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If You Are Doing Something For Reward Or Punishment, You Do Not Have Morality.
-Penn Jillette
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If You Are Doing

Penn Jillette
...
If You Are Doing Something For Reward Or Punishment, You Do Not Have Morality.

Understanding the Quote: "if you are doing something for reward or punishment, you do not..."

This quote by Penn Jillette reflects deeply on the theme of punishment. It connects to the universal human journey of purpose, motivation, and reflection. Often categorized under Punishment, Rewards, Morality, the quote offers insight, emotional clarity, and intellectual inspiration to readers worldwide.

Whether you’re a student exploring new ideas, a leader trying to motivate your team, or someone seeking direction in life — this quote provides value. It resonates because it’s more than words — it’s a bridge between experience and wisdom. It shows how Penn Jillette interprets life's core challenges and triumphs.

Lessons From the Quote

This quote teaches resilience and focus. It reminds readers that no matter where they stand in life, reflection and self-awareness lead to growth. Each word has meaning, and when studied, it becomes clear how impactful thoughtful language can be.

About Penn Jillette

Penn Jillette is celebrated for insightful thoughts on punishment and rewards. Their legacy lives on through writings that guide, comfort, and inspire. Discover more on their profile page.

Actionable Takeaways

  • Reflect on how this quote applies to your current life path.
  • Share the message with someone who needs inspiration.
  • Write your thoughts on this quote in a journal or blog post.
  • Use it as a daily affirmation or reminder.

Closing Thoughts

Quotes like this endure because they capture universal truths. They comfort us in solitude and empower us in groups. Carry this quote forward — live by its wisdom, share its message, and keep its essence alive.

