--- title: "Meaning & Key Takeaway of: Failure and unhappiness is easier because…" description: "\"Failure and unhappiness is easier because you can make a joke out of it.\" — David Nicholls" image: "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/1aa/david-nicholls-873_comedy_failure-and-unhappiness-is-easier-becaus_2886595.png" --- # Failure and unhappiness is easier because you can make a… ![“Failure and unhappiness is easier because you can make a joke out of it.” quote by David Nicholls](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/1aa/david-nicholls-873_comedy_failure-and-unhappiness-is-easier-becaus_2886595.png) [Download](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/1aa/david-nicholls-873_comedy_failure-and-unhappiness-is-easier-becaus_2886595.png) [Open image](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/1aa/david-nicholls-873_comedy_failure-and-unhappiness-is-easier-becaus_2886595.png) > “Failure and unhappiness is easier because you can make a joke out of it.” [David Nicholls](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/david-nicholls/) ## About This Quote This interpretation was drafted with AI assistance. It is one reading of the quote, not the author's own explanation. Finding humor in failure and unhappiness can make them more bearable. **In simple terms:** Humor eases pain. Key Takeaway Use jokes to cope. Themes resilience humor adversity Mood lighthearted reflective Type coping philosophical When to use this quote - personal setbacks - stressful days - social interactions - public speaking Key Concepts cognitive reframing emotional regulation Questions to Reflect On - How does humor change your perception of failure? - When is joking inappropriate? A Different Perspective Humor may mask underlying issues instead of solving them. ★ ★ ★ ★ ★ No ratings yet [Comedy](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/comedy/) [Easier](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/easier/) [Failure](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/failure/) [Failure Unhappiness](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/failure-unhappiness-468655/) [Joke](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/joke/) [Jokes](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/jokes/) [Make Joke](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/make-joke/) [Sadness](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/sadness/) [Unhappiness](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/unhappiness/) [Unhappiness Easier](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/unhappiness-easier-468653/) ## Related quotes > [I think you actually get a kick out of being disappointed and under-achieving, because it's easier, isn't it? Failure and unhappiness is easier because…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/david-nicholls/i-think-you-actually-get-a-kick-out-of-being-disappointed-and-under/) [David Nicholls](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/david-nicholls/) > [“I think you're scared of being happy, Emma. I think you think that the natural way of things is for your life to be…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/david-nicholls/i-think-you-re-scared-of-being-happy-emma-i-think-you-think-that-the/) [David Nicholls](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/david-nicholls/) > [“Em, we've known each other five or six years now, but two years properly, as, you know, 'friends', which isn't that long but I…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/david-nicholls/em-we-ve-known-each-other-five-or-six-years-now-but-two-years/) [David Nicholls](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/david-nicholls/) > [The sense of unhappiness is so much easier to convey than that of happiness. In misery we seem aware of our own existence, even…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/graham-greene/the-sense-of-unhappiness-is-so-much-easier-to-convey-than-that-of/) [Graham Greene](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/graham-greene/) > [I could never make a joke about somebody unless I could say it to their face and they'd laugh.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/margaret-cho/i-could-never-make-a-joke-about-somebody-unless-i-could-say-it-to/) [Margaret Cho](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/margaret-cho/) > [“The sense of unhappiness is so much easier to convey than that of happiness.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/graham-greene/the-sense-of-unhappiness-is-so-much-easier-to-convey-than-that-of-2/) [Graham Greene](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/graham-greene/) > [To grumble about the world and its unhappiness is always easier than to beat one's breast and groan over oneself.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anonymous/to-grumble-about-the-world-and-its-unhappiness-is-always-easier-than/) [Anonymous](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anonymous/) > [I'm about being funny. If I can make a joke using profanity, I will. But for the most part, that can get awfully old…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/howard-stern/i-m-about-being-funny-if-i-can-make-a-joke-using-profanity-i-will-but/) [Howard Stern](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/howard-stern/) > [People think I'll kill you if you make a joke. I compare it to Clint Eastwood. I've only seen Clint Eastwood in movies. You…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ice-t/people-think-i-ll-kill-you-if-you-make-a-joke-i-compare-it-to-clint/) [Ice T](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ice-t/) > [With Congress, every time they make a joke it's a law, and every time they make a law it's a joke.