--- title: "Meaning & Key Takeaway of: I think the word for me is survival, not…" description: "\"I think the word for me is survival, not ambition. I'm really a lucky man. I've always accepted whatever I was in, whether it was driving a taxi or ent..." image: "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/b9d/don-ho-61804_accepted_i-think-the-word-for-me-is-survival-not_1852487.jpg" --- # I think the word for me is survival, not ambition. I'm… ![“I think the word for me is survival, not ambition. I'm really a lucky man. I've always accepted whatever I was in, whether it was driving a taxi or entertaining. The jet set might not enjoy what I do, but I deal with the average person.” quote by Don Ho](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/b9d/don-ho-61804_accepted_i-think-the-word-for-me-is-survival-not_1852487.jpg) [Download](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/b9d/don-ho-61804_accepted_i-think-the-word-for-me-is-survival-not_1852487.jpg) [Open image](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/b9d/don-ho-61804_accepted_i-think-the-word-for-me-is-survival-not_1852487.jpg) > “I think the word for me is survival, not ambition. I'm really a lucky man. I've always accepted whatever I was in, whether it was driving a taxi or entertaining. The jet set might not enjoy what I do, but I deal with the average person.” [Don Ho](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/don-ho/) ## About This Quote This interpretation was drafted with AI assistance. It is one reading of the quote, not the author's own explanation. He views his life as survival rather than ambition, finding luck and contentment in any role, from taxi driver to entertainer. **In simple terms:** He values survival and luck over ambition. Key Takeaway Embrace each role with gratitude. Themes humility contentment adaptability Mood thoughtful grounded Type philosophical reflective When to use this quote - daily work - service jobs - performance gigs - community interaction Key Concepts survival mindset luck social roles Questions to Reflect On - How does humility affect personal growth? - What does “survival” mean to you? A Different Perspective May undervalue proactive goal setting. ★ ★ ★ ★ ★ No ratings yet [Ambition](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/ambition/) [Average person](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/average-person/) [Driving](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/driving/) [Lucky](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/lucky/) [Lucky man](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/lucky-man/) [Man](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/man/) [Survival](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/survival/) ## Related quotes > [My years of living the jet-set life were fun, but they weren't fulfilling. The perks and benefits were lovely, but all of the fabulous…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/sandra-lee/my-years-of-living-the-jet-set-life-were-fun-but-they-weren-t/) [Sandra Lee](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/sandra-lee/) > [My clothes are for the international jet set. They are very much for the red carpet.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/giambattista-valli/my-clothes-are-for-the-international-jet-set-they-are-very-much-for/) [Giambattista Valli](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/giambattista-valli/) > [She's got hair down to her fanny, she's kind of jet set, try to undo her panties.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/zz-top-21087/she-s-got-hair-down-to-her-fanny-she-s-kind-of-jet-set-try-to-undo/) ZZ Top > [I had immense ambition to become a really valuable actress.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/luise-rainer/i-had-immense-ambition-to-become-a-really-valuable-actress/) [Luise Rainer](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/luise-rainer/) > [I find ambition really attractive too - if someone's good at something they love doing. I want someone who is driven.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/harry-styles/i-find-ambition-really-attractive-too-if-someone-s-good-at-something/) [Harry Styles](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/harry-styles/) > [My ambition really was, even as a child, to be a writer, a commentator, and a teacher, but a teacher of Talmud.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/elie-wiesel/my-ambition-really-was-even-as-a-child-to-be-a-writer-a-commentator/) [Elie Wiesel](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/elie-wiesel/) > [It was the most earnest ambition I ever had…Not that I ever really wanted to be a preacher, but because it never occurred to…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/mark-twain/it-was-the-most-earnest-ambition-i-ever-had-not-that-i-ever-really/) [Mark Twain](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/mark-twain/) > [I was never somebody who grew up going, 'I really want to be a singer in a band,' and I never had any ambition…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/fiona-apple/i-was-never-somebody-who-grew-up-going-i-really-want-to-be-a-singer/) [Fiona Apple](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/fiona-apple/) > [I always sang and I always wrote...it's just having that ambition. You really can't let go of your dreams.