proverb · Words worth keeping
A goal without a deadline is only a wish.
A goal without a deadline is only a wish.
Historical period not yet established
Understand the thought
Meaning in plain English
A goal without a deadline called only a wish contrasts a planned undertaking with an indefinite aspiration. The saying values a concrete arrangement for action.
What the words are saying
Only is too broad to define every legitimate goal. A useful interpretation considers what timing would help without inventing urgency or assuming a date supplies capacity and resources. Some ongoing aims have no single completion point, and a deadline may need revision when conditions change.
Everyday example
Someone gives a deferred task a workable review date and identifies the support it requires.
When to use it
Use it to discuss practical timing with different kinds of aims respected.
What it does not mean
No universal deadline requirement or guaranteed completion from scheduling is established.
Agent-assisted editorial interpretation. This explains the words; it does not by itself verify their author or earliest origin.
Attribution & collection notes
- Author or tradition
- Traditional
Attribution: traditional - Country attributed
China
A country attribution does not establish the earliest origin.- Historical period
- Historical period not yet established
No sufficiently supported historical placement has been established. Import and download dates are not treated as composition dates. - Recorded source
- Contributor-provided wisdom reference (2014 AD)
Supplied reference B; unit 263; PDF page 30; collection label: China
A collection's publication date can be later than the words it records.
- Culture
- China