--- title: "Meaning & Key Takeaway of: The harder you try to hold someone back…" description: "\"The harder you try to hold someone back, the more they struggle to get away.\" — Anonymous" image: "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/020/anonymous-1_adversity_the-harder-you-try-to-hold-someone-back_1902325.jpg" --- # The harder you try to hold someone back, the more they… ![“The harder you try to hold someone back, the more they struggle to get away.” quote by Anonymous](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/020/anonymous-1_adversity_the-harder-you-try-to-hold-someone-back_1902325.jpg) [Download](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/020/anonymous-1_adversity_the-harder-you-try-to-hold-someone-back_1902325.jpg) [Open image](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/020/anonymous-1_adversity_the-harder-you-try-to-hold-someone-back_1902325.jpg) > “The harder you try to hold someone back, the more they struggle to get away.” [Anonymous](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anonymous/) ## About This Quote This interpretation was drafted with AI assistance. It is one reading of the quote, not the author's own explanation. Attempting to control others intensifies their desire for freedom. **In simple terms:** Control fuels resistance. Key Takeaway Allow autonomy to reduce conflict. Themes control freedom resistance autonomy relationships Mood reflective balanced Type advice philosophical When to use this quote - parenting - leadership - team management - negotiations - personal growth Key Concepts psychology social dynamics power Questions to Reflect On - When is control justified? - How can you balance guidance and freedom? A Different Perspective Sometimes control is necessary for safety. ★ ★ ★ ★ ★ No ratings yet [Adversity](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/adversity/) [Struggle](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/struggle/) ## Related quotes > [“Success is nothing but a reason to hold on to struggle.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/himmilicious/success-is-nothing-but-a-reason-to-hold-on-to-struggle/) Himmilicious > [Sometimes the harder you try to forget something, the more you seem to remember it.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anonymous/sometimes-the-harder-you-try-to-forget-something-the-more-you-seem-to/) [Anonymous](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anonymous/) > [It seems like the harder you try, the worse things get.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anonymous/it-seems-like-the-harder-you-try-the-worse-things-get/) [Anonymous](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anonymous/) > [Sometimes the harder you try the dumber you look.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anonymous/sometimes-the-harder-you-try-the-dumber-you-look/) [Anonymous](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anonymous/) > [It seems to me that the harder I try the harder I fall.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anonymous/it-seems-to-me-that-the-harder-i-try-the-harder-i-fall/) [Anonymous](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anonymous/) > [The harder you try to be funny, the less funny you will be.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anonymous/the-harder-you-try-to-be-funny-the-less-funny-you-will-be/) [Anonymous](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anonymous/) > [The harder I try the more I wana give up and just start over.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anonymous/the-harder-i-try-the-more-i-wana-give-up-and-just-start-over/) [Anonymous](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anonymous/) > [Learned that its almost impossible to satisfy everyone the harder you try the more difficult and more you get criticized for what you do.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anonymous/learned-that-its-almost-impossible-to-satisfy-everyone-the-harder-you/) [Anonymous](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anonymous/) > [With out struggle there is no progress](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anonymous/with-out-struggle-there-is-no-progress/) [Anonymous](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anonymous/) > [Everyday is a struggle.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anonymous/everyday-is-a-struggle/) [Anonymous](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anonymous/) > [All struggles are essentially power struggles. Who will rule? Who will lead? Who will define, refine, confine, design? Who will dominate? All struggles are…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anonymous/all-struggles-are-essentially-power-struggles-who-will-rule-who-will/) [Anonymous](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anonymous/) > [Everyday is a struggle and everyday is just another battle.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anonymous/everyday-is-a-struggle-and-everyday-is-just-another-battle/) [Anonymous](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anonymous/) > [The facts of variability, of the struggle for existence, of adaptation to conditions, were notorious enough; but none of us had suspected that the…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anonymous/the-facts-of-variability-of-the-struggle-for-existence-of-adaptation/) [Anonymous](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anonymous/) > [When everything feels like an uphill struggle, just think of the view from the top.