--- title: "Meaning & Key Takeaway of: The only thing we all have in common is…" description: "\"The only thing we all have in common is that we play tricks in order to force ourselves to abandon the quest. The counter-measure is to persist in spit..." image: "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/3b0/carlos-castaneda-1384_abandon_the-only-thing-we-all-have-in-common-is_1792072.jpg" --- # The only thing we all have in common is that we play… ![“The only thing we all have in common is that we play tricks in order to force ourselves to abandon the quest. The counter-measure is to persist in spite of all the barriers and disappointments.” quote by Carlos Castaneda](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/3b0/carlos-castaneda-1384_abandon_the-only-thing-we-all-have-in-common-is_1792072.jpg) [Download](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/3b0/carlos-castaneda-1384_abandon_the-only-thing-we-all-have-in-common-is_1792072.jpg) [Open image](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/3b0/carlos-castaneda-1384_abandon_the-only-thing-we-all-have-in-common-is_1792072.jpg) > “The only thing we all have in common is that we play tricks in order to force ourselves to abandon the quest. The counter-measure is to persist in spite of all the barriers and disappointments.” [Carlos Castaneda](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/carlos-castaneda/) ## About This Quote This interpretation was drafted with AI assistance. It is one reading of the quote, not the author's own explanation. We share a tendency to sabotage ourselves; the remedy is relentless persistence despite obstacles. **In simple terms:** Self‑sabotage; keep persisting. Key Takeaway Persist despite setbacks. Themes self‑sabotage perseverance growth Mood reflective motivational Type inspirational philosophical When to use this quote - personal goals - creative projects - habit formation Key Concepts resilience mindset determination Questions to Reflect On - What barriers do you repeatedly face? - How can you sustain motivation? A Different Perspective Persistence can lead to burnout if not balanced. ★ ★ ★ ★ ★ No ratings yet [Abandon](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/abandon/) [Abandon Quest](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/abandon-quest-1955242/) [Adventure](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/adventure/) [Barriers](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/barriers/) [Common](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/common/) [Disappointment](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/disappointment/) [Force](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/force/) [Order](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/order/) [Persist](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/persist/) [Persist Spite](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/persist-spite-1955241/) [Play](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/play/) [Quest](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/quest/) [Quests](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/quests/) [Spite](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/spite/) [Spite Barriers](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/spite-barriers-1955243/) [Tricks](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/tricks/) ## Related quotes > [Do not lose heart, even if you must wait a bit before finding the right thing. Be prepared for disappointment also, but do not…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/albert-schweitzer/do-not-lose-heart-even-if-you-must-wait-a-bit-before-finding-the/) [Albert Schweitzer](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/albert-schweitzer/) > [“Never in former days would any high lord of this land have constrained a man to abandon such a quest as mine. My duty…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/j-r-r-tolkien/never-in-former-days-would-any-high-lord-of-this-land-have/) [J.R.R. Tolkien](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/j-r-r-tolkien/) > [“You clutch your comfortable excuses, saying, Someday I'll be brave, it won't take a lot, just give me one more chance and this time…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/james-alan-gardner/you-clutch-your-comfortable-excuses-saying-someday-i-ll-be-brave-it/) [James Alan Gardner](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/james-alan-gardner/) > [Say it, reader. Say the word 'quest' out loud. It is an extraordinary word, isn't it? So small and yet so full of wonder,…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/kate-dicamillo/say-it-reader-say-the-word-quest-out-loud-it-is-an-extraordinary-word/) [Kate DiCamillo](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/kate-dicamillo/) > [Without a quest, life is quickly reduced to bleak black and wimpy white, a diet too bland to get anybody out of bed in…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/charles-r-swindoll/without-a-quest-life-is-quickly-reduced-to-bleak-black-and-wimpy/) [Charles R. Swindoll](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/charles-r-swindoll/) > [Productivity - the amount of output delivered per hour of work in the economy - is often viewed as the engine of progress in…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/tim-jackson/productivity-the-amount-of-output-delivered-per-hour-of-work-in-the/) [Tim Jackson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/tim-jackson/) > [Death or success is what I quest, cause I'm fearless.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/tupac-shakur/death-or-success-is-what-i-quest-cause-i-m-fearless/) [Tupac Shakur](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/tupac-shakur/) > [Our world is limited by the machinery we carry. It's very different to the 18th and 19th century Enlightenment scientists who were mostly men…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/bernard-beckett/our-world-is-limited-by-the-machinery-we-carry-it-s-very-different-to/) [Bernard Beckett](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/bernard-beckett/) > [I'm also starting to wonder something else. If maybe the point of this crazy quest I'm on wasn't to help me find Willem. Maybe…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/gayle-forman/i-m-also-starting-to-wonder-something-else-if-maybe-the-point-of-this/) [Gayle Forman](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/gayle-forman/) > [Funny how "question" contains the word "quest" inside it, as though any small question asked is a journey through briars.