--- title: "Meaning & Key Takeaway of: Live all you can; it's a mistake not to…" description: "\"Live all you can; it's a mistake not to. It doesn't so much matter what you do in particular, so long as you have your life. If you haven't had that wh..." image: "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/747/henry-james-417_failure_live-all-you-can-it-s-a-mistake-not-to-i_1457813.png" --- # Live all you can; it's a mistake not to. It doesn't so… ![“Live all you can; it's a mistake not to. It doesn't so much matter what you do in particular, so long as you have your life. If you haven't had that what have you had?” quote by Henry James](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/747/henry-james-417_failure_live-all-you-can-it-s-a-mistake-not-to-i_1457813.png) [Download](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/747/henry-james-417_failure_live-all-you-can-it-s-a-mistake-not-to-i_1457813.png) [Open image](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/747/henry-james-417_failure_live-all-you-can-it-s-a-mistake-not-to-i_1457813.png) > “Live all you can; it's a mistake not to. It doesn't so much matter what you do in particular, so long as you have your life. If you haven't had that what have you had?” [Henry James](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/henry-james/) ## About This Quote This interpretation was drafted with AI assistance. It is one reading of the quote, not the author's own explanation. Encourages fully embracing life, warning that missing experiences is a mistake. **In simple terms:** Live fully, avoid regrets. Key Takeaway Seek diverse experiences. Themes fulfillment risk-taking existential reflection Mood reflective inspirational Type philosophical literary When to use this quote - travel - new hobbies - relationships - career changes Key Concepts philosophy personal growth Questions to Reflect On - What experiences have you missed? - How do you define a life well lived? A Different Perspective Overindulgence can lead to burnout. ★ ★ ★ ★ ★ No ratings yet [Failure](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/failure/) [Life](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/life/) [Live](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/live/) [Live Mistake](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/live-mistake-949780/) [Long life](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/long-life/) [Mistake Doesn](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/mistake-doesn-1013665/) ## Related quotes > [“Live all you can: it's a mistake not to. It doesn't matter what you do in particular, so long as you have had your…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/henry-james/live-all-you-can-it-s-a-mistake-not-to-it-doesn-t-matter-what-you-do-2/) [Henry James](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/henry-james/) > [Live all you can. It's a mistake not to. It doesn't much matter what you do in particular, so much as you LIVE while…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/henry-james/live-all-you-can-it-s-a-mistake-not-to-it-doesn-t-much-matter-what/) [Henry James](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/henry-james/) > [Live all you can; it's a mistake not to.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/henry-james/live-all-you-can-it-s-a-mistake-not-to/) [Henry James](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/henry-james/) > [“No matter what we might want, we have to live with our mistake and live with our past”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/k-a-linde/no-matter-what-we-might-want-we-have-to-live-with-our-mistake-and/) [K.A. Linde](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/k-a-linde/) > [Those that made there own decision live with there mistake.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jekwu-igwegbo/those-that-made-there-own-decision-live-with-there-mistake/) [Jekwu Igwegbo](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jekwu-igwegbo/) > [“Sometimes we make mistakes, Eva. Sometimes we make mistakes and they’re so terrible the word mistake doesn’t seem big enough to encompass it. But…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/kat-zhang/sometimes-we-make-mistakes-eva-sometimes-we-make-mistakes-and-they-re/) [Kat Zhang](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/kat-zhang/) > [Just because you made a mistake doesn't mean you are a mistake.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anonymous/just-because-you-made-a-mistake-doesn-t-mean-you-are-a-mistake/) [Anonymous](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anonymous/) > [A mistake doesn't become an error until you refuse to fix it](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anonymous/a-mistake-doesn-t-become-an-error-until-you-refuse-to-fix-it/) [Anonymous](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anonymous/) > [A man who has committed a mistake and doesn't correct it, he is committing another mistake.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/confucius/a-man-who-has-committed-a-mistake-and-doesn-t-correct-it-he-is/) [Confucius](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/confucius/) > [I can accept that I am a less than perfect human being. I do make mistakes like any other human. If I make a…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/teresa-wilmont/i-can-accept-that-i-am-a-less-than-perfect-human-being-i-do-make/) [Teresa Wilmont](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/teresa-wilmont/) > [Just because somebody makes a mistake doesn't make them useless.