--- title: "Meaning & Key Takeaway of: I have begun everything with the idea…" description: "\"I have begun everything with the idea that I could succeed, and I never had much patience with the multitudes of people who are always ready to explain..." image: "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/b1b/booker-t-washington-2277_ideas_i-have-begun-everything-with-the-idea-th_961645.png" --- # I have begun everything with the idea that I could… ![“I have begun everything with the idea that I could succeed, and I never had much patience with the multitudes of people who are always ready to explain why one cannot succeed.” quote by Booker T. Washington](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/b1b/booker-t-washington-2277_ideas_i-have-begun-everything-with-the-idea-th_961645.png) [Download](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/b1b/booker-t-washington-2277_ideas_i-have-begun-everything-with-the-idea-th_961645.png) [Open image](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/b1b/booker-t-washington-2277_ideas_i-have-begun-everything-with-the-idea-th_961645.png) > “I have begun everything with the idea that I could succeed, and I never had much patience with the multitudes of people who are always ready to explain why one cannot succeed.” [Booker T. Washington](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/booker-t-washington/) ## About This Quote This interpretation was drafted with AI assistance. It is one reading of the quote, not the author's own explanation. Believe in personal success and avoid listening to naysayers who claim failure is inevitable. **In simple terms:** Believe in yourself, ignore doubters. Key Takeaway Cultivate confidence and resilience. Themes self‑belief determination criticism Mood motivational cautionary Type inspirational practical When to use this quote - career planning - entrepreneurship - personal development - goal setting Key Concepts psychology motivation Questions to Reflect On - What doubts do you dismiss? - How do you balance optimism with realism? A Different Perspective Overconfidence may blind you to legitimate risks. ★ ★ ★ ★ ★ No ratings yet [Ideas](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/ideas/) [Patience](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/patience/) [People](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/people/) [Success](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/success/) ## Related quotes > [“In order to succeed, one must have the patience to suffice a lifetime of hardships, desires, and excellence.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/isabel-aanya-leigh/in-order-to-succeed-one-must-have-the-patience-to-suffice-a-lifetime/) [Isabel Aanya Leigh](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/isabel-aanya-leigh/) > [A great idea can't succeed without a great operator. But rarely can a great operator squeak by with a bad idea. So, as pithy…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/chris-sacca/a-great-idea-can-t-succeed-without-a-great-operator-but-rarely-can-a/) [Chris Sacca](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/chris-sacca/) > [To succeed in chaining the multitude, you must seem to wear the same fetters.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/voltaire/to-succeed-in-chaining-the-multitude-you-must-seem-to-wear-the-same/) [Voltaire](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/voltaire/) > [It is better to be divided by truth than to be united in error. It is better to speak the truth that hurts and…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/adrian-rogers/it-is-better-to-be-divided-by-truth-than-to-be-united-in-error-it-is/) [Adrian Rogers](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/adrian-rogers/) > [Jesus Christ would have been considered just another long-haired hippie freak if he hadn't been crucified. The folks weren't impressed with healing the sick,…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ted-turner/jesus-christ-would-have-been-considered-just-another-long-haired/) [Ted Turner](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ted-turner/) > [How many small decisions accumulate to form a habit? What a multitude of decisions, made by others, in other times, must shape our lives…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/susan-griffin/how-many-small-decisions-accumulate-to-form-a-habit-what-a-multitude/) [Susan Griffin](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/susan-griffin/) > [People who are not prepared to do unpopular things and defy the clamor of the multitude are not fit to be ministers in time…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/winston-churchill/people-who-are-not-prepared-to-do-unpopular-things-and-defy-the/) [Winston Churchill](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/winston-churchill/) > [A good, finished scandal, fully armed and equipped, such as circulates in the world, is rarely the production of a single individual, or even…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/sophie-swetchine/a-good-finished-scandal-fully-armed-and-equipped-such-as-circulates/) [Sophie Swetchine](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/sophie-swetchine/) > [Great blunders are often made, like large ropes, of a multitude of fibres.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/victor-hugo/great-blunders-are-often-made-like-large-ropes-of-a-multitude-of/) [Victor Hugo](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/victor-hugo/) > [You probably have to split yourself in various ways just in order to survive, and to think of yourself as a multitude.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/vijay-seshadri/you-probably-have-to-split-yourself-in-various-ways-just-in-order-to/) [Vijay Seshadri](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/vijay-seshadri/) > [Ideal for the child and society in the best of times, Rudolf Steiner's brilliant process of education is critically needed and profoundly relevant now…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/joseph-chilton-pearce/ideal-for-the-child-and-society-in-the-best-of-times-rudolf-steiner-s/) [Joseph Chilton Pearce](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/joseph-chilton-pearce/) > [Mass adulation from the multitudes does not penetrate your soul or your core.