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anonymous/when-everything-feels-like-an-uphill-struggle-just-think-of-the-view/) [Anonymous](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anonymous/) > [“Failure is the universe’s way of telling you to either try harder or try something else. Nothing more. Nothing less.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/pleasefindthis/failure-is-the-universe-s-way-of-telling-you-to-either-try-harder-or/) pleasefindthis ## More by Anonymous > [And a tear rolled down her cheek, as she said goodbye; because she's walking away, and she's never looking back](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anonymous/and-a-tear-rolled-down-her-cheek-as-she-said-goodbye-because-she-s/) [Anonymous](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anonymous/) > [Life is full of change. That's how we learn and grow.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anonymous/life-is-full-of-change-that-s-how-we-learn-and-grow/) [Anonymous](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anonymous/) > [You'll seldom experience regret for anything that you've done. It is what you haven't done that will torment you. The message, therefore, is clear.…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anonymous/you-ll-seldom-experience-regret-for-anything-that-you-ve-done-it-is/) [Anonymous](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anonymous/) > [Scrabble - The game is available in Braille. That’s a nice fact. This makes me feel better about humanity for some reason. I can’t…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anonymous/scrabble-the-game-is-available-in-braille-that-s-a-nice-fact-this/) [Anonymous](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anonymous/) > [Everyone needs someone to love, and I choose you.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anonymous/everyone-needs-someone-to-love-and-i-choose-you/) [Anonymous](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anonymous/) > [“THIS tale of my sore-troubled life I write,    To thank the God of nature, who conveyed    My soul to me, and with such care…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anonymous/this-tale-of-my-sore-troubled-life-i-write-to-thank-the-god-of-nature/) [Anonymous](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anonymous/) > [Put on my J's and dance the whole night away Im naughty by nature like Im hip-hop hooray With my hands in the sky,…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anonymous/put-on-my-j-s-and-dance-the-whole-night-away-im-naughty-by-nature/) [Anonymous](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anonymous/) > [Me.. I have been through a lot, but I still manage to have a smile on my face. Im not worried about the past…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anonymous/me-i-have-been-through-a-lot-but-i-still-manage-to-have-a-smile-on-my/) [Anonymous](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anonymous/) > [Distance is a test of love. many will fail for those who can't withstand it, but for those who can, theres only one answer…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anonymous/distance-is-a-test-of-love-many-will-fail-for-those-who-can-t/) [Anonymous](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anonymous/) > [Im sorry I ever tried...](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anonymous/im-sorry-i-ever-tried/) [Anonymous](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anonymous/) > [Being betrayed by the one you love is the worst feeling in the world...](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anonymous/being-betrayed-by-the-one-you-love-is-the-worst-feeling-in-the-world/) [Anonymous](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anonymous/) > [Let children support their parents or be imprisoned.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anonymous/let-children-support-their-parents-or-be-imprisoned/) [Anonymous](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anonymous/) > [The only person I've ever purposely caused pain here is myself...By simply sharing, caring too much.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anonymous/the-only-person-i-ve-ever-purposely-caused-pain-here-is-myself-by/) [Anonymous](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anonymous/) > [“Start a business, not a startup”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anonymous/start-a-business-not-a-startup/) [Anonymous](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anonymous/) > [The truth is, of course, that the curtness of the Ten Commandments is an evidence, not of the gloom and narrowness of a religion,…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anonymous/the-truth-is-of-course-that-the-curtness-of-the-ten-commandments-is/) [Anonymous](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anonymous/) [Explore all 162,899 Anonymous quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anonymous/) ## More Adversity quotes > [We love playing together and we love adversity. You know, back-to-back, the two best teams in the East.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/steve-nash/we-love-playing-together-and-we-love-adversity-you-know-back-to-back/) [Steve Nash](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/steve-nash/) > [When we have public success we also have private struggles.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/deion-sanders/when-we-have-public-success-we-also-have-private-struggles/) [Deion Sanders](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/deion-sanders/) > [“The threats that resurfaced in the past 10 years were not an aberration. Al Qaeda and terrorism or one such threat, but it was…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/george-friedman/the-threats-that-resurfaced-in-the-past-10-years-were-not-an/) [George Friedman](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/george-friedman/) > [He who is content with what has been done is an obstacle in the path of progress.