--- title: "Meaning & Key Takeaway of: Our achievements speak for themselves…" description: "\"Our achievements speak for themselves. What we have to keep track of are our failures, discouragements and doubts. We tend to forget the past difficult..." image: "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/c77/eric-hoffer-343_achievement_our-achievements-speak-for-themselves-wh_2918259.jpg" --- # Our achievements speak for themselves. What we have to… ![“Our achievements speak for themselves. What we have to keep track of are our failures, discouragements and doubts. We tend to forget the past difficulties, the many false starts, and the painful groping. We see our past achievements as the end results of a clean forward thrust, and our present…” quote by Eric Hoffer](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/c77/eric-hoffer-343_achievement_our-achievements-speak-for-themselves-wh_2918259.jpg) [Download](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/c77/eric-hoffer-343_achievement_our-achievements-speak-for-themselves-wh_2918259.jpg) [Open image](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/c77/eric-hoffer-343_achievement_our-achievements-speak-for-themselves-wh_2918259.jpg) > “Our achievements speak for themselves. What we have to keep track of are our failures, discouragements and doubts. We tend to forget the past difficulties, the many false starts, and the painful groping. We see our past achievements as the end results of a clean forward thrust, and our present difficulties as signs of decline and decay.” [Eric Hoffer](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/eric-hoffer/) ## About This Quote This interpretation was drafted with AI assistance. It is one reading of the quote, not the author's own explanation. We often overlook past struggles, focusing only on successes, which skews our view of progress and resilience. **In simple terms:** We forget failures and only remember successes. Key Takeaway Recognize and learn from past setbacks. Themes reflectionognition resilience self-awareness Mood reflective thoughtful Type motivational philosophical When to use this quote - personal development - team retrospectives - leadership reviews - educational curricula Key Concepts psychology growth mindset historical perspective Questions to Reflect On - How might acknowledging failures improve future decisions? - What strategies help balance success and struggle narratives? A Different Perspective Overemphasis on successes can breed complacency. ★ ★ ★ ★ ★ No ratings yet [Achievement](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/achievement/) [Courage](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/courage/) [Decline](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/decline/) [Discouragement](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/discouragement/) [Doubt](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/doubt/) [Failure](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/failure/) [Forget the past](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/forget-the-past/) [Our past](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/our-past/) [Pain](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/pain/) [Past](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/past/) [Success](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/success/) [Time](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/time/) ## Related quotes > [Our achievements speak for themselves. What we have to keep track of are our failures, discouragements and doubts. We tend to forget the past…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ethel-barrymore/our-achievements-speak-for-themselves-what-we-have-to-keep-track-of/) [Ethel Barrymore](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ethel-barrymore/) > [Our achievements speak for themselves. What we have to keep track of are our failures, discouragements and doubts.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/eric-hoffer/our-achievements-speak-for-themselves-what-we-have-to-keep-track-of-3/) [Eric Hoffer](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/eric-hoffer/) > [ We can let our past \[difficulties and failures\] beat us or teach us \[to be more knowledgeable, competent and realistic in the future\]! ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/zig-ziglar/we-can-let-our-past-difficulties-and-failures-beat-us-or-teach-us-to/) [Zig Ziglar](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/zig-ziglar/) > [I'm glad I'm still in motion. I don't think of my past achievements. The most important thing is what I'm going to do tomorrow.…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/manu-dibango/i-m-glad-i-m-still-in-motion-i-don-t-think-of-my-past-achievements/) Manu Dibango > [Your only competitors are your past achievements.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/james-cameron/your-only-competitors-are-your-past-achievements/) [James Cameron](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/james-cameron/) > [“Allow your past achievements to provide fuel for your current goals.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/josh-hinds/allow-your-past-achievements-to-provide-fuel-for-your-current-goals/) [Josh Hinds](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/josh-hinds/) > [Certainly, I've never wanted to live on past achievements.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/buzz-aldrin/certainly-i-ve-never-wanted-to-live-on-past-achievements/) [Buzz Aldrin](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/buzz-aldrin/) > [People will never understand the patience a photographer requires to make a great photograph, all they see is the end result. I can stand…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/alfred-eisenstaedt/people-will-never-understand-the-patience-a-photographer-requires-to/) [Alfred Eisenstaedt](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/alfred-eisenstaedt/) > [The photographer Ruth Bernhard used to tell me that this is like asking somebody how they evolved their signature. It is not something I've…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/michael-kenna/the-photographer-ruth-bernhard-used-to-tell-me-that-this-is-like/) [Michael Kenna](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/michael-kenna/) > [We may never see the end results, but that is the difference between the master builder and the worker.