"If it's hard to remember, it'll be difficult to forget"
About this Quote
A Schwarzenegger-ism with a clean steel edge: if something won’t stick in your head, it won’t stick around in your life. The line riffs on a familiar bit of advice from learning theory and workout culture - make it simple, make it repeatable - but it’s dressed up as a paradox, the kind you can hear in his accent and instantly file away. That’s the point. He’s selling memorability as a form of durability.
The intent is practical, not philosophical. Whether he’s talking about training habits, career goals, or the slogans of his own brand, Schwarzenegger is arguing for a kind of cognitive engineering: design your routines, messages, and standards so they’re easy to recall under pressure. If you need a complicated motivational speech to get to the gym, you’re already negotiating with your future self. A short, sharp rule has a better chance of surviving that negotiation.
The subtext is even more ruthless: discipline isn’t about inspiration; it’s about reducing friction. “Hard to remember” becomes a proxy for “too elaborate,” “too precious,” “too dependent on mood.” In that sense, the quote doubles as advice for public life. Schwarzenegger’s career - bodybuilding, Hollywood, politics - runs on catchphrases, clear identity cues, and repeatable narratives. He knows that what the audience can’t quickly recall, they can’t reliably reward.
It works because it flatters the listener into action without sounding like self-help. The joke-like inversion turns a lesson about habit formation into a line you can’t help but remember - which, ironically, proves itself.
The intent is practical, not philosophical. Whether he’s talking about training habits, career goals, or the slogans of his own brand, Schwarzenegger is arguing for a kind of cognitive engineering: design your routines, messages, and standards so they’re easy to recall under pressure. If you need a complicated motivational speech to get to the gym, you’re already negotiating with your future self. A short, sharp rule has a better chance of surviving that negotiation.
The subtext is even more ruthless: discipline isn’t about inspiration; it’s about reducing friction. “Hard to remember” becomes a proxy for “too elaborate,” “too precious,” “too dependent on mood.” In that sense, the quote doubles as advice for public life. Schwarzenegger’s career - bodybuilding, Hollywood, politics - runs on catchphrases, clear identity cues, and repeatable narratives. He knows that what the audience can’t quickly recall, they can’t reliably reward.
It works because it flatters the listener into action without sounding like self-help. The joke-like inversion turns a lesson about habit formation into a line you can’t help but remember - which, ironically, proves itself.
Quote Details
| Topic | Wisdom |
|---|
More Quotes by Arnold
Add to List
