--- title: "Meaning & Key Takeaway of: It is easy when you are successful to…" description: "\"It is easy when you are successful to think that you did it all by yourself and to forget that you didn't. You got here because a lot of things broke y..." image: "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/5ea/elizabeth-warren-879_afford_it-is-easy-when-you-are-successful-to-th_1793701.png" --- # It is easy when you are successful to think that you did… ![“It is easy when you are successful to think that you did it all by yourself and to forget that you didn't. You got here because a lot of things broke your way. You were lucky enough to be born into a family that could afford to take care of you well.” quote by Elizabeth Warren](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/5ea/elizabeth-warren-879_afford_it-is-easy-when-you-are-successful-to-th_1793701.png) [Download](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/5ea/elizabeth-warren-879_afford_it-is-easy-when-you-are-successful-to-th_1793701.png) [Open image](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/5ea/elizabeth-warren-879_afford_it-is-easy-when-you-are-successful-to-th_1793701.png) > “It is easy when you are successful to think that you did it all by yourself and to forget that you didn't. You got here because a lot of things broke your way. You were lucky enough to be born into a family that could afford to take care of you well.” [Elizabeth Warren](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/elizabeth-warren/) ## About This Quote This interpretation was drafted with AI assistance. It is one reading of the quote, not the author's own explanation. Success often feels like personal effort, but it’s built on luck, support, and systemic advantages. **In simple terms:** Success isn’t solely self‑made; luck and support matter. Key Takeaway Recognize and thank those who helped you. Themes humility social inequality gratitude Mood reflective grateful Type political inspirational When to use this quote - career advancement - entrepreneurship - public policy - personal reflection Key Concepts privilege structural advantage luck Questions to Reflect On - Who benefited from your success? - How can you give back? A Different Perspective It may overlook personal agency and hard work. ★ ★ ★ ★ ★ No ratings yet [Care](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/care/) [Family](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/family/) [Lucky](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/lucky/) [Success](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/success/) [Successful](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/successful/) ## Related quotes > [In 1995 I had $7 bucks in my pocket and knew two things: I'm broke as hell and one day I won't be. 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I didn't want people to go, 'That is that guy that used to play in Van Halen. What's his…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/michael-anthony/people-tend-to-forget-you-i-didn-t-want-people-to-go-that-is-that-guy/) [Michael Anthony](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/michael-anthony/) > [Life isn't made to be easy. It is made to see how successful you can be.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anonymous/life-isn-t-made-to-be-easy-it-is-made-to-see-how-successful-you-can-be/) [Anonymous](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anonymous/) > [“The lucky ones hit partitions and went straight through. The unlucky ones collided with solid cinderblock walls. Things broke. Not the cinderblocks”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/eoin-colfer/the-lucky-ones-hit-partitions-and-went-straight-through-the-unlucky/) [Eoin Colfer](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/eoin-colfer/) > [You never know how bad life really hurts until you think about the things you broke and the people you lost and how much…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anonymous/you-never-know-how-bad-life-really-hurts-until-you-think-about-the/) [Anonymous](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anonymous/) > [“When things broke down, one kept moving, for to stop was to signal the end. To complain was to waste breath. 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This AND that.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/josh-linkner/most-think-as-an-or-this-or-that-the-most-successful-among-us-think/) [Josh Linkner](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/josh-linkner/) > [When you're successful at something, you think that you need to continue to do what you're doing to get the same result. But I…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jessica-mendoza/when-you-re-successful-at-something-you-think-that-you-need-to/) [Jessica Mendoza](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jessica-mendoza/) > [We want the post-Messi era to be very successful and I think that it will be.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/joan-laporta/we-want-the-post-messi-era-to-be-very-successful-and-i-think-that-it/) [Joan Laporta](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/joan-laporta/) > [Before it happened to me, I'd look at other people who had become really successful and think, 'What a dream. That must be absolutely…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/passenger/before-it-happened-to-me-i-d-look-at-other-people-who-had-become/) [Passenger](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/passenger/) ## More by Elizabeth Warren > [Every time the U.S. government makes a low-cost loan to someone, it's investing in them.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/elizabeth-warren/every-time-the-u-s-government-makes-a-low-cost-loan-to-someone-it-s/) [Elizabeth Warren](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/elizabeth-warren/) > [Once you've gotten your money in balance, you know how much you have to spend on things that are just fun.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/elizabeth-warren/once-you-ve-gotten-your-money-in-balance-you-know-how-much-you-have/) [Elizabeth Warren](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/elizabeth-warren/) > [“For capitalism to work, we all need one another.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/elizabeth-warren/for-capitalism-to-work-we-all-need-one-another/) [Elizabeth Warren](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/elizabeth-warren/) > [“The single best predictor that a family would go bankrupt was if they had a child.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/elizabeth-warren/the-single-best-predictor-that-a-family-would-go-bankrupt-was-if-they/) [Elizabeth Warren](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/elizabeth-warren/) > [ I can remember riding in the car with \[my daughter\] Amelia, when she was very small, and we'd talk about money the same way… ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/elizabeth-warren/i-can-remember-riding-in-the-car-with-my-daughter-amelia-when-she-was/) [Elizabeth Warren](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/elizabeth-warren/) > [That's how we build the economy of the future. 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But nobody says that she doesn't know how to throw a punch.