--- title: "Meaning & Key Takeaway of: I have found that you have only to take…" description: "\"I have found that you have only to take that one step toward the gods, and they will then take ten steps toward you. That step, the heroic first step o..." image: "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/663/joseph-campbell-300_boundaries_i-have-found-that-you-have-only-to-take_475668.png" --- # I have found that you have only to take that one step… ![“I have found that you have only to take that one step toward the gods, and they will then take ten steps toward you. That step, the heroic first step of the journey, is out of, or over the edge of, your boundaries, and it often must be taken before you know that you will.” quote by Joseph Campbell](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/663/joseph-campbell-300_boundaries_i-have-found-that-you-have-only-to-take_475668.png) [Download](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/663/joseph-campbell-300_boundaries_i-have-found-that-you-have-only-to-take_475668.png) [Open image](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/663/joseph-campbell-300_boundaries_i-have-found-that-you-have-only-to-take_475668.png) > “I have found that you have only to take that one step toward the gods, and they will then take ten steps toward you. That step, the heroic first step of the journey, is out of, or over the edge of, your boundaries, and it often must be taken before you know that you will.” [Joseph Campbell](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/joseph-campbell/) ## About This Quote This interpretation was drafted with AI assistance. It is one reading of the quote, not the author's own explanation. Taking the first courageous step invites greater support and momentum from unseen forces. **In simple terms:** Bold first steps attract help and momentum. Key Takeaway Act boldly; trust that larger forces will respond. Themes courage faith journey trust Mood inspirational reflective hopeful Type philosophical motivational When to use this quote - starting a new project - spiritual commitment - personal transformation - overcoming fear Key Concepts heroic initiation reciprocity spiritual alignment Questions to Reflect On - What does the “first step” look like for you? - How will you stay resilient if help doesn’t arrive? A Different Perspective The promised support may not materialize; risk of overreliance on external aid. ★ ★ ★ ★ ★ No ratings yet [Boundaries](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/boundaries/) [First step](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/first-step/) [First steps](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/first-steps/) [Heroic](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/heroic/) [Journey](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/journey/) [Over the edge](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/over-the-edge/) ## Related quotes > [“It’s time to depart on the long, hard road to find our Higher Selves. It’s time to separate ourselves from the ordinary world that…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/michael-faust/it-s-time-to-depart-on-the-long-hard-road-to-find-our-higher-selves/) Michael Faust > [The digital world has been in a separate orbit from our medical cocoon, and it's time the boundaries be taken down.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/eric-topol/the-digital-world-has-been-in-a-separate-orbit-from-our-medical/) [Eric Topol](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/eric-topol/) > [You have to be very good at setting boundaries for yourself, so you're not taken advantage of.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/emma-corrin/you-have-to-be-very-good-at-setting-boundaries-for-yourself-so-you-re/) [Emma Corrin](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/emma-corrin/) > [The first step in the journey is to lose your way.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/galway-kinnell/the-first-step-in-the-journey-is-to-lose-your-way/) [Galway Kinnell](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/galway-kinnell/) > [I have enjoyed every single step of the journey that I've been on.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ryan-fitzpatrick/i-have-enjoyed-every-single-step-of-the-journey-that-i-ve-been-on/) [Ryan Fitzpatrick](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ryan-fitzpatrick/) > [“Keep trusting God. He will lead you in every step of the journey.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/lailah-gifty-akita/keep-trusting-god-he-will-lead-you-in-every-step-of-the-journey/) [Lailah Gifty Akita](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/lailah-gifty-akita/) > [“I might not know every step of my journey, but standing still wouldn’t accomplish a thing. Sometimes you just had to take a step,…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jean-brashear/i-might-not-know-every-step-of-my-journey-but-standing-still-wouldn-t/) [Jean Brashear](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jean-brashear/) > [“The miracles of our dreams lie beneath our foot soles -- in each and every tiny step we take as we journey to the…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/besa-kosova/the-miracles-of-our-dreams-lie-beneath-our-foot-soles-in-each-and/) [Besa Kosova](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/besa-kosova/) > [The first step of a journey is always the longest.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/richard-paul-evans/the-first-step-of-a-journey-is-always-the-longest/) [Richard Paul Evans](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/richard-paul-evans/) > [“It’s lucid fact that there is no hidden secret to success; this is a step by step journey.