--- title: "Meaning & Key Takeaway of: To live content with small means; to seek…" description: "\"To live content with small means; to seek elegance rather than luxury, and refinement rather than fashion; to be worthy, not respectable, and wealthy, ..." image: "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/f67/william-ellery-channing-3428_beauty_to-live-content-with-small-means-to-seek_270862.jpg" --- # To live content with small means; to seek elegance rather… ![“To live content with small means; to seek elegance rather than luxury, and refinement rather than fashion; to be worthy, not respectable, and wealthy, not, rich; to listen to stars and birds, babes and sages, with open heart; to study hard; to think quietly, act frankly, talk gently, await…” quote by William Ellery Channing](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/f67/william-ellery-channing-3428_beauty_to-live-content-with-small-means-to-seek_270862.jpg) [Download](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/f67/william-ellery-channing-3428_beauty_to-live-content-with-small-means-to-seek_270862.jpg) [Open image](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/f67/william-ellery-channing-3428_beauty_to-live-content-with-small-means-to-seek_270862.jpg) > “To live content with small means; to seek elegance rather than luxury, and refinement rather than fashion; to be worthy, not respectable, and wealthy, not, rich; to listen to stars and birds, babes and sages, with open heart; to study hard; to think quietly, act frankly, talk gently, await occasions, hurry never; in a word, to let the spiritual, unbidden and unconscious, grow up through the common - this is my symphony. William Henry Channing's Symphony: some background, and its appearance in an Arthur Brisbane editorial - from the 1906 collection, Editorials From The Hearst Newspapers” [William Ellery Channing](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/william-ellery-channing/) ## About This Quote This interpretation was drafted with AI assistance. It is one reading of the quote, not the author's own explanation. Live simply, seek elegance, value worth over status, listen deeply, study hard, act honestly, let unconscious growth guide you. **In simple terms:** Live modestly, act with integrity, let inner growth flourish. Key Takeaway Cultivate humility, curiosity, and authentic expression. Themes simplicity integrity growth Mood contemplative inspirational Type advice philosophical When to use this quote - personal journaling - mindful work - community service Key Concepts philosophy self‑development spirituality Questions to Reflect On - How can you balance simplicity with modern demands? - What practices nurture inner growth amid daily noise? A Different Perspective Idealism may clash with material pressures and societal expectations. ★ ★ ★ ★ ★ No ratings yet [Beauty](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/beauty/) [Fashion](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/fashion/) [Happiness](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/happiness/) [Open heart](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/open-heart/) ## Related quotes > [“...To study hard, think quietly, talk gently, act frankly ... to listen to stars and buds, to babes and sages, with open heart; await…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/william-henry-channing/to-study-hard-think-quietly-talk-gently-act-frankly-to-listen-to/) William Henry Channing > [“To live content with small means; to seek elegance rather than luxury, and refinement rather than fashion; to be worthy, not respectable, and wealthy,…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jan-karon/to-live-content-with-small-means-to-seek-elegance-rather-than-luxury-2/) [Jan Karon](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jan-karon/) > [To live content with small means; to seek elegance rather than luxury, and refinement rather than fashion; to be worthy, not respectable, and wealthy,…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anonymous/to-live-content-with-small-means-to-seek-elegance-rather-than-luxury-3/) [Anonymous](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anonymous/) > [To live content with small means; to seek elegance rather than luxury, and refinement rather than fashion; to be worthy, not respectable, and wealthy,…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/william-ellery-channing/to-live-content-with-small-means-to-seek-elegance-rather-than-luxury-4/) [William Ellery Channing](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/william-ellery-channing/) > [The very act of becoming an entrepreneur is contrarian to middle class values, study hard, get a good job, be happy with secure income…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/rashmi-bansal/the-very-act-of-becoming-an-entrepreneur-is-contrarian-to-middle/) [Rashmi Bansal](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/rashmi-bansal/) > [Study hard, practice hard, play ferociously.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/john-kessel/study-hard-practice-hard-play-ferociously/) [John Kessel](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/john-kessel/) > [That moment when you study SO hard for an exam, & you readthe first question & you're Like WTF where was this in the notes.