---
title: "Meaning & Key Takeaway of: There are only two places in the world…"
description: "\"There are only two places in the world where time takes precedence over the job to be done. School and prison.\" — William Glasser"
image: "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/ffe/william-glasser-10297_crime_there-are-only-two-places-in-the-world-w_1763301.jpg"
---

#  There are only two places in the world where time takes…

![“There are only two places in the world where time takes precedence over the job to be done. School and prison.” quote by William Glasser](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/ffe/william-glasser-10297_crime_there-are-only-two-places-in-the-world-w_1763301.jpg)   [Download](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/ffe/william-glasser-10297_crime_there-are-only-two-places-in-the-world-w_1763301.jpg) [Open image](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/ffe/william-glasser-10297_crime_there-are-only-two-places-in-the-world-w_1763301.jpg)

> “There are only two places in the world where time takes precedence over the job to be done. School and prison.”

[William Glasser](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/william-glasser/)

## About This Quote

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

He points out that only schools and prisons prioritize time over productivity, emphasizing how these institutions control schedules.

**In simple terms:** Schools and prisons value time over work.

Key Takeaway

Consider how time constraints affect motivation.

Themes

education correction time management motivation

Mood

reflective critical

Type

philosophical analytical

When to use this quote

- classroom
- penal system
- workplace training

Key Concepts

institutional control schedule dominance social structure

Questions to Reflect On

- How does time pressure influence behavior?
- Can we redesign institutions to balance time and purpose?

A Different Perspective

May ignore other time‑pressured environments.

★ ★ ★ ★ ★   No ratings yet

[Crime](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/crime/) [Funny](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/funny/) [Prison](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/prison/) [Prisons](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/prisons/) [School](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/school/) [Time](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/time/) [World](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/world/)

## Related quotes

> [Paranoia is an illness I contracted in institutions. It is not the reason for my sentences to reform school and prison. It is the…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anonymous/paranoia-is-an-illness-i-contracted-in-institutions-it-is-not-the/)

[Anonymous](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anonymous/)

> [The federal prison population increased by almost 800 percent between 1980 and 2013, often at a far faster rate than the Bureau of Prisons…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/sally-yates/the-federal-prison-population-increased-by-almost-800-percent-between/)

[Sally Yates](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/sally-yates/)

> [Are the prisons overpopulated, or is the population over-imprisoned ?](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/michel-foucault/are-the-prisons-overpopulated-or-is-the-population-over-imprisoned/)

[Michel Foucault](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/michel-foucault/)

> [Prisons where people can't even work is the worst punishment you can think of. And I don't think we should put all convicts in…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/vladimir-putin/prisons-where-people-can-t-even-work-is-the-worst-punishment-you-can/)

[Vladimir Putin](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/vladimir-putin/)

> [Keeping them behind bars does little to reduce crime, but it does a lot to tear apart families, our prisons and our jails are…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/hillary-clinton/keeping-them-behind-bars-does-little-to-reduce-crime-but-it-does-a/)

[Hillary Clinton](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/hillary-clinton/)

> [There are worse prisons than words.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/carlos-ruiz-zafon/there-are-worse-prisons-than-words/)

[Carlos Ruiz Zafon](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/carlos-ruiz-zafon/)

> [I hated high school. It was a prison.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/alan-alda/i-hated-high-school-it-was-a-prison/)

[Alan Alda](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/alan-alda/)

> [Ending the school-to-prison pipeline is not a small task and requires detangling the myth of white superiority from our entire education system.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jamaal-bowman/ending-the-school-to-prison-pipeline-is-not-a-small-task-and-requires/)

[Jamaal Bowman](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jamaal-bowman/)

> [The school-to-prison pipeline - the disproportionality that exists in handing out school discipline in schools to Black and Brown students for simple infractions -…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jamaal-bowman/the-school-to-prison-pipeline-the-disproportionality-that-exists-in/)

[Jamaal Bowman](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jamaal-bowman/)

> [Sunday School: A prison in which children do penance for the evil conscience of their parents.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anonymous/sunday-school-a-prison-in-which-children-do-penance-for-the-evil/)

[Anonymous](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anonymous/)

> [We must end the school-to-prison pipeline and create a pipeline from our high schools and community colleges directly to jobs for those who choose…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ralph-northam/we-must-end-the-school-to-prison-pipeline-and-create-a-pipeline-from/)

[Ralph Northam](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ralph-northam/)

> [I definitely read a lot in school, and even more in prison.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/benny-the-butcher/i-definitely-read-a-lot-in-school-and-even-more-in-prison/)

[Benny the Butcher](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/benny-the-butcher/)

> [Nearly a quarter of American men were in the Armed forces. The rest were in school, in prison, or were George W. Bush.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/bill-bryson/nearly-a-quarter-of-american-men-were-in-the-armed-forces-the-rest/)

