--- title: "Meaning & Key Takeaway of: It took me a long time to get selected as…" description: "\"It took me a long time to get selected as an astronaut. In fact, I applied for 20 years before I was selected.\" — John L. Phillips" image: "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/b55/john-l-phillips-29030_astronaut_it-took-me-a-long-time-to-get-selected-a_485853.png" --- # It took me a long time to get selected as an astronaut. In… ![“It took me a long time to get selected as an astronaut. In fact, I applied for 20 years before I was selected.” quote by John L. Phillips](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/b55/john-l-phillips-29030_astronaut_it-took-me-a-long-time-to-get-selected-a_485853.png) [Download](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/b55/john-l-phillips-29030_astronaut_it-took-me-a-long-time-to-get-selected-a_485853.png) [Open image](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/b55/john-l-phillips-29030_astronaut_it-took-me-a-long-time-to-get-selected-a_485853.png) > “It took me a long time to get selected as an astronaut. In fact, I applied for 20 years before I was selected.” [John L. Phillips](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/john-l-phillips/) ## About This Quote This interpretation was drafted with AI assistance. It is one reading of the quote, not the author's own explanation. Persistence and long‑term dedication are essential to achieving high‑stakes goals. **In simple terms:** Keep trying despite setbacks. Key Takeaway Stay patient and keep applying. Themes persistence career space exploration Mood determined hopeful Type motivational inspirational When to use this quote - job applications - career planning - space program - personal ambition Key Concepts goal setting resilience Questions to Reflect On - What keeps you motivated over years? - How do you handle repeated rejection? A Different Perspective Not everyone will succeed despite effort. ★ ★ ★ ★ ★ No ratings yet [Astronaut](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/astronaut/) [Facts](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/facts/) [Space](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/space/) [Time](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/time/) ## Related quotes > [I was selected to be an astronaut on a military program called the Manned Orbiting Laboratory back in '67. That program got cancelled in…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/robert-crippen/i-was-selected-to-be-an-astronaut-on-a-military-program-called-the/) [Robert Crippen](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/robert-crippen/) > [The most important steps that I followed were studying math and science in school. I was always interested in physics and astronomy and chemistry…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/sally-ride/the-most-important-steps-that-i-followed-were-studying-math-and/) [Sally Ride](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/sally-ride/) > [I was a naval officer and aviator. I tested airplanes and got selected to be an astronaut later on.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jim-lovell/i-was-a-naval-officer-and-aviator-i-tested-airplanes-and-got-selected/) [Jim Lovell](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jim-lovell/) > [“Nevertheless, I was convinced that I could be selected as an astronaut. Ed White had been accepted, and we had flown together in the…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/buzz-aldrin/nevertheless-i-was-convinced-that-i-could-be-selected-as-an-astronaut/) [Buzz Aldrin](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/buzz-aldrin/) > [As a youngster, I read of Buck Rogers and Flash Gordon. As a student, I wrote English reports on science fiction. And as a…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/buzz-aldrin/as-a-youngster-i-read-of-buck-rogers-and-flash-gordon-as-a-student-i/) [Buzz Aldrin](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/buzz-aldrin/) > [I flew fighters for the Navy in San Diego for three years, went and did my post-graduate education, and then I was a test…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/alan-g-poindexter/i-flew-fighters-for-the-navy-in-san-diego-for-three-years-went-and/) [Alan G. Poindexter](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/alan-g-poindexter/) > [I never made a career decision based solely on my desire to be an astronaut. I attended the Naval Academy because I wanted to…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/john-l-phillips/i-never-made-a-career-decision-based-solely-on-my-desire-to-be-an/) [John L. Phillips](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/john-l-phillips/) > [It so happened that my goals kind of matched my career progression toward becoming an astronaut.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/john-l-phillips/it-so-happened-that-my-goals-kind-of-matched-my-career-progression/) [John L. Phillips](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/john-l-phillips/) > [There weren't any astronauts until I was about 10. Yuri Gagarin went into space right around my 10th birthday.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/john-l-phillips/there-weren-t-any-astronauts-until-i-was-about-10-yuri-gagarin-went/) [John L. Phillips](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/john-l-phillips/) > [I wasn't as confident and creative in the beginning as I am now, so it was all very safe. But I was building my…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/guido-palau/i-wasn-t-as-confident-and-creative-in-the-beginning-as-i-am-now-so-it/) [Guido Palau](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/guido-palau/) > [It took me a long time to accept that I was a writer.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/katie-kitamura/it-took-me-a-long-time-to-accept-that-i-was-a-writer/) [Katie Kitamura](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/katie-kitamura/) > [I'd woken up early, and I took a long time getting ready to exist.