--- title: "Meaning & Key Takeaway of: If you're smart, you abandon the things…" description: "\"If you're smart, you abandon the things that didn't work out so well, and you enlarge upon the things that seem to be successful.\" — John Baldessari" image: "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/f1b/john-baldessari-16840_abandon_if-you-re-smart-you-abandon-the-things-t_1365364.png" --- # If you're smart, you abandon the things that didn't work… ![“If you're smart, you abandon the things that didn't work out so well, and you enlarge upon the things that seem to be successful.” quote by John Baldessari](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/f1b/john-baldessari-16840_abandon_if-you-re-smart-you-abandon-the-things-t_1365364.png) [Download](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/f1b/john-baldessari-16840_abandon_if-you-re-smart-you-abandon-the-things-t_1365364.png) [Open image](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/f1b/john-baldessari-16840_abandon_if-you-re-smart-you-abandon-the-things-t_1365364.png) > “If you're smart, you abandon the things that didn't work out so well, and you enlarge upon the things that seem to be successful.” [John Baldessari](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/john-baldessari/) ## About This Quote This interpretation was drafted with AI assistance. It is one reading of the quote, not the author's own explanation. Successful ideas should be expanded while failed ones are discarded to focus resources efficiently. **In simple terms:** Keep what works, drop what doesn’t. Key Takeaway Prioritize and scale successes. Themes efficiency creativity learning growth Mood pragmatic inspired Type strategic motivational When to use this quote - product development - research projects - personal habits - business strategy Key Concepts resource allocation iteration focus Questions to Reflect On - What can you learn from past failures? - How will you identify true successes? A Different Perspective May overlook potential hidden in failures. ★ ★ ★ ★ ★ No ratings yet [Being successful](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/being-successful/) [Smart](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/smart/) [Success](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/success/) [Successful](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/successful/) [Work out](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/work-out/) ## Related quotes > [Days will pass, and you’ll abandon things you were addicted to, and leave someone, and cancel a dream, and finally, accept a reality.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/nizar-qabbani/days-will-pass-and-you-ll-abandon-things-you-were-addicted-to-and/) [Nizar Qabbani](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/nizar-qabbani/) > [There's a simple, but oft-neglected lesson here: to sustain success, you have to be willing to abandon things that are no longer successful.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/gary-hamel/there-s-a-simple-but-oft-neglected-lesson-here-to-sustain-success-you/) [Gary Hamel](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/gary-hamel/) > [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/) > [I am not bound by material things. It's being successful that drives me forward. I love success. I don't wake up in the morning…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/kevin-pietersen/i-am-not-bound-by-material-things-it-s-being-successful-that-drives/) [Kevin Pietersen](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/kevin-pietersen/) > [Gladly take the gifts of the present hour and abandon serious things!](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/horace/gladly-take-the-gifts-of-the-present-hour-and-abandon-serious-things/) [Horace](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/horace/) > [I write all the time but often abandon things I don't think will go anywhere. It's rare that I'll labor over writing something that…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/robin-pecknold/i-write-all-the-time-but-often-abandon-things-i-don-t-think-will-go/) [Robin Pecknold](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/robin-pecknold/) > [I'm always taken aback by things that are successful that I think are just crap, and then I'm completely surprised when things I do…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/kevin-spacey/i-m-always-taken-aback-by-things-that-are-successful-that-i-think-are/) [Kevin Spacey](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/kevin-spacey/) > [I've often said there's no such thing as a track record in TV. I seen people who created things much more successful than mine…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/joss-whedon/i-ve-often-said-there-s-no-such-thing-as-a-track-record-in-tv-i-seen/) [Joss Whedon](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/joss-whedon/) > [Im always taken aback by things that are successful that I think are just crap, and then Im completely surprised when things I do…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/kevin-spacey/im-always-taken-aback-by-things-that-are-successful-that-i-think-are/) [Kevin Spacey](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/kevin-spacey/) > [If you consistently and persistently do the things that other successful people do, nothing in the world can stop you from being a big…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/brian-tracy/if-you-consistently-and-persistently-do-the-things-that-other/) [Brian Tracy](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/brian-tracy/) > [Quite often very talented people FAIL because they believe they are too big to do the little things, while the most successful amongst us…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/bob-proctor/quite-often-very-talented-people-fail-because-they-believe-they-are/) [Bob Proctor](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/bob-proctor/) > [ \[The people who run things\] are so successful in the way they do it now. They could buy me off with a couple of… ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/danny-lyon/the-people-who-run-things-are-so-successful-in-the-way-they-do-it-now/) [Danny Lyon](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/danny-lyon/) > [Sometimes the things that are most successful are very, very simple.