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/catherynne-m-valente/funny-how-question-contains-the-word-quest-inside-it-as-though-any/) [Catherynne M. Valente](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/catherynne-m-valente/) > [Transgression is a quest for solitude](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/adam-phillips/transgression-is-a-quest-for-solitude/) [Adam Phillips](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/adam-phillips/) > [Perfectionism is not a quest for the best. It is a pursuit of the worst in ourselves, the part that tells us that nothing…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/julia-cameron/perfectionism-is-not-a-quest-for-the-best-it-is-a-pursuit-of-the/) [Julia Cameron](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/julia-cameron/) > [Like any family, like any group - the Beatles, Led Zeppelin, EPMD, Public Enemy - they've had bumps in the road. I just think…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/michael-rapaport/like-any-family-like-any-group-the-beatles-led-zeppelin-epmd-public/) [Michael Rapaport](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/michael-rapaport/) > [There are no shortcuts in the quest for perfection.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ben-hogan/there-are-no-shortcuts-in-the-quest-for-perfection/) [Ben Hogan](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ben-hogan/) > [To be on a quest is nothing more or less than to become an asker of questions.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/sam-keen/to-be-on-a-quest-is-nothing-more-or-less-than-to-become-an-asker-of/) [Sam Keen](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/sam-keen/) ## More by Carlos Castaneda > [A warrior, or any man for that matter, cannot possibly wish he were somewhere else; a warrior because he lives by challenge, an ordinary…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/carlos-castaneda/a-warrior-or-any-man-for-that-matter-cannot-possibly-wish-he-were/) [Carlos Castaneda](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/carlos-castaneda/) > [You see all of us go through the same doubts. We are afraid of being mad; unfortunately for us, of course, all of us…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/carlos-castaneda/you-see-all-of-us-go-through-the-same-doubts-we-are-afraid-of-being/) [Carlos Castaneda](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/carlos-castaneda/) > [Intent is what can make a man succeed when his thoughts tell him that he is defeated.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/carlos-castaneda/intent-is-what-can-make-a-man-succeed-when-his-thoughts-tell-him-that/) [Carlos Castaneda](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/carlos-castaneda/) > [The shadows in the early morning don't tell much. The shadows rest at that time. So it's useless to gaze very early in the…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/carlos-castaneda/the-shadows-in-the-early-morning-don-t-tell-much-the-shadows-rest-at/) [Carlos Castaneda](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/carlos-castaneda/) > [One can say that the nagual accounts for creativity. The nagual is the only part of us that can create.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/carlos-castaneda/one-can-say-that-the-nagual-accounts-for-creativity-the-nagual-is-the/) [Carlos Castaneda](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/carlos-castaneda/) > [Do you know at this very moment you are surrounded by eternity? And do you know that you can use that eternity if you…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/carlos-castaneda/do-you-know-at-this-very-moment-you-are-surrounded-by-eternity-and-do/) [Carlos Castaneda](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/carlos-castaneda/) > [When a warrior learns to stop the internal dialogue, everything becomes possible; the most far-fetched schemes become attainable.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/carlos-castaneda/when-a-warrior-learns-to-stop-the-internal-dialogue-everything/) [Carlos Castaneda](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/carlos-castaneda/) > [Nothing in this world is a gift. Whatever must be learned must be learned the hard way.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/carlos-castaneda/nothing-in-this-world-is-a-gift-whatever-must-be-learned-must-be/) [Carlos Castaneda](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/carlos-castaneda/) > [Our normal expectations about reality are created by a social consensus. We are taught how to see and understand the world. The trick of…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/carlos-castaneda/our-normal-expectations-about-reality-are-created-by-a-social/) [Carlos Castaneda](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/carlos-castaneda/) > [Inner silence works from the moment you begin to accrue it. What the old sorcerers were after was the final dramatic, end result of…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/carlos-castaneda/inner-silence-works-from-the-moment-you-begin-to-accrue-it-what-the/) [Carlos Castaneda](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/carlos-castaneda/) > [In a world where death is the hunter, my friend, there is no time for regrets or doubts. There is only time for decisions.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/carlos-castaneda/in-a-world-where-death-is-the-hunter-my-friend-there-is-no-time-for/) [Carlos Castaneda](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/carlos-castaneda/) > [Fright is something one can never get over. When a warrior is caught in such a tight spot he would simply turn his back…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/carlos-castaneda/fright-is-something-one-can-never-get-over-when-a-warrior-is-caught/) [Carlos Castaneda](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/carlos-castaneda/) > [You're in a terrible spot. It's too late for you to retreat but too soon to act. All you can do is witness. You're…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/carlos-castaneda/you-re-in-a-terrible-spot-it-s-too-late-for-you-to-retreat-but-too/) [Carlos Castaneda](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/carlos-castaneda/) > [A hunter that is worth his salt does not catch game because he sets his traps, or because he knows the hunting routines of…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/carlos-castaneda/a-hunter-that-is-worth-his-salt-does-not-catch-game-because-he-sets/) [Carlos Castaneda](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/carlos-castaneda/) > [If you were a warrior, you would know that the worst thing one can do is confront human beings directly.