[Bill Bryson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/bill-bryson/)

> [A Sunday school is a prison in which children do penance for the evil conscience of their parents.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/h-l-mencken/a-sunday-school-is-a-prison-in-which-children-do-penance-for-the-evil/)

[H. L. Mencken](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/h-l-mencken/)

> [“If we wish for our country to have an exponentially brighter future, one of the things we need to change is the popular perception…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/joshua-neik/if-we-wish-for-our-country-to-have-an-exponentially-brighter-future/)

[Joshua Neik](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/joshua-neik/)

## More by William Glasser

> [The answer lies in preventing these failures, not in looking for better ways to fix the people who are failing.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/william-glasser/the-answer-lies-in-preventing-these-failures-not-in-looking-for/)

[William Glasser](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/william-glasser/)

> [Too many of us fail to fulfill our needs because we say no rather than yes, or perhaps later in life, yes when we…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/william-glasser/too-many-of-us-fail-to-fulfill-our-needs-because-we-say-no-rather/)

[William Glasser](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/william-glasser/)

> [Education is the process in which we discover that learning adds quality to our lives. Learning must be experienced.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/william-glasser/education-is-the-process-in-which-we-discover-that-learning-adds/)

[William Glasser](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/william-glasser/)

> [A friend of mine, a dedicated golfer, shot a hole in one playing by himself. Disaster.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/william-glasser/a-friend-of-mine-a-dedicated-golfer-shot-a-hole-in-one-playing-by/)

[William Glasser](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/william-glasser/)

> [“What happened in the past that was painful has a great deal to do with what we are today, but revisiting this painful past…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/william-glasser/what-happened-in-the-past-that-was-painful-has-a-great-deal-to-do/)

[William Glasser](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/william-glasser/)

> [I think it is totally wrong and terribly harmful if education is defined as acquiring knowledge.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/william-glasser/i-think-it-is-totally-wrong-and-terribly-harmful-if-education-is/)

[William Glasser](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/william-glasser/)

> [You can acquire a lot of knowledge without ever going to school.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/william-glasser/you-can-acquire-a-lot-of-knowledge-without-ever-going-to-school/)

[William Glasser](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/william-glasser/)

> [“What happened in the past that was painful has a great deal to do with what we are today.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/william-glasser/what-happened-in-the-past-that-was-painful-has-a-great-deal-to-do-2/)

[William Glasser](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/william-glasser/)

> [This is at the heart of all good education, where the teacher asks students to think and engages them in encouraging dialogues, constantly checking…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/william-glasser/this-is-at-the-heart-of-all-good-education-where-the-teacher-asks/)

[William Glasser](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/william-glasser/)

> [Good or bad, everything we do is our best choice at that moment.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/william-glasser/good-or-bad-everything-we-do-is-our-best-choice-at-that-moment/)

[William Glasser](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/william-glasser/)

> [They have this big book called the 'DSM-IV,' you know, that is supposedly written about crazy people, but I think it is a book…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/william-glasser/they-have-this-big-book-called-the-dsm-iv-you-know-that-is-supposedly/)

[William Glasser](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/william-glasser/)

> [To counter the avoidance of intellectual challenge and responsibility, we must reduce the domination of certainty in education.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/william-glasser/to-counter-the-avoidance-of-intellectual-challenge-and-responsibility/)

[William Glasser](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/william-glasser/)

> [What happened in the past that was painful has a great deal to do with what we are today, but revisiting this painful past…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/william-glasser/what-happened-in-the-past-that-was-painful-has-a-great-deal-to-do-3/)

[William Glasser](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/william-glasser/)

> [Love. What is love? No word can define it, it's something so great, only God could design it. Yes, love is beyond, what man…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/william-glasser/love-what-is-love-no-word-can-define-it-it-s-something-so-great-only/)

[William Glasser](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/william-glasser/)

> [Unlike the weak, the strong neither give up nor are driven by pain into rash or stupid behavior. They don't like pain any more…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/william-glasser/unlike-the-weak-the-strong-neither-give-up-nor-are-driven-by-pain/)

[William Glasser](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/william-glasser/)

[Explore all 66 William Glasser quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/william-glasser/)

## More Crime quotes

> [Joking about violence is not funny.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/perez-hilton/joking-about-violence-is-not-funny/)

[Perez Hilton](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/perez-hilton/)

> [“Crime and punishment can be summed up in two classifications: there are bad people and there are people who get into bad situations. The…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/johnnie-dent-jr/crime-and-punishment-can-be-summed-up-in-two-classifications-there/)

[Johnnie Dent Jr](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/johnnie-dent-jr/)

> [With 'Pretty Girls,' I saw the opportunity to talk not just about crime but what crime leaves behind.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/karin-slaughter/with-pretty-girls-i-saw-the-opportunity-to-talk-not-just-about-crime/)

