--- title: "Meaning & Key Takeaway of: You must act as if the goal were…" description: "\"You must act as if the goal were infinitely far off.\" — Eugen Herrigel" image: "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/853/eugen-herrigel-22516_goal_you-must-act-as-if-the-goal-were-infinit_519761.jpg" --- # You must act as if the goal were infinitely far off. ![“You must act as if the goal were infinitely far off.” quote by Eugen Herrigel](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/853/eugen-herrigel-22516_goal_you-must-act-as-if-the-goal-were-infinit_519761.jpg) [Download](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/853/eugen-herrigel-22516_goal_you-must-act-as-if-the-goal-were-infinit_519761.jpg) [Open image](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/853/eugen-herrigel-22516_goal_you-must-act-as-if-the-goal-were-infinit_519761.jpg) > “You must act as if the goal were infinitely far off.” [Eugen Herrigel](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/eugen-herrigel/) ## About This Quote This interpretation was drafted with AI assistance. It is one reading of the quote, not the author's own explanation. One should pursue goals as if they are endlessly distant, fostering continual effort and humility. **In simple terms:** Treat goals as infinitely far away. Key Takeaway Keep striving without assuming completion. Themes perseverance humility growth mindset Mood motivational reflective Type inspirational philosophical When to use this quote - career development - skill mastery - spiritual practice Key Concepts infinite aspiration process focus Questions to Reflect On - How do you maintain motivation without burnout? - What small milestones can mark progress? A Different Perspective This mindset can cause burnout if not balanced with rest. ★ ★ ★ ★ ★ No ratings yet [Goal](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/goal/) [Goals](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/goals/) ## Related quotes > [These Scriptures, therefore, are infinitely far from justifying the slavery under consideration; for it cannot be made to appear that one in a thousand…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/samuel-hopkins/these-scriptures-therefore-are-infinitely-far-from-justifying-the/) [Samuel Hopkins](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/samuel-hopkins/) > [I wanted to act; that was my one goal. I wanted to devote all my time to acting and not waitressing or anything else.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/edie-falco/i-wanted-to-act-that-was-my-one-goal-i-wanted-to-devote-all-my-time/) [Edie Falco](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/edie-falco/) > [Why limit yourself to the experience of your own relatively brief time on earth, according to your biological clock, when the whole realm of…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/david-mccullough/why-limit-yourself-to-the-experience-of-your-own-relatively-brief/) [David McCullough](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/david-mccullough/) > [The work of acting, in and of itself, is something that is infinitely enjoyable.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/sterling-k-brown/the-work-of-acting-in-and-of-itself-is-something-that-is-infinitely/) [Sterling K. Brown](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/sterling-k-brown/) > [Since we are an inextricable part of the field of consciousness, we are also infinitely creative, unbounded, and eternal.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/deepak-chopra/since-we-are-an-inextricable-part-of-the-field-of-consciousness-we/) [Deepak Chopra](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/deepak-chopra/) > [Books are in no hurry. An act of creation is in no hurry; it reads us, it privileges us infinitely. The notion that it…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/george-steiner/books-are-in-no-hurry-an-act-of-creation-is-in-no-hurry-it-reads-us/) [George Steiner](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/george-steiner/) > [I was an infinitely hot and dense dot.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/mark-leyner/i-was-an-infinitely-hot-and-dense-dot/) [Mark Leyner](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/mark-leyner/) > [Our Heavenly Father is far more merciful, infinitely more charitable, than even the best of his servants, and the Everlasting Gospel is mightier in…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/orson-f-whitney/our-heavenly-father-is-far-more-merciful-infinitely-more-charitable/) [Orson F. Whitney](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/orson-f-whitney/) > [“With a little effort, anything can be shown to connect with anything else: existence is infinitely cross-referenced. And everything has more than one definition. ”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/martha-cooley/with-a-little-effort-anything-can-be-shown-to-connect-with-anything/) [Martha Cooley](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/martha-cooley/) > [We are infinitely more than our limitations and afflictions.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jeffrey-r-holland/we-are-infinitely-more-than-our-limitations-and-afflictions/) [Jeffrey R. Holland](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jeffrey-r-holland/) > [The goodness of God is infinitely more wonderful than we will ever be able to comprehend.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/aiden-wilson-tozer/the-goodness-of-god-is-infinitely-more-wonderful-than-we-will-ever-be/) [Aiden Wilson Tozer](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/aiden-wilson-tozer/) > [Many young people now end a discussion with the supposedly definitive and unanswerable statement that such is their opinion, and their opinion is just…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/theodore-dalrymple/many-young-people-now-end-a-discussion-with-the-supposedly-definitive/) [Theodore Dalrymple](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/theodore-dalrymple/) > [“None of it was real; nothing was real. Everything was real; inconceivably real, infinitely dear. These and all things started as nothing, latent within…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/george-saunders/none-of-it-was-real-nothing-was-real-everything-was-real/) [George Saunders](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/george-saunders/) > [I am infinitely strange to myself.