--- title: "Meaning & Key Takeaway of: Confidence definitely did not get me…" description: "\"Confidence definitely did not get me here! More of, like, desperation.\" — Jesmyn Ward" image: "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/ac9/jesmyn-ward-1426_confidence_confidence-definitely-did-not-get-me-her_990912.png" --- # Confidence definitely did not get me here! More of, like… ![“Confidence definitely did not get me here! More of, like, desperation.” quote by Jesmyn Ward](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/ac9/jesmyn-ward-1426_confidence_confidence-definitely-did-not-get-me-her_990912.png) [Download](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/ac9/jesmyn-ward-1426_confidence_confidence-definitely-did-not-get-me-her_990912.png) [Open image](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/ac9/jesmyn-ward-1426_confidence_confidence-definitely-did-not-get-me-her_990912.png) > “Confidence definitely did not get me here! More of, like, desperation.” [Jesmyn Ward](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jesmyn-ward/) ## About This Quote This interpretation was drafted with AI assistance. It is one reading of the quote, not the author's own explanation. Confidence alone is insufficient; desperation can drive action when confidence fails. **In simple terms:** Confidence isn’t enough; desperation fuels effort. Key Takeaway Embrace urgency when confidence wanes. Themes motivation resilience risk perseverance Mood determined urgent Type motivational reflective When to use this quote - career pursuits - creative projects - emergency response - personal crises Key Concepts psychology human drive adversity Questions to Reflect On - When have you relied on desperation over confidence? - How can you channel urgency constructively? A Different Perspective Desperation can lead to reckless decisions without clear goals. ★ ★ ★ ★ ★ No ratings yet [Confidence](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/confidence/) [Desperation](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/desperation/) ## Related quotes > [Every novel is like this, desperation, a frustrated attempt to save something of the past. Except that it still has not been established whether…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jos-saramago/every-novel-is-like-this-desperation-a-frustrated-attempt-to-save/) [Jose Saramago](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jos-saramago/) > [I hit the ball really well... had a lot of good looks at birdie all day, it's firm but you could control your golf…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/dustin-johnson/i-hit-the-ball-really-well-had-a-lot-of-good-looks-at-birdie-all-day/) [Dustin Johnson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/dustin-johnson/) > [One day u will wish u have let me catch u and now u jus sit arOund and say damnn she realy did like…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jvst/one-day-u-will-wish-u-have-let-me-catch-u-and-now-u-jus-sit-around/) Jvst > [“Yosuke: When did you like yourself best? Yuu: When you didn't know me.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/hiroshi-ishikawa/yosuke-when-did-you-like-yourself-best-yuu-when-you-didn-t-know-me/) Hiroshi Ishikawa > [I wasn’t like 'Oh, I'm going to marry 50 Cent...' I mean, seriously. But I did like him. He's very sweet and antithetical to…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/chelsea-handler/i-wasn-t-like-oh-i-m-going-to-marry-50-cent-i-mean-seriously-but-i/) [Chelsea Handler](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/chelsea-handler/) > [now that she realized she had been waiting for him—she did not like that.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/paulo-coelho/now-that-she-realized-she-had-been-waiting-for-him-she-did-not-like/) [Paulo Coelho](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/paulo-coelho/) > [I did like any nigga would, made her feel important. Had a spot on the roster so I had to fill the void in.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/dom-kennedy/i-did-like-any-nigga-would-made-her-feel-important-had-a-spot-on-the/) [Dom Kennedy](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/dom-kennedy/) > [“Even when she did not like Archer, she loved him.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/kristin-cashore/even-when-she-did-not-like-archer-she-loved-him/) [Kristin Cashore](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/kristin-cashore/) > [“And as I did it, it was like pierc­ing my own heart at the same time.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/richelle-mead/and-as-i-did-it-it-was-like-pierc-ing-my-own-heart-at-the-same-time/) [Richelle Mead](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/richelle-mead/) > [I was loving you… . . But You cheated with me… you tell me why you did like this](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/neehan/i-was-loving-you-but-you-cheated-with-me-you-tell-me-why-you-did-like/) [Neehan](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/neehan/) > [I was a normal human being, but I did like that. I read a lot. I also liked math and science.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jamie-dimon/i-was-a-normal-human-being-but-i-did-like-that-i-read-a-lot-i-also/) [Jamie Dimon](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jamie-dimon/) > [We all had a crush, who we thought was absolutely gorgeous at the time, but afterwards...we were all like, 'Ewww, how did I like…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anonymous/we-all-had-a-crush-who-we-thought-was-absolutely-gorgeous-at-the-time/) [Anonymous](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anonymous/) > [My heart lifted, and a matching grin curved my lips. He wanted to see me again. Maybe he really did like me after all.