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/mike-budenholzer/sometimes-the-things-that-are-most-successful-are-very-very-simple/) [Mike Budenholzer](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/mike-budenholzer/) > [Success is ever so dangerous. Once you rise to success, it's so easy to stop doing the things that made you successful.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/robin-s-sharma/success-is-ever-so-dangerous-once-you-rise-to-success-it-s-so-easy-to/) [Robin S. Sharma](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/robin-s-sharma/) > [I'm biased, but I see people who have great ideas and are working on things that could be successful, but they give up.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/justin-kan/i-m-biased-but-i-see-people-who-have-great-ideas-and-are-working-on/) [Justin Kan](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/justin-kan/) ## More by John Baldessari > [It's human desire to be understood. And we always feel we're not understood.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/john-baldessari/it-s-human-desire-to-be-understood-and-we-always-feel-we-re-not/) [John Baldessari](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/john-baldessari/) > [Talent is cheap, you have to be possessed or obsessed, rather. You really have to feel like you cannot not do art, and that…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/john-baldessari/talent-is-cheap-you-have-to-be-possessed-or-obsessed-rather-you/) [John Baldessari](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/john-baldessari/) > [The idea of vaudeville clowns and court jesters is always to show the flaw, to point out what's not working and why it's not…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/john-baldessari/the-idea-of-vaudeville-clowns-and-court-jesters-is-always-to-show-the/) [John Baldessari](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/john-baldessari/) > [I will not make anymore boring art.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/john-baldessari/i-will-not-make-anymore-boring-art/) [John Baldessari](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/john-baldessari/) > [Writing helped me understand what I was thinking about.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/john-baldessari/writing-helped-me-understand-what-i-was-thinking-about/) [John Baldessari](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/john-baldessari/) > [Probably one of the worst things that happened to photography is that cameras have viewfinders.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/john-baldessari/probably-one-of-the-worst-things-that-happened-to-photography-is-that/) [John Baldessari](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/john-baldessari/) > [There's no such thing as a bad photograph.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/john-baldessari/there-s-no-such-thing-as-a-bad-photograph/) [John Baldessari](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/john-baldessari/) > [I think I live such a boring life. But I can't imagine any other kind of life, so I guess it's the life I…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/john-baldessari/i-think-i-live-such-a-boring-life-but-i-can-t-imagine-any-other-kind/) [John Baldessari](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/john-baldessari/) > [I was teaching live drawing in a community college and students started zoning in on the face and spending a couple of hours on…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/john-baldessari/i-was-teaching-live-drawing-in-a-community-college-and-students/) [John Baldessari](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/john-baldessari/) > [Ideally I would like the work to be a hybrid between painting and photography.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/john-baldessari/ideally-i-would-like-the-work-to-be-a-hybrid-between-painting-and/) [John Baldessari](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/john-baldessari/) > [Most of my friends are women. I think women are more interesting to talk to.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/john-baldessari/most-of-my-friends-are-women-i-think-women-are-more-interesting-to/) [John Baldessari](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/john-baldessari/) > [The idea was to take fine art and put it into the location of the movie scripts. The script itself is collage - some…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/john-baldessari/the-idea-was-to-take-fine-art-and-put-it-into-the-location-of-the/) [John Baldessari](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/john-baldessari/) > [If I saw the art around me that I liked, then I wouldn't do art.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/john-baldessari/if-i-saw-the-art-around-me-that-i-liked-then-i-wouldn-t-do-art/) [John Baldessari](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/john-baldessari/) > [I could never figure out why photography and art had separate histories. So I decided to explore both.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/john-baldessari/i-could-never-figure-out-why-photography-and-art-had-separate/) [John Baldessari](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/john-baldessari/) > [I go back and forth between wanting to be abundantly simple and maddeningly complex.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/john-baldessari/i-go-back-and-forth-between-wanting-to-be-abundantly-simple-and/) [John Baldessari](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/john-baldessari/) [Explore all 38 John Baldessari quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/john-baldessari/) ## More Abandon quotes > [Humans are, as Sartre put it, 'condemned to be free'. To insist that science, or God, objectively defines moral values is to abandon our…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/kenan-malik/humans-are-as-sartre-put-it-condemned-to-be-free-to-insist-that/) Kenan Malik > [The purpose of a spirit filled life is to demonstrate the supernatural power of our living God so that the unsaved multitudes will abandon…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/t-l-osborn/the-purpose-of-a-spirit-filled-life-is-to-demonstrate-the/) [T.L. Osborn](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/t-l-osborn/) > [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/) > [I would leave at once, but it would be cruel to abandon a lady in a foreign land with a maniac.