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anonymous/that-moment-when-you-study-so-hard-for-an-exam-you-readthe-first/) [Anonymous](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anonymous/) > [Mom put a note in my lunch again, I see... Dear son, I hope you will study hard in summer school... Do not look…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/charles-m-schulz/mom-put-a-note-in-my-lunch-again-i-see-dear-son-i-hope-you-will-study/) [Charles M. Schulz](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/charles-m-schulz/) > [You think you're prepared. You think you've done everything you're supposed to, study hard, work hard, keep yourself out of trouble, and then-whoosh! Something…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anonymous/you-think-you-re-prepared-you-think-you-ve-done-everything-you-re/) [Anonymous](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anonymous/) > [A Good Teacher Is Who Tells To Study Hard... . . . . . But,, . . . . . A Best Teacher Is…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anonymous/a-good-teacher-is-who-tells-to-study-hard-but-a-best-teacher-is-who/) [Anonymous](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anonymous/) > [“I told my best friend in the world, my sister. “Okay, so I’m not going now,” I told Betsy over the phone. I’d awakened…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ree-drummond/i-told-my-best-friend-in-the-world-my-sister-okay-so-i-m-not-going/) [Ree Drummond](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ree-drummond/) > [Keep calm and study hard](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anonymous/keep-calm-and-study-hard/) [Anonymous](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anonymous/) > [I recently found myself going through a period of uncertainty about my future as a performer, my status as a personality, the believability of…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/johnny-cash/i-recently-found-myself-going-through-a-period-of-uncertainty-about/) [Johnny Cash](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/johnny-cash/) > [He had a passion for cricket right from his childhood and liked nothing else but playing with the bat and the ball. I wanted…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/bill-vaughan/he-had-a-passion-for-cricket-right-from-his-childhood-and-liked/) [Bill Vaughan](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/bill-vaughan/) > [President Obama gave a speech about healthcare tonight, and yesterday he gave a pep talk to students. He told them that in order to…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/conan-o-brien/president-obama-gave-a-speech-about-healthcare-tonight-and-yesterday/) [Conan O'Brien](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/conan-o-brien/) ## More by William Ellery Channing > [The reveries of youth, in which so much energy is wasted, are the yearnings of a Spirit made for what it has not found…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/william-ellery-channing/the-reveries-of-youth-in-which-so-much-energy-is-wasted-are-the/) [William Ellery Channing](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/william-ellery-channing/) > [A man may quarrel with himself alone; that is, by controverting his better instincts and knowledge when brought face to face with temptation.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/william-ellery-channing/a-man-may-quarrel-with-himself-alone-that-is-by-controverting-his/) [William Ellery Channing](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/william-ellery-channing/) > [Science and art may invent splendid modes of illuminating the apartments of the opulent; but these are all poor and worthless compared with the…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/william-ellery-channing/science-and-art-may-invent-splendid-modes-of-illuminating-the/) [William Ellery Channing](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/william-ellery-channing/) > [Men are never very wise and select in the exercise of a new power.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/william-ellery-channing/men-are-never-very-wise-and-select-in-the-exercise-of-a-new-power/) [William Ellery Channing](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/william-ellery-channing/) > [All virtue lies in individual action, in inward energy, in self determination. There is no moral worth in being swept away by a crowd…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/william-ellery-channing/all-virtue-lies-in-individual-action-in-inward-energy-in-self/) [William Ellery Channing](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/william-ellery-channing/) > [We honor revelation too highly to make it the antagonist of reason, or to believe that it calls us to renounce our highest powers.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/william-ellery-channing/we-honor-revelation-too-highly-to-make-it-the-antagonist-of-reason-or/) [William Ellery Channing](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/william-ellery-channing/) > [To give a generous hope to a man of his own nature, is to enrich him immeasurably.