--- title: "Meaning & Key Takeaway of: I went to college, grad school. I got an…" description: "\"I went to college, grad school. I got an M.B.A., had a really cush corporate job. But I was just bored stiff. I didn't fit that mold.\" — Dean Karnazes" image: "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/a84/dean-karnazes-7712_bored_i-went-to-college-grad-school-i-got-an-m_1541926.png" --- # I went to college, grad school. I got an M.B.A., had a… ![“I went to college, grad school. I got an M.B.A., had a really cush corporate job. But I was just bored stiff. I didn't fit that mold.” quote by Dean Karnazes](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/a84/dean-karnazes-7712_bored_i-went-to-college-grad-school-i-got-an-m_1541926.png) [Download](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/a84/dean-karnazes-7712_bored_i-went-to-college-grad-school-i-got-an-m_1541926.png) [Open image](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/a84/dean-karnazes-7712_bored_i-went-to-college-grad-school-i-got-an-m_1541926.png) > “I went to college, grad school. I got an M.B.A., had a really cush corporate job. But I was just bored stiff. I didn't fit that mold.” [Dean Karnazes](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/dean-karnazes/) ## About This Quote This interpretation was drafted with AI assistance. It is one reading of the quote, not the author's own explanation. He achieved academic and corporate success but felt unfulfilled because the path didn't match his true passions. **In simple terms:** Success without passion feels empty. Key Takeaway Seek work that aligns with personal values. Themes career fulfillment identity purpose conformity Mood restless reflective Type motivational philosophical When to use this quote - job dissatisfaction - career change - personal growth - exploring passions Key Concepts existentialism self‑actualization Questions to Reflect On - What aspects of your current role feel misaligned? - How can you integrate passion into existing responsibilities? A Different Perspective He may overlook practical needs of stability. ★ ★ ★ ★ ★ No ratings yet [Bored](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/bored/) [College](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/college/) [Corporate](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/corporate/) [Grad school](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/grad-school/) [Job](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/job/) [Jobs](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/jobs/) [School](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/school/) ## Related quotes > [“recent college grad and”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/kate-white/recent-college-grad-and/) [Kate White](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/kate-white/) > [Something that bothered people about 'Dawson's Creek' but as a writer, I kind of dug: writing those kids as though they were college grad…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/rob-thomas/something-that-bothered-people-about-dawson-s-creek-but-as-a-writer-i/) [Rob Thomas](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/rob-thomas/) > [We hear the stories every day now: the father who puts on a suit every morning and leaves the house so his daughter doesn't…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/mitch-mcconnell/we-hear-the-stories-every-day-now-the-father-who-puts-on-a-suit-every/) [Mitch McConnell](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/mitch-mcconnell/) > [In the acting community in New York we call 'Law & Order' 'grad school,' because everyone eventually does a 'Law & Order.' My first…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/dallas-roberts/in-the-acting-community-in-new-york-we-call-law-order-grad-school/) [Dallas Roberts](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/dallas-roberts/) > [I just had too much fun in college. I did well enough to get by, but not enough to get into grad school.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/bob-baffert/i-just-had-too-much-fun-in-college-i-did-well-enough-to-get-by-but/) [Bob Baffert](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/bob-baffert/) > [I graduated college in 2010, I thought I'd go to grad school then and I was accepted under a different program and I ended…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/tecia-torres/i-graduated-college-in-2010-i-thought-i-d-go-to-grad-school-then-and/) [Tecia Torres](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/tecia-torres/) > [My odyssey to become an astronaut kind of started in grad school, and I was working, up at MIT, in space robotics-related work; human…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/michael-j-massimino/my-odyssey-to-become-an-astronaut-kind-of-started-in-grad-school-and/) [Michael J. 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Even after grad school, some of \[the earlier works\]… ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/kalup-linzy/i-was-trying-to-release-emotions-exercise-emotions-and-then-i-entered/) [Kalup Linzy](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/kalup-linzy/) > [As frustrating as my time in grad school felt, it also helped tremendously because it challenged me to figure out what it was I…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/john-d-agata/as-frustrating-as-my-time-in-grad-school-felt-it-also-helped/) [John D'Agata](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/john-d-agata/) > [As an actor I kind of do. I started out doing voice overs in the mid 80s when I was in grad school.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/thomas-haden-church/as-an-actor-i-kind-of-do-i-started-out-doing-voice-overs-in-the-mid/) [Thomas Haden Church](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/thomas-haden-church/) ## More by Dean Karnazes > [“Only those who will risk going too far can possibly find out how far they can go. —T. S. Eliot”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/dean-karnazes/only-those-who-will-risk-going-too-far-can-possibly-find-out-how-far/) [Dean Karnazes](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/dean-karnazes/) > [Somewhere along the line we seem to have confused comfort with happiness.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/dean-karnazes/somewhere-along-the-line-we-seem-to-have-confused-comfort-with/) [Dean Karnazes](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/dean-karnazes/) > [If you keep chasing your dreams, one day you'll catch them.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/dean-karnazes/if-you-keep-chasing-your-dreams-one-day-you-ll-catch-them/) [Dean Karnazes](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/dean-karnazes/) > [I am always nervous before the start of a race. It helps me to say to myself to try my very best. That is…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/dean-karnazes/i-am-always-nervous-before-the-start-of-a-race-it-helps-me-to-say-to/) [Dean Karnazes](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/dean-karnazes/) > [I run because if I didn’t, I’d be sluggish and glum and spend too much time on the couch. I run to breathe the…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/dean-karnazes/i-run-because-if-i-didn-t-i-d-be-sluggish-and-glum-and-spend-too-much/) [Dean Karnazes](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/dean-karnazes/) > [Unlike running on a road or concrete, natural surfaces are more forgiving and offer a more varied terrain, ultimately resulting in less repetitive micro-trauma…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/dean-karnazes/unlike-running-on-a-road-or-concrete-natural-surfaces-are-more/) [Dean Karnazes](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/dean-karnazes/) > [I do a lot of marathons as training runs. If I'm somewhere and there's a marathon, I'll sign up and just go run it.