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/mariah-carey/i-always-sang-and-i-always-wrote-it-s-just-having-that-ambition-you/) [Mariah Carey](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/mariah-carey/) > [all bags are pack ready to go i am standing here outside your door i hate to wake you up to say goodbye dawn…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/john-denver/all-bags-are-pack-ready-to-go-i-am-standing-here-outside-your-door-i/) [John Denver](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/john-denver/) > [Virtue without success is a fair picture shown by an ill light; but lucky men are favorites of heaven; all own the chief, when…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/john-dryden/virtue-without-success-is-a-fair-picture-shown-by-an-ill-light-but/) [John Dryden](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/john-dryden/) > [Pitch a lucky man into the Nile, says the Arabian proverb, and he will come up with a fish in his mouth!](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/nathaniel-parker-willis/pitch-a-lucky-man-into-the-nile-says-the-arabian-proverb-and-he-will/) [Nathaniel Parker Willis](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/nathaniel-parker-willis/) > [“I'm no one important or famous, no matter. It is better to be loved by one person who knows your soul than millions who…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/richard-paul-evans/i-m-no-one-important-or-famous-no-matter-it-is-better-to-be-loved-by/) [Richard Paul Evans](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/richard-paul-evans/) > [All of us have bad luck and good luck. The man who persists through the bad luck - who keeps right on going -…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/robert-collier/all-of-us-have-bad-luck-and-good-luck-the-man-who-persists-through/) [Robert Collier](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/robert-collier/) > [“Is there any difference between a happy and a lucky man? A happy is someone who finds an oasis with drinking water in a…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/eraldo-banovac/is-there-any-difference-between-a-happy-and-a-lucky-man-a-happy-is/) [Eraldo Banovac](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/eraldo-banovac/) ## More by Don Ho > [I had no intention of being an entertainer.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/don-ho/i-had-no-intention-of-being-an-entertainer/) [Don Ho](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/don-ho/) > [I kiss grandmas because they're clean. I haven't picked anything up from a grandma yet.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/don-ho/i-kiss-grandmas-because-they-re-clean-i-haven-t-picked-anything-up/) [Don Ho](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/don-ho/) > [You never know what's going to happen next onstage.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/don-ho/you-never-know-what-s-going-to-happen-next-onstage/) [Don Ho](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/don-ho/) > [My wife knows that I thrive on independence, and whatever girls live with me must know that, too. They must realize I have a…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/don-ho/my-wife-knows-that-i-thrive-on-independence-and-whatever-girls-live/) [Don Ho](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/don-ho/) [Explore all 5 Don Ho quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/don-ho/) ## More Accepted quotes > [Merkel has realized that the euro is not working, but she cannot change the narrative she has created because that narrative has caught the…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/george-soros/merkel-has-realized-that-the-euro-is-not-working-but-she-cannot/) [George Soros](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/george-soros/) > [I started off playing by ear, and being around a bunch of musicians and playing in the streets and in the different parades and,…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/troy-andrews/i-started-off-playing-by-ear-and-being-around-a-bunch-of-musicians/) [Troy Andrews](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/troy-andrews/) > [Greatness is not guarding yourself from people. Greatness is being accepted by the people](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/mike-tyson/greatness-is-not-guarding-yourself-from-people-greatness-is-being/) [Mike Tyson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/mike-tyson/) > [The idea that this world is a playground instead of a battleground has now been accepted in practice by the vast majority of Christians.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/aiden-wilson-tozer/the-idea-that-this-world-is-a-playground-instead-of-a-battleground/) [Aiden Wilson Tozer](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/aiden-wilson-tozer/) > [Bruce Katz is a spectacular talent! He's a brilliant composer and arranger who uses uncommon and unique musical intelligence to redefine jazz and blues…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/larry-coryell/bruce-katz-is-a-spectacular-talent-he-s-a-brilliant-composer-and/) [Larry Coryell](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/larry-coryell/) > [wishes for sons by Lucille Clifton i wish them cramps. i wish them a strange town and the last tampon. I wish them no…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/lucille-clifton/wishes-for-sons-by-lucille-clifton-i-wish-them-cramps-i-wish-them-a/) [Lucille Clifton](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/lucille-clifton/) > [What our species needs, above all else, is a generally accepted ethical system that is compatible with the scientific knowledge we now possess.