", "contentUrl": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/974/vince-gilligan-12018_expression_it-s-like-that-old-expression-men-plan-a_379441.jpg", "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/974/vince-gilligan-12018_expression_it-s-like-that-old-expression-men-plan-a_379441.jpg", "width": 1080, "height": 1080, "caption": "“It's like that old expression: \"Men plan and god laughs.\" You sort of see that in the television world…” — Vince Gilligan", "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": "Vince Gilligan", "item": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/vince-gilligan/" }, { "@type": "ListItem", "position": 4, "name": "It's like that old expression: \"Men...", "item": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/vince-gilligan/it-s-like-that-old-expression-men-plan-and-god-laughs-you-sort-of-see/" } ], "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/vince-gilligan/it-s-like-that-old-expression-men-plan-and-god-laughs-you-sort-of-see/#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 } } ] } ```