Wisdom is the reward you get for a lifetime of listening when you'd have preferred to talk.

Doug Larson was a mid-20th-century American columnist and humorist whose syndicated newspaper pieces often distilled everyday social observations into aphorisms. This line is typically circulated as one of his standalone maxims rather than as a remark tied to a particular speech or interview. It reflects the conversational culture Larson wrote about—where talkativeness is rewarded socially, yet genuine understanding often comes from restraint and attention. Because the quote is widely reproduced in quotation collections without consistent bibliographic citation, the precise occasion and first publication venue are difficult to verify with confidence.

The saying frames wisdom not as innate brilliance but as an earned outcome of restraint. “Listening when you’d have preferred to talk” highlights the everyday temptation to dominate conversation—seeking attention, asserting certainty, or winning arguments. Larson suggests that repeatedly choosing receptivity over self-display accumulates into judgment, perspective, and practical understanding. The “reward” metaphor also implies delayed gratification: the benefits of listening are often invisible in the moment but compound across a lifetime. The humor lies in its candid admission that listening can feel like a sacrifice, even though it is precisely that discipline that produces wisdom.