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/fernando-pessoa/i-d-woken-up-early-and-i-took-a-long-time-getting-ready-to-exist/) [Fernando Pessoa](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/fernando-pessoa/) > [It took me a long time to realize that being alienated and not fitting in is not only OK, it's good.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anonymous/it-took-me-a-long-time-to-realize-that-being-alienated-and-not/) [Anonymous](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anonymous/) > [Some people never change, shame it took this long to realize.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anonymous/some-people-never-change-shame-it-took-this-long-to-realize/) [Anonymous](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anonymous/) > [It took me so long to get to the music, where that was what I wanted to do all my life. It took me…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/lou-doillon/it-took-me-so-long-to-get-to-the-music-where-that-was-what-i-wanted/) [Lou Doillon](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/lou-doillon/) ## More by John L. Phillips > [Small samples in the centrifuge will spin at varying rates to create synthetic gravity, like the gravity of Mars or the gravity of the…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/john-l-phillips/small-samples-in-the-centrifuge-will-spin-at-varying-rates-to-create/) [John L. Phillips](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/john-l-phillips/) > [Every day, we get a little bit closer to the kind of expertise and the kind of experience we're going to need to go…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/john-l-phillips/every-day-we-get-a-little-bit-closer-to-the-kind-of-expertise-and-the/) [John L. Phillips](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/john-l-phillips/) > [Since the Columbia accident, the Russian space agency, or the Russian space program, has been literally carrying the load bringing us all the supplies…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/john-l-phillips/since-the-columbia-accident-the-russian-space-agency-or-the-russian/) [John L. Phillips](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/john-l-phillips/) > [I think it's going to be a very important, unique data set in terms of measuring the behavior of your lower body in space…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/john-l-phillips/i-think-it-s-going-to-be-a-very-important-unique-data-set-in-terms-of/) [John L. Phillips](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/john-l-phillips/) > [My dad served in two wars has been flying airplanes for 60 years now. He was certainly quite an inspiration.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/john-l-phillips/my-dad-served-in-two-wars-has-been-flying-airplanes-for-60-years-now/) [John L. Phillips](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/john-l-phillips/) > [If I wasn't doing this kind of exploration, I'd like to be doing some other kind of exploration. It might be more risky, or…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/john-l-phillips/if-i-wasn-t-doing-this-kind-of-exploration-i-d-like-to-be-doing-some/) [John L. Phillips](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/john-l-phillips/) > [The Space Shuttle will stop directly below the Space Station and Sergei and I will be looking out two different windows looking straight down…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/john-l-phillips/the-space-shuttle-will-stop-directly-below-the-space-station-and/) [John L. Phillips](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/john-l-phillips/) > [It so happened that my goals kind of matched my career progression toward becoming an astronaut.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/john-l-phillips/it-so-happened-that-my-goals-kind-of-matched-my-career-progression/) [John L. Phillips](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/john-l-phillips/) > [A civilization that only looks inward will stagnate. We have to keep looking outward; we have to keep finding new avenues for human endeavor…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/john-l-phillips/a-civilization-that-only-looks-inward-will-stagnate-we-have-to-keep/) [John L. Phillips](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/john-l-phillips/) > [We would like to carry out 100 percent, or maybe more, of our scientific program; I would like to devote some of my spare…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/john-l-phillips/we-would-like-to-carry-out-100-percent-or-maybe-more-of-our/) [John L. Phillips](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/john-l-phillips/) > [I never made a career decision based solely on my desire to be an astronaut. I attended the Naval Academy because I wanted to…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/john-l-phillips/i-never-made-a-career-decision-based-solely-on-my-desire-to-be-an/) [John L. Phillips](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/john-l-phillips/) > [Researchers can measure what kind of angles your legs take up during the day when they're just trailing around behind you in weightless conditions,…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/john-l-phillips/researchers-can-measure-what-kind-of-angles-your-legs-take-up-during/) [John L. Phillips](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/john-l-phillips/) > [There weren't any astronauts until I was about 10. Yuri Gagarin went into space right around my 10th birthday.