--- title: "Meaning & Key Takeaway of: In this life, you have to be your own hero." description: "\"In this life, you have to be your own hero.\" — Jeanette Winterson" image: "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/321/jeanette-winterson-166_hero_in-this-life-you-have-to-be-your-own-her_1107094.png" --- # In this life, you have to be your own hero. ![“In this life, you have to be your own hero.” quote by Jeanette Winterson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/321/jeanette-winterson-166_hero_in-this-life-you-have-to-be-your-own-her_1107094.png) [Download](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/321/jeanette-winterson-166_hero_in-this-life-you-have-to-be-your-own-her_1107094.png) [Open image](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/321/jeanette-winterson-166_hero_in-this-life-you-have-to-be-your-own-her_1107094.png) > “In this life, you have to be your own hero.” [Jeanette Winterson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jeanette-winterson/) ## About This Quote This interpretation was drafted with AI assistance. It is one reading of the quote, not the author's own explanation. You must become your own champion, taking responsibility for your life’s direction. **In simple terms:** Be your own hero. Key Takeaway Take charge of your story. Themes self-reliance empowerment identity Mood determined reflective Type philosophical inspirational When to use this quote - career decisions - personal crises - goal setting Key Concepts personal agency resilience Questions to Reflect On - What does being your own hero mean to you? - When do you need external support? A Different Perspective Self‑heroism can feel lonely. ★ ★ ★ ★ ★ No ratings yet [Hero](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/hero/) [Life](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/life/) [This life](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/this-life/) ## Related quotes > [In this life you have to be your own hero. By that I mean you have to win whatever it is that matters to…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jeanette-winterson/in-this-life-you-have-to-be-your-own-hero-by-that-i-mean-you-have-to/) [Jeanette Winterson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jeanette-winterson/) > [Anyone who does anything to help a child in his life is a hero to me.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/fred-rogers/anyone-who-does-anything-to-help-a-child-in-his-life-is-a-hero-to-me/) [Fred Rogers](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/fred-rogers/) > [“I could have murdered a man today, but by not doing so I saved his life, and thus became a hero to myself. I’m…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jarod-kintz/i-could-have-murdered-a-man-today-but-by-not-doing-so-i-saved-his/) [Jarod Kintz](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jarod-kintz/) > [What I think is that a good life is one hero journey after another. Over and over again, you are called to the realm…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/joseph-campbell/what-i-think-is-that-a-good-life-is-one-hero-journey-after-another/) [Joseph Campbell](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/joseph-campbell/) > [Save one life, and you're a hero. Save a hundred lives, and you're a nurse.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anonymous/save-one-life-and-you-re-a-hero-save-a-hundred-lives-and-you-re-a/) [Anonymous](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anonymous/) > [“I got myself there. No one does anything for me. So I know when I meet the right guy, it's not going to be…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/alex-flinn/i-got-myself-there-no-one-does-anything-for-me-so-i-know-when-i-meet/) [Alex Flinn](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/alex-flinn/) > [When I structured my career, I looked at Muhammad Ali, which is my all-time favorite and an idol of mine, and what he has…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/deontay-wilder/when-i-structured-my-career-i-looked-at-muhammad-ali-which-is-my-all/) [Deontay Wilder](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/deontay-wilder/) > [Strength and resilience emerge by your own will to become a better person no matter what downfalls happen in your life...be your own hero.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/nishan-panwar/strength-and-resilience-emerge-by-your-own-will-to-become-a-better/) [Nishan Panwar](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/nishan-panwar/) > [“Anybody who does anything example fight, sacrifice, inspire to help society in his daily life is a hero to me.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/john-achor/anybody-who-does-anything-example-fight-sacrifice-inspire-to-help/) John Achor > [You don't have to be larger than life to be a hero, just larger than yourself.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/mitt-romney/you-don-t-have-to-be-larger-than-life-to-be-a-hero-just-larger-than/) [Mitt Romney](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/mitt-romney/) > [You know who it is? 