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/william-ellery-channing/to-give-a-generous-hope-to-a-man-of-his-own-nature-is-to-enrich-him/) [William Ellery Channing](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/william-ellery-channing/) > [No man receives the full culture of a man in whom the sensibility to the beautiful is not cherished; and there is no condition…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/william-ellery-channing/no-man-receives-the-full-culture-of-a-man-in-whom-the-sensibility-to/) [William Ellery Channing](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/william-ellery-channing/) > [I call that mind free which jealously guards its intellectual rights and powers, which calls no man master, which does not content itself with…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/william-ellery-channing/i-call-that-mind-free-which-jealously-guards-its-intellectual-rights/) [William Ellery Channing](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/william-ellery-channing/) > [Error is discipline through which we advance.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/william-ellery-channing/error-is-discipline-through-which-we-advance/) [William Ellery Channing](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/william-ellery-channing/) > [Ideas are the mightiest influence on earth. One great thought breathed into a man may regenerate him.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/william-ellery-channing/ideas-are-the-mightiest-influence-on-earth-one-great-thought-breathed/) [William Ellery Channing](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/william-ellery-channing/) > [“god be thanked for books. they are the voices of the distant and the dead, and make us heirs of the spiritual life of…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/william-ellery-channing/god-be-thanked-for-books-they-are-the-voices-of-the-distant-and-the/) [William Ellery Channing](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/william-ellery-channing/) > [Perhaps in our presence, the most heroic deed on earth is done in some silent spirit, the loftiest purpose cherished, the most generous sacrifice…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/william-ellery-channing/perhaps-in-our-presence-the-most-heroic-deed-on-earth-is-done-in-some/) [William Ellery Channing](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/william-ellery-channing/) > [Each of us is meant to have a character all our own, to be what no other can exactly be, and do what no…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/william-ellery-channing/each-of-us-is-meant-to-have-a-character-all-our-own-to-be-what-no/) [William Ellery Channing](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/william-ellery-channing/) > [The home is the chief school of human virtues.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/william-ellery-channing/the-home-is-the-chief-school-of-human-virtues/) [William Ellery Channing](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/william-ellery-channing/) [Explore all 130 William Ellery Channing quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/william-ellery-channing/) ## More Beauty quotes > [We do not want nowadays temples of worship and outward rites and ceremonies. What we really want is an Asram. We want a place…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/rabindranath-tagore/we-do-not-want-nowadays-temples-of-worship-and-outward-rites-and/) [Rabindranath Tagore](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/rabindranath-tagore/) > [How could anybody confuse truth with beauty, I thought as I looked at him. Truth came with sunken eyes, bony or scarred, decayed. Its…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/janet-fitch/how-could-anybody-confuse-truth-with-beauty-i-thought-as-i-looked-at/) [Janet Fitch](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/janet-fitch/) > [A thing of beauty is a joy for ever;It's loveliness increase;it will never pass into nothingness;but still will keep a bower quiet for us,and…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/john-keats/a-thing-of-beauty-is-a-joy-for-ever-it-s-loveliness-increase-it-will/) [John Keats](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/john-keats/) > [To fathom the power, to witness the beauty, to bathe in the fountain, to swing on the spiral of our divinity, and still be…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/tool/to-fathom-the-power-to-witness-the-beauty-to-bathe-in-the-fountain-to/) [Tool](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/tool/) > [The term "black metal" has become a lot looser, or can include a larger range of sounds and extra-musical aesthetics, not just Satan and…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/colin-marston/the-term-black-metal-has-become-a-lot-looser-or-can-include-a-larger/) [Colin Marston](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/colin-marston/) > [“We've all met people who are beautiful on the outside, however, when they open their mouths to speak, they have nothing of substance to…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/susan-c-young/we-ve-all-met-people-who-are-beautiful-on-the-outside-however-when/) [Susan C. Young](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/susan-c-young/) > [There are various orders of beauty, causing men to make fools of themselves in various styles.