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/cassandra-clare/i-would-leave-at-once-but-it-would-be-cruel-to-abandon-a-lady-in-a/) [Cassandra Clare](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/cassandra-clare/) > [When we fall utterly, something gathers us up. But our falling must be without reservation, without expectation, without hope, though not hopeless. You cant…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/roger-housden/when-we-fall-utterly-something-gathers-us-up-but-our-falling-must-be/) [Roger Housden](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/roger-housden/) > [every subjective phenomenon is essentially connected with a single point of view, and it seems inevitable that an objective, physical theory will abandon that…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/thomas-nagel/every-subjective-phenomenon-is-essentially-connected-with-a-single/) [Thomas Nagel](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/thomas-nagel/) > [Can you dissolve your ego? Can you abandon the idea of self and other? Can you relinquish the notions of male and female, short…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/laozi/can-you-dissolve-your-ego-can-you-abandon-the-idea-of-self-and-other/) [Laozi](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/laozi/) > [Every great thing starts with an idea, followed by a doubt and finally a resolve to abandon or pursue. Victory is a treacherous journey.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/dane-cook/every-great-thing-starts-with-an-idea-followed-by-a-doubt-and-finally/) [Dane Cook](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/dane-cook/) > [Those who have been once intoxicated with power, and have derived any kind of emolument from it, even though but for one year, never…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/edmund-burke/those-who-have-been-once-intoxicated-with-power-and-have-derived-any/) [Edmund Burke](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/edmund-burke/) > [Do not lose hope; St. Joseph also experienced moments of difficulty, but he never lost faith and was able to overcome them, in the…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/pope-francis/do-not-lose-hope-st-joseph-also-experienced-moments-of-difficulty-but/) [Pope Francis](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/pope-francis/) > [It is a dangerous and fateful presumption, besides the absurd temerity that it implies, to disdain what we do not comprehend. For after you…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anonymous/it-is-a-dangerous-and-fateful-presumption-besides-the-absurd-temerity/) [Anonymous](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anonymous/) > [“Don't give up because things are hard, but work harder, when you think of giving up.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anthony-liccione/don-t-give-up-because-things-are-hard-but-work-harder-when-you-think/) [Anthony Liccione](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anthony-liccione/) > [Sex is not the ultimate high, but the ultimate high hangs out around sex. The ultimate high is the dance with another person, played…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/marianne-williamson/sex-is-not-the-ultimate-high-but-the-ultimate-high-hangs-out-around/) [Marianne Williamson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/marianne-williamson/) > [I care so deeply about this matter that I'm willing to take on the legal penalties, to sit in this prison cell, to sacrifice…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/mahatma-gandhi/i-care-so-deeply-about-this-matter-that-i-m-willing-to-take-on-the/) [Mahatma Gandhi](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/mahatma-gandhi/) > [I've been to unpretty places with the roles I've played, and I'm attracted to reckless abandon. I like being taken to the edge of…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/rhys-ifans/i-ve-been-to-unpretty-places-with-the-roles-i-ve-played-and-i-m/) [Rhys Ifans](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/rhys-ifans/) Browse all 1,142 Abandon quotes ```json { "@context": "https://schema.org", "@graph": [ { "@type": "Quotation", "text": "If you're smart, you abandon the things that didn't work out so well, and you enlarge upon the things that seem to be successful.", "creator": { "@type": "Person", "name": "John Baldessari" }, "isPartOf": { "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/#website" }, "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/john-baldessari/if-you-re-smart-you-abandon-the-things-that-didn-t-work-out-so-well/", "about": { "@type": "Thing", "name": "Abandon" }, "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/john-baldessari/if-you-re-smart-you-abandon-the-things-that-didn-t-work-out-so-well/#quotation", "image": { "@type": "ImageObject", "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/f1b/john-baldessari-16840_abandon_if-you-re-smart-you-abandon-the-things-t_1365364.png", "contentUrl": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/f1b/john-baldessari-16840_abandon_if-you-re-smart-you-abandon-the-things-t_1365364.png", "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/f1b/john-baldessari-16840_abandon_if-you-re-smart-you-abandon-the-things-t_1365364.png", "width": 1080, "height": 1080, "caption": "“If you're smart, you abandon the things that didn't work out so well, and you enlarge upon the things that…” — John Baldessari", "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": "John Baldessari", "item": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/john-baldessari/" }, { "@type": "ListItem", "position": 4, "name": "If you're smart, you abandon the...", "item": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/john-baldessari/if-you-re-smart-you-abandon-the-things-that-didn-t-work-out-so-well/" } ], "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/john-baldessari/if-you-re-smart-you-abandon-the-things-that-didn-t-work-out-so-well/#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 } } ] } ```