--- title: "Meaning & Key Takeaway of: She was reaching the limits of how much…" description: "\"She was reaching the limits of how much its possible to change a man\" — David Nicholls" image: "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/987/david-nicholls-873_limits_she-was-reaching-the-limits-of-how-much_22975.png" --- # She was reaching the limits of how much its possible to… ![“She was reaching the limits of how much its possible to change a man” quote by David Nicholls](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/987/david-nicholls-873_limits_she-was-reaching-the-limits-of-how-much_22975.png) [Download](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/987/david-nicholls-873_limits_she-was-reaching-the-limits-of-how-much_22975.png) [Open image](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/987/david-nicholls-873_limits_she-was-reaching-the-limits-of-how-much_22975.png) > “She was reaching the limits of how much its possible to change a man” [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. The quote captures the frustration of attempting to alter someone's core nature, suggesting that personal change has boundaries beyond which effort becomes futile. **In simple terms:** Limits of personal change Key Takeaway Change has limits Themes personal growth relationships human nature limits frustration Mood reflective melancholic Type advice observation When to use this quote - marriage counseling - parent‑child dynamics - friendship conflict - workplace mentorship - self‑help therapy Key Concepts identity agency effort Practical Applications - relationship counseling - personal development coaching Questions to Reflect On - When is it realistic to expect someone to change? - How do we recognize when effort is wasted? ★ ★ ★ ★ ★ No ratings yet [Limits](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/limits/) [Men](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/men/) [Possible change](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/possible-change/) ## Related quotes > [It would appear that we have reached the limits of what it is possible to achieve with computer technology, although one should be careful…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/john-von-neumann/it-would-appear-that-we-have-reached-the-limits-of-what-it-is/) [John von Neumann](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/john-von-neumann/) > [We have to learn how to work within the limits that are possible, not what is desirable.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/roberto-azevedo/we-have-to-learn-how-to-work-within-the-limits-that-are-possible-not/) [Roberto Azevedo](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/roberto-azevedo/) > [The only way to find the limits of the possible is by going beyond them to the impossible.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/arthur-c-clarke-2/the-only-way-to-find-the-limits-of-the-possible-is-by-going-beyond/) [Arthur C Clarke](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/arthur-c-clarke-2/) > [The only way of finding the limits of the possible is by going beyond them into the impossible.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anonymous/the-only-way-of-finding-the-limits-of-the-possible-is-by-going-beyond-3/) [Anonymous](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anonymous/) > [The only way to discover the limits of the possible is to go beyond them into the impossible.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/arthur-c-clarke/the-only-way-to-discover-the-limits-of-the-possible-is-to-go-beyond/) [Arthur C. Clarke](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/arthur-c-clarke/) > [It's a lot easier to see, at least in some cases, what the long-term limits of the possible will be, because they depend on…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/k-eric-drexler/it-s-a-lot-easier-to-see-at-least-in-some-cases-what-the-long-term/) [K. Eric Drexler](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/k-eric-drexler/) > [“The limits of possible can only be defined by going beyond them into the impossible.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/arthur-c-clarke/the-limits-of-possible-can-only-be-defined-by-going-beyond-them-into/) [Arthur C. Clarke](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/arthur-c-clarke/) > [The only way of finding the limits of the possible is by going beyond the impossible.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/stankyrich/the-only-way-of-finding-the-limits-of-the-possible-is-by-going-beyond-2/) Stankyrich > [The only way of discovering the limits of the possible is to venture a little way past them into the impossible.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/arthur-c-clarke-2/the-only-way-of-discovering-the-limits-of-the-possible-is-to-venture/) [Arthur C Clarke](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/arthur-c-clarke-2/) > [“The limits of the possible can only be defined by going beyond them.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/arthur-c-clarke/the-limits-of-the-possible-can-only-be-defined-by-going-beyond-them/) [Arthur C. Clarke](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/arthur-c-clarke/) > [The only way of finding the limits of the possible is by going beyond them into the impossible. ( C. Clarke)](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/thought-of-the-day/the-only-way-of-finding-the-limits-of-the-possible-is-by-going-beyond/) Thought Of The Day > [O my soul, do not aspire to immortal life, but exhaust the limits of the possible.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/pindar/o-my-soul-do-not-aspire-to-immortal-life-but-exhaust-the-limits-of/) [Pindar](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/pindar/) > [I have no use for people who have learned the limits of the possible.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/terry-pratchett/i-have-no-use-for-people-who-have-learned-the-limits-of-the-possible/) [Terry Pratchett](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/terry-pratchett/) > [Whenever the current of money is forcibly stopped, and when money is prevented from settling at its just level, there are no limits to…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/david-ricardo/whenever-the-current-of-money-is-forcibly-stopped-and-when-money-is/) [David Ricardo](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/david-ricardo/) > [I do not claim to have perfected an art but to have commenced one, the limits of which it is not possible at present…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/henry-fox-talbot/i-do-not-claim-to-have-perfected-an-art-but-to-have-commenced-one-the/) Henry Fox Talbot ## 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/) > [“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/) > [“That was a memorable day to me, for it made great changes in me. But, it is the same with any life. Imagine one…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/david-nicholls/that-was-a-memorable-day-to-me-for-it-made-great-changes-in-me-but-it/) [David Nicholls](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/david-nicholls/) [Explore all 332 David Nicholls quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/david-nicholls/) ## More Limits quotes > [I could not limit my values and pursuits to what makes others comfortable. Being possessed by a promise I live without options. I will…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/bill-johnson/i-could-not-limit-my-values-and-pursuits-to-what-makes-others/) [Bill Johnson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/bill-johnson/) > [I live life without limits and I will go after anything I want with no hesitation.