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/john-fowles/i-am-infinitely-strange-to-myself/) [John Fowles](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/john-fowles/) > [Because of the womb being a central phenomenon in the feminine body, the whole psychology of woman differs: she is non-aggressive, non-inquiring, non-questioning, non-doubting,…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/rajneesh/because-of-the-womb-being-a-central-phenomenon-in-the-feminine-body/) [Rajneesh](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/rajneesh/) ## More by Eugen Herrigel > [This means that the mind or spirit is present anywhere, because it is nowhere attached to any particular place. And it can remain present…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/eugen-herrigel/this-means-that-the-mind-or-spirit-is-present-anywhere-because-it-is/) [Eugen Herrigel](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/eugen-herrigel/) > [You can learn from an ordinary bamboo leaf what ought to happen. It bends lower and lower under the weight of snow. Suddenly the…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/eugen-herrigel/you-can-learn-from-an-ordinary-bamboo-leaf-what-ought-to-happen-it/) [Eugen Herrigel](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/eugen-herrigel/) > [The more a human being feels himself a self, tries to intensify this self and reach a never-attainable perfection, the more drastically he steps…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/eugen-herrigel/the-more-a-human-being-feels-himself-a-self-tries-to-intensify-this/) [Eugen Herrigel](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/eugen-herrigel/) > [“Don't think of what you have to do, don't consider how to carry it out!" he exclaimed. "The shot will only go smoothly when…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/eugen-herrigel/don-t-think-of-what-you-have-to-do-don-t-consider-how-to-carry-it-out/) [Eugen Herrigel](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/eugen-herrigel/) > [I must only warn you of one thing. You have become a different person in the course of these years. For this is what…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/eugen-herrigel/i-must-only-warn-you-of-one-thing-you-have-become-a-different-person/) [Eugen Herrigel](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/eugen-herrigel/) > [Assuming that his talent can survive the increasing strain, there is one scarcely avoidable danger that lies ahead of the pupil on his road…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/eugen-herrigel/assuming-that-his-talent-can-survive-the-increasing-strain-there-is/) [Eugen Herrigel](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/eugen-herrigel/) > [He grows daily more capable of following any inspiration without technical effort, and also of letting inspiration come to him through meticulous observation.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/eugen-herrigel/he-grows-daily-more-capable-of-following-any-inspiration-without/) [Eugen Herrigel](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/eugen-herrigel/) > [Often nothing keeps the pupil on the move but his faith in his teacher, whose mastery is now beginning to dawn on him ……](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/eugen-herrigel/often-nothing-keeps-the-pupil-on-the-move-but-his-faith-in-his/) [Eugen Herrigel](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/eugen-herrigel/) > [“And what impels him to repeat this process at every single lesson, and, with the same remorseless insistence, to make his pupils copy it…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/eugen-herrigel/and-what-impels-him-to-repeat-this-process-at-every-single-lesson-and/) [Eugen Herrigel](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/eugen-herrigel/) > [The spider dances her web without knowing there are flies that will get caught in it. The fly, dancing nonchalantly on a sunbeam gets…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/eugen-herrigel/the-spider-dances-her-web-without-knowing-there-are-flies-that-will/) [Eugen Herrigel](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/eugen-herrigel/) > [In the case of archery, the hitter and the hit are no longer two opposing objects, but are one reality.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/eugen-herrigel/in-the-case-of-archery-the-hitter-and-the-hit-are-no-longer-two/) [Eugen Herrigel](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/eugen-herrigel/) > [The hand that guides the brush has already caught and executed what floated before the mind at the same moment the mind began to…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/eugen-herrigel/the-hand-that-guides-the-brush-has-already-caught-and-executed-what/) [Eugen Herrigel](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/eugen-herrigel/) > [The more obstinately you try to learn how to shoot the arrow for the sake of hitting the goal, the less you will succeed…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/eugen-herrigel/the-more-obstinately-you-try-to-learn-how-to-shoot-the-arrow-for-the/) [Eugen Herrigel](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/eugen-herrigel/) > [Far from wishing to awaken the artist in the pupil prematurely, the teacher considers it his first task to make him a skilled artisan…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/eugen-herrigel/far-from-wishing-to-awaken-the-artist-in-the-pupil-prematurely-the/) [Eugen Herrigel](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/eugen-herrigel/) > [“The right art," cried the Master, "is purposeless, aimless! The more obstinately you try to learn how to shoot the arrow for the sake…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/eugen-herrigel/the-right-art-cried-the-master-is-purposeless-aimless-the-more/) [Eugen Herrigel](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/eugen-herrigel/) [Explore all 27 Eugen Herrigel quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/eugen-herrigel/) ## More Goal quotes > [I always say there are two things to be successful. The first is decide exactly what you want - set your goals - and…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/brian-tracy/i-always-say-there-are-two-things-to-be-successful-the-first-is/) [Brian Tracy](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/brian-tracy/) > [The costs of the Bush-Obama wars in Iraq and Afghanistan are now estimated to run as high as $4.4 trillion - a major victory…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/noam-chomsky/the-costs-of-the-bush-obama-wars-in-iraq-and-afghanistan-are-now/) [Noam Chomsky](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/noam-chomsky/) > [The goal of spiritual practice is full recovery, and the only thing you need to recover from is a fractured sense of self.