…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jennifer-estep/my-heart-lifted-and-a-matching-grin-curved-my-lips-he-wanted-to-see/) [Jennifer Estep](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jennifer-estep/) > [There was just something about me she did not like.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/andy-griffith/there-was-just-something-about-me-she-did-not-like/) [Andy Griffith](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/andy-griffith/) > [I did, like, a couple of sexier videos, because all of a sudden I went, 'Wow, I have a body. I have this side…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/debbie-gibson/i-did-like-a-couple-of-sexier-videos-because-all-of-a-sudden-i-went/) [Debbie Gibson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/debbie-gibson/) ## More by Jesmyn Ward > [I wanted to write about voodoo tradition that I feel has been very important to survival of black people here: people of the African…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jesmyn-ward/i-wanted-to-write-about-voodoo-tradition-that-i-feel-has-been-very/) [Jesmyn Ward](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jesmyn-ward/) > [I think that voodoo as a spiritual tradition has been demonized for so long in popular culture. I wanted to write against that and…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jesmyn-ward/i-think-that-voodoo-as-a-spiritual-tradition-has-been-demonized-for/) [Jesmyn Ward](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jesmyn-ward/) > [There's so much I love about home, but then there's a lot that I can acknowledge that I dislike about home. And acknowledging that…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jesmyn-ward/there-s-so-much-i-love-about-home-but-then-there-s-a-lot-that-i-can/) [Jesmyn Ward](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jesmyn-ward/) > [“The dream of her was the glow of a spent fire on a cold night: warm and welcoming.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jesmyn-ward/the-dream-of-her-was-the-glow-of-a-spent-fire-on-a-cold-night-warm/) [Jesmyn Ward](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jesmyn-ward/) > [The first writer that I think of immediately that I studied with at Michigan is Peter Ho Davies. He was really important to me,…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jesmyn-ward/the-first-writer-that-i-think-of-immediately-that-i-studied-with-at/) [Jesmyn Ward](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jesmyn-ward/) > [I feel like so much of what happened in the Delta over the decades since slavery was abolished seems much closer in the Delta,…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jesmyn-ward/i-feel-like-so-much-of-what-happened-in-the-delta-over-the-decades/) [Jesmyn Ward](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jesmyn-ward/) > [“Vines catch my arms, my head; we tear through until we break out into the clearing before the fence, the field, the barn, the…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jesmyn-ward/vines-catch-my-arms-my-head-we-tear-through-until-we-break-out-into/) [Jesmyn Ward](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jesmyn-ward/) > [“Before all the little mean things she told me gathered and gathered and lodged like grit in a skinned knee.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jesmyn-ward/before-all-the-little-mean-things-she-told-me-gathered-and-gathered/) [Jesmyn Ward](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jesmyn-ward/) > [People give the South a bad rap. It's often stereotyped as backwards and close-minded and dogmatic, and all of those things have been true.…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jesmyn-ward/people-give-the-south-a-bad-rap-it-s-often-stereotyped-as-backwards/) [Jesmyn Ward](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jesmyn-ward/) > [By the time I wrote my memoir, 'Men We Reaped,' I had been running from writing it for a long time. When the events…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jesmyn-ward/by-the-time-i-wrote-my-memoir-men-we-reaped-i-had-been-running-from/) [Jesmyn Ward](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jesmyn-ward/) > [When I was a teenager, I was the only black girl at a small, private Episcopal school, where my tuition was paid by the…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jesmyn-ward/when-i-was-a-teenager-i-was-the-only-black-girl-at-a-small-private/) [Jesmyn Ward](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jesmyn-ward/) > [She was the murderous mother who cut us to the bone but left us alive, left us naked and bewildered as wrinkled newborn babies,…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jesmyn-ward/she-was-the-murderous-mother-who-cut-us-to-the-bone-but-left-us-alive/) [Jesmyn Ward](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jesmyn-ward/) > [I hope people who read my books feel empathy for us and really see us as complicated people.