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/carlos-castaneda/if-you-were-a-warrior-you-would-know-that-the-worst-thing-one-can-do/) [Carlos Castaneda](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/carlos-castaneda/) [Explore all 244 Carlos Castaneda quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/carlos-castaneda/) ## More Abandon quotes > [Humans are, as Sartre put it, 'condemned to be free'. To insist that science, or God, objectively defines moral values is to abandon our…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/kenan-malik/humans-are-as-sartre-put-it-condemned-to-be-free-to-insist-that/) [Kenan Malik](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/kenan-malik/) > [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/) > [However, however, if the goal is to abandon America's free enterprise economy, if the goal is to convert America into a submissive member of…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/marco-rubio/however-however-if-the-goal-is-to-abandon-america-s-free-enterprise/) [Marco Rubio](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/marco-rubio/) > [I would leave at once, but it would be cruel to abandon a lady in a foreign land with a maniac.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/cassandra-clare/i-would-leave-at-once-but-it-would-be-cruel-to-abandon-a-lady-in-a/) [Cassandra Clare](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/cassandra-clare/) > [When we fall utterly, something gathers us up. But our falling must be without reservation, without expectation, without hope, though not hopeless. You cant…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/roger-housden/when-we-fall-utterly-something-gathers-us-up-but-our-falling-must-be/) [Roger Housden](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/roger-housden/) > [every subjective phenomenon is essentially connected with a single point of view, and it seems inevitable that an objective, physical theory will abandon that…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/thomas-nagel/every-subjective-phenomenon-is-essentially-connected-with-a-single/) [Thomas Nagel](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/thomas-nagel/) > [Can you dissolve your ego? Can you abandon the idea of self and other? Can you relinquish the notions of male and female, short…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/laozi/can-you-dissolve-your-ego-can-you-abandon-the-idea-of-self-and-other/) [Laozi](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/laozi/) > [Every great thing starts with an idea, followed by a doubt and finally a resolve to abandon or pursue. Victory is a treacherous journey.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/dane-cook/every-great-thing-starts-with-an-idea-followed-by-a-doubt-and-finally/) [Dane Cook](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/dane-cook/) > [Those who have been once intoxicated with power, and have derived any kind of emolument from it, even though but for one year, never…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/edmund-burke/those-who-have-been-once-intoxicated-with-power-and-have-derived-any/) [Edmund Burke](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/edmund-burke/) > [Do not lose hope; St. Joseph also experienced moments of difficulty, but he never lost faith and was able to overcome them, in the…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/pope-francis/do-not-lose-hope-st-joseph-also-experienced-moments-of-difficulty-but/) [Pope Francis](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/pope-francis/) > [It is a dangerous and fateful presumption, besides the absurd temerity that it implies, to disdain what we do not comprehend. For after you…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anonymous/it-is-a-dangerous-and-fateful-presumption-besides-the-absurd-temerity/) [Anonymous](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anonymous/) > [“Don't give up because things are hard, but work harder, when you think of giving up.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anthony-liccione/don-t-give-up-because-things-are-hard-but-work-harder-when-you-think/) [Anthony Liccione](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anthony-liccione/) > [Sex is not the ultimate high, but the ultimate high hangs out around sex. The ultimate high is the dance with another person, played…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/marianne-williamson/sex-is-not-the-ultimate-high-but-the-ultimate-high-hangs-out-around/) [Marianne Williamson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/marianne-williamson/) > [I care so deeply about this matter that I'm willing to take on the legal penalties, to sit in this prison cell, to sacrifice…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/mahatma-gandhi/i-care-so-deeply-about-this-matter-that-i-m-willing-to-take-on-the/) [Mahatma Gandhi](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/mahatma-gandhi/) > [I've been to unpretty places with the roles I've played, and I'm attracted to reckless abandon. I like being taken to the edge of…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/rhys-ifans/i-ve-been-to-unpretty-places-with-the-roles-i-ve-played-and-i-m/) [Rhys Ifans](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/rhys-ifans/) [Browse all 1,142 Abandon quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/abandon/) ```json { "@context": "https://schema.org", "@graph": [ { "@type": "Quotation", "text": "The only thing we all have in common is that we play tricks in order to force ourselves to abandon the quest. 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