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/junaid-raza/it-s-lucid-fact-that-there-is-no-hidden-secret-to-success-this-is-a/) Junaid Raza > [You take a step, then another. That's the journey. But to take a step with your eyes open is not a journey at all,…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anonymous/you-take-a-step-then-another-that-s-the-journey-but-to-take-a-step/) [Anonymous](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anonymous/) > [“Every day, every moment, is another step on the journey.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/g-david-walker/every-day-every-moment-is-another-step-on-the-journey/) G. David Walker > [There's a lot of 'who you know' in this business, and I don't think I skipped a step on the journey.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/sean-mcdermott/there-s-a-lot-of-who-you-know-in-this-business-and-i-don-t-think-i/) [Sean McDermott](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/sean-mcdermott/) > [“We take a giant step in our journey when we become aware that it's only our own thoughts that hurt us.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jerry-jampolsky/we-take-a-giant-step-in-our-journey-when-we-become-aware-that-it-s/) [Jerry Jampolsky](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jerry-jampolsky/) > [“Always take the first step. That's where the journey begins.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/echo-bliss/always-take-the-first-step-that-s-where-the-journey-begins/) Echo Bliss ## More by Joseph Campbell > [If a person does not listen to the demands of their own spiritual and heart life and insists on a certain program, you're going…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/joseph-campbell/if-a-person-does-not-listen-to-the-demands-of-their-own-spiritual-and/) [Joseph Campbell](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/joseph-campbell/) > [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/) > [The privilege of a lifetime is being who you are.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/joseph-campbell/the-privilege-of-a-lifetime-is-being-who-you-are/) [Joseph Campbell](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/joseph-campbell/) > [The eternal principle, which never was born, never will die: it is in all things: it is in you now. You are the wave…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/joseph-campbell/the-eternal-principle-which-never-was-born-never-will-die-it-is-in/) [Joseph Campbell](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/joseph-campbell/) > [How do you find the divine power in yourself? The word enthusiasm means 'filled with a god,' so what makes you enthusiastic? Follow it.…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/joseph-campbell/how-do-you-find-the-divine-power-in-yourself-the-word-enthusiasm/) [Joseph Campbell](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/joseph-campbell/) > [What we're learning in our schools is not the wisdom of life. We're learning technologies, we're getting information. There's a curious reluctance on the…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/joseph-campbell/what-we-re-learning-in-our-schools-is-not-the-wisdom-of-life-we-re/) [Joseph Campbell](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/joseph-campbell/) > [ The fall \[of your soul\] from perfection into duality...was naturally followed by the discovery of the duality of good and evil...This is the Biblical… ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/joseph-campbell/the-fall-of-your-soul-from-perfection-into-duality-was-naturally/) [Joseph Campbell](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/joseph-campbell/) > [So that's what destiny is: simply the fulfillment of the potentialites of the energies in your own system.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/joseph-campbell/so-that-s-what-destiny-is-simply-the-fulfillment-of-the-potentialites/) [Joseph Campbell](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/joseph-campbell/) > [Your ego is your embodiment and your self is your potentiality and that's what you listen to when you listen for the voice of…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/joseph-campbell/your-ego-is-your-embodiment-and-your-self-is-your-potentiality-and/) [Joseph Campbell](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/joseph-campbell/) > [When you follow your bliss a kind of track opens up, that's always been there, waiting for you. And the life that you should…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/joseph-campbell/when-you-follow-your-bliss-a-kind-of-track-opens-up-that-s-always/) [Joseph Campbell](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/joseph-campbell/) > [The best we can do is lean towards the light.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/joseph-campbell/the-best-we-can-do-is-lean-towards-the-light/) [Joseph Campbell](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/joseph-campbell/) > [I think of mythology as the homeland of the muses, the inspirers of art, the inspirers of poetry. To see life as a poem…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/joseph-campbell/i-think-of-mythology-as-the-homeland-of-the-muses-the-inspirers-of/) [Joseph Campbell](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/joseph-campbell/) > [When you are falling --- Dive!](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/joseph-campbell/when-you-are-falling-dive/) [Joseph Campbell](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/joseph-campbell/) > [We're all seeking...the rapture of being alive.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/joseph-campbell/we-re-all-seeking-the-rapture-of-being-alive/) [Joseph Campbell](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/joseph-campbell/) > [Both the artist and the lover know that perfection is not loveable. It is the clumsiness of a fault that makes a person lovable.