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jesmyn-ward/i-hope-people-who-read-my-books-feel-empathy-for-us-and-really-see-us/) [Jesmyn Ward](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jesmyn-ward/) > [When I was writing my first novel, 'Where the Line Bleeds,' which had young black men as its main characters, I was very invested…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jesmyn-ward/when-i-was-writing-my-first-novel-where-the-line-bleeds-which-had/) [Jesmyn Ward](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jesmyn-ward/) > [“Lot of folks was in there for stealing food because everybody was poor and starving, and even though White people couldn’t get your work…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jesmyn-ward/lot-of-folks-was-in-there-for-stealing-food-because-everybody-was/) [Jesmyn Ward](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jesmyn-ward/) [Explore all 242 Jesmyn Ward quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jesmyn-ward/) ## More Confidence quotes > [The CIA has concluded in a secret assessment that Russia intervened in the 2016 election to help Donald Trump win the presidency rather than…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/rachel-maddow/the-cia-has-concluded-in-a-secret-assessment-that-russia-intervened/) [Rachel Maddow](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/rachel-maddow/) > [I was just confident my work was good.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/bunny-yeager/i-was-just-confident-my-work-was-good/) [Bunny Yeager](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/bunny-yeager/) > [I am confident when I take the penalty otherwise I would pass for somebody else.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/bruno-fernandes/i-am-confident-when-i-take-the-penalty-otherwise-i-would-pass-for/) [Bruno Fernandes](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/bruno-fernandes/) > [I started out dancing on a reality TV show, but always with the intention of making my way over to film. I transitioned into…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/julianne-hough/i-started-out-dancing-on-a-reality-tv-show-but-always-with-the/) [Julianne Hough](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/julianne-hough/) > [One of the ways that I discovered my confidence and my ability to overpower is becoming a mother. Suddenly, my world wasn't about myself…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/lights/one-of-the-ways-that-i-discovered-my-confidence-and-my-ability-to/) [Lights](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/lights/) > [My friend made me a leather dress for the MTV awards. It gives you confidence, wearing something you love.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/cat-deeley/my-friend-made-me-a-leather-dress-for-the-mtv-awards-it-gives-you/) [Cat Deeley](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/cat-deeley/) > [Confidence comes from cutting yourself some slack.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/tess-daly/confidence-comes-from-cutting-yourself-some-slack/) [Tess Daly](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/tess-daly/) > [I would rather regret the things that I have done than the things that I have not.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/lucille-ball/i-would-rather-regret-the-things-that-i-have-done-than-the-things/) [Lucille Ball](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/lucille-ball/) > [You want to remain hungry and stay in a good place as a competitor; at the same time, you want to be confident but…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/lamar-odom/you-want-to-remain-hungry-and-stay-in-a-good-place-as-a-competitor-at/) [Lamar Odom](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/lamar-odom/) > [Get to know yourself well enough to not only expect, but also control, your response to the unexpected challenges in life.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/senoraroy/get-to-know-yourself-well-enough-to-not-only-expect-but-also-control/) Senoraroy > [The four Cs of making dreams come true: Curiosity, Courage, Consistency, Confidence.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/walt-disney/the-four-cs-of-making-dreams-come-true-curiosity-courage-consistency/) [Walt Disney](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/walt-disney/) > [I look for someone who has confidence. Also someone whose energetic, cause I'm NOT that energetic.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/nick-jonas/i-look-for-someone-who-has-confidence-also-someone-whose-energetic/) [Nick Jonas](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/nick-jonas/) > [Why shouldn't I be confident? I'm well educated, I can deliver a line, and I have more than three expressions. That's good right?](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/sonakshi-sinha/why-shouldn-t-i-be-confident-i-m-well-educated-i-can-deliver-a-line/) [Sonakshi Sinha](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/sonakshi-sinha/) > [I was very confident on the stage, and I stood out in a red gown.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/nicole-johnson/i-was-very-confident-on-the-stage-and-i-stood-out-in-a-red-gown/) [Nicole Johnson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/nicole-johnson/) > [If you go to any nunnery and ask them what the main obstacle is, they'll always say low self-esteem and lack of confidence. It…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/tenzin-palmo/if-you-go-to-any-nunnery-and-ask-them-what-the-main-obstacle-is-they/) [Tenzin Palmo](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/tenzin-palmo/) [Browse all 11,290 Confidence quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/confidence/) ```json { "@context": "https://schema.org", "@graph": [ { "@type": "Quotation", "text": "Confidence definitely did not get me here! 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