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/oscar-romero/we-may-never-see-the-end-results-but-that-is-the-difference-between/) [Oscar Romero](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/oscar-romero/) > [The song is about knowing the end result of every situation you're in, and being able to play it out in your mind and…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/rufus-wainwright/the-song-is-about-knowing-the-end-result-of-every-situation-you-re-in/) [Rufus Wainwright](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/rufus-wainwright/) > [My dark comic edge is the end result of trying to use humor to maintain my sanity growing up in a dysfunctional family in…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/kirby-wright/my-dark-comic-edge-is-the-end-result-of-trying-to-use-humor-to/) [Kirby Wright](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/kirby-wright/) > [I don't really care who gets their inspiration from where, it's the end results that count.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/robert-lloyd/i-don-t-really-care-who-gets-their-inspiration-from-where-it-s-the/) [Robert Lloyd](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/robert-lloyd/) > [I've learned that the effort sportsmen and women put in is incredible. Their commitment to their sport is phenomenal. Sometimes as a viewer, as…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jill-douglas/i-ve-learned-that-the-effort-sportsmen-and-women-put-in-is-incredible/) [Jill Douglas](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jill-douglas/) > [Inner silence works from the moment you begin to accrue it. What the old sorcerers were after was the final dramatic, end result of…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/carlos-castaneda/inner-silence-works-from-the-moment-you-begin-to-accrue-it-what-the/) [Carlos Castaneda](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/carlos-castaneda/) ## More by Eric Hoffer > [The truth seems to be that propaganda on its own cannot force its way into unwilling minds; neither can it inculcate something wholly new;…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/eric-hoffer/the-truth-seems-to-be-that-propaganda-on-its-own-cannot-force-its-way/) [Eric Hoffer](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/eric-hoffer/) > [When grubbing for necessities man is still an animal. He becomes uniquely human when he reaches out for the superfluous and extravagant.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/eric-hoffer/when-grubbing-for-necessities-man-is-still-an-animal-he-becomes/) [Eric Hoffer](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/eric-hoffer/) > [“We lie the loudest when we lie to ourselves.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/eric-hoffer/we-lie-the-loudest-when-we-lie-to-ourselves/) [Eric Hoffer](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/eric-hoffer/) > [Our originality shows itself most strikingly not in what we wholly originate but in what we do with that which we borrow from others.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/eric-hoffer/our-originality-shows-itself-most-strikingly-not-in-what-we-wholly/) [Eric Hoffer](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/eric-hoffer/) > [The creative mind is the playful mind. Philosophy is the play and dance of ideas.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/eric-hoffer/the-creative-mind-is-the-playful-mind-philosophy-is-the-play-and/) [Eric Hoffer](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/eric-hoffer/) > [It is also plausible that those movements with the greatest inner contradiction and between profession and practice - that is to say with a…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/eric-hoffer/it-is-also-plausible-that-those-movements-with-the-greatest-inner/) [Eric Hoffer](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/eric-hoffer/) > [The best part of the art of living is to know how to grow old gracefully.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/eric-hoffer/the-best-part-of-the-art-of-living-is-to-know-how-to-grow-old/) [Eric Hoffer](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/eric-hoffer/) > [“In the alchemy of man's soul almost all noble attributes--courage, honor, love, hope, faith, duty, loyalty, etc.--can be transmuted into ruthlessness. Compassion alone stands…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/eric-hoffer/in-the-alchemy-of-man-s-soul-almost-all-noble-attributes-courage/) [Eric Hoffer](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/eric-hoffer/) > [The act of self-denial seems to confer on us the right to be harsh and merciless toward others. The impression somehow prevails that the…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/eric-hoffer/the-act-of-self-denial-seems-to-confer-on-us-the-right-to-be-harsh/) [Eric Hoffer](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/eric-hoffer/) > [A nation without dregs and malcontents, is orderly, decent, peaceful and pleasant, but perhaps without the seed of things to come](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/eric-hoffer/a-nation-without-dregs-and-malcontents-is-orderly-decent-peaceful-and/) [Eric Hoffer](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/eric-hoffer/) > [Compassion alone stands apart from the continuous traffic between good and evil proceeding within us.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/eric-hoffer/compassion-alone-stands-apart-from-the-continuous-traffic-between/) [Eric Hoffer](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/eric-hoffer/) > [There are many who find a good alibi far more attractive than an achievement. For an achievement does not settle anything permanently. We still…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/eric-hoffer/there-are-many-who-find-a-good-alibi-far-more-attractive-than-an/) [Eric Hoffer](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/eric-hoffer/) > [A war is not won if the defeated enemy has not been turned into a friend.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/eric-hoffer/a-war-is-not-won-if-the-defeated-enemy-has-not-been-turned-into-a/) [Eric Hoffer](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/eric-hoffer/) > [Man is the only creature that strives to surpass himself, and yearns for the impossible.