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/joseph-campbell/both-the-artist-and-the-lover-know-that-perfection-is-not-loveable-it/) [Joseph Campbell](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/joseph-campbell/) [Explore all 711 Joseph Campbell quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/joseph-campbell/) ## More Boundaries quotes > [I think the next 50 years are going to present the human race with challenges that so far exceed the limitations of geopolitical boundaries…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/zachary-quinto/i-think-the-next-50-years-are-going-to-present-the-human-race-with/) [Zachary Quinto](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/zachary-quinto/) > [A man could be a lover and defender of the wilderness without ever in his lifetime leaving the boundaries of asphalt, powerlines, and right-angled…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/edward-abbey/a-man-could-be-a-lover-and-defender-of-the-wilderness-without-ever-in/) [Edward Abbey](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/edward-abbey/) > [God's Word does provide life lessons to teach us how to live. And it gives us beautiful poetry that gives voice to our human…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jennifer-rothschild/god-s-word-does-provide-life-lessons-to-teach-us-how-to-live-and-it/) [Jennifer Rothschild](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jennifer-rothschild/) > [While the world of reality has its limits, the world of your imagination is without boundaries](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/wayne-dyer/while-the-world-of-reality-has-its-limits-the-world-of-your/) [Wayne Dyer](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/wayne-dyer/) > [There's always that discussion about fiction about how do you market it - these are books for boys, these are books for girls, these…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/l-a-weatherly/there-s-always-that-discussion-about-fiction-about-how-do-you-market/) [L.A. Weatherly](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/l-a-weatherly/) > [... informed ignorance provides the natural state of mind for research scientists at the ever-shifting frontiers of knowledge. People who believe themselves ignorant of…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/neil-degrasse-tyson/informed-ignorance-provides-the-natural-state-of-mind-for-research/) [Neil deGrasse Tyson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/neil-degrasse-tyson/) > [I never go anywhere or do anything that transports me outside the boundaries of my mind.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/george-carlin/i-never-go-anywhere-or-do-anything-that-transports-me-outside-the/) [George Carlin](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/george-carlin/) > [As a kid, in the Runaways, I would see the interviewers start to ask about our personal lives and what we did — and…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/joan-jett/as-a-kid-in-the-runaways-i-would-see-the-interviewers-start-to-ask/) [Joan Jett](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/joan-jett/) > [Understanding science and pushing the boundaries of science is what makes me immensely satisfied.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/bill-gates/understanding-science-and-pushing-the-boundaries-of-science-is-what/) [Bill Gates](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/bill-gates/) > [A language possesses utility only insofar as it can construct conventional boundaries. A language of no boundaries is no language at all, and thus…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ken-wilber/a-language-possesses-utility-only-insofar-as-it-can-construct/) [Ken Wilber](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ken-wilber/) > [“Let us not subside into a single mandatory way of thinking or feeling, immersed by a spirit of self-gratification. But let’s dig into the…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/erik-pevernagie/let-us-not-subside-into-a-single-mandatory-way-of-thinking-or-feeling/) [Erik Pevernagie](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/erik-pevernagie/) > [The question of boundaries is a major question of the Jewish people because the Jews are the great experts of crossing boundaries. They have…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/a-b-yehoshua/the-question-of-boundaries-is-a-major-question-of-the-jewish-people/) [A. B. Yehoshua](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/a-b-yehoshua/) > [Working against a restriction - for me - often produces greater things than getting rid of all boundaries.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jon-lord/working-against-a-restriction-for-me-often-produces-greater-things/) [Jon Lord](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jon-lord/) > [That's what all art's about - a sense of moving away from boundaries that you can't in real life. Like a dancer is always…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/kate-bush/that-s-what-all-art-s-about-a-sense-of-moving-away-from-boundaries/) [Kate Bush](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/kate-bush/) > [The boundaries between contemporary art and cinema are so rigid. It's unbelievable. The film critics don't know my artwork and the art world doesn't…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/agnes-varda/the-boundaries-between-contemporary-art-and-cinema-are-so-rigid-it-s/) [Agnes Varda](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/agnes-varda/) [Browse all 2,012 Boundaries quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/boundaries/) ```json { "@context": "https://schema.org", "@graph": [ { "@type": "Quotation", "text": "I have found that you have only to take that one step toward the gods, and they will then take ten steps toward you. 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