--- title: "Meaning & Key Takeaway of: An interesting life,\" Yingling told me…" description: "\"“An interesting life,\" Yingling told me, \"is one filled with controversial successes punctuated by occasional and spectacular failures.”\" — Craig M. Mu..." image: "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/a86/craig-m-mullaney-52132_failure_an-interesting-life-yingling-told-me-is_434209.jpg" --- # An interesting life," Yingling told me, "is one filled… ![“An interesting life," Yingling told me, "is one filled with controversial successes punctuated by occasional and spectacular failures.” quote by Craig M. Mullaney](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/a86/craig-m-mullaney-52132_failure_an-interesting-life-yingling-told-me-is_434209.jpg) [Download](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/a86/craig-m-mullaney-52132_failure_an-interesting-life-yingling-told-me-is_434209.jpg) [Open image](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/a86/craig-m-mullaney-52132_failure_an-interesting-life-yingling-told-me-is_434209.jpg) > ““An interesting life," Yingling told me, "is one filled with controversial successes punctuated by occasional and spectacular failures.”” [Craig M. Mullaney](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/craig-m-mullaney/) ## About This Quote This interpretation was drafted with AI assistance. It is one reading of the quote, not the author's own explanation. A life rich in debate and achievement is marked by both bold successes and dramatic failures. **In simple terms:** Success and failure shape an interesting life. Key Takeaway Embrace both triumphs and setbacks. Themes risk controversy success failure growth Mood reflective inspirational thoughtful Type quote aphor philosophical When to use this quote - career decisions - public speaking - creative projects - entrepreneurial ventures Key Concepts personal development resilience learning from mistakes Questions to Reflect On - What controversial success have you experienced? - How do you learn from spectacular failures? A Different Perspective Success may be glorified while failures are minimized. ★ ★ ★ ★ ★ No ratings yet [Controversial Successes](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/controversial-successes-3820634/) [Failure](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/failure/) [Interesting life](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/interesting-life/) [Life](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/life/) [Life Yingling](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/life-yingling-3820637/) [Spectacular Failures](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/spectacular-failures-3820636/) [Yingling Told](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/yingling-told-3820635/) ## Related quotes > [After my spectacular failures, I could not be satisfied with an ordinary success.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/mason-cooley/after-my-spectacular-failures-i-could-not-be-satisfied-with-an/) [Mason Cooley](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/mason-cooley/) > [You live in an apartment in New York, and you think all the time about like, 'I don't even know who's living above me.'…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/marielle-heller/you-live-in-an-apartment-in-new-york-and-you-think-all-the-time-about/) [Marielle Heller](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/marielle-heller/) > [“As he was speaking, he kept reminding himself that he was going to a rendezvous and that not a living soul knew about it,…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anton-chekhov/as-he-was-speaking-he-kept-reminding-himself-that-he-was-going-to-a/) [Anton Chekhov](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anton-chekhov/) > [“Well, hope for your thrilling career - but remember that if there is to be drama in your life somebody must pay the piper…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/l-m-montgomery/well-hope-for-your-thrilling-career-but-remember-that-if-there-is-to/) [L.M. Montgomery](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/l-m-montgomery/) > [A person loves to talk about his illnesses although that is the least interesting part of his life.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anton-chekhov/a-person-loves-to-talk-about-his-illnesses-although-that-is-the-least/) [Anton Chekhov](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anton-chekhov/) > [I don't think I've had a very interesting life, and I feel that is a great liberation. That gives me great freedom as a…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/john-irving/i-don-t-think-i-ve-had-a-very-interesting-life-and-i-feel-that-is-a/) [John Irving](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/john-irving/) > [Live an interesting life. Meet people. Read a lot and widely, learn from the great writers](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/michael-morpurgo/live-an-interesting-life-meet-people-read-a-lot-and-widely-learn-from/) [Michael Morpurgo](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/michael-morpurgo/) > [Generally speaking, that's good drama - the marriage plot or the tragedy - but the reality of women's lives is that most of us…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/elizabeth-gilbert/generally-speaking-that-s-good-drama-the-marriage-plot-or-the-tragedy/) [Elizabeth Gilbert](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/elizabeth-gilbert/) > [“A creative life is an amplified life. It's a bigger life, a happier life, an expanded life, and a hell of a lot more…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/elizabeth-gilbert/a-creative-life-is-an-amplified-life-it-s-a-bigger-life-a-happier-2/) [Elizabeth Gilbert](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/elizabeth-gilbert/) > [“Interesting how life goes on in spite of itself.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/maria-v-snyder/interesting-how-life-goes-on-in-spite-of-itself/) [Maria V. Snyder](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/maria-v-snyder/) > [Pursuing success is like chasing the horizon, and failure is an integral part of an interesting life.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ritu-ghatourey/pursuing-success-is-like-chasing-the-horizon-and-failure-is-an/) [Ritu Ghatourey](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ritu-ghatourey/) > [“A complicated life is an interesting life.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/suzanne-harper/a-complicated-life-is-an-interesting-life/) [Suzanne Harper](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/suzanne-harper/) > [A creative life is an amplified life. It's a bigger life, a happier life, an expanded life, and a hell of a lot more…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/elizabeth-gilbert/a-creative-life-is-an-amplified-life-it-s-a-bigger-life-a-happier/) [Elizabeth Gilbert](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/elizabeth-gilbert/) > [If you want an interesting life. Become interested.