can't see beyond the end of (one's) nose

Is preoccupied with oneself and unable to notice or focus on anything else. Of course she's oblivious to the growing homeless population in our city—she can't see beyond the end of her nose. My ex-husband was always so wrapped up in work that he couldn't see beyond the end of his nose, hardly ever making any time for me or the kids. Jim is so concerned about getting ahead in business that he can't see beyond the end of his nose anymore.

can't see beyond the end of one's nose

Also, can't see farther than the end of one's nose. Lack foresight, envisioning only immediate events or problems, as in Thomas hasn't hired an orchestra for the Christmas concert; he just can't see beyond the end of his nose . This expression originated as a French proverb that was frequently cited in English from about 1700 on. Alexander Pope used a similar expression in his Essay on Man (1734): "Onward still he goes, Yet ne'er looks forward further than his nose."

not see beyond your nose

not see beyond the end of your nose

If someone can't see beyond their nose, or can't see beyond the end of their nose, they think only about themselves and their immediate needs, rather than about other people or more important issues relating to the future. Where the environment is concerned, sadly, this government can't see beyond the end of its nose. Note: You can replace beyond with further than or past, and see with other verbs. It is high time that British industry started thinking beyond the end of its nose.

not see beyond/past the ˌend of your ˈnose

not notice anything apart from what you are doing at present: I’m so busy running the office that I can’t see beyond the end of my nose.

See also: beyond, end, nose, not, of, past, see

can't see beyond the end of one's nose

Shortsighted, unable to grasp anything but the immediate problem or events. The term was a sixteenth-century French proverb cited by several English writers. It later appeared in one of La Fontaine’s fables, The Fox and the Goat, and in a couplet in Alexander Pope’s Essay on Man (1734): “Onward still he goes, Yet ne’er looks forward further than his nose.”