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/will-rogers/with-congress-every-time-they-make-a-joke-it-s-a-law-and-every-time/) [Will Rogers](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/will-rogers/) > [Some people think a boxer is a gloomy guy with this heavy brow who always has to be serious. But why can't you laugh…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/oleksandr-usyk/some-people-think-a-boxer-is-a-gloomy-guy-with-this-heavy-brow-who/) [Oleksandr Usyk](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/oleksandr-usyk/) > [If there's something tender going on like that, I can't make up a joke and put it on Twitter.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/lucy-beaumont/if-there-s-something-tender-going-on-like-that-i-can-t-make-up-a-joke/) [Lucy Beaumont](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/lucy-beaumont/) > [“Those who lack a central purpose in life fall prey to worries, fears, and petty troubles, and end up stuck in self-pity. They may…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/james-allen/those-who-lack-a-central-purpose-in-life-fall-prey-to-worries-fears/) [James Allen](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/james-allen/) > [The chief cause of failure and unhappiness is trading what you want most for what you want right now](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/zig-ziglar/the-chief-cause-of-failure-and-unhappiness-is-trading-what-you-want/) [Zig Ziglar](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/zig-ziglar/) > [To not follow your passion in life is a recipe for failure and unhappiness.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/robert-greene/to-not-follow-your-passion-in-life-is-a-recipe-for-failure-and/) [Robert Greene](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/robert-greene/) ## More by David Nicholls > [These days grief seems like walking on a frozen river; most of the time he feels safe enough, but there is always that danger…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/david-nicholls/these-days-grief-seems-like-walking-on-a-frozen-river-most-of-the/) [David Nicholls](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/david-nicholls/) > [“Good God, 'the elusive thing'. She had reached a turning point. She no longer believed that a situation could be made better by writing…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/david-nicholls/good-god-the-elusive-thing-she-had-reached-a-turning-point-she-no/) [David Nicholls](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/david-nicholls/) > [Emma was a shocking driver, simultaneously sloppy and petrified, and for the first fifty miles had been absent-mindedly driving with her spectacles on top…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/david-nicholls/emma-was-a-shocking-driver-simultaneously-sloppy-and-petrified-and/) [David Nicholls](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/david-nicholls/) > [I still find it absurdly difficult to concentrate on a novel if there's a phone or computer to hand; I have taken to locking…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/david-nicholls/i-still-find-it-absurdly-difficult-to-concentrate-on-a-novel-if-there/) [David Nicholls](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/david-nicholls/) > [You've got to stop letting women slip drugs into your mouth, Dex, it's unhygienic. And dangerous. One day it'll be a cyanide capsule.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/david-nicholls/you-ve-got-to-stop-letting-women-slip-drugs-into-your-mouth-dex-it-s/) [David Nicholls](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/david-nicholls/) > [“He presses two fingers against each eye and attempts to account for this crippling melancholy, but is having trouble with rational thought. It feels…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/david-nicholls/he-presses-two-fingers-against-each-eye-and-attempts-to-account-for/) [David Nicholls](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/david-nicholls/) > [“Live each day as if it's our last', that was the conventional advice, but really who had the energy for that? What if it…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/david-nicholls/live-each-day-as-if-it-s-our-last-that-was-the-conventional-advice/) [David Nicholls](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/david-nicholls/) > [She was reaching the limits of how much its possible to change a man](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/david-nicholls/she-was-reaching-the-limits-of-how-much-its-possible-to-change-a-man/) [David Nicholls](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/david-nicholls/) > [“How would she fill the days? She had no idea. The trick of it, she told herself, is to be courageous and bold and…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/david-nicholls/how-would-she-fill-the-days-she-had-no-idea-the-trick-of-it-she-told/) [David Nicholls](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/david-nicholls/) > [“What if it rained or you felt a bit glandy? It just wasn't practical. Better by far to simply try and be good and…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/david-nicholls/what-if-it-rained-or-you-felt-a-bit-glandy-it-just-wasn-t-practical/) [David Nicholls](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/david-nicholls/) > [Sometimes, when it is going badly, she wonders if what she believes to be a love of the written word is really just a…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/david-nicholls/sometimes-when-it-is-going-badly-she-wonders-if-what-she-believes-to/) [David Nicholls](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/david-nicholls/) > [The city had defeated her, just like they said