--- title: "Meaning & Key Takeaway of: If you want to learn something, just…" description: "\"If you want to learn something, just steal it.\" — Woody Guthrie" image: "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/fb2/woody-guthrie-11022_education_if-you-want-to-learn-something-just-stea_629579.jpg" --- # If you want to learn something, just steal it. ![“If you want to learn something, just steal it.” quote by Woody Guthrie](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/fb2/woody-guthrie-11022_education_if-you-want-to-learn-something-just-stea_629579.jpg) [Download](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/fb2/woody-guthrie-11022_education_if-you-want-to-learn-something-just-stea_629579.jpg) [Open image](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/fb2/woody-guthrie-11022_education_if-you-want-to-learn-something-just-stea_629579.jpg) > “If you want to learn something, just steal it.” [Woody Guthrie](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/woody-guthrie/) ## About This Quote This interpretation was drafted with AI assistance. It is one reading of the quote, not the author's own explanation. Learning can be accelerated by appropriating ideas, suggesting bold copying as a path to mastery. **In simple terms:** Steal ideas to learn quickly. Key Takeaway Adopt and adapt others' concepts. Themes learning creativity innovation ethics Mood curious playful Type philosophical practical When to use this quote - artistic creation - academic research - business development - software engineering Key Concepts Intellectual property cultural transmission skill acquisition Questions to Reflect On - When is borrowing acceptable? - What are the risks of unoriginality? A Different Perspective Copying may raise moral or legal concerns. ★ ★ ★ ★ ★ No ratings yet [Education](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/education/) [Just Steal](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/just-steal-773066/) [Learn](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/learn/) [Learn Just](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/learn-just-845422/) [Steal](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/steal/) [Stealing](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/stealing/) [Thief](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/thief/) [Want](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/want/) [Want Learn](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/want-learn-261901/) ## Related quotes > [Someone has to really like you to go out there and physically get your CD. Shout out to everybody who actually paid for the…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ginuwine/someone-has-to-really-like-you-to-go-out-there-and-physically-get/) [Ginuwine](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ginuwine/) > [If you want something, and you want it, you shouldn't just go and steal it.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/lavar-ball/if-you-want-something-and-you-want-it-you-shouldn-t-just-go-and-steal/) [LaVar Ball](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/lavar-ball/) > [I always credit; I never just steal something. I'm very much a product of everything that I've read and seen and heard or listened…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/moyra-davey/i-always-credit-i-never-just-steal-something-i-m-very-much-a-product/) [Moyra Davey](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/moyra-davey/) > [Somebody told me long ago that in acting, it's okay to steal, just steal from the best.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/nathan-fillion/somebody-told-me-long-ago-that-in-acting-it-s-okay-to-steal-just/) [Nathan Fillion](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/nathan-fillion/) > [We'd basically just steal BMX tricks and try to do 'em on motorcycles.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/carey-hart/we-d-basically-just-steal-bmx-tricks-and-try-to-do-em-on-motorcycles/) [Carey Hart](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/carey-hart/) > [Everyone steals in commerce and industry. I've stolen a lot, myself. But I know how to steal! They don't know how to steal!](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/thomas-a-edison/everyone-steals-in-commerce-and-industry-i-ve-stolen-a-lot-myself-but/) [Thomas A. Edison](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/thomas-a-edison/) > [I would not put a thief in my mouth to steal my brains.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/charles-portis/i-would-not-put-a-thief-in-my-mouth-to-steal-my-brains/) [Charles Portis](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/charles-portis/) > [The only way I can stop people from stealing is also not to steal myself, and it's one of the most difficult things.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/rick-mccallum/the-only-way-i-can-stop-people-from-stealing-is-also-not-to-steal/) [Rick McCallum](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/rick-mccallum/) > [The trick is to steal big.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/michael-parenti/the-trick-is-to-steal-big/) [Michael Parenti](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/michael-parenti/) > [A boy sent by his father to steal does not go stealthily but breaks the door with his feet.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/chinua-achebe/a-boy-sent-by-his-father-to-steal-does-not-go-stealthily-but-breaks/) [Chinua Achebe](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/chinua-achebe/) > [Out of the closets and into the museums, libraries, architectural monuments, concert halls, bookstores, recording studios and film studios of the world. Everything belongs…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anonymous/out-of-the-closets-and-into-the-museums-libraries-architectural/) [Anonymous](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anonymous/) > [One should steal only where one cannot rob.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/friedrich-nietzsche/one-should-steal-only-where-one-cannot-rob/) [Friedrich Nietzsche](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/friedrich-nietzsche/) > [“Having no applicable skills, in any possible area whatsoever, effectively makes me the master of redundancy. But that info is obsolete, like my insults…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/will-advise/having-no-applicable-skills-in-any-possible-area-whatsoever/) [Will Advise](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/will-advise/) > [“You don't have to reinvent the wheel... just steal the hubcaps.