--- title: "Meaning & Key Takeaway of: Set yourself a goal so difficult that…" description: "\"“Set yourself a goal so difficult that death will seem like a welcome reprieve.”\" — Chuck Palahniuk" image: "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/a35/chuck-palahniuk-37_death_set-yourself-a-goal-so-difficult-that-de_326066.jpg" --- # Set yourself a goal so difficult that death will seem like… ![“Set yourself a goal so difficult that death will seem like a welcome reprieve.” quote by Chuck Palahniuk](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/a35/chuck-palahniuk-37_death_set-yourself-a-goal-so-difficult-that-de_326066.jpg) [Download](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/a35/chuck-palahniuk-37_death_set-yourself-a-goal-so-difficult-that-de_326066.jpg) [Open image](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/a35/chuck-palahniuk-37_death_set-yourself-a-goal-so-difficult-that-de_326066.jpg) > ““Set yourself a goal so difficult that death will seem like a welcome reprieve.”” [Chuck Palahniuk](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/chuck-palahniuk/) ## About This Quote This interpretation was drafted with AI assistance. It is one reading of the quote, not the author's own explanation. Set an extreme goal so that death feels like a relief, highlighting the drive for purpose. **In simple terms:** Extreme goals make life feel meaningful. Key Takeaway Pursue challenging aspirations. Themes purpose mortality ambition Mood intense provocative Type philosophical inspirational When to use this quote - career ambition - personal growth - creative projects Key Concepts existentialism goal setting Questions to Reflect On - What goal would make you feel alive? - How do you balance risk and reward? A Different Perspective Unrealistic goals may cause burnout. ★ ★ ★ ★ ★ No ratings yet [Death](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/death/) [Difficult Death](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/difficult-death-3063137/) [Goal Difficult](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/goal-difficult-3030317/) [Goals](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/goals/) [Reprieve](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/reprieve/) [Set Goal](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/set-goal/) [Welcome Reprieve](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/welcome-reprieve-3063138/) ## Related quotes > [Your vision of where or who you want to be is the greatest asset you have. Without having a goal it’s difficult to score.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/paul-arden/your-vision-of-where-or-who-you-want-to-be-is-the-greatest-asset-you-2/) [Paul Arden](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/paul-arden/) > [Things automatically start happening when you give it a try! Never think you cannot do it. When u want something go for it. work…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/nikicorn/things-automatically-start-happening-when-you-give-it-a-try-never/) [Nikicorn](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/nikicorn/) > [Without having a goal it's difficult to score.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/paul-arden/without-having-a-goal-it-s-difficult-to-score/) [Paul Arden](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/paul-arden/) > [Set the goal to harvest what's in you rather than having a car, house or a relationship.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/t-d-jakes/set-the-goal-to-harvest-what-s-in-you-rather-than-having-a-car-house/) [T. D. Jakes](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/t-d-jakes/) > [Do not be misled by the fact that you are at liberty and relatively free; that for the moment you are not under lock…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ryszard-kapuscinski/do-not-be-misled-by-the-fact-that-you-are-at-liberty-and-relatively/) [Ryszard Kapuscinski](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ryszard-kapuscinski/) > [I don't accept defeat as final. Only death is final - and even then I hope for a reprieve.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/phil-gramm/i-don-t-accept-defeat-as-final-only-death-is-final-and-even-then-i/) [Phil Gramm](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/phil-gramm/) > [“For myself the delay may be compared with a reprieve; for in confidence I assure you, with the world it would obtain little credit…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/george-washington/for-myself-the-delay-may-be-compared-with-a-reprieve-for-in/) [George Washington](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/george-washington/) > [In psychiatry there is a certain condition known as delusion of reprieve. The condemned man, immediately before his execution, gets the illusion that he…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/viktor-e-frankl/in-psychiatry-there-is-a-certain-condition-known-as-delusion-of/) [Viktor E. Frankl](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/viktor-e-frankl/) > [“Sometimes, when you are worn down, day after day, relentlessly, with no reprieve for years piled on years, sometimes you lose everything but the…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/leila-sales/sometimes-when-you-are-worn-down-day-after-day-relentlessly-with-no/) [Leila Sales](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/leila-sales/) > [Necessity is harsh. Fate has no reprieve.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/euripides/necessity-is-harsh-fate-has-no-reprieve/) [Euripides](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/euripides/) > [Anyway I know only too well that all life is nothing but a brief reprieve from death.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/simone-de-beauvoir/anyway-i-know-only-too-well-that-all-life-is-nothing-but-a-brief/) [Simone de Beauvoir](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/simone-de-beauvoir/) > [“It’s ok, I get it,” I said, offering him the reprieve he needed. “Maybe I’ll see you around.” “Yeah, maybe,” he said and hung…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/caleb-pinkerton/it-s-ok-i-get-it-i-said-offering-him-the-reprieve-he-needed-maybe-i/) [Caleb Pinkerton](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/caleb-pinkerton/) > [“Deterence is only a stay of execution, not a reprieve.