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/elizabeth-warren/there-are-a-lot-of-things-that-people-say-about-hillary-clinton-but/) [Elizabeth Warren](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/elizabeth-warren/) > [I don't think anyone went the polls and said, 'I am casting my vote to make sure that Wall Street has better chances to…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/elizabeth-warren/i-don-t-think-anyone-went-the-polls-and-said-i-am-casting-my-vote-to/) [Elizabeth Warren](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/elizabeth-warren/) > [With post offices and postal workers already on the ground, USPS could partner with banks to make a critical difference for millions of Americans…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/elizabeth-warren/with-post-offices-and-postal-workers-already-on-the-ground-usps-could/) [Elizabeth Warren](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/elizabeth-warren/) > [We should stop having a conversation about cutting Social Security a little bit or a lot.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/elizabeth-warren/we-should-stop-having-a-conversation-about-cutting-social-security-a/) [Elizabeth Warren](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/elizabeth-warren/) > ['Middle class' used to be synonymous with secure, with steady, with boring, because middle-class people were people who were pretty much safe from the…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/elizabeth-warren/middle-class-used-to-be-synonymous-with-secure-with-steady-with/) [Elizabeth Warren](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/elizabeth-warren/) > [You can put handcuffs on people who push the envelope. When they break the law, they deserve to have handcuffs.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/elizabeth-warren/you-can-put-handcuffs-on-people-who-push-the-envelope-when-they-break/) [Elizabeth Warren](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/elizabeth-warren/) > [The broken consumer credit market had to be repaired by making sure that consumers had the right information and could use it effectively. That…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/elizabeth-warren/the-broken-consumer-credit-market-had-to-be-repaired-by-making-sure/) [Elizabeth Warren](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/elizabeth-warren/) > [“When you have no real power, go public—really public. The public is where the real power is. Those”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/elizabeth-warren/when-you-have-no-real-power-go-public-really-public-the-public-is/) [Elizabeth Warren](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/elizabeth-warren/) [Explore all 342 Elizabeth Warren quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/elizabeth-warren/) ## More Afford quotes > [We can't afford any president to fail.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/glenn-beck/we-can-t-afford-any-president-to-fail/) [Glenn Beck](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/glenn-beck/) > [Just because you can afford it doesn't mean you should buy it.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/suze-orman/just-because-you-can-afford-it-doesn-t-mean-you-should-buy-it/) [Suze Orman](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/suze-orman/) > [I am not a Ph.D. in economics or a doctorate in literature that I can afford to take my singing lightly. Even if I…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/kailash-kher/i-am-not-a-ph-d-in-economics-or-a-doctorate-in-literature-that-i-can/) [Kailash Kher](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/kailash-kher/) > [Now I'm having to live with sales of around 50,000 per album - but I'm pretty content with my place in the general scheme…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/david-knopfler/now-i-m-having-to-live-with-sales-of-around-50-000-per-album-but-i-m/) [David Knopfler](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/david-knopfler/) > [I was lucky because I got so successful so early, and when you get successful early, then you can afford to be a little…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/diane-von-furstenberg/i-was-lucky-because-i-got-so-successful-so-early-and-when-you-get/) [Diane von Furstenberg](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/diane-von-furstenberg/) > [I have crooked toes from wearing boots that didn't fit me because that's all I could afford as a kid.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jonah-lomu/i-have-crooked-toes-from-wearing-boots-that-didn-t-fit-me-because/) [Jonah Lomu](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jonah-lomu/) > [The most common reason new mothers return to work sooner than they'd like to is because they can't afford to go without their salaries…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/alexa-von-tobel/the-most-common-reason-new-mothers-return-to-work-sooner-than-they-d/) [Alexa Von Tobel](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/alexa-von-tobel/) > [This fatigue can not afford to do](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/israa-ali/this-fatigue-can-not-afford-to-do/) [ISRAA ALI](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/israa-ali/) > [A good player is a good player, it's just that we cannot afford signings that do not work.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/sean-dyche/a-good-player-is-a-good-player-it-s-just-that-we-cannot-afford/) [Sean Dyche](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/sean-dyche/) > [I'm not the most talented writer in the world. 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They're there because they think they deserve to be…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/joe-dinicol/unfortunately-some-people-go-to-a-restaurant-and-they-aren-t-really/) Joe Dinicol > [Nobody has so many friends that he can afford to lose one.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/edward-abbey/nobody-has-so-many-friends-that-he-can-afford-to-lose-one/) [Edward Abbey](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/edward-abbey/) > [My earliest memories were when my mom would put me in the plays that she was in because she couldn't afford a babysitter... she…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/christina-applegate/my-earliest-memories-were-when-my-mom-would-put-me-in-the-plays-that/) [Christina Applegate](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/christina-applegate/) > [In Washington journalists can afford to live almost as well as people who work for a living.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/p-j-o-rourke/in-washington-journalists-can-afford-to-live-almost-as-well-as-people/) [P. J. O'Rourke](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/p-j-o-rourke/) > [I'm a little bit tough because I can't afford to get my heart broken.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/brandi-glanville/i-m-a-little-bit-tough-because-i-can-t-afford-to-get-my-heart-broken/) [Brandi Glanville](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/brandi-glanville/) Browse all 784 Afford quotes ```json { "@context": "https://schema.org", "@graph": [ { "@type": "Quotation", "text": "It is easy when you are successful to think that you did it all by yourself and to forget that you didn't. You got here because a lot of things broke your way. 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