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/liv-morgan/i-live-life-without-limits-and-i-will-go-after-anything-i-want-with/) [Liv Morgan](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/liv-morgan/) > [The number of ways you can live in one lifetime is limitless. So why limit yourself? The sky is not the limit. Beyond the…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/suzy-kassem/the-number-of-ways-you-can-live-in-one-lifetime-is-limitless-so-why/) [Suzy Kassem](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/suzy-kassem/) > [“Via your talents, you can go beyond the limits!”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/mehmet-murat-ildan/via-your-talents-you-can-go-beyond-the-limits/) [Mehmet Murat ildan](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/mehmet-murat-ildan/) > [While the world of reality has its limits, the world of your imagination is without boundaries](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/wayne-dyer/while-the-world-of-reality-has-its-limits-the-world-of-your/) [Wayne Dyer](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/wayne-dyer/) > [Everything in this life have limitations, so in order for you to succeed in life you need to know the limitation of everything you…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/bernard-emmanuel/everything-in-this-life-have-limitations-so-in-order-for-you-to/) Bernard Emmanuel > [Never belong to a crowd; Never belong to a nation; Never belong to a religion; Never belong to a race. Belong to the whole…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/rajneesh/never-belong-to-a-crowd-never-belong-to-a-nation-never-belong-to-a/) [Rajneesh](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/rajneesh/) > [If you take text and image and you put them together, the multiple readings that are possible in either poetry or in something visual…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/richard-hell/if-you-take-text-and-image-and-you-put-them-together-the-multiple/) [Richard Hell](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/richard-hell/) > [We don’t want to limit what God can do in our children by trying to parent them alone—Trust God to take care of them.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/stormie-omartian/we-don-t-want-to-limit-what-god-can-do-in-our-children-by-trying-to/) [Stormie Omartian](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/stormie-omartian/) > [New generations of humans inherit the acquired discoveries of generations past, allowing cosmic insight to accumulate without limit. Each discovery of science therefore adds…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/neil-degrasse-tyson/new-generations-of-humans-inherit-the-acquired-discoveries-of/) [Neil deGrasse Tyson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/neil-degrasse-tyson/) > [The earliest language was body language and, since this language is the language of questions, if we limit the questions, and if we only…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/paulo-freire/the-earliest-language-was-body-language-and-since-this-language-is/) [Paulo Freire](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/paulo-freire/) > [True freedom is an inward state of being. Once it is attained, no situation in the world can bind one or limit one's freedom.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jack-canfield/true-freedom-is-an-inward-state-of-being-once-it-is-attained-no/) [Jack Canfield](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jack-canfield/) > [The stars are not the limit.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/vanna-bonta/the-stars-are-not-the-limit/) [Vanna Bonta](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/vanna-bonta/) > [The ultimate goal of radical politics is gradually to displace the limit of social exclusions, empowering the excluded agents (sexual and ethnic minorities) by…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/slavoj-i-ek/the-ultimate-goal-of-radical-politics-is-gradually-to-displace-the/) [Slavoj Žižek](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/slavoj-i-ek/) > [I would like to have campaign spending limits.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/mitt-romney/i-would-like-to-have-campaign-spending-limits/) [Mitt Romney](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/mitt-romney/) [Browse all 4,240 Limits quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/limits/) ```json { "@context": "https://schema.org", "@graph": [ { "@type": "Quotation", "text": "She was reaching the limits of how much its possible to change a man", "creator": { "@type": "Person", "name": "David Nicholls" }, "isPartOf": { "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/#website" }, "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/david-nicholls/she-was-reaching-the-limits-of-how-much-its-possible-to-change-a-man/", "about": { "@type": "Thing", "name": "Limits" }, "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/david-nicholls/she-was-reaching-the-limits-of-how-much-its-possible-to-change-a-man/#quotation", "image": { "@type": "ImageObject", "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/987/david-nicholls-873_limits_she-was-reaching-the-limits-of-how-much_22975.png", "contentUrl": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/987/david-nicholls-873_limits_she-was-reaching-the-limits-of-how-much_22975.png", "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/987/david-nicholls-873_limits_she-was-reaching-the-limits-of-how-much_22975.png", "width": 1080, "height": 1080, "caption": "“She was reaching the limits of how much its possible to change a man” — David Nicholls", "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": "David Nicholls", "item": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/david-nicholls/" }, { "@type": "ListItem", "position": 4, "name": "She was reaching the limits of...", "item": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/david-nicholls/she-was-reaching-the-limits-of-how-much-its-possible-to-change-a-man/" } ], "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/david-nicholls/she-was-reaching-the-limits-of-how-much-its-possible-to-change-a-man/#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 } } ] } ```