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/rosie-o-donnell/mass-adulation-from-the-multitudes-does-not-penetrate-your-soul-or/) [Rosie O'Donnell](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/rosie-o-donnell/) > [It is according to the shapes that I lay the plans for victory, but the multitude does not comprehend this. Although everyone can see…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/sun-tzu/it-is-according-to-the-shapes-that-i-lay-the-plans-for-victory-but/) [Sun Tzu](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/sun-tzu/) > [The purpose of a spirit filled life is to demonstrate the supernatural power of our living God so that the unsaved multitudes will abandon…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/t-l-osborn/the-purpose-of-a-spirit-filled-life-is-to-demonstrate-the/) [T.L. Osborn](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/t-l-osborn/) > [It must be assumed and established as a principle, that the right of private property must be regarded as sacred. Wherefore, the law ought…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/pope-leo-xiii/it-must-be-assumed-and-established-as-a-principle-that-the-right-of/) [Pope Leo XIII](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/pope-leo-xiii/) ## More by Booker T. Washington > [“There are some things that one individual can do for another, and there are some things that one race can do for another. But,…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/booker-t-washington/there-are-some-things-that-one-individual-can-do-for-another-and/) [Booker T. Washington](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/booker-t-washington/) > [Think about it: we went into slavery pagans; we came out Christians. We went into slavery pieces of property; we came out American citizens.…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/booker-t-washington/think-about-it-we-went-into-slavery-pagans-we-came-out-christians-we/) [Booker T. Washington](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/booker-t-washington/) > [I let no man drag me down so low as to make me hate him.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/booker-t-washington/i-let-no-man-drag-me-down-so-low-as-to-make-me-hate-him/) [Booker T. Washington](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/booker-t-washington/) > [The wisest among my race understand that agitations of social equality is the extremist folly, and that progress in the enjoyment of all privileges…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/booker-t-washington/the-wisest-among-my-race-understand-that-agitations-of-social/) [Booker T. Washington](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/booker-t-washington/) > [“I began learning long ago that those who are happiest are those who do the most for others.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/booker-t-washington/i-began-learning-long-ago-that-those-who-are-happiest-are-those-who/) [Booker T. Washington](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/booker-t-washington/) > [If you truly want to measure the success of a man, you do not measure it by a position he has achieved, but by…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/booker-t-washington/if-you-truly-want-to-measure-the-success-of-a-man-you-do-not-measure/) [Booker T. Washington](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/booker-t-washington/) > [The time will come when the Negro in the South will be accorded all the political rights which his ability, character, and material possessions…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/booker-t-washington/the-time-will-come-when-the-negro-in-the-south-will-be-accorded-all/) [Booker T. Washington](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/booker-t-washington/) > [“Kada smo u kontaktu sa drugim čovekom, mi mu ili pomažemo ili smetamo. Nema trećeg: ili ga vučemo na dole, ili ga izvlačimo na…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/booker-t-washington/kada-smo-u-kontaktu-sa-drugim-ovekom-mi-mu-ili-poma-emo-ili-smetamo/) [Booker T. Washington](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/booker-t-washington/) > [Excellence is to do a common thing in an uncommon way.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/booker-t-washington/excellence-is-to-do-a-common-thing-in-an-uncommon-way/) [Booker T. Washington](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/booker-t-washington/) > [We must reinforce argument with results.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/booker-t-washington/we-must-reinforce-argument-with-results/) [Booker T. Washington](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/booker-t-washington/) > [Mere connection with what is known as a superior race will not permanently carry an individual forward unless the individual has worth.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/booker-t-washington/mere-connection-with-what-is-known-as-a-superior-race-will-not/) [Booker T. Washington](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/booker-t-washington/) > [No race that has anything to contribute to the markets of the world is long in any degree ostracized.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/booker-t-washington/no-race-that-has-anything-to-contribute-to-the-markets-of-the-world/) [Booker T. Washington](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/booker-t-washington/) > [The highest test of the civilization of any race is in its willingness to extend a helping hand to the less fortunate.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/booker-t-washington/the-highest-test-of-the-civilization-of-any-race-is-in-its/) [Booker T. Washington](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/booker-t-washington/) > [The Negro is not the man farthest down. The condition of the coloured farmer in the most backward parts of the Southern States of…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/booker-t-washington/the-negro-is-not-the-man-farthest-down-the-condition-of-the-coloured/) [Booker T. Washington](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/booker-t-washington/) > [“it takes no more time to be polite to every one than it does to be rude.