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/todd-akin/just-because-somebody-makes-a-mistake-doesn-t-make-them-useless/) [Todd Akin](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/todd-akin/) > [“You found yourself in a situation and you made a mistake. That doesn't make you a bad person. It makes you human.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/paul-pilkington/you-found-yourself-in-a-situation-and-you-made-a-mistake-that-doesn-t/) [Paul Pilkington](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/paul-pilkington/) > [“Just because you make a mistake doesn't mean you are a mistake.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/georgette-mosbacher/just-because-you-make-a-mistake-doesn-t-mean-you-are-a-mistake/) [Georgette Mosbacher](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/georgette-mosbacher/) > [If you make a mistake, it doesn't mean you're a mistake.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/joyce-meyer/if-you-make-a-mistake-it-doesn-t-mean-you-re-a-mistake/) [Joyce Meyer](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/joyce-meyer/) > [We do stupid things. We make mistakes. We learn from it. Just because you made a mistake, doesn't make you a failure. Keep living…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anonymous/we-do-stupid-things-we-make-mistakes-we-learn-from-it-just-because/) [Anonymous](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anonymous/) ## More by Henry James > [Though there are some disagreeable things in Venice there is nothing so disagreeable as the visitors.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/henry-james/though-there-are-some-disagreeable-things-in-venice-there-is-nothing/) [Henry James](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/henry-james/) > [“In literature we move through a blest world in which we know nothing except by style, but in which everything is saved by it.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/henry-james/in-literature-we-move-through-a-blest-world-in-which-we-know-nothing/) [Henry James](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/henry-james/) > [“I shall stay here as long as I may, I don't want to think — I needn't think. I don't care for anything but…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/henry-james/i-shall-stay-here-as-long-as-i-may-i-don-t-want-to-think-i-needn-t/) [Henry James](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/henry-james/) > [“...It often seemed to her that she thought too much about herself, you could have made her blush any day of the year, by…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/henry-james/it-often-seemed-to-her-that-she-thought-too-much-about-herself-you/) [Henry James](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/henry-james/) > [“I reflected acutely that the sense of such differences, such superiorities of quality, always, on the part of the majority—which could include even stupid,…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/henry-james/i-reflected-acutely-that-the-sense-of-such-differences-such/) [Henry James](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/henry-james/) > [“She had had a real fright but had fallen back to earth. The odd thing was that in her fall her fear too had…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/henry-james/she-had-had-a-real-fright-but-had-fallen-back-to-earth-the-odd-thing/) [Henry James](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/henry-james/) > [I ought to tell you I'm probably your cousin.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/henry-james/i-ought-to-tell-you-i-m-probably-your-cousin/) [Henry James](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/henry-james/) > [“She had never met a woman who had less of that fault which is the principal obstacle to friendship - the air of reproducing…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/henry-james/she-had-never-met-a-woman-who-had-less-of-that-fault-which-is-the/) [Henry James](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/henry-james/) > [London is on the whole the most possible form of life.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/henry-james/london-is-on-the-whole-the-most-possible-form-of-life/) [Henry James](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/henry-james/) > [If you have work to do, don't wait to feel like it; set to work and you will feel like it.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/henry-james/if-you-have-work-to-do-don-t-wait-to-feel-like-it-set-to-work-and-you/) [Henry James](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/henry-james/) > [“She answered that she liked standing up and”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/henry-james/she-answered-that-she-liked-standing-up-and/) [Henry James](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/henry-james/) > [It is no wonder he wins every game. He has never done a thing in his life exept play games](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/henry-james/it-is-no-wonder-he-wins-every-game-he-has-never-done-a-thing-in-his/) [Henry James](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/henry-james/) > [Make (the reader) think the evil, make him think it for himself, and you are released from weak specifications. My values are positively all…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/henry-james/make-the-reader-think-the-evil-make-him-think-it-for-himself-and-you/) [Henry James](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/henry-james/) > [“It was the air she wanted and the world she would now exclusively choose; the quiet chambers, nobly overwhelming, rich but slightly veiled, opened…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/henry-james/it-was-the-air-she-wanted-and-the-world-she-would-now-exclusively/) [Henry James](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/henry-james/) > [The time-honored bread-sauce of the happy ending.