--- title: "Meaning & Key Takeaway of: You make a mistake, you better hope I…" description: "\"You make a mistake, you better hope I wasn't paying attention and didn't see it, but if I catch you doing it and you think I'm not paying attention, th..." image: "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/24f/anthony-johnson-6374_attention_you-make-a-mistake-you-better-hope-i-was_149682.jpg" --- # You make a mistake, you better hope I wasn't paying… ![“You make a mistake, you better hope I wasn't paying attention and didn't see it, but if I catch you doing it and you think I'm not paying attention, then that's when you get in trouble.” quote by Anthony Johnson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/24f/anthony-johnson-6374_attention_you-make-a-mistake-you-better-hope-i-was_149682.jpg) [Download](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/24f/anthony-johnson-6374_attention_you-make-a-mistake-you-better-hope-i-was_149682.jpg) [Open image](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/24f/anthony-johnson-6374_attention_you-make-a-mistake-you-better-hope-i-was_149682.jpg) > “You make a mistake, you better hope I wasn't paying attention and didn't see it, but if I catch you doing it and you think I'm not paying attention, then that's when you get in trouble.” [Anthony Johnson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anthony-johnson/) ## About This Quote This interpretation was drafted with AI assistance. It is one reading of the quote, not the author's own explanation. Mistakes go unnoticed if the overseer isn’t paying attention, but caught when they think they’re ignored, leading to trouble. **In simple terms:** Mistakes are hidden unless someone watches closely. Key Takeaway Stay attentive to avoid hidden trouble. Themes accountability surveillance mistakes trust power dynamics Mood cautious serious reflective Type practical ethical organizational When to use this quote - workplace - security - education - team projects Key Concepts attention lapses hidden errors authority challenges Questions to Reflect On - How can you balance oversight and autonomy? - What systems catch unnoticed errors? A Different Perspective Over‑monitoring can erode trust. ★ ★ ★ ★ ★ No ratings yet [Attention](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/attention/) [Better](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/better/) [Catch Doing](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/catch-doing-1667858/) [Failure](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/failure/) [Hope](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/hope/) [Make Mistake](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/make-mistake-257623/) [Mistake](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/mistake/) [Mistake Better](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/mistake-better-1667857/) [Paying Attention](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/paying-attention/) [See](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/see/) ## Related quotes > [I think if you make a mistake, it had better be early in the race so you can bounce back from it.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ricky-stenhouse-jr/i-think-if-you-make-a-mistake-it-had-better-be-early-in-the-race-so/) [Ricky Stenhouse Jr](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ricky-stenhouse-jr/) > [Even a mistake is better than nothing.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/craig-thompson/even-a-mistake-is-better-than-nothing/) [Craig Thompson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/craig-thompson/) > [“Learning from your mistake is good, but learning from others mistake is better.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/japson/learning-from-your-mistake-is-good-but-learning-from-others-mistake/) [Japson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/japson/) > [It takes a real man to realize that he made a mistake. But an even better man to try to make things be right…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anonymous/it-takes-a-real-man-to-realize-that-he-made-a-mistake-but-an-even/) [Anonymous](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anonymous/) > [“Once a year, take her somewhere she’s never been. Once a month, do something new that melts her in the sack. Once a week,…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/roxanne-st-claire/once-a-year-take-her-somewhere-she-s-never-been-once-a-month-do/) [Roxanne St. Claire](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/roxanne-st-claire/) > [If You Ever Catch Yourself Between Doing Something Or Not Just Tell Yourself ... You Only Got One Life Idiot Just Do It](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/cesar-jeronimo/if-you-ever-catch-yourself-between-doing-something-or-not-just-tell/) [Cesar Jeronimo](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/cesar-jeronimo/) > [Help People Reach Their Full Potential Catch Them Doing Something Right](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anonymous/help-people-reach-their-full-potential-catch-them-doing-something/) [Anonymous](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anonymous/) > [Catch someone doing something right.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ken-blanchard/catch-someone-doing-something-right/) [Ken Blanchard](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ken-blanchard/) > [When I said What did I do this time? I really meant What did you catch me doing?](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/nikhil-saluja/when-i-said-what-did-i-do-this-time-i-really-meant-what-did-you-catch/) [Nikhil Saluja](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/nikhil-saluja/) > [Sometimes I catch myself doing something that I've already done. The more I've done, the more that's likely to happen. Then I just throw…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/bruce-cockburn/sometimes-i-catch-myself-doing-something-that-i-ve-already-done-the/) [Bruce Cockburn](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/bruce-cockburn/) > [I don't wait around. I do what I have to do to win. They make a mistake and it's lights out. That's just how…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anthony-johnson/i-don-t-wait-around-i-do-what-i-have-to-do-to-win-they-make-a-mistake/) [Anthony Johnson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anthony-johnson/) > [When you make a mistake, you have to admit it.