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/booker-t-washington/it-takes-no-more-time-to-be-polite-to-every-one-than-it-does-to-be/) [Booker T. Washington](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/booker-t-washington/) [Explore all 174 Booker T. Washington quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/booker-t-washington/) ## More Ideas quotes > [I think a new world will arise out of the religious mists when we approach our Bible with the idea that it is not…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/aiden-wilson-tozer/i-think-a-new-world-will-arise-out-of-the-religious-mists-when-we/) [Aiden Wilson Tozer](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/aiden-wilson-tozer/) > [Companies with cultures that celebrate diverse opinions and encourage the exchange of ideas have an advantage when solving difficult problems. A company that doesn't…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/doug-mcmillon/companies-with-cultures-that-celebrate-diverse-opinions-and-encourage/) [Doug McMillon](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/doug-mcmillon/) > [You'd be surprised how hard it can often be to translate an action into an idea.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/karl-kraus/you-d-be-surprised-how-hard-it-can-often-be-to-translate-an-action/) [Karl Kraus](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/karl-kraus/) > [I know for my wife and I, we always loved the idea of being young parents. It is an incredibly inspiring and challenging job…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/taylor-hanson/i-know-for-my-wife-and-i-we-always-loved-the-idea-of-being-young/) [Taylor Hanson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/taylor-hanson/) > [That's the great secret of creativity. You treat ideas like cats: you make them follow you.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ray-bradbury/that-s-the-great-secret-of-creativity-you-treat-ideas-like-cats-you/) [Ray Bradbury](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ray-bradbury/) > [I've always been fascinated by the idea that there's no such thing as evil; it's all in your point of view. To one group…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/eli-roth/i-ve-always-been-fascinated-by-the-idea-that-there-s-no-such-thing-as/) [Eli Roth](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/eli-roth/) > [The image of blacks usually is one of people who are suffering from hunger, unemployment, and poverty. The idea of them as agents and…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/grace-lee-boggs/the-image-of-blacks-usually-is-one-of-people-who-are-suffering-from/) [Grace Lee Boggs](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/grace-lee-boggs/) > [It revealed a cruelty that really made one wonder if the universe was such a good idea after all.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jeff-lindsay/it-revealed-a-cruelty-that-really-made-one-wonder-if-the-universe-was/) [Jeff Lindsay](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jeff-lindsay/) > [Sometimes it's just enough for me to have the idea. I don't need to see it through to the end. When it actually happens,…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/amy-sedaris/sometimes-it-s-just-enough-for-me-to-have-the-idea-i-don-t-need-to/) [Amy Sedaris](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/amy-sedaris/) > [Love is like that, fragile and light. No wonder it rests upon our hearts in intangible moments, bids us follow fleeting thoughts and ideas…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anonymous/love-is-like-that-fragile-and-light-no-wonder-it-rests-upon-our/) [Anonymous](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anonymous/) > [But I already saw no great difference between the psyche and spirituality. To amass knowledge without becoming wise is not my idea of progress…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/m-scott-peck/but-i-already-saw-no-great-difference-between-the-psyche-and/) [M. Scott Peck](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/m-scott-peck/) > [Making movies seemed so impossible as far as getting my ideas funded.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/boots-riley/making-movies-seemed-so-impossible-as-far-as-getting-my-ideas-funded/) [Boots Riley](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/boots-riley/) > [I am not the avant-garde. I am the artist who comes after the advancing guard. I am more concerned with continuity of ideas and…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/nathan-oliveira/i-am-not-the-avant-garde-i-am-the-artist-who-comes-after-the/) [Nathan Oliveira](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/nathan-oliveira/) > [What is music? Music is language. A human being wants to express ideas in this language, but not ideas that can be translated into…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anton-webern/what-is-music-music-is-language-a-human-being-wants-to-express-ideas/) [Anton Webern](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anton-webern/) > [“What does it mean to be a self-conscious animal? The idea is ludicrous, if it is not monstrous. It means to know that one…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ernest-becker/what-does-it-mean-to-be-a-self-conscious-animal-the-idea-is-ludicrous/) [Ernest Becker](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ernest-becker/) [Browse all 24,908 Ideas quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/ideas/) ```json { "@context": "https://schema.org", "@graph": [ { "@type": "Quotation", "text": "I have begun everything with the idea that I could succeed, and I never had much patience with the multitudes of people who are always ready to explain why one cannot succeed.", "creator": { "@type": "Person", "name": "Booker T. 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