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/henry-james/the-time-honored-bread-sauce-of-the-happy-ending/) [Henry James](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/henry-james/) [Explore all 571 Henry James quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/henry-james/) ## More Failure quotes > [When you do things they're absolutely right at that time for you and it can always teach you something about yourself. You can take…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/kym-marsh/when-you-do-things-they-re-absolutely-right-at-that-time-for-you-and/) [Kym Marsh](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/kym-marsh/) > [Failures happen. You can't cry over them. You just take it in your stride because you know that you have done your best... Sometimes,…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/divya-dutta/failures-happen-you-can-t-cry-over-them-you-just-take-it-in-your/) [Divya Dutta](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/divya-dutta/) > [No one is completely unhappy at the failure of his best friend.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/groucho-marx/no-one-is-completely-unhappy-at-the-failure-of-his-best-friend/) [Groucho Marx](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/groucho-marx/) > [“Rhiannon's Law #28: If you're going to fuck up, be sure to fuck up good and proper. Nothing makes failure acceptable, so you might…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anonymous/rhiannon-s-law-28-if-you-re-going-to-fuck-up-be-sure-to-fuck-up-good/) [Anonymous](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anonymous/) > [Failure is a part of life and you have to learn to deal with it. Failure is something that is part of life's cycle…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/colin-powell/failure-is-a-part-of-life-and-you-have-to-learn-to-deal-with-it/) [Colin Powell](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/colin-powell/) > [If my child had prejudice in his head, I'd be ashamed. I would see it as my failure as a parent.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/salman-rushdie/if-my-child-had-prejudice-in-his-head-i-d-be-ashamed-i-would-see-it/) [Salman Rushdie](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/salman-rushdie/) > [First action was a mistake. What about the second? third? fourth and fifth?...Mehn you are bad...](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anonymous/first-action-was-a-mistake-what-about-the-second-third-fourth-and/) [Anonymous](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anonymous/) > [God's love never fail :)](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anonymous/god-s-love-never-fail/) [Anonymous](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anonymous/) > [Don’t you just hate nights like that, when you think over every mistake you’ve made, every hurt you’ve received, every bit of meanness you’ve…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/charlaine-harris/don-t-you-just-hate-nights-like-that-when-you-think-over-every/) [Charlaine Harris](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/charlaine-harris/) > [“Our failure to understand another being's inner reality doesn't make that reality any less real, or any less valuable to that being. (p.255)”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/kathryn-schulz/our-failure-to-understand-another-being-s-inner-reality-doesn-t-make/) [Kathryn Schulz](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/kathryn-schulz/) > [I hope that the Palestinians don't make the mistake of unleashing a new intifada. They've tried it twice before, and the consequences were bad…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/tom-segev/i-hope-that-the-palestinians-don-t-make-the-mistake-of-unleashing-a/) [Tom Segev](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/tom-segev/) > [Don't take too much comfort in the fact that you're successful today because tomorrow could bring failure. There's no surety in life.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/michael-savage/don-t-take-too-much-comfort-in-the-fact-that-you-re-successful-today/) [Michael Savage](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/michael-savage/) > [“It took me years to learn to sit at my desk for more than two minutes at a time, to put up with the…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/erica-jong/it-took-me-years-to-learn-to-sit-at-my-desk-for-more-than-two-minutes/) [Erica Jong](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/erica-jong/) > [failure in the theater is more public, more brilliant, more unreal than in any other field.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/lillian-hellman/failure-in-the-theater-is-more-public-more-brilliant-more-unreal-than/) [Lillian Hellman](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/lillian-hellman/) > [As we are coming to the end of the year, I want you to forget about the past, the failure, the negative thoughts or…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anonymous/as-we-are-coming-to-the-end-of-the-year-i-want-you-to-forget-about/) [Anonymous](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anonymous/) [Browse all 27,498 Failure quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/failure/) ```json { "@context": "https://schema.org", "@graph": [ { "@type": "Quotation", "text": "Live all you can; it's a mistake not to. 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