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/eric-hoffer/man-is-the-only-creature-that-strives-to-surpass-himself-and-yearns/) [Eric Hoffer](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/eric-hoffer/) > [This food-and-shelter theory concerning man's efforts is without insight. The desire for praise is more imperative than the desire for food and shelter](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/eric-hoffer/this-food-and-shelter-theory-concerning-man-s-efforts-is-without/) [Eric Hoffer](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/eric-hoffer/) [Explore all 658 Eric Hoffer quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/eric-hoffer/) ## More Achievement quotes > [You, of Canada, are building a magnificent record of achievement. My country rejoices in it.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/dwight-d-eisenhower/you-of-canada-are-building-a-magnificent-record-of-achievement-my/) [Dwight D. Eisenhower](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/dwight-d-eisenhower/) > [“If attempting to make the world a civilized one, makes you a bad woman in the eyes of the dumb patriarchal society, then, by…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/abhijit-naskar/if-attempting-to-make-the-world-a-civilized-one-makes-you-a-bad-woman/) [Abhijit Naskar](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/abhijit-naskar/) > [One achieves true human dignity only when one serves. Only he is great who subjects himself to taking part in the achievement of a…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jose-antonio-primo-de-rivera/one-achieves-true-human-dignity-only-when-one-serves-only-he-is-great/) Jose Antonio Primo de Rivera > [Needs cause motivation. Deep-rooted desires for esteem, affection, belonging, achievement, self-actualization, power, and control motivate us to push for what we want and need…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/lorii-myers/needs-cause-motivation-deep-rooted-desires-for-esteem-affection/) [Lorii Myers](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/lorii-myers/) > [Each man is capable of doing one thing well. If he attempts several, he will fail to achieve distinction in any.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/plato/each-man-is-capable-of-doing-one-thing-well-if-he-attempts-several-he/) [Plato](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/plato/) > [It's tragic what America has become because there is a great segment of society that now resents luxury and success and achievement by others.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/robin-leach/it-s-tragic-what-america-has-become-because-there-is-a-great-segment/) [Robin Leach](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/robin-leach/) > [To preserve an unclouded capacity for the enjoyment of life is an unusual moral and psychological achievement. Contrary to popular belief, it is not…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/nathaniel-branden/to-preserve-an-unclouded-capacity-for-the-enjoyment-of-life-is-an/) [Nathaniel Branden](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/nathaniel-branden/) > [Joel Lane documents a life we don’t quite live, in a city we can’t quite find: half glimpsed and half imagined, we know it’s…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/chaz-brenchley/joel-lane-documents-a-life-we-don-t-quite-live-in-a-city-we-can-t/) Chaz Brenchley > [The main substantive achievement of neoliberalism has been to redistribute rather than to generate wealth and income.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/david-harvey/the-main-substantive-achievement-of-neoliberalism-has-been-to/) [David Harvey](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/david-harvey/) > [Every profession has an ideology and a drive for power that goes far beyond its achievements and it is the task of democracy to…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/paul-feyerabend/every-profession-has-an-ideology-and-a-drive-for-power-that-goes-far/) [Paul Feyerabend](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/paul-feyerabend/) > [We have Internet now and people are not stupid. But it seems that some people are trying to push the same agenda of the…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/bassem-youssef/we-have-internet-now-and-people-are-not-stupid-but-it-seems-that-some/) [Bassem Youssef](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/bassem-youssef/) > [“If you find a way where there seems to be no way, that’s what we call miracle, not personal achievement.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/nkwachukwu-ogbuagu/if-you-find-a-way-where-there-seems-to-be-no-way-that-s-what-we-call/) [Nkwachukwu Ogbuagu](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/nkwachukwu-ogbuagu/) > [The Baseball Hall of Fame is something every player dreams about, but being a member of God's Hall of Fame is the greatest achievement…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/gary-carter/the-baseball-hall-of-fame-is-something-every-player-dreams-about-but/) [Gary Carter](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/gary-carter/) > [Cease speaking of enemies when an achievement can kindle a great light. Solitude will transmit the message better than the murmurs of crowds.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/nicholas-roerich/cease-speaking-of-enemies-when-an-achievement-can-kindle-a-great/) Nicholas Roerich > [Every scene is a challenge. There are technical challenges, but often it's the simplest challenge where you feel a sense of achievement when you…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/roger-deakins/every-scene-is-a-challenge-there-are-technical-challenges-but-often/) [Roger Deakins](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/roger-deakins/) [Browse all 3,867 Achievement quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/achievement/) ```json { "@context": "https://schema.org", "@graph": [ { "@type": "Quotation", "text": "Our achievements speak for themselves. What we have to keep track of are our failures, discouragements and doubts. We tend to forget the past difficulties, the many false starts, and the painful groping. 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