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/petr-cech/when-you-make-a-mistake-you-have-to-admit-it/) [Petr Cech](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/petr-cech/) > [My mother taught me this trick: if you repeat something over and over again it loses its meaning, for example homework homework homework homework…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anonymous/my-mother-taught-me-this-trick-if-you-repeat-something-over-and-over/) [Anonymous](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anonymous/) > [“To make a mistake is only human; to persist in a mistake is idiotic.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/cicero/to-make-a-mistake-is-only-human-to-persist-in-a-mistake-is-idiotic/) [Cicero](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/cicero/) > [If loving you is a big mistake, I will never ever want to be right,i will always make the same mistake over and over…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/horla/if-loving-you-is-a-big-mistake-i-will-never-ever-want-to-be-right-i/) [Horla](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/horla/) ## More by Anthony Johnson > [I had my issues for 2014, but at the end of the day, it was still an amazing year for me.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anthony-johnson/i-had-my-issues-for-2014-but-at-the-end-of-the-day-it-was-still-an/) [Anthony Johnson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anthony-johnson/) > [I wish the best for everybody.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anthony-johnson/i-wish-the-best-for-everybody/) [Anthony Johnson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anthony-johnson/) > [I've been down a pretty crazy road. The story of me is pretty out there.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anthony-johnson/i-ve-been-down-a-pretty-crazy-road-the-story-of-me-is-pretty-out-there/) [Anthony Johnson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anthony-johnson/) > [I want to be like Georges St Pierre, working my way up from the ground and be the best.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anthony-johnson/i-want-to-be-like-georges-st-pierre-working-my-way-up-from-the-ground/) [Anthony Johnson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anthony-johnson/) > [I don't think anybody should put limits on what you believe you can do.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anthony-johnson/i-don-t-think-anybody-should-put-limits-on-what-you-believe-you-can-do/) [Anthony Johnson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anthony-johnson/) > [I make people adjust to what I do, and worry about what I do.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anthony-johnson/i-make-people-adjust-to-what-i-do-and-worry-about-what-i-do/) [Anthony Johnson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anthony-johnson/) > [When you face a guy like Nogueira, you think, 'OK, this is about to be a battle,' because the last name Nogueira means a…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anthony-johnson/when-you-face-a-guy-like-nogueira-you-think-ok-this-is-about-to-be-a/) [Anthony Johnson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anthony-johnson/) > [If I'm tired one day, then I'll take the day off instead of pushing through it, because then that's when you hurt yourself.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anthony-johnson/if-i-m-tired-one-day-then-i-ll-take-the-day-off-instead-of-pushing/) [Anthony Johnson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anthony-johnson/) > [I learn from my mistakes and I learned how to accept things and how to take them whenever my opponent changes.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anthony-johnson/i-learn-from-my-mistakes-and-i-learned-how-to-accept-things-and-how/) [Anthony Johnson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anthony-johnson/) > [I take very good care of all my dogs and I treat them all the same.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anthony-johnson/i-take-very-good-care-of-all-my-dogs-and-i-treat-them-all-the-same/) [Anthony Johnson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anthony-johnson/) > [I do believe in ring rust. If you got it, you got it. And if you don't, you don't.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anthony-johnson/i-do-believe-in-ring-rust-if-you-got-it-you-got-it-and-if-you-don-t/) [Anthony Johnson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anthony-johnson/) > [I'm ready for whatever D.C. can throw at me. But if he stands there and tries to dish with me, be my guest.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anthony-johnson/i-m-ready-for-whatever-d-c-can-throw-at-me-but-if-he-stands-there-and/) [Anthony Johnson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anthony-johnson/) > [I know I can end a fight in a second, but I never think about being one of the most dangerous guys. I'm just…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anthony-johnson/i-know-i-can-end-a-fight-in-a-second-but-i-never-think-about-being/) [Anthony Johnson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anthony-johnson/) > [Whatever the champion can do, you always need to believe you can do more. It's a mental thing.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anthony-johnson/whatever-the-champion-can-do-you-always-need-to-believe-you-can-do/) [Anthony Johnson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anthony-johnson/) > [When you're walking out to the cage and fighting a guy like Vitor Belfort and you've got the crowd going crazy, most people would…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anthony-johnson/when-you-re-walking-out-to-the-cage-and-fighting-a-guy-like-vitor/) [Anthony Johnson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anthony-johnson/) [Explore all 99 Anthony Johnson quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anthony-johnson/) ## More Attention quotes > [It appears to me that one great cause of our difference in opinion on subjects which we often discuss is that you have always…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/david-ricardo/it-appears-to-me-that-one-great-cause-of-our-difference-in-opinion-on/) [David Ricardo](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/david-ricardo/) > [People pay far too much attention to the television and they're quite literal in some ways. At the beginning, when I was playing very…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ardal-o-hanlon/people-pay-far-too-much-attention-to-the-television-and-they-re-quite/) [Ardal O'Hanlon](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ardal-o-hanlon/) > [Television, radio, social media. The 24/7 news cycle plows forward mercilessly on our desks, in our cars and in our pockets. Thousands and thousands…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/joseph-prince/television-radio-social-media-the-24-7-news-cycle-plows-forward/) [Joseph Prince](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/joseph-prince/) > [By making conscious choices in our behavior and where we focus our attention, we can transform our experience of our body, decrease our biological…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/deepak-chopra/by-making-conscious-choices-in-our-behavior-and-where-we-focus-our/) [Deepak Chopra](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/deepak-chopra/) > [Our inventions are wont to be pretty toys, which distract our attention from serious things. They are but improved means to an unimproved end.