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jonathan-schell/deterence-is-only-a-stay-of-execution-not-a-reprieve/) [Jonathan Schell](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jonathan-schell/) > [Many of us understand giving, but some of us may still be confused about the meaning of forgiveness. Some people may go through life…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/john-templeton/many-of-us-understand-giving-but-some-of-us-may-still-be-confused/) [John Templeton](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/john-templeton/) > [This lie of a life can as quickly as it came dissolve. We seek only reprieve and welcome the darkness. The myth of a…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/lamb-of-god/this-lie-of-a-life-can-as-quickly-as-it-came-dissolve-we-seek-only/) [Lamb Of God](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/lamb-of-god/) ## More by Chuck Palahniuk > [Because after you've crossed some lines, you just keep crossing them. And there's no escaping from constant escape. Distracting ourselves. Avoiding confrontation. Getting past…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/chuck-palahniuk/because-after-you-ve-crossed-some-lines-you-just-keep-crossing-them/) [Chuck Palahniuk](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/chuck-palahniuk/) > [According to Plato, we don't learn anything. Our soul has lived so many lives that we know everything. Teachers and education can only remind…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/chuck-palahniuk/according-to-plato-we-don-t-learn-anything-our-soul-has-lived-so-many/) [Chuck Palahniuk](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/chuck-palahniuk/) > [His saliva tasted like the wet dicks of ten thousand lonely truck drivers.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/chuck-palahniuk/his-saliva-tasted-like-the-wet-dicks-of-ten-thousand-lonely-truck/) [Chuck Palahniuk](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/chuck-palahniuk/) > [“shoulder. They weigh that much. Tyler’s a banquet waiter,”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/chuck-palahniuk/shoulder-they-weigh-that-much-tyler-s-a-banquet-waiter/) [Chuck Palahniuk](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/chuck-palahniuk/) > [We'll never be as young as we are tonight.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/chuck-palahniuk/we-ll-never-be-as-young-as-we-are-tonight/) [Chuck Palahniuk](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/chuck-palahniuk/) > [“We drive west the rest of the night, away from where the sun will come up, trying to outrace it, trying not to see…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/chuck-palahniuk/we-drive-west-the-rest-of-the-night-away-from-where-the-sun-will-come/) [Chuck Palahniuk](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/chuck-palahniuk/) > [Just for the record, how I feel right now is very terrific.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/chuck-palahniuk/just-for-the-record-how-i-feel-right-now-is-very-terrific/) [Chuck Palahniuk](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/chuck-palahniuk/) > [Nobody's told me anything to date that I've been completely reviled by.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/chuck-palahniuk/nobody-s-told-me-anything-to-date-that-i-ve-been-completely-reviled-by/) [Chuck Palahniuk](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/chuck-palahniuk/) > [“Then you're trapped in your lovely nest, and the things you used to own, now they own you.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/chuck-palahniuk/then-you-re-trapped-in-your-lovely-nest-and-the-things-you-used-to/) [Chuck Palahniuk](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/chuck-palahniuk/) > [Some stories, you use up. Others use you up.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/chuck-palahniuk/some-stories-you-use-up-others-use-you-up/) [Chuck Palahniuk](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/chuck-palahniuk/) > [Verbs allow you to communicate a story in a much more converged or involuntary way for a reader. The verbs allow you to come…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/chuck-palahniuk/verbs-allow-you-to-communicate-a-story-in-a-much-more-converged-or/) [Chuck Palahniuk](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/chuck-palahniuk/) > [Waiters will always pee in soup, people will always fall in love.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/chuck-palahniuk/waiters-will-always-pee-in-soup-people-will-always-fall-in-love/) [Chuck Palahniuk](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/chuck-palahniuk/) > [“Branch Bacardi, star of The Da Vinci Load, To Drill a Mockingbird, The Postman Always Cums Twice, Chitty Chitty Gang Bang, The Twilight Bone,…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/chuck-palahniuk/branch-bacardi-star-of-the-da-vinci-load-to-drill-a-mockingbird-the/) [Chuck Palahniuk](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/chuck-palahniuk/) > [“Every unkind remark or crude gesture by others is a blessing, an opportunity to exercise our own capacity to forgive.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/chuck-palahniuk/every-unkind-remark-or-crude-gesture-by-others-is-a-blessing-an/) [Chuck Palahniuk](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/chuck-palahniuk/) > [“Nuestro deber es enseñar a esos hombres y mujeres la libertad a través de la esclavitud; y el coraje a través del miedo.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/chuck-palahniuk/nuestro-deber-es-ense-ar-a-esos-hombres-y-mujeres-la-libertad-a-trav/) [Chuck Palahniuk](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/chuck-palahniuk/) [Explore all 2,041 Chuck Palahniuk quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/chuck-palahniuk/) ## More Death quotes > [“He wondered how it was fair that your dying should depend so much on when you were born.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/mitch-albom/he-wondered-how-it-was-fair-that-your-dying-should-depend-so-much-on/) [Mitch Albom](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/mitch-albom/) > [What sets worlds in motion is the interplay of differences, their attractions and repulsions. Life is plurality, death is uniformity. By suppressing differences and…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/octavio-paz/what-sets-worlds-in-motion-is-the-interplay-of-differences-their/) [Octavio Paz](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/octavio-paz/) > [Most of us are convinced that we are our egos, which is who we think we are. The ego is part of our incarnation.