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/helen-keller/he-who-is-content-with-what-has-been-done-is-an-obstacle-in-the-path/) [Helen Keller](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/helen-keller/) > [“Friction is necessary. Ease of life leads to complacency and the atrophy of the human will and spirit. Within our struggles lives our strength,…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jason-versey/friction-is-necessary-ease-of-life-leads-to-complacency-and-the/) [Jason Versey](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jason-versey/) > [“Every adversity is just another opportunity to excel a little more.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/michel-templet/every-adversity-is-just-another-opportunity-to-excel-a-little-more/) [Michel Templet](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/michel-templet/) > [“Just because she doesn't talk about it, doesn't mean she isn't feeling it. She hurts, but she won't wear it on her sleeve. She…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/alfa-h/just-because-she-doesn-t-talk-about-it-doesn-t-mean-she-isn-t-feeling/) [Alfa H](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/alfa-h/) > [Every trial endured and weathered in the right spirit makes a soul nobler and stronger than it was before.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/james-buckham-kennedy/every-trial-endured-and-weathered-in-the-right-spirit-makes-a-soul/) James Buckham Kennedy > [Honesty, by evil fortune tried, Finds in adversity the seed of praise.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ovid/honesty-by-evil-fortune-tried-finds-in-adversity-the-seed-of-praise/) [Ovid](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ovid/) > [“Struggles are not associated to a particular people or creed, everyone struggles, not for the same reasons, but each has a personal struggle at…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/wayne-chirisa/struggles-are-not-associated-to-a-particular-people-or-creed-everyone/) [Wayne Chirisa](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/wayne-chirisa/) > [“Watch a man in times of adversity to discover what kind of man he is; for then at last words of truth are drawn…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/lucretius/watch-a-man-in-times-of-adversity-to-discover-what-kind-of-man-he-is/) [Lucretius](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/lucretius/) > [God often hides His blessing in trouble or trial, which makes it all the sweeter when it comes our way.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/aiden-wilson-tozer/god-often-hides-his-blessing-in-trouble-or-trial-which-makes-it-all/) [Aiden Wilson Tozer](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/aiden-wilson-tozer/) > [“Life is not about less mistakes but about more trials”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/s-e-sever/life-is-not-about-less-mistakes-but-about-more-trials/) S.E. SEVER > [Show your contempt for the problem and your concern for the person.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jim-rohn/show-your-contempt-for-the-problem-and-your-concern-for-the-person/) [Jim Rohn](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jim-rohn/) > [When everything feels like an uphill struggle, just think of the view from the top.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anonymous/when-everything-feels-like-an-uphill-struggle-just-think-of-the-view/) [Anonymous](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anonymous/) [Browse all 5,001 Adversity quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/adversity/) ```json { "@context": "https://schema.org", "@graph": [ { "@type": "Quotation", "text": "The harder you try to hold someone back, the more they struggle to get away.", "creator": { "@type": "Person", "name": "Anonymous" }, "isPartOf": { "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/#website" }, "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anonymous/the-harder-you-try-to-hold-someone-back-the-more-they-struggle-to-get/", "about": { "@type": "Thing", "name": "Adversity" }, "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anonymous/the-harder-you-try-to-hold-someone-back-the-more-they-struggle-to-get/#quotation", "image": { "@type": "ImageObject", "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/020/anonymous-1_adversity_the-harder-you-try-to-hold-someone-back_1902325.jpg", "contentUrl": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/020/anonymous-1_adversity_the-harder-you-try-to-hold-someone-back_1902325.jpg", "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/020/anonymous-1_adversity_the-harder-you-try-to-hold-someone-back_1902325.jpg", "width": 1080, "height": 1080, "caption": "“The harder you try to hold someone back, the more they struggle to get away.” — Anonymous", "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": "Anonymous", "item": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anonymous/" }, { "@type": "ListItem", "position": 4, "name": "The harder you try to hold...", "item": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anonymous/the-harder-you-try-to-hold-someone-back-the-more-they-struggle-to-get/" } ], "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anonymous/the-harder-you-try-to-hold-someone-back-the-more-they-struggle-to-get/#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 } } ] } ```