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/dean-karnazes/i-do-a-lot-of-marathons-as-training-runs-if-i-m-somewhere-and-there-s/) [Dean Karnazes](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/dean-karnazes/) > [Any goal worth achieving involves an element of risk.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/dean-karnazes/any-goal-worth-achieving-involves-an-element-of-risk/) [Dean Karnazes](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/dean-karnazes/) > [If it felt good, you didn't push hard enough. It's supposed to hurt like hell.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/dean-karnazes/if-it-felt-good-you-didn-t-push-hard-enough-it-s-supposed-to-hurt/) [Dean Karnazes](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/dean-karnazes/) > [If someone had said to me before I started doing this that a human being is capable of running 100 miles nonstop, I would…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/dean-karnazes/if-someone-had-said-to-me-before-i-started-doing-this-that-a-human/) [Dean Karnazes](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/dean-karnazes/) > [The human body has limitations. The human spirit is boundless.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/dean-karnazes/the-human-body-has-limitations-the-human-spirit-is-boundless/) [Dean Karnazes](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/dean-karnazes/) > [I eat nothing that's processed or refined - no high-fructose corn syrup, no sugar, no trans-fats. I eat a lot of fish and monounsaturated…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/dean-karnazes/i-eat-nothing-that-s-processed-or-refined-no-high-fructose-corn-syrup/) [Dean Karnazes](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/dean-karnazes/) > [People think I'm crazy to put myself through such torture, though I would argue otherwise. Somewhere along the line we seem to have confused…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/dean-karnazes/people-think-i-m-crazy-to-put-myself-through-such-torture-though-i/) [Dean Karnazes](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/dean-karnazes/) > [“Never, under any circumstances, argue with a tired woman. She is always right.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/dean-karnazes/never-under-any-circumstances-argue-with-a-tired-woman-she-is-always/) [Dean Karnazes](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/dean-karnazes/) > [A lot of ultramarathoners are soloists. They're single and live lives off the grid.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/dean-karnazes/a-lot-of-ultramarathoners-are-soloists-they-re-single-and-live-lives/) [Dean Karnazes](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/dean-karnazes/) [Explore all 88 Dean Karnazes quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/dean-karnazes/) ## More Bored quotes > [Normal is so Boring!](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anonymous/normal-is-so-boring/) [Anonymous](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anonymous/) > [“If you're focused, you can't get bored.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/alin-sav/if-you-re-focused-you-can-t-get-bored/) [Alin Sav](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/alin-sav/) > [I am fairly tired--bored beyond endurance--by the world we live in, and its ideals, and am ready to say so, not violently, but kindly,…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/henry-adams/i-am-fairly-tired-bored-beyond-endurance-by-the-world-we-live-in-and/) [Henry Adams](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/henry-adams/) > [Being blonde, for me, means never having to say: 'I'll have the honey-striped half-head of highlights for £200,' to a bored colourist in a…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/rachel-johnson/being-blonde-for-me-means-never-having-to-say-i-ll-have-the-honey/) [Rachel Johnson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/rachel-johnson/) > [Someone else who liked what I did might turn around and say, "She's reworking and rethinking everything. She could just be making blankets now,…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/tracey-emin/someone-else-who-liked-what-i-did-might-turn-around-and-say-she-s/) [Tracey Emin](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/tracey-emin/) > [ There was another reason \[she\] took her books whenever they went away. They were her home when she was somewhere strange. They were familiar… ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/cornelia-funke/there-was-another-reason-she-took-her-books-whenever-they-went-away/) [Cornelia Funke](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/cornelia-funke/) > [I'm bored of being bored because being bored is very boring](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/sachithra/i-m-bored-of-being-bored-because-being-bored-is-very-boring/) [Sachithra](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/sachithra/) > [When I get bored I say fck the police](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anonymous/when-i-get-bored-i-say-fck-the-police/) [Anonymous](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anonymous/) > [I always knew that I was kind of bored; the regular life of a child didn't fit me.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/christina-ricci/i-always-knew-that-i-was-kind-of-bored-the-regular-life-of-a-child/) [Christina Ricci](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/christina-ricci/) > [The only activity a cynic will find contagious is yawning, that is, with other people, at other people.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/criss-jami/the-only-activity-a-cynic-will-find-contagious-is-yawning-that-is/) [Criss Jami](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/criss-jami/) > [When people look in the mirror, sometimes they see are their shells in the mirror, nothing else.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anonymous/when-people-look-in-the-mirror-sometimes-they-see-are-their-shells-in/) [Anonymous](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anonymous/) > [I was taking all prints and I brought them to the Magnum meetings, trying the old Josef Koudelka trick: Give them to photographers, who…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/peter-van-agtmael/i-was-taking-all-prints-and-i-brought-them-to-the-magnum-meetings/) [Peter van Agtmael](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/peter-van-agtmael/) > [“She wouldn't pick up a fight him just because she was bored.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/rainbow-rowell/she-wouldn-t-pick-up-a-fight-him-just-because-she-was-bored/) [Rainbow Rowell](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/rainbow-rowell/) > [...sometimes I get tired. 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