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/marianne-williamson/the-goal-of-spiritual-practice-is-full-recovery-and-the-only-thing/) [Marianne Williamson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/marianne-williamson/) > [According to the best research, less than 3% of Americans have written goals, and less than 1% review and rewrite their goals on a daily basis.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/brian-tracy/according-to-the-best-research-less-than-3-of-americans-have-written/) [Brian Tracy](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/brian-tracy/) > [When you have accomplished your goal simply walk away. This is the path way to Heaven.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/laozi/when-you-have-accomplished-your-goal-simply-walk-away-this-is-the/) [Laozi](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/laozi/) > [“my role my goal my dream my life not yours -all mine”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/emi-sisk/my-role-my-goal-my-dream-my-life-not-yours-all-mine/) Emi Sisk > [Eugenic goals are most likely to be attained under another name than eugenics.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/frederick-osborn/eugenic-goals-are-most-likely-to-be-attained-under-another-name-than/) [Frederick Osborn](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/frederick-osborn/) > [The Only cure for nihilism is for liberal democratic societies - their electorates, their judiciary, and their political leadership- to insist that force is…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/michael-ignatieff/the-only-cure-for-nihilism-is-for-liberal-democratic-societies-their/) [Michael Ignatieff](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/michael-ignatieff/) > [Everybody tries to score a great goal, and I am lucky I have netted a few.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/zlatan-ibrahimovic/everybody-tries-to-score-a-great-goal-and-i-am-lucky-i-have-netted-a/) [Zlatan Ibrahimovic](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/zlatan-ibrahimovic/) > [However, however, if the goal is to abandon America's free enterprise economy, if the goal is to convert America into a submissive member of…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/marco-rubio/however-however-if-the-goal-is-to-abandon-america-s-free-enterprise/) [Marco Rubio](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/marco-rubio/) > [If your only goal is to become rich, you will never achieve it.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/john-d-rockefeller/if-your-only-goal-is-to-become-rich-you-will-never-achieve-it/) [John D. Rockefeller](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/john-d-rockefeller/) > [When you look around the room during meetings and practice, you see that everyone has the same goal. It's obvious by the way that…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/eric-kendricks/when-you-look-around-the-room-during-meetings-and-practice-you-see/) Eric Kendricks > [I like to wake up and just feel gratitude. Gratitude for waking up, for my health, for my kids, for my family. A lot…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/barbara-corcoran/i-like-to-wake-up-and-just-feel-gratitude-gratitude-for-waking-up-for/) [Barbara Corcoran](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/barbara-corcoran/) > [“Dreams will come true as long as you give some effort towards your goal”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/dayana/dreams-will-come-true-as-long-as-you-give-some-effort-towards-your/) Dayana > [“There are two kinds of people: goal-oriented and ego-oriented. Goal-oriented people work together and get things gone. Ego-oriented people don’t work.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/charbel-tadros/there-are-two-kinds-of-people-goal-oriented-and-ego-oriented-goal/) [Charbel Tadros](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/charbel-tadros/) [Browse all 9,890 Goal quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/goal/) ```json { "@context": "https://schema.org", "@graph": [ { "@type": "Quotation", "text": "You must act as if the goal were infinitely far off.", "creator": { "@type": "Person", "name": "Eugen Herrigel" }, "isPartOf": { "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/#website" }, "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/eugen-herrigel/you-must-act-as-if-the-goal-were-infinitely-far-off/", "about": { "@type": "Thing", "name": "Goal" }, "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/eugen-herrigel/you-must-act-as-if-the-goal-were-infinitely-far-off/#quotation", "image": { "@type": "ImageObject", "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/853/eugen-herrigel-22516_goal_you-must-act-as-if-the-goal-were-infinit_519761.jpg", "contentUrl": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/853/eugen-herrigel-22516_goal_you-must-act-as-if-the-goal-were-infinit_519761.jpg", "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/853/eugen-herrigel-22516_goal_you-must-act-as-if-the-goal-were-infinit_519761.jpg", "width": 1080, "height": 1080, "caption": "“You must act as if the goal were infinitely far off.” — Eugen Herrigel", "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": "Eugen Herrigel", "item": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/eugen-herrigel/" }, { "@type": "ListItem", "position": 4, "name": "You must act as if the...", "item": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/eugen-herrigel/you-must-act-as-if-the-goal-were-infinitely-far-off/" } ], "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/eugen-herrigel/you-must-act-as-if-the-goal-were-infinitely-far-off/#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 } } ] } ```