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/michael-p-naughton/you-don-t-have-to-reinvent-the-wheel-just-steal-the-hubcaps/) [Michael P. Naughton](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/michael-p-naughton/) > [The underground always has the best ideas. Sometimes those underground artists transcend and make it to the mainstream, but most of the time, the…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/kevin-abstract/the-underground-always-has-the-best-ideas-sometimes-those-underground/) [Kevin Abstract](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/kevin-abstract/) ## More by Woody Guthrie > [I better quit my talking 'cause I told you all I know But please remember, pardner, wherever you may go The people are building…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/woody-guthrie/i-better-quit-my-talking-cause-i-told-you-all-i-know-but-please/) [Woody Guthrie](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/woody-guthrie/) > [I worked in your orchards of peaches and prunes. I slept on the ground in the light of the moon. On the edge of…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/woody-guthrie/i-worked-in-your-orchards-of-peaches-and-prunes-i-slept-on-the-ground/) [Woody Guthrie](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/woody-guthrie/) > [“I hate a song that makes you think that you are not any good. I hate a song that makes you think that you…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/woody-guthrie/i-hate-a-song-that-makes-you-think-that-you-are-not-any-good-i-hate-a/) [Woody Guthrie](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/woody-guthrie/) > [This land is your land, this land is my land, From California to the New York Island. From the redwood forest to the Gulf…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/woody-guthrie/this-land-is-your-land-this-land-is-my-land-from-california-to-the/) [Woody Guthrie](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/woody-guthrie/) > [The note of hope is the only note that can help us or save us from falling to the bottom of the heap of…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/woody-guthrie/the-note-of-hope-is-the-only-note-that-can-help-us-or-save-us-from/) [Woody Guthrie](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/woody-guthrie/) > [Do Re Mi California is a garden of Eden, a paradise to live in or see, But believe it or not, you won't find…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/woody-guthrie/do-re-mi-california-is-a-garden-of-eden-a-paradise-to-live-in-or-see/) [Woody Guthrie](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/woody-guthrie/) > [I know the police cause you trouble They cause trouble everywhere But when you die and go to heaven You find no policeman there](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/woody-guthrie/i-know-the-police-cause-you-trouble-they-cause-trouble-everywhere-but/) [Woody Guthrie](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/woody-guthrie/) > [As I went walking I saw a sign there And on the sign it said "No Trespassing." But on the other side it didn't…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/woody-guthrie/as-i-went-walking-i-saw-a-sign-there-and-on-the-sign-it-said-no/) [Woody Guthrie](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/woody-guthrie/) > [My eyes has been my camera taking pictures of the world and my songs has been my messages that I tried to scatter across…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/woody-guthrie/my-eyes-has-been-my-camera-taking-pictures-of-the-world-and-my-songs/) [Woody Guthrie](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/woody-guthrie/) > [“Anyone who uses more than two chords is just showing off.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/woody-guthrie/anyone-who-uses-more-than-two-chords-is-just-showing-off/) [Woody Guthrie](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/woody-guthrie/) > [All you can write is what you see.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/woody-guthrie/all-you-can-write-is-what-you-see/) [Woody Guthrie](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/woody-guthrie/) > [“You will never find peace with these fascists You'll never find friends such as we So remember that valley of Jarama And the people…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/woody-guthrie/you-will-never-find-peace-with-these-fascists-you-ll-never-find/) [Woody Guthrie](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/woody-guthrie/) > [This machine kills fascists.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/woody-guthrie/this-machine-kills-fascists/) [Woody Guthrie](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/woody-guthrie/) > [I love a good man outside the law, just as much as I hate a bad man inside the law.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/woody-guthrie/i-love-a-good-man-outside-the-law-just-as-much-as-i-hate-a-bad-man/) [Woody Guthrie](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/woody-guthrie/) > [This land is your land, this land is my land](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/woody-guthrie/this-land-is-your-land-this-land-is-my-land/) [Woody Guthrie](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/woody-guthrie/) [Explore all 62 Woody Guthrie quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/woody-guthrie/) ## More Education quotes > [I put myself in the student's place and remember the frustrations, doubts, determination, and desires I felt when I was going through the initial…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ted-martinez/i-put-myself-in-the-student-s-place-and-remember-the-frustrations/) [Ted Martinez](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ted-martinez/) > [“In school you are taught to obey and not to think straight for your own good. Otherwise the world would be full of millionaires…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/mwanandeke-kindembo/in-school-you-are-taught-to-obey-and-not-to-think-straight-for-your/) [Mwanandeke