[Karin Slaughter](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/karin-slaughter/)

> [“The jailers, the Court, everyone in that building – it wasn’t about justice; it was about obedience and intimidation…about maintaining order. Fear accomplished that…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jay-allan/the-jailers-the-court-everyone-in-that-building-it-wasn-t-about/)

[Jay Allan](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jay-allan/)

> [Taking notes while watching Forensic Files and Snapped. I don't want to make the same mistakes the criminals do! ;)](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/nishan-panwar/taking-notes-while-watching-forensic-files-and-snapped-i-don-t-want/)

[Nishan Panwar](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/nishan-panwar/)

> [A man could be a lover and defender of the wilderness without ever in his lifetime leaving the boundaries of asphalt, powerlines, and right-angled…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/edward-abbey/a-man-could-be-a-lover-and-defender-of-the-wilderness-without-ever-in/)

[Edward Abbey](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/edward-abbey/)

> [Nations sometimes flourish by denying the crimes that brought them into being. Only when the original invasion, occupation, extermination or usurpation has been safely…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/terry-eagleton/nations-sometimes-flourish-by-denying-the-crimes-that-brought-them/)

[Terry Eagleton](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/terry-eagleton/)

> [The danger that may really threaten (crime fiction) is that soon there will be more writers than readers](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jacques-barzun/the-danger-that-may-really-threaten-crime-fiction-is-that-soon-there/)

[Jacques Barzun](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jacques-barzun/)

> [“a crime to fell a tree and light it on fire, where coals of hardened shit warmed and stunk up homes,”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/hugh-howey/a-crime-to-fell-a-tree-and-light-it-on-fire-where-coals-of-hardened/)

[Hugh Howey](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/hugh-howey/)

> [A great read; an exciting, frightening account of organized crime today. But like all important works of nonfiction, it goes further… This book is…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/le-ly-hayslip/a-great-read-an-exciting-frightening-account-of-organized-crime-today/)

[Le Ly Hayslip](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/le-ly-hayslip/)

> [History is the study of the world's crime](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/voltaire/history-is-the-study-of-the-world-s-crime/)

[Voltaire](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/voltaire/)

> [If it comes to a question of law, the charges they brought against me - the Espionage Act - is called the quintessential political…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/edward-snowden/if-it-comes-to-a-question-of-law-the-charges-they-brought-against-me/)

[Edward Snowden](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/edward-snowden/)

> [Too much virtue can be criminal.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jean-racine/too-much-virtue-can-be-criminal/)

[Jean Racine](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jean-racine/)

> [The federal prison population increased by almost 800 percent between 1980 and 2013, often at a far faster rate than the Bureau of Prisons…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/sally-yates/the-federal-prison-population-increased-by-almost-800-percent-between/)

[Sally Yates](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/sally-yates/)

> [ \[P\]rogress, however, has not sufficiently infiltrated the Interior Ministry, affording protection to those who participated in the Bytyqi murders and other egregious Milosevic-era crimes. ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/avis-bohlen/p-rogress-however-has-not-sufficiently-infiltrated-the-interior/)

Avis Bohlen

[Browse all 8,359 Crime quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/crime/)

```json
{
    "@context": "https://schema.org",
    "@graph": [
        {
            "@type": "Quotation",
            "text": "There are only two places in the world where time takes precedence over the job to be done. School and prison.",
            "creator": {
                "@type": "Person",
                "name": "William Glasser"
            },
            "isPartOf": {
                "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/#website"
            },
            "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/william-glasser/there-are-only-two-places-in-the-world-where-time-takes-precedence/",
            "about": {
                "@type": "Thing",
                "name": "Crime"
            },
            "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/william-glasser/there-are-only-two-places-in-the-world-where-time-takes-precedence/#quotation",
            "image": {
                "@type": "ImageObject",
                "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/ffe/william-glasser-10297_crime_there-are-only-two-places-in-the-world-w_1763301.jpg",
                "contentUrl": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/ffe/william-glasser-10297_crime_there-are-only-two-places-in-the-world-w_1763301.jpg",
                "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/ffe/william-glasser-10297_crime_there-are-only-two-places-in-the-world-w_1763301.jpg",
                "width": 1080,
                "height": 1080,
                "caption": "“There are only two places in the world where time takes precedence over the job to be done. School and prison.” — William Glasser",
                "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 Glasser",
                    "item": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/william-glasser/"
                },
                {
                    "@type": "ListItem",
                    "position": 4,
                    "name": "There are only two places in...",
                    "item": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/william-glasser/there-are-only-two-places-in-the-world-where-time-takes-precedence/"
                }
            ],
            "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/william-glasser/there-are-only-two-places-in-the-world-where-time-takes-precedence/#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
            }
        }
    ]
}
```