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/john-l-phillips/there-weren-t-any-astronauts-until-i-was-about-10-yuri-gagarin-went/) [John L. Phillips](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/john-l-phillips/) > [We're going to be focusing our science on things that will take us farther and longer into space. For many of those experiments, the…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/john-l-phillips/we-re-going-to-be-focusing-our-science-on-things-that-will-take-us/) [John L. Phillips](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/john-l-phillips/) > [After assembly complete, when we have a larger crew on orbit, a more complex vehicle, more laboratories and more robot arms, maybe we'll have…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/john-l-phillips/after-assembly-complete-when-we-have-a-larger-crew-on-orbit-a-more/) [John L. Phillips](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/john-l-phillips/) [Explore all 18 John L. Phillips quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/john-l-phillips/) ## More Astronaut quotes > [I went to school at night in L.A. to brush up on my engineering while I applied to the astronaut program. I really did…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/mae-jemison/i-went-to-school-at-night-in-l-a-to-brush-up-on-my-engineering-while/) [Mae Jemison](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/mae-jemison/) > ['You spin in the sky, the world spins under you, and you step from land to land, while we . . .' She turned…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/samuel-r-delany/you-spin-in-the-sky-the-world-spins-under-you-and-you-step-from-land/) [Samuel R. Delany](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/samuel-r-delany/) > [I think the astronaut job is the best job in the world. I realized when I was older and started applying for it that…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/michael-j-massimino/i-think-the-astronaut-job-is-the-best-job-in-the-world-i-realized/) [Michael J. Massimino](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/michael-j-massimino/) > [NASA is developing space taxis to shuttle astronauts to the International Space Station. And just like New York taxis, they're all going to be…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jimmy-fallon/nasa-is-developing-space-taxis-to-shuttle-astronauts-to-the/) [Jimmy Fallon](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jimmy-fallon/) > [I stayed in the astronaut program until 1993. People ask me why I left. I thought I had a lot of things to contribute…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/mae-jemison/i-stayed-in-the-astronaut-program-until-1993-people-ask-me-why-i-left/) [Mae Jemison](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/mae-jemison/) > [“Sometimes when people find out I’m an astronaut, they ask, “So what do you do when you’re not flying in space?”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/chris-hadfield/sometimes-when-people-find-out-i-m-an-astronaut-they-ask-so-what-do/) [Chris Hadfield](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/chris-hadfield/) > [Rugby has surprisingly helped me a lot as an astronaut and when I'm training in the space suit.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anne-mcclain/rugby-has-surprisingly-helped-me-a-lot-as-an-astronaut-and-when-i-m/) [Anne McClain](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anne-mcclain/) > [As a former Apollo astronaut, I think it's safe to say that SpaceX and the other commercial developers embody the 21st century version of…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/rusty-schweickart/as-a-former-apollo-astronaut-i-think-it-s-safe-to-say-that-spacex-and/) [Rusty Schweickart](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/rusty-schweickart/) > [My optimism and confidence come not from feeling I'm luckier than other mortals, and they sure don't come from visualizing victory. They're the result…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/chris-hadfield/my-optimism-and-confidence-come-not-from-feeling-i-m-luckier-than/) [Chris Hadfield](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/chris-hadfield/) > [“My experiences in the Astronaut Corps had taught me that you never know what will happen from day to day. It’s best to experience…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/leland-melvin/my-experiences-in-the-astronaut-corps-had-taught-me-that-you-never/) [Leland Melvin](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/leland-melvin/) > [As a kid, I knew I wanted to be either a cartoonist or an astronaut. The latter was never much of a possibility, as…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/bill-watterson/as-a-kid-i-knew-i-wanted-to-be-either-a-cartoonist-or-an-astronaut/) [Bill Watterson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/bill-watterson/) > [I think it's good to have competition. Now we have a third country that can launch astronauts, so it's good for all of us.…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/leroy-chiao/i-think-it-s-good-to-have-competition-now-we-have-a-third-country/) [Leroy Chiao](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/leroy-chiao/) > [I was told when I grew up I could be anything I wanted: a fireman, a policeman, a doctor – even President, it seemed.…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/bill-hicks/i-was-told-when-i-grew-up-i-could-be-anything-i-wanted-a-fireman-a/) [Bill Hicks](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/bill-hicks/) > [The Earth was small, light blue, and so touchingly alone, our home that must be defended like a holy relic. The Earth was absolutely…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/alexey-leonov/the-earth-was-small-light-blue-and-so-touchingly-alone-our-home-that/) Alexey Leonov > [“Whilst my mother couldn't give me access to the world, she at least made sure to let me know it existed. A kid cannot…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/trevor-noah/whilst-my-mother-couldn-t-give-me-access-to-the-world-she-at-least/) [Trevor Noah](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/trevor-noah/) [Browse all 463 Astronaut quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/astronaut/) ```json { "@context": "https://schema.org", "@graph": [ { "@type": "Quotation", "text": "It took me a long time to get selected as an astronaut. In fact, I applied for 20 years before I was selected.", "creator": { "@type": "Person", "name": "John L. 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