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/melchor-lim/if-you-want-an-interesting-life-become-interested/) [Melchor Lim](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/melchor-lim/) > [“What I’ve noticed being here is that many English people are in awe of America but also deeply resent it,” Obinze added. “Perfectly true,”…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/chimamanda-ngozi-adichie/what-i-ve-noticed-being-here-is-that-many-english-people-are-in-awe/) [Chimamanda Ngozi Adichie](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/chimamanda-ngozi-adichie/) ## More by Craig M. Mullaney > [“The best thing we could have done for Afghanistan was to get out of our Humvees and drink more green chai. We should have…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/craig-m-mullaney/the-best-thing-we-could-have-done-for-afghanistan-was-to-get-out-of/) [Craig M. Mullaney](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/craig-m-mullaney/) > [“Long distance is hard. You have to trust that as you each change on your own, your relationship will also change along with you.…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/craig-m-mullaney/long-distance-is-hard-you-have-to-trust-that-as-you-each-change-on/) [Craig M. Mullaney](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/craig-m-mullaney/) > [“Your heart I take in mine. Whatever is in your heart shall be in mine, whatever is in mine shall be in yours. Our…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/craig-m-mullaney/your-heart-i-take-in-mine-whatever-is-in-your-heart-shall-be-in-mine/) [Craig M. Mullaney](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/craig-m-mullaney/) > [“Question the answers, I repeated every class. Reevaluate your conclusions when the evidence changes.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/craig-m-mullaney/question-the-answers-i-repeated-every-class-reevaluate-your/) [Craig M. Mullaney](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/craig-m-mullaney/) > [“I wanted that future officer to weigh decisions with a supple mind and to be comfortable with nuance and uncertainty. ”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/craig-m-mullaney/i-wanted-that-future-officer-to-weigh-decisions-with-a-supple-mind/) [Craig M. Mullaney](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/craig-m-mullaney/) > [“Keep me in your heart and know that however great the distance, I am with you always.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/craig-m-mullaney/keep-me-in-your-heart-and-know-that-however-great-the-distance-i-am/) [Craig M. Mullaney](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/craig-m-mullaney/) [Explore all 7 Craig M. Mullaney quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/craig-m-mullaney/) ## More Failure quotes > [When you do things they're absolutely right at that time for you and it can always teach you something about yourself. 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Nothing makes failure acceptable, so you might…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anonymous/rhiannon-s-law-28-if-you-re-going-to-fuck-up-be-sure-to-fuck-up-good/) [Anonymous](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anonymous/) > [Failure is a part of life and you have to learn to deal with it. Failure is something that is part of life's cycle…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/colin-powell/failure-is-a-part-of-life-and-you-have-to-learn-to-deal-with-it/) [Colin Powell](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/colin-powell/) > [If my child had prejudice in his head, I'd be ashamed. I would see it as my failure as a parent.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/salman-rushdie/if-my-child-had-prejudice-in-his-head-i-d-be-ashamed-i-would-see-it/) [Salman Rushdie](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/salman-rushdie/) > [First action was a mistake. What about the second? third? fourth and fifth?...Mehn you are bad...](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anonymous/first-action-was-a-mistake-what-about-the-second-third-fourth-and/) [Anonymous](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anonymous/) > [God's love never fail :)](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anonymous/god-s-love-never-fail/) [Anonymous](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anonymous/) > [Don’t you just hate nights like that, when you think over every mistake you’ve made, every hurt you’ve received, every bit of meanness you’ve…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/charlaine-harris/don-t-you-just-hate-nights-like-that-when-you-think-over-every/) [Charlaine Harris](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/charlaine-harris/) > [“Our failure to understand another being's inner reality doesn't make that reality any less real, or any less valuable to that being. (p.255)”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/kathryn-schulz/our-failure-to-understand-another-being-s-inner-reality-doesn-t-make/) [Kathryn Schulz](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/kathryn-schulz/) > [I hope that the Palestinians don't make the mistake of unleashing a new intifada. They've tried it twice before, and the consequences were bad…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/tom-segev/i-hope-that-the-palestinians-don-t-make-the-mistake-of-unleashing-a/) [Tom Segev](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/tom-segev/) > [Don't take too much comfort in the fact that you're successful today because tomorrow could bring failure. There's no surety in life.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/michael-savage/don-t-take-too-much-comfort-in-the-fact-that-you-re-successful-today/) [Michael Savage](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/michael-savage/) > [“It took me years to learn to sit at my desk for more than two minutes at a time, to put up with the…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/erica-jong/it-took-me-years-to-learn-to-sit-at-my-desk-for-more-than-two-minutes/) [Erica Jong](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/erica-jong/) > [failure in the theater is more public, more brilliant, more unreal than in any other field.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/lillian-hellman/failure-in-the-theater-is-more-public-more-brilliant-more-unreal-than/) [Lillian Hellman](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/lillian-hellman/) > [As we are coming to the end of the year, I want you to forget about the past, the failure, the negative thoughts or…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anonymous/as-we-are-coming-to-the-end-of-the-year-i-want-you-to-forget-about/) [Anonymous](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anonymous/) [Browse all 27,498 Failure quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/failure/) ```json { "@context": "https://schema.org", "@graph": [ { "@type": "Quotation", "text": "“An interesting life,\" Yingling told me, \"is one filled with controversial successes punctuated by occasional and spectacular failures.”", "creator": { "@type": "Person", "name": "Craig M. 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