William James
“… so the art of being wise is the art of knowing what to overlook.”
The Principles of Psychology, Vol. II, Ch. XXII, 1890
Documented source
Source
William James, The Principles of Psychology, Vol. II, Chapter XXII (“Reasoning”), p. 369 (1890)
In full
“As the art of reading (after a certain stage in one’s education) is the art of skipping, so the art of being wise is the art of knowing what to overlook.”
Verified at Project Gutenberg #57634
Note
Correct source — not Varieties of Religious Experience
Every quote here is traced to a documented source. How we verify →
About this line
James spent years turning attention itself into a subject of study, and this is where he landed: wisdom isn’t raw intelligence, it’s selection — knowing what to ignore. The enso on the design is the same argument in a brushstroke: the circle doesn’t need to close.
Why we carry this line
Wisdom in knowing what to leave out — that one got me. Raise your hand if you can think of multiple times using that simple concept would have been the better option. Moved to the must-have quote list. And purchased the t-shirt.
