--- title: "Meaning & Key Takeaway of: One thing about failing repeatedly: If…" description: "\"One thing about failing repeatedly: If you're still doing it after you've failed that much, you really mean it.\" — Alice Sebold" image: "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/f19/alice-sebold-999_failing_one-thing-about-failing-repeatedly-if-yo_2202218.jpg" --- # One thing about failing repeatedly: If you're still doing… ![“One thing about failing repeatedly: If you're still doing it after you've failed that much, you really mean it.” quote by Alice Sebold](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/f19/alice-sebold-999_failing_one-thing-about-failing-repeatedly-if-yo_2202218.jpg) [Download](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/f19/alice-sebold-999_failing_one-thing-about-failing-repeatedly-if-yo_2202218.jpg) [Open image](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/f19/alice-sebold-999_failing_one-thing-about-failing-repeatedly-if-yo_2202218.jpg) > “One thing about failing repeatedly: If you're still doing it after you've failed that much, you really mean it.” [Alice Sebold](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/alice-sebold/) ## About This Quote This interpretation was drafted with AI assistance. It is one reading of the quote, not the author's own explanation. Continuing effort despite repeated failures shows true commitment and determination **In simple terms:** Persisting after many failures shows dedication Key Takeaway Commit to your goals despite setbacks Themes perseverance failure determination Mood determined inspirational Type motivational philosophical When to use this quote - career challenges - creative projects - personal goals - entrepreneurship Key Concepts Resilience growth mindset Questions to Reflect On - What drives you to keep trying? - When does persistence become counterproductive? A Different Perspective Success may still require external support and resources ★ ★ ★ ★ ★ No ratings yet [Failed Really](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/failed-really-1705314/) [Failing](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/failing/) [Failing Repeatedly](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/failing-repeatedly-1618367/) [Failure](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/failure/) [Ifs](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/ifs/) [Mean](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/mean/) [One thing](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/one-thing/) [Really mean](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/really-mean/) [Repeatedly](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/repeatedly/) [Repeatedly Doing](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/repeatedly-doing-1020285/) [Stills](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/stills/) ## Related quotes > [“If you can take ten thousand hours and divide it by the number of hours, you can concentrate and devote to repeatedly doing one…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/sunday-adelaja/if-you-can-take-ten-thousand-hours-and-divide-it-by-the-number-of/) [Sunday Adelaja](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/sunday-adelaja/) > [I became a cartoonist because I'd sort of failed at everything else, really. I mean, it was by default.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/michael-leunig/i-became-a-cartoonist-because-i-d-sort-of-failed-at-everything-else/) [Michael Leunig](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/michael-leunig/) > [I think "creativity" is better described as failing repeatedly until you get something right.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/seth-godin/i-think-creativity-is-better-described-as-failing-repeatedly-until/) [Seth Godin](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/seth-godin/) > [Science is the practice of failing repeatedly but learning as you go.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/hilary-mason/science-is-the-practice-of-failing-repeatedly-but-learning-as-you-go/) [Hilary Mason](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/hilary-mason/) > [“We are what we repeatedly do. —Aristotle”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/joe-navarro/we-are-what-we-repeatedly-do-aristotle/) [Joe Navarro](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/joe-navarro/) > [I am repeatedly asked in interviews exactly 'what's wrong' with me, and I always give them the same answer; I don't identify the name…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/stella-young/i-am-repeatedly-asked-in-interviews-exactly-what-s-wrong-with-me-and/) [Stella Young](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/stella-young/) > [I've always had an idealistic streak about storytelling in that I believe we owe more to audiences than repeatedly bludgeoning them over the head…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/mark-frost/i-ve-always-had-an-idealistic-streak-about-storytelling-in-that-i/) [Mark Frost](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/mark-frost/) > [“We are what we repeatedly do. Excellence, then, is not an act, but a habit” ―Aristotle,”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anonymous/we-are-what-we-repeatedly-do-excellence-then-is-not-an-act-but-a/) [Anonymous](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anonymous/) > [Congress has repeatedly passed laws and otherwise raised a ruckus about indecent language on the broadcast airwaves used for radio and television.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/reed-hundt/congress-has-repeatedly-passed-laws-and-otherwise-raised-a-ruckus/) [Reed Hundt](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/reed-hundt/) > [Real practice means working on stuff you're not good at. Real practice is about butting your head against the wall repeatedly until you get…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/damien-chazelle/real-practice-means-working-on-stuff-you-re-not-good-at-real-practice/) [Damien Chazelle](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/damien-chazelle/) > [NBC News found that FEMA has redrawn maps even for properties that have repeatedly filed claims for flood losses from previous storms. At least…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/bill-dedman/nbc-news-found-that-fema-has-redrawn-maps-even-for-properties-that/) [Bill Dedman](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/bill-dedman/) > [I am called repeatedly and insidiously prime and sole minister.