it would. Like some overcrowded party, no one had noticed her arrival, and would notice…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/david-nicholls/the-city-had-defeated-her-just-like-they-said-it-would-like-some/) [David Nicholls](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/david-nicholls/) > [Better by far to be good and courageous and bold and to make difference. Not change the world exactly, but the bit around you](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/david-nicholls/better-by-far-to-be-good-and-courageous-and-bold-and-to-make/) [David Nicholls](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/david-nicholls/) > [A screenplay is really an instruction manual, and it can be interpreted in any number of ways. The casting, the choice of location, the…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/david-nicholls/a-screenplay-is-really-an-instruction-manual-and-it-can-be/) [David Nicholls](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/david-nicholls/) > [Most of the books and films I love walk a knife edge between romance and cynicism, and I wanted 'One Day' to stay on…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/david-nicholls/most-of-the-books-and-films-i-love-walk-a-knife-edge-between-romance/) [David Nicholls](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/david-nicholls/) [Explore all 332 David Nicholls quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/david-nicholls/) ## More Comedy quotes > ['Mad TV' is one of my most favorite shows of all time and is a huge part of my obsession with sketch comedy.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/shane-dawson/mad-tv-is-one-of-my-most-favorite-shows-of-all-time-and-is-a-huge/) [Shane Dawson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/shane-dawson/) > [You can laugh at me, but I understand show business.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ksenia-sobchak/you-can-laugh-at-me-but-i-understand-show-business/) [Ksenia Sobchak](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ksenia-sobchak/) > [Joking about violence is not funny.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/perez-hilton/joking-about-violence-is-not-funny/) [Perez Hilton](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/perez-hilton/) > [I wouldn't want people to laugh at me. That's why I have to give all that I can, and at least produce something that…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/zhao-wei/i-wouldn-t-want-people-to-laugh-at-me-that-s-why-i-have-to-give-all/) [Zhao Wei](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/zhao-wei/) > [“Our world will not die as a result of the bomb, as the papers say, it will die of laughter, of banality, of making a joke…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/carlos-ruiz-zafon/our-world-will-not-die-as-a-result-of-the-bomb-as-the-papers-say-it/) [Carlos Ruiz Zafon](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/carlos-ruiz-zafon/) > [I've been funny my whole life. This is a gift God gave me.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/tracy-morgan/i-ve-been-funny-my-whole-life-this-is-a-gift-god-gave-me/) [Tracy Morgan](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/tracy-morgan/) > [“Laugh and grow strong”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ignatius-of-loyola/laugh-and-grow-strong/) [Ignatius of Loyola](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ignatius-of-loyola/) > [In the future, I would like to do more films with contemporary themes. Perhaps comedy, which is something I have done in theater but…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/luke-evans/in-the-future-i-would-like-to-do-more-films-with-contemporary-themes/) [Luke Evans](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/luke-evans/) > [That's something a lot of folks don't know about me - I'm pretty darn funny.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/michael-jai-white/that-s-something-a-lot-of-folks-don-t-know-about-me-i-m-pretty-darn/) [Michael Jai White](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/michael-jai-white/) > [I have that need in me, I want everyone to love me, but I'm embarrassed by that need, so I wanted to cover it…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anthony-jeselnik/i-have-that-need-in-me-i-want-everyone-to-love-me-but-i-m-embarrassed/) [Anthony Jeselnik](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anthony-jeselnik/) > [There's a difference between delivering real funny and just silly funny.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/lil-rel-howery/there-s-a-difference-between-delivering-real-funny-and-just-silly/) [Lil Rel Howery](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/lil-rel-howery/) > [Oh to that corkscrew, the useful tool to unlock the treasure of wit, the treasury of laughter, the front door of fellowship, and the…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/andrew-guzaldo/oh-to-that-corkscrew-the-useful-tool-to-unlock-the-treasure-of-wit/) [Andrew Guzaldo](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/andrew-guzaldo/) > [“Men circle like bees around honey, buzzing to communicate their sexual despair.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/carla-h-krueger/men-circle-like-bees-around-honey-buzzing-to-communicate-their-sexual/) [Carla H Krueger](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/carla-h-krueger/) > [I do love to laugh!](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/teresa-giudice/i-do-love-to-laugh/) [Teresa Giudice](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/teresa-giudice/) > [I really enjoy making people laugh; I've discovered that's a great technique. 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