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Leighton](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/m-leighton/) > [I walked out to brood on this life of ours, which seems from birth to death to be a steady loss, disguised by sudden…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jeanette-winterson/i-walked-out-to-brood-on-this-life-of-ours-which-seems-from-birth-to/) [Jeanette Winterson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jeanette-winterson/) > [“I've always tried to make a home for myself, but I have not felt at home in myself. I've worked hard at being the…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jeanette-winterson/i-ve-always-tried-to-make-a-home-for-myself-but-i-have-not-felt-at/) [Jeanette Winterson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jeanette-winterson/) ## More by Jeanette Winterson > [“After nine nights must come ten and every desperate meeting only leaves you desperate for another. There is never enough to eat, never enough…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jeanette-winterson/after-nine-nights-must-come-ten-and-every-desperate-meeting-only/) [Jeanette Winterson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jeanette-winterson/) > [You never give away your heart; you lend it from time to time. If it were not so, how could we take it back…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jeanette-winterson/you-never-give-away-your-heart-you-lend-it-from-time-to-time-if-it/) [Jeanette Winterson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jeanette-winterson/) > [I have found that I am not a space where people want to live, at least not without decorating first.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jeanette-winterson/i-have-found-that-i-am-not-a-space-where-people-want-to-live-at-least/) [Jeanette Winterson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jeanette-winterson/) > [“Yes. Just pass me my leg will you? 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If what I feel is not precise than how should…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jeanette-winterson/it-s-the-cliches-that-cause-the-trouble-a-precise-emotion-seeks-a/) [Jeanette Winterson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jeanette-winterson/) > [What would it have meant to be happy? What would it have meant if things had been bright, clear, good between us?](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jeanette-winterson/what-would-it-have-meant-to-be-happy-what-would-it-have-meant-if/) [Jeanette Winterson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jeanette-winterson/) > [“Mrs Ratlow was a widow, and she was head of English, but she still did all the cooking and cleaning for her two sons,…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jeanette-winterson/mrs-ratlow-was-a-widow-and-she-was-head-of-english-but-she-still-did/) [Jeanette Winterson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jeanette-winterson/) > [“I shall have nowt to talk to now the baby is boiled.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jeanette-winterson/i-shall-have-nowt-to-talk-to-now-the-baby-is-boiled/) [Jeanette Winterson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jeanette-winterson/) > [“What art does is to coax us away from the mechanical and towards the miraculous. The so-called uselessness of art is a clue to…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jeanette-winterson/what-art-does-is-to-coax-us-away-from-the-mechanical-and-towards-the/) [Jeanette Winterson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jeanette-winterson/) > [Happy Valentines Day to those who have found love, in whatever shape or form, and to those who are still hunting, don’t give up.…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jeanette-winterson/happy-valentines-day-to-those-who-have-found-love-in-whatever-shape/) [Jeanette Winterson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jeanette-winterson/) > [“It took me a long time to realise that there are two kinds of writing: the one you write and the one that writes…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jeanette-winterson/it-took-me-a-long-time-to-realise-that-there-are-two-kinds-of-writing/) [Jeanette Winterson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jeanette-winterson/) > [A curse on this game. How can you stick at a game when the rules keep on changing? I shall call myself Alice and…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jeanette-winterson/a-curse-on-this-game-how-can-you-stick-at-a-game-when-the-rules-keep/) [Jeanette Winterson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jeanette-winterson/) > [“He turned away and I turned to him in vivid heat to look on the sun-dried world. The groves and towers were gone. The…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jeanette-winterson/he-turned-away-and-i-turned-to-him-in-vivid-heat-to-look-on-the-sun/) [Jeanette Winterson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jeanette-winterson/) [Explore all 1,016 Jeanette Winterson quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jeanette-winterson/) ## More Hero quotes > [I've always been fascinated by the idea that there's no such thing as evil; it's all in your point of view. To one group…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/eli-roth/i-ve-always-been-fascinated-by-the-idea-that-there-s-no-such-thing-as/) [Eli Roth](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/eli-roth/) > [I am convinced that we will never build a democratic state based on rule of law if we do not at the same time…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/vaclav-havel/i-am-convinced-that-we-will-never-build-a-democratic-state-based-on/) [Vaclav Havel](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/vaclav-havel/) > [I am tired of our characters being so incomplete. When do we ever save the day in a film? When does a Latino actor…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/esai-morales/i-am-tired-of-our-characters-being-so-incomplete-when-do-we-ever-save/) [Esai Morales](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/esai-morales/) > [When the first Superman movie came out I was frequently asked "What is a hero?" ...My answer was that a hero is someone who…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/christopher-reeve/when-the-first-superman-movie-came-out-i-was-frequently-asked-what-is/) [Christopher Reeve](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/christopher-reeve/) > ['Melanin Man' was inspired by the words of an Uber driver in L.A. Before I got out of the car he said, 'They're scared…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/masego/melanin-man-was-inspired-by-the-words-of-an-uber-driver-in-l-a-before/) [Masego](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/masego/) > [Once the state has been founded, there can no longer be any heroes. They come on the scene only in uncivilized conditions.