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/robert-walpole/i-am-called-repeatedly-and-insidiously-prime-and-sole-minister/) [Robert Walpole](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/robert-walpole/) > [I've said in the primary race repeatedly that a Labour Party that I lead would be a true red Labour Party, be very clear…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/david-cunliffe/i-ve-said-in-the-primary-race-repeatedly-that-a-labour-party-that-i/) [David Cunliffe](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/david-cunliffe/) > [We are what we repeatedly do. Excellence, then, is not an act, but a habit.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anonymous/we-are-what-we-repeatedly-do-excellence-then-is-not-an-act-but-a-habit/) [Anonymous](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anonymous/) > [The story of the Jews in the Bible is replete with incidents of their ingratitude to God for His gifts to them: incidents that…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/elliott-abrams/the-story-of-the-jews-in-the-bible-is-replete-with-incidents-of-their/) [Elliott Abrams](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/elliott-abrams/) ## More by Alice Sebold > [Now I am in the place I call this wide wide Heaven because it includes all my simplest desires but also the most humble…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/alice-sebold/now-i-am-in-the-place-i-call-this-wide-wide-heaven-because-it/) [Alice Sebold](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/alice-sebold/) > [I left my mark on that man.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/alice-sebold/i-left-my-mark-on-that-man/) [Alice Sebold](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/alice-sebold/) > [These things, she felt, were not to be passed around like disingenuous party favors. She kept an honor code with her journals and her…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/alice-sebold/these-things-she-felt-were-not-to-be-passed-around-like-disingenuous/) [Alice Sebold](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/alice-sebold/) > [I don't think ignorance is a way that you gain distance on something.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/alice-sebold/i-don-t-think-ignorance-is-a-way-that-you-gain-distance-on-something/) [Alice Sebold](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/alice-sebold/) > [I was like I was in science class: I was curious.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/alice-sebold/i-was-like-i-was-in-science-class-i-was-curious/) [Alice Sebold](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/alice-sebold/) > [“There are secret rooms inside us,” I had said to my therapist. “A relatively benign construct,” he said, and so I did not bother…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/alice-sebold/there-are-secret-rooms-inside-us-i-had-said-to-my-therapist-a/) [Alice Sebold](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/alice-sebold/) > [“This is just a temporary hell, not a permanent one”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/alice-sebold/this-is-just-a-temporary-hell-not-a-permanent-one/) [Alice Sebold](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/alice-sebold/) > [“And a soul would run by a living being, touch them softly on the shoulder or cheek, and continue on its way to heaven.…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/alice-sebold/and-a-soul-would-run-by-a-living-being-touch-them-softly-on-the/) [Alice Sebold](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/alice-sebold/) > [As if in the other side of his kiss there could ve a new life](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/alice-sebold/as-if-in-the-other-side-of-his-kiss-there-could-ve-a-new-life/) [Alice Sebold](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/alice-sebold/) > [“My little brother's greatest fear was that the one person who meant so much to him would go away. He loved Lindsey and Grandma…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/alice-sebold/my-little-brother-s-greatest-fear-was-that-the-one-person-who-meant/) [Alice Sebold](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/alice-sebold/) > [“She listened for the pain in my words, not to the narrative itself. She was intuiting what it meant to me, what was most…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/alice-sebold/she-listened-for-the-pain-in-my-words-not-to-the-narrative-itself-she/) [Alice Sebold](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/alice-sebold/) > [The relationship with the words someone uses is more intimate and integrated than just a quick read and a blurb can ever be. This…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/alice-sebold/the-relationship-with-the-words-someone-uses-is-more-intimate-and/) [Alice Sebold](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/alice-sebold/) > [Ruth hadn't talked to my sister since before my death, and then it was only to excuse herself in the hallway at school. But…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/alice-sebold/ruth-hadn-t-talked-to-my-sister-since-before-my-death-and-then-it-was/) [Alice Sebold](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/alice-sebold/) > [Since then I've always thought that under rape in the dictionary it should tell the truth. It is not just forcible intercourse; rape means…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/alice-sebold/since-then-i-ve-always-thought-that-under-rape-in-the-dictionary-it/) [Alice Sebold](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/alice-sebold/) > [I live in a world where two truths coexist: where both hell and hope lie in the palm of my hand](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/alice-sebold/i-live-in-a-world-where-two-truths-coexist-where-both-hell-and-hope/) [Alice Sebold](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/alice-sebold/) [Explore all 302 Alice Sebold quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/alice-sebold/) ## More Failing quotes > [Many individuals spend a considerable portion of their lifetimes in terror of one imagined catastrophe or another. The classic is that your immortal soul…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/l-neil-smith/many-individuals-spend-a-considerable-portion-of-their-lifetimes-in/) [L. Neil Smith](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/l-neil-smith/) > [The prophet who fails to present a bearable alternative and yet preaches doom is part of the trap that he postulates. Not only does…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/margaret-mead/the-prophet-who-fails-to-present-a-bearable-alternative-and-yet/) [Margaret Mead](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/margaret-mead/) > [Apologies are not pass/fail.