Kindembo](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/mwanandeke-kindembo/) > [For successful education there must always be a certain freshness in the knowledge dealt with. It must be either new in itself or invested…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/alfred-north-whitehead/for-successful-education-there-must-always-be-a-certain-freshness-in/) [Alfred North Whitehead](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/alfred-north-whitehead/) > [Where I grew up, learning was a collective activity. But when I got to school and tried to share learning with other students that…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/henry-giroux/where-i-grew-up-learning-was-a-collective-activity-but-when-i-got-to/) [Henry Giroux](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/henry-giroux/) > [There's no authoritarian structure at Reed College, but the education is conservative. So what you have is a lot of students who are very…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/donald-miller/there-s-no-authoritarian-structure-at-reed-college-but-the-education/) [Donald Miller](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/donald-miller/) > [“What's the best thing about being in college? Good teachers. They inspire you, they entertain you, and you end up learning a ton even…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/nicholas-sparks/what-s-the-best-thing-about-being-in-college-good-teachers-they/) [Nicholas Sparks](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/nicholas-sparks/) > [“If one has not a head of steel it will burst; if he has not within it a brain of liquid quicksilver, he will…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ioannes-amos-commenius/if-one-has-not-a-head-of-steel-it-will-burst-if-he-has-not-within-it/) [Ioannes Amos Commenius](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ioannes-amos-commenius/) > [“let us not teach / what we have learned badly / and not profited by”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/h-d-hilda-doolittle/let-us-not-teach-what-we-have-learned-badly-and-not-profited-by/) [H.D. (Hilda Doolittle](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/h-d-hilda-doolittle/) > [“It took me years to learn to sit at my desk for more than two minutes at a time, to put up with the…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/erica-jong/it-took-me-years-to-learn-to-sit-at-my-desk-for-more-than-two-minutes/) [Erica Jong](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/erica-jong/) > [According to Plato, we don't learn anything. Our soul has lived so many lives that we know everything. Teachers and education can only remind…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/chuck-palahniuk/according-to-plato-we-don-t-learn-anything-our-soul-has-lived-so-many/) [Chuck Palahniuk](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/chuck-palahniuk/) > [“I only began to enjoy studying after I got through the educational system and became a so-called member of society. If something interested me,…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anonymous/i-only-began-to-enjoy-studying-after-i-got-through-the-educational/) [Anonymous](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anonymous/) > [If you had made the acquiring of ignorance the study of your life, you could not have graduated with higher honor than you could…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/mark-twain/if-you-had-made-the-acquiring-of-ignorance-the-study-of-your-life-you/) [Mark Twain](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/mark-twain/) > [How wonderful it would be, I thought, if only we could practice the teachings of the Buddha as he really taught them from his…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/dzogchen-ponlop-rinpoche/how-wonderful-it-would-be-i-thought-if-only-we-could-practice-the/) [Dzogchen Ponlop Rinpoche](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/dzogchen-ponlop-rinpoche/) > [English teachers tend to put more thought in the books than the author did](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anonymous/english-teachers-tend-to-put-more-thought-in-the-books-than-the/) [Anonymous](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anonymous/) > [When will society, like a mother, take care of all her children?](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/horace-mann/when-will-society-like-a-mother-take-care-of-all-her-children/) [Horace Mann](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/horace-mann/) [Browse all 37,666 Education quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/education/) ```json { "@context": "https://schema.org", "@graph": [ { "@type": "Quotation", "text": "If you want to learn something, just steal it.", "creator": { "@type": "Person", "name": "Woody Guthrie" }, "isPartOf": { "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/#website" }, "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/woody-guthrie/if-you-want-to-learn-something-just-steal-it/", "about": { "@type": "Thing", "name": "Education" }, "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/woody-guthrie/if-you-want-to-learn-something-just-steal-it/#quotation", "image": { "@type": "ImageObject", "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/fb2/woody-guthrie-11022_education_if-you-want-to-learn-something-just-stea_629579.jpg", "contentUrl": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/fb2/woody-guthrie-11022_education_if-you-want-to-learn-something-just-stea_629579.jpg", "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/fb2/woody-guthrie-11022_education_if-you-want-to-learn-something-just-stea_629579.jpg", "width": 1080, "height": 1080, "caption": "“If you want to learn something, just steal it.” — Woody Guthrie", "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": "Woody Guthrie", "item": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/woody-guthrie/" }, { "@type": "ListItem", "position": 4, "name": "If you want to learn something,...", "item": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/woody-guthrie/if-you-want-to-learn-something-just-steal-it/" } ], "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/woody-guthrie/if-you-want-to-learn-something-just-steal-it/#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 } } ] } ```