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Topic
Punishment
Rewards
Morality
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Made
If You Like The Stuff I Do, My Chances Of Liking You Go Up.
Stuff
Chance
Like You
I've Never Had A Drink Of Alcohol Or Any Drug In My Life.
Alcohol
Drug
Drink
Believing There's No God Stops Me From Being Solipsistic. I Can Read Ideas From All Different People From All Different Cultures. Without God, We Can Agree On Reality, And I Can Keep Learning Where I'm Wrong. We Can All Keep Adjusting, So We Can Really Communicate.
Believe
Reality
Ideas
If There's Something You Really Want To Believe, That's What You Should Question The Most.
Believe
Want
Should
Believing There's No God Means I Can't Really Be Forgiven Except By Kindness And Faulty Memories. That's Good; It Makes Me Want To Be More Thoughtful. I Have To Try To Treat People Right The First Time Around.
Motivational
God
Forgiveness
I Love Nuts. I'm For Nuts. I Am Nuts.
Nuts
The Purpose Of Art Is To Collide The Intellectual And Visceral Together At The Highest Speed Possible.
Art
Intellectual
Together
I Love The Feeling Of Shredded Wheat. I Love Healthy Bird Food With A Fun-to-eat Feel. Then You Spray Them With Sugar, And I'm There.
Fun
Bird
Healthy
'zolten' Is A Common Hungarian Name, It's My Wife's Maiden Name And Most Importantly, It's The Name Of Dracula's Dog.
Dog
Names
Wife
I Don't Speak For All Libertarians Any More Than Sean Penn Speaks For All Democrats.
Libertarian
Speak
Democrat
One Of The Strongest Feelings You Can Get In Life--one Of The Most Rewarding Feelings--is The Feeling Of An "aha, I Finally Understand."
Feelings
Strongest
Well, It's Not Really The Right Word, But Freedom Is Kind Of A Hobby With Me, And I Have Disposable Income That I'll Spend To Find Out How To Get People More Of It.
People
Hobbies
Income
In Music, If You Hit A Wrong Note, People Forgive You. In Magic When Something Goes Wrong, The Entire Art Is Destroyed.
Art
People
Magic
Every Nut Who Kills People Has A Bible Lying Around. If You're Looking For Violent Rape Imagery, The Bible's Right There In Your Hotel Room. If You Just Want To Look Up Ways To Screw People Up, There It Is, And You're Justified Because God Told You To.
Lying
Nuts
People
Once You Have Somebody That Is Telling You, 'we Are Interpreting God For You,' It Seems Like You Either Agree Or You Don't. You Either Say, Like Martin Luther, 'i'm Going To Have A Direct Relationship With The Word Of God,' Or I''m Going To Go Through A Conduit Of God On Earth,' Which Would Be The Pope.
Earth
Would Be
Like You
One Of The Things That Teller And I Are Obsessed With, One Of The Reasons That We're In Magic, Is The Difference Between Fantasy And Reality. That Is The Subject That, If You Have A Brain In Your Head, Is Always Dealt With In Magic. The Smarter The Tricks You're Doing, The More That' S An Important Thing.
Reality
Differences
Brain
Cars Mean Nothing To Me. I'm Not A Car Guy.
Mean
Car
Guy
I Intend To Do The Penn & Teller Show Until They Pry My Cheesy Magic Wand From My Cold Dead Fingers.
Cheesy
Magic
Cold
I, My Own Damn Self, Am Not A Tea Party Supporter. I Disagree With Them On Social Liberties, Our Overseas Wars, Obama's Birthplace, Sarah Palin, And The Conspicuous Absence Of Tea At Their Rallies.
War
Party
Self
My Whole Family Is Missing That Sports Gene. I Hope I Didn't Screw That Up By Marrying A Great Golfer.
Sports
Missing
Genes
If You Are Doing Something For Reward Or Punishment, You Do Not Have Morality.
Punishment
Rewards
Morality
Counterintuitive Action Makes A Fellow Feel Smart.
Smart
Action
Feels
I'm A Big Fan Of Gospel Music, And You Cannot Be A Fan Of Rock And Roll, You Cannot Be A Fan Of Country Western Music, And You Can't Really Be A Fan Of Jazz Without Listening To A Lot Of Music That's Religious.
Country
Religious
Rocks
Poker Would Have Never Gotten On Tv When We Only Had Three Networks.
Three
Tvs
I'm Not Greedy. I Have Love, Blue Skies, Rainbows And Hallmark Cards And That Has To Be Enough. It Has To Be Enough, But It's Everything In The World And Everything In The World Is Plenty For Me. It Seems Just Rude To Beg The Invisible For More.
Blue
Sky
Rude
I Was About 12 When I Heard My First Lenny Bruce Record. He Was Already Dead. But It Changed My Life And Really Did Change The World.
Records
World
Firsts
It's Amazing To Me How Many People Think That Voting To Have The Government Give Poor People Money Is Compassion. Helping Poor And Suffering People Yourself Is Compassion. Voting For Our Government To Use Guns To Give Money To Help Poor And Suffering People Is Immoral, Self-righteous, Bullying Laziness.
Bullying
Gun
Thinking
Believing There Is No God Gives Me More Room For Belief In Family, People, Love, Truth, Beauty, Sex, Jell-o, And All The Other Things I Can Prove And That Make This Life The Best Life I Will Ever Have.
Atheist
Sex
Believe
We Aren't People Who Believe That Just Because We're Performers Our Opinions On Everything Need To Be Known.
Believe
People
Needs
If You Spend A Lot Of Time Lying To People, You Think A Lot About What The Truth Means.
Lying
Mean
Thinking
I Love The Idea That Horror And Fear Is A Celebration Of Health And Life.
Ideas
Health And Life
Celebration
I Believe Very Much That The Most Damning Thing You Can Say About Muslims Is That You're Afraid To Say Anything Because They'll Hurt You.
Hurt
Believe
Say Anything
I Never Wanted To Be A Magician. I Never Wanted To Be A Comedian. I Never Wanted To Be Onstage.
Comedian
Magician
Wanted
We Celebrities Are Desperate Pigs.
Pigs
Desperate
My Favorite Thing About The Internet Is That You Get To Go Into The Private World Of Real Creeps Without Having To Smell Them.
Inspirational
Real
Technology
Much Better Than The Feeling Of Having Things Is The Feeling Of Having Earned Things.
Feelings
There Never Was A God. 'god Is Dead' Is A Halfway Measure I Won't Go With.
Halfway
God Is Dead
Having A Hummer Is Stupid. It's Stupid To Waste That Much Gas. It's Stupid To Waste That Much Money On Gas. It's Stupid To Parade Your Insecurities On Public Roads. Hummers Are Stupid-looking.
Stupid
Insecurity
Waste
But It's Much More Exciting To Make Die Hard. One Of The Reasons That I Think That Movie Is So Successful Is It Deals With Those Very Important Blue-collar Relationship Themes. But It's More Visually Beautiful To Show Things Blowing Up. It Just Gives You More On The Screen.
Beautiful
Successful
Thinking
When Someone Is Trying To Interpret Something For You, They Always Have An Agenda.
Trying
Agendas
The Only Place We Were Really Told To Tone It Down - Where Other People Would Use The Word Censorship, But I Wouldn't - Was When We Did Mtv Right After The Beavis And Butt-head Thing.
Mtv
People
Tone
When 9/11 Hit, The Second Thing I Said To Myself Was, 'this Really Is What Religious People Do.' Those People Flying The Plane Were Very Good, Very Pious, Truly Faithful Believers. There's No Other Way To Paint Them. Of Course, They Are Extremists By Definition, But They Certainly Aren't Going Against Islam In Any Real Way.
Religious
Real
Muslim Extremists
Technology Adds Nothing To Art. Two Thousand Years Ago, I Could Tell You A Story, And At Any Point During The Story I Could Stop, And Ask, 'now Do You Want The Hero To Be Kidnapped, Or Not?' But That Would, Of Course, Have Ruined The Story. Part Of The Experience Of Being Entertained Is Sitting Back And Plugging Into Someone Else's Vision.
Art
Hero
Technology
Barack Obama Is Way Smarter Than Bush - So Way, Way Smarter Than Me. Obama Is Way More Charismatic Than Me.
Way
Charismatic
Barack
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