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/george-eliot/there-are-various-orders-of-beauty-causing-men-to-make-fools-of/) [George Eliot](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/george-eliot/) > [To me, the beauty of a quilt or a dress lies within the stitches and the thought of the person who made them. When…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/natalie/to-me-the-beauty-of-a-quilt-or-a-dress-lies-within-the-stitches-and/) [Natalie](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/natalie/) > [“do not misunderstand person by beauty You really do not know its real or Mask on dirty thoughts”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/mohammed-zaki-ansari/do-not-misunderstand-person-by-beauty-you-really-do-not-know-its-real/) [Mohammed Zaki Ansari](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/mohammed-zaki-ansari/) > [“I already love in you your beauty, but I am only beginning to love in you that which is eternal and ever precious –…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/leo-tolstoy/i-already-love-in-you-your-beauty-but-i-am-only-beginning-to-love-in/) [Leo Tolstoy](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/leo-tolstoy/) > [The more perfect the sight is the more delightful the beautiful object. The more perfect the appetite, the sweeter the food. The more musical…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/richard-baxter/the-more-perfect-the-sight-is-the-more-delightful-the-beautiful/) [Richard Baxter](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/richard-baxter/) > [Call her beautiful a million times and she won't believe you. Call her ugly once, and she will never forget it.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/tumblr/call-her-beautiful-a-million-times-and-she-won-t-believe-you-call-her/) Tumblr > [Time can but make her beauty over again.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/william-butler-yeats/time-can-but-make-her-beauty-over-again/) [William Butler Yeats](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/william-butler-yeats/) > [ The social \[media channel\] isn't about beauty contests and popularity contests. They're a distortion, a caricature of the real thing. It's about trust, connection,… ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/umair-haque/the-social-media-channel-isn-t-about-beauty-contests-and-popularity/) [Umair Haque](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/umair-haque/) > [“What about you? What do you do?” I needed to ask questions, draw him out. I needed to find out all the information I…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/kate-avery-ellison/what-about-you-what-do-you-do-i-needed-to-ask-questions-draw-him-out/) [Kate Avery Ellison](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/kate-avery-ellison/) [Browse all 24,662 Beauty quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/beauty/) ```json { "@context": "https://schema.org", "@graph": [ { "@type": "Quotation", "text": "To live content with small means; to seek elegance rather than luxury, and refinement rather than fashion; to be worthy, not respectable, and wealthy, not, rich; to listen to stars and birds, babes and sages, with open heart; to study hard; to think quietly, act frankly, talk gently, await occasions, hurry never; in a word, to let the spiritual, unbidden and unconscious, grow up through the common - this is my symphony. William Henry Channing's Symphony: some background, and its appearance in an Arthur Brisbane editorial - from the 1906 collection, Editorials From The Hearst Newspapers", "creator": { "@type": "Person", "name": "William Ellery Channing" }, "isPartOf": { "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/#website" }, "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/william-ellery-channing/to-live-content-with-small-means-to-seek-elegance-rather-than-luxury/", "about": { "@type": "Thing", "name": "Beauty" }, "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/william-ellery-channing/to-live-content-with-small-means-to-seek-elegance-rather-than-luxury/#quotation", "image": { "@type": "ImageObject", "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/f67/william-ellery-channing-3428_beauty_to-live-content-with-small-means-to-seek_270862.jpg", "contentUrl": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/f67/william-ellery-channing-3428_beauty_to-live-content-with-small-means-to-seek_270862.jpg", "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/f67/william-ellery-channing-3428_beauty_to-live-content-with-small-means-to-seek_270862.jpg", "width": 1080, "height": 1080, "caption": "“To live content with small means; to seek elegance rather than luxury, and refinement rather than fashion…” — William Ellery Channing", "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": "William Ellery Channing", "item": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/william-ellery-channing/" }, { "@type": "ListItem", "position": 4, "name": "To live content with small means;...", "item": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/william-ellery-channing/to-live-content-with-small-means-to-seek-elegance-rather-than-luxury/" } ], "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/william-ellery-channing/to-live-content-with-small-means-to-seek-elegance-rather-than-luxury/#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 } } ] } ```