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/georg-wilhelm-friedrich-hegel/once-the-state-has-been-founded-there-can-no-longer-be-any-heroes/) [Georg Wilhelm Friedrich Hegel](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/georg-wilhelm-friedrich-hegel/) > [You know, I often thought that the gangster and the artist are the same in the eyes of the masses. They're admired and hero-worshipped…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/stanley-kubrick/you-know-i-often-thought-that-the-gangster-and-the-artist-are-the/) [Stanley Kubrick](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/stanley-kubrick/) > [“A hero is not know by the number of battles he has won, but rather by the kind of battles he chooses to fight.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/tonny-k-brown/a-hero-is-not-know-by-the-number-of-battles-he-has-won-but-rather-by/) [Tonny K. Brown](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/tonny-k-brown/) > [The last act in the biography of the hero is that of the death or departure.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/joseph-campbell/the-last-act-in-the-biography-of-the-hero-is-that-of-the-death-or/) [Joseph Campbell](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/joseph-campbell/) > [Teachers are heroes.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/charles-best/teachers-are-heroes/) [Charles Best](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/charles-best/) > [“Forgotten hero was never the real hero, real hero can not be forgotten.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/amit-kalantri/forgotten-hero-was-never-the-real-hero-real-hero-can-not-be-forgotten/) [Amit Kalantri](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/amit-kalantri/) > ['Sex and The City' was made to correct the myth that if you were single at a certain age, you were a leper. Its…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/michael-patrick-king/sex-and-the-city-was-made-to-correct-the-myth-that-if-you-were-single/) [Michael Patrick King](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/michael-patrick-king/) > [I believe in a world where there are no heroes, and I've read and know humanity a lot. There are moments that I admire…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/orhan-pamuk/i-believe-in-a-world-where-there-are-no-heroes-and-i-ve-read-and-know/) [Orhan Pamuk](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/orhan-pamuk/) > [O it's Tommy this, and Tommy that, and Tommy 'ow's your soul/But it's thin red line of heroes when the drums begin to roll.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/rudyard-kipling/o-it-s-tommy-this-and-tommy-that-and-tommy-ow-s-your-soul-but-it-s/) [Rudyard Kipling](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/rudyard-kipling/) > [Benny Carter came up to me and said to me, "You know, in the whole history of the alto, I think Phil is the…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jon-gordon/benny-carter-came-up-to-me-and-said-to-me-you-know-in-the-whole/) [Jon Gordon](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jon-gordon/) [Browse all 5,602 Hero quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/hero/) ```json { "@context": "https://schema.org", "@graph": [ { "@type": "Quotation", "text": "In this life, you have to be your own hero.", "creator": { "@type": "Person", "name": "Jeanette Winterson" }, "isPartOf": { "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/#website" }, "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jeanette-winterson/in-this-life-you-have-to-be-your-own-hero/", "about": { "@type": "Thing", "name": "Hero" }, "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jeanette-winterson/in-this-life-you-have-to-be-your-own-hero/#quotation", "image": { "@type": "ImageObject", "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/321/jeanette-winterson-166_hero_in-this-life-you-have-to-be-your-own-her_1107094.png", "contentUrl": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/321/jeanette-winterson-166_hero_in-this-life-you-have-to-be-your-own-her_1107094.png", "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/321/jeanette-winterson-166_hero_in-this-life-you-have-to-be-your-own-her_1107094.png", "width": 1080, "height": 1080, "caption": "“In this life, you have to be your own hero.” — Jeanette Winterson", "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": "Jeanette Winterson", "item": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jeanette-winterson/" }, { "@type": "ListItem", "position": 4, "name": "In this life, you have to...", "item": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jeanette-winterson/in-this-life-you-have-to-be-your-own-hero/" } ], "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jeanette-winterson/in-this-life-you-have-to-be-your-own-hero/#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 } } ] } ```