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anonymous/what-our-species-needs-above-all-else-is-a-generally-accepted-ethical/) [Anonymous](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anonymous/) > [There are a lot of movies about misfits that are quite cool, that kind of glamorize it on some level. I think there are…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/rebecca-hall/there-are-a-lot-of-movies-about-misfits-that-are-quite-cool-that-kind/) [Rebecca Hall](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/rebecca-hall/) > [In Quebec City many Muslims have said that they hide their faith because they know that if they don't, if they show that they…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/andre-pratte/in-quebec-city-many-muslims-have-said-that-they-hide-their-faith/) Andre Pratte > [The rules and principles of case law have never been treated as final truths but as working hypotheses, continually retested in those great laboratories…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/benjamin-n-cardozo/the-rules-and-principles-of-case-law-have-never-been-treated-as-final/) [Benjamin N. Cardozo](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/benjamin-n-cardozo/) > [ We have reached a situation where a theory has been accepted as fact by some, and possible contrary evidence is shunted aside. \[This is\]… ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/robert-shapiro/we-have-reached-a-situation-where-a-theory-has-been-accepted-as-fact/) [Robert Shapiro](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/robert-shapiro/) > [And if all others accepted the lie which the Party imposed—if all records told the same tale—then the lie passed into history and became…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/george-orwell/and-if-all-others-accepted-the-lie-which-the-party-imposed-if-all/) [George Orwell](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/george-orwell/) > [I was in a conversation and someone said: "You know, we were talking about the whole issue of transgender and how it has become…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/oprah-winfrey/i-was-in-a-conversation-and-someone-said-you-know-we-were-talking/) [Oprah Winfrey](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/oprah-winfrey/) > [Divorce is so common and accepted in America that beating myself up over it may sound ridiculous. But I was raised to believe that…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/trisha-yearwood/divorce-is-so-common-and-accepted-in-america-that-beating-myself-up/) [Trisha Yearwood](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/trisha-yearwood/) > [Handicaps can be converted into stepping stones on which one may climb toward some worthy goal, unless they are accepted as obstacles, and used…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/napoleon-hill/handicaps-can-be-converted-into-stepping-stones-on-which-one-may/) [Napoleon Hill](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/napoleon-hill/) Browse all 2,128 Accepted quotes ```json { "@context": "https://schema.org", "@graph": [ { "@type": "Quotation", "text": "I think the word for me is survival, not ambition. I'm really a lucky man. I've always accepted whatever I was in, whether it was driving a taxi or entertaining. The jet set might not enjoy what I do, but I deal with the average person.", "creator": { "@type": "Person", "name": "Don Ho" }, "isPartOf": { "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/#website" }, "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/don-ho/i-think-the-word-for-me-is-survival-not-ambition-i-m-really-a-lucky/", "about": { "@type": "Thing", "name": "Accepted" }, "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/don-ho/i-think-the-word-for-me-is-survival-not-ambition-i-m-really-a-lucky/#quotation", "image": { "@type": "ImageObject", "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/b9d/don-ho-61804_accepted_i-think-the-word-for-me-is-survival-not_1852487.jpg", "contentUrl": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/b9d/don-ho-61804_accepted_i-think-the-word-for-me-is-survival-not_1852487.jpg", "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/b9d/don-ho-61804_accepted_i-think-the-word-for-me-is-survival-not_1852487.jpg", "width": 1080, "height": 1080, "caption": "“I think the word for me is survival, not ambition. I'm really a lucky man. I've always accepted whatever I…” — Don Ho", "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": "Don Ho", "item": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/don-ho/" }, { "@type": "ListItem", "position": 4, "name": "I think the word for me...", "item": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/don-ho/i-think-the-word-for-me-is-survival-not-ambition-i-m-really-a-lucky/" } ], "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/don-ho/i-think-the-word-for-me-is-survival-not-ambition-i-m-really-a-lucky/#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 } } ] } ```