…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ram-dass/most-of-us-are-convinced-that-we-are-our-egos-which-is-who-we-think/) [Ram Dass](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ram-dass/) > [I do not want to live at the cost of the life even of a snake. I should let him bite me to death…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/mahatma-gandhi/i-do-not-want-to-live-at-the-cost-of-the-life-even-of-a-snake-i/) [Mahatma Gandhi](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/mahatma-gandhi/) > [“It was beautiful. He thought he had never seen anything so beautiful in all his life; that, having seen it, he could die content,…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/mira-grant/it-was-beautiful-he-thought-he-had-never-seen-anything-so-beautiful/) [Mira Grant](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/mira-grant/) > [Retirement? You're talking about death, right?](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/robert-altman/retirement-you-re-talking-about-death-right/) [Robert Altman](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/robert-altman/) > [With multiplayer, permanent death, and an ever-changing world to explore and conquer, 'A Valley Without Wind' might be the place you're looking for if…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/rob-manuel/with-multiplayer-permanent-death-and-an-ever-changing-world-to/) [Rob Manuel](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/rob-manuel/) > [“What did you see?” she asked gently. His brow furrowed, as if he could not understand the question. Then his eyes turned to the…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/j-anthony-torino/what-did-you-see-she-asked-gently-his-brow-furrowed-as-if-he-could/) [J. Anthony Torino](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/j-anthony-torino/) > [Those whose life is long still strive for gain, and for all mortals all things take second place to money.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/sophocles/those-whose-life-is-long-still-strive-for-gain-and-for-all-mortals/) [Sophocles](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/sophocles/) > [“I practice Dying--every night-- But have not learned to, still-- Though Talented--by Mortal bones-- For such a common Skill.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/alan-w-powers/i-practice-dying-every-night-but-have-not-learned-to-still-though/) [Alan W. Powers](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/alan-w-powers/) > [“You must understand the pain and grief of losing someone is nothing more than a function of survival.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/steven-cooper/you-must-understand-the-pain-and-grief-of-losing-someone-is-nothing/) [Steven Cooper](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/steven-cooper/) > [I am not a depressive person at all, but I reflect a lot on my life, and life in general, from the perspective of…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/alejandro-gonzalez-inarritu/i-am-not-a-depressive-person-at-all-but-i-reflect-a-lot-on-my-life/) [Alejandro Gonzalez Inarritu](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/alejandro-gonzalez-inarritu/) > [“Death is a reality that calls the rest of life and all of our assorted strivings into sharp relief.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/craig-d-lounsbrough/death-is-a-reality-that-calls-the-rest-of-life-and-all-of-our/) [Craig D. Lounsbrough](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/craig-d-lounsbrough/) > [I love life. I love life to death.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/emmanuelle-riva/i-love-life-i-love-life-to-death/) [Emmanuelle Riva](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/emmanuelle-riva/) > [I think when you’re dying you start looking for important things in the corners. You can’t let anything that seems even semi-important pass, because…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/chris-crutcher/i-think-when-you-re-dying-you-start-looking-for-important-things-in/) [Chris Crutcher](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/chris-crutcher/) [Browse all 39,127 Death quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/death/) ```json { "@context": "https://schema.org", "@graph": [ { "@type": "Quotation", "text": "“Set yourself a goal so difficult that death will seem like a welcome reprieve.”", "creator": { "@type": "Person", "name": "Chuck Palahniuk" }, "isPartOf": { "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/#website" }, "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/chuck-palahniuk/set-yourself-a-goal-so-difficult-that-death-will-seem-like-a-welcome/", "about": { "@type": "Thing", "name": "Death" }, "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/chuck-palahniuk/set-yourself-a-goal-so-difficult-that-death-will-seem-like-a-welcome/#quotation", "image": { "@type": "ImageObject", "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/a35/chuck-palahniuk-37_death_set-yourself-a-goal-so-difficult-that-de_326066.jpg", "contentUrl": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/a35/chuck-palahniuk-37_death_set-yourself-a-goal-so-difficult-that-de_326066.jpg", "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/a35/chuck-palahniuk-37_death_set-yourself-a-goal-so-difficult-that-de_326066.jpg", "width": 1080, "height": 1080, "caption": "“Set yourself a goal so difficult that death will seem like a welcome reprieve.” — Chuck Palahniuk", "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": "Chuck Palahniuk", "item": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/chuck-palahniuk/" }, { "@type": "ListItem", "position": 4, "name": "“Set yourself a goal so difficult...", "item": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/chuck-palahniuk/set-yourself-a-goal-so-difficult-that-death-will-seem-like-a-welcome/" } ], "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/chuck-palahniuk/set-yourself-a-goal-so-difficult-that-death-will-seem-like-a-welcome/#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 } } ] } ```