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/randy-pausch/apologies-are-not-pass-fail/) [Randy Pausch](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/randy-pausch/) > [Trial by jury. Live wherever you can make a living. How could a government based on such principles fail?](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/stephen-ambrose/trial-by-jury-live-wherever-you-can-make-a-living-how-could-a/) [Stephen Ambrose](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/stephen-ambrose/) > [Each man is capable of doing one thing well. If he attempts several, he will fail to achieve distinction in any.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/plato/each-man-is-capable-of-doing-one-thing-well-if-he-attempts-several-he/) [Plato](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/plato/) > [My willingness to fail gives me the ability to succeed.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/vinod-khosla/my-willingness-to-fail-gives-me-the-ability-to-succeed/) [Vinod Khosla](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/vinod-khosla/) > [I would warn against holsters with devices for quick-draw. Devices always fail when you need them most.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/william-powell/i-would-warn-against-holsters-with-devices-for-quick-draw-devices/) [William Powell](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/william-powell/) > [You can’t bake a cake without getting the kitchen messy. Halfway through surgery it looks like there’s been a murder in the operating room.…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/price-pritchett/you-can-t-bake-a-cake-without-getting-the-kitchen-messy-halfway/) [Price Pritchett](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/price-pritchett/) > [We can't afford any president to fail.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/glenn-beck/we-can-t-afford-any-president-to-fail/) [Glenn Beck](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/glenn-beck/) > [When I paint, I never think of selling. People simply fail to understand that we paint in order to experiment and to develop ourselves…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/edvard-munch/when-i-paint-i-never-think-of-selling-people-simply-fail-to/) [Edvard Munch](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/edvard-munch/) > [Either dragons should exist completely or fail to exist at all, he felt. A dragon only half-existing was worse than the extremes.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/terry-pratchett/either-dragons-should-exist-completely-or-fail-to-exist-at-all-he/) [Terry Pratchett](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/terry-pratchett/) > [I wake up every morning fearing I am going to fail. But I love a challenge, big or small. There's so much I want…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/michelle-mone/i-wake-up-every-morning-fearing-i-am-going-to-fail-but-i-love-a/) [Michelle Mone](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/michelle-mone/) > [What I want is to be willing to fail rather than stagnate.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/james-dickey/what-i-want-is-to-be-willing-to-fail-rather-than-stagnate/) [James Dickey](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/james-dickey/) > [In proportion as our inward life fails, we go more constantly and desperately to the post office. You may depend on it, that the…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/henry-david-thoreau/in-proportion-as-our-inward-life-fails-we-go-more-constantly-and/) [Henry David Thoreau](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/henry-david-thoreau/) > [The very first company I started failed with a great bang. The second one failed a little bit less, but still failed. The third…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/max-levchin/the-very-first-company-i-started-failed-with-a-great-bang-the-second/) [Max Levchin](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/max-levchin/) [Browse all 5,634 Failing quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/failing/) ```json { "@context": "https://schema.org", "@graph": [ { "@type": "Quotation", "text": "One thing about failing repeatedly: If you're still doing it after you've failed that much, you really mean it.", "creator": { "@type": "Person", "name": "Alice Sebold" }, "isPartOf": { "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/#website" }, "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/alice-sebold/one-thing-about-failing-repeatedly-if-you-re-still-doing-it-after-you/", "about": { "@type": "Thing", "name": "Failing" }, "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/alice-sebold/one-thing-about-failing-repeatedly-if-you-re-still-doing-it-after-you/#quotation", "image": { "@type": "ImageObject", "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/f19/alice-sebold-999_failing_one-thing-about-failing-repeatedly-if-yo_2202218.jpg", "contentUrl": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/f19/alice-sebold-999_failing_one-thing-about-failing-repeatedly-if-yo_2202218.jpg", "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/f19/alice-sebold-999_failing_one-thing-about-failing-repeatedly-if-yo_2202218.jpg", "width": 1080, "height": 1080, "caption": "“One thing about failing repeatedly: If you're still doing it after you've failed that much, you really mean…” — Alice Sebold", "creditText": "SMS4Smile Quotes", "creator": { "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/#organization" } } }, { "@type": "BreadcrumbList", "itemListElement": [ { "@type": "ListItem", "position": 1, "name": "Home", "item": "https://sms4smile.com/" }, { "@type": "ListItem", "position": 2, "name": "Quotes", "item": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/" }, { "@type": "ListItem", "position": 3, "name": "Alice Sebold", "item": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/alice-sebold/" }, { "@type": "ListItem", "position": 4, "name": "One thing about failing repeatedly: If...", "item": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/alice-sebold/one-thing-about-failing-repeatedly-if-you-re-still-doing-it-after-you/" } ], "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/alice-sebold/one-thing-about-failing-repeatedly-if-you-re-still-doing-it-after-you/#breadcrumb" }, { "@type": "WebSite", "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/#website", "name": "SMS4Smile Quotes", "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/", "publisher": { "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/#organization" } }, { "@type": "Organization", "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/#organization", "name": "SMS4Smile Quotes", "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/", "logo": { "@type": "ImageObject", "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/wp-content/themes/sq/assets/icons/icon-512.png", "width": 512, "height": 512 } } ] } ```