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/henry-david-thoreau/our-inventions-are-wont-to-be-pretty-toys-which-distract-our/) [Henry David Thoreau](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/henry-david-thoreau/) > [What people don't normally know about us is the hustle is very real, and it's sorely driven a lot by how we consider ourselves.…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/lzzy-hale/what-people-don-t-normally-know-about-us-is-the-hustle-is-very-real/) [Lzzy Hale](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/lzzy-hale/) > [For me, the term "psychotherapy" is limiting. It implies that we work with mind and emotions, but excludes the body and pays scant attention…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jed-diamond/for-me-the-term-psychotherapy-is-limiting-it-implies-that-we-work/) [Jed Diamond](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jed-diamond/) > [When you approach something to photograph it, first be still with yourself until the object of your attention affirms your presence. Then don't leave…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/minor-white/when-you-approach-something-to-photograph-it-first-be-still-with/) [Minor White](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/minor-white/) > [I'm writing about real things. Real people. Real characters. You have to believe what I write about is true or you wouldn't pay any…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/lou-reed/i-m-writing-about-real-things-real-people-real-characters-you-have-to/) [Lou Reed](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/lou-reed/) > [ I went to a mosque in Philadelphia with \[my wife\] in December 24, 1999. And we we went to this mosque in Philly, and… ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/mahershala-ali/i-went-to-a-mosque-in-philadelphia-with-my-wife-in-december-24-1999/) [Mahershala Ali](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/mahershala-ali/) > [The Harvard Business Review recently had an article called 'The Human Moment,' about how to make real contact with a person at work: ...…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/daniel-goleman/the-harvard-business-review-recently-had-an-article-called-the-human/) [Daniel Goleman](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/daniel-goleman/) > [Let us thank God heartily as often as we pray that we have His Spirit in us to teach us to pray. Thanksgiving will…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/andy-murray/let-us-thank-god-heartily-as-often-as-we-pray-that-we-have-his-spirit/) [Andy Murray](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/andy-murray/) > [Enlightened people live in very charged states of attention, with a tremendous power circuiting through them.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/frederick-lenz/enlightened-people-live-in-very-charged-states-of-attention-with-a/) [Frederick Lenz](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/frederick-lenz/) > [We must have a welfare system that we can afford, which will mean giving greater attention to directing the welfare program toward its primary…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/michael-portillo/we-must-have-a-welfare-system-that-we-can-afford-which-will-mean/) [Michael Portillo](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/michael-portillo/) > [The director's job should give you a sense of music without drawing attention to itself.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/taylor-hackford/the-director-s-job-should-give-you-a-sense-of-music-without-drawing/) [Taylor Hackford](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/taylor-hackford/) [Browse all 10,153 Attention quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/attention/) ```json { "@context": "https://schema.org", "@graph": [ { "@type": "Quotation", "text": "You make a mistake, you better hope I wasn't paying attention and didn't see it, but if I catch you doing it and you think I'm not paying attention, then that's when you get in trouble.", "creator": { "@type": "Person", "name": "Anthony Johnson" }, "isPartOf": { "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/#website" }, "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anthony-johnson/you-make-a-mistake-you-better-hope-i-wasn-t-paying-attention-and-didn/", "about": { "@type": "Thing", "name": "Attention" }, "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anthony-johnson/you-make-a-mistake-you-better-hope-i-wasn-t-paying-attention-and-didn/#quotation", "image": { "@type": "ImageObject", "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/24f/anthony-johnson-6374_attention_you-make-a-mistake-you-better-hope-i-was_149682.jpg", "contentUrl": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/24f/anthony-johnson-6374_attention_you-make-a-mistake-you-better-hope-i-was_149682.jpg", "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/24f/anthony-johnson-6374_attention_you-make-a-mistake-you-better-hope-i-was_149682.jpg", "width": 1080, "height": 1080, "caption": "“You make a mistake, you better hope I wasn't paying attention and didn't see it, but if I catch you doing it…” — Anthony Johnson", "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": "Anthony Johnson", "item": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anthony-johnson/" }, { "@type": "ListItem", "position": 4, "name": "You make a mistake, you better...", "item": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anthony-johnson/you-make-a-mistake-you-better-hope-i-wasn-t-paying-attention-and-didn/" } ], "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anthony-johnson/you-make-a-mistake-you-better-hope-i-wasn-t-paying-attention-and-didn/#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 } } ] } ```