--- title: "Meaning & Key Takeaway of: I would rather be a spectacular failure…" description: "\"“I would rather be a spectacular failure than a mediocre success.”\" — Kuo Pao Kun" image: "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/0a0/kuo-pao-kun-75856_failure_i-would-rather-be-a-spectacular-failure_3215531.jpg" --- # I would rather be a spectacular failure than a mediocre… ![“I would rather be a spectacular failure than a mediocre success.” quote by Kuo Pao Kun](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/0a0/kuo-pao-kun-75856_failure_i-would-rather-be-a-spectacular-failure_3215531.jpg) [Download](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/0a0/kuo-pao-kun-75856_failure_i-would-rather-be-a-spectacular-failure_3215531.jpg) [Open image](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/0a0/kuo-pao-kun-75856_failure_i-would-rather-be-a-spectacular-failure_3215531.jpg) > ““I would rather be a spectacular failure than a mediocre success.”” [Kuo Pao Kun](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/kuo-pao-kun/) ## About This Quote This interpretation was drafted with AI assistance. It is one reading of the quote, not the author's own explanation. The quote values daring, bold attempts that may fail over over, mediocrity, encouraging risk-taking and authenticity. **In simple terms:** Bold failure is better than safe mediocrity. Key Takeaway Take bold risks. Themes risk creativity authenticity failure success Mood inspirational challenging provocative Type philosophical motivational artistic When to use this quote - entrepreneurship - artistic creation - personal growth - social activism Key Concepts courage innovation self‑expression cultural critique Questions to Reflect On - What would you attempt if fear of failure vanished? - How does society reward mediocrity? A Different Perspective Failure can be a learning catalyst. ★ ★ ★ ★ ★ No ratings yet [Failure](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/failure/) [Failure Mediocre](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/failure-mediocre-6024307/) [Inspirational](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/inspirational/) [Mediocre](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/mediocre/) [Mediocre Success](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/mediocre-success-2999739/) [Spectacular](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/spectacular/) [Spectacular Failure](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/spectacular-failure-3272096/) [Success](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/success/) ## Related quotes > [The onset of a crisis is usually triggered by a spectacular failure which shakes confidence in fictitious forms of capital.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/david-harvey/the-onset-of-a-crisis-is-usually-triggered-by-a-spectacular-failure/) [David Harvey](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/david-harvey/) > [A mediocre failure is as insufferable as a mediocre success. Embrace failure! Seek it out. Learn to love it. That may be the only…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/tom-robbins/a-mediocre-failure-is-as-insufferable-as-a-mediocre-success-embrace/) [Tom Robbins](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/tom-robbins/) > [“A worthy failure is more valuable than a mediocre success.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/kuo-pao-kun/a-worthy-failure-is-more-valuable-than-a-mediocre-success/) [Kuo Pao Kun](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/kuo-pao-kun/) > [Cornelius Cardew's folk songs were very, very literal, and they were just about workers smashing their chains. It was like reading Das Kapital over…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/alasdair-maclean/cornelius-cardew-s-folk-songs-were-very-very-literal-and-they-were/) [Alasdair MacLean](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/alasdair-maclean/) > [WeWork is my fifth venture. I failed in my first, second and third, had mediocre success in the fourth.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/adam-neumann/wework-is-my-fifth-venture-i-failed-in-my-first-second-and-third-had/) [Adam Neumann](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/adam-neumann/) > [History more often records the brilliant successes and spectacular defeats of contending forces than the effect of war on the common people.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/mildred-cable/history-more-often-records-the-brilliant-successes-and-spectacular/) [Mildred Cable](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/mildred-cable/) > [I was haunted always by my other life-my drab room in the Bronx, my square foot of the subway, my fixation upon the day's…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/f-scott-fitzgerald/i-was-haunted-always-by-my-other-life-my-drab-room-in-the-bronx-my/) [F. Scott Fitzgerald](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/f-scott-fitzgerald/) > [We're being very good team players here and very happy we've got a great working relationship with Reince Priebus and the RNC. They've been…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/kellyanne-conway/we-re-being-very-good-team-players-here-and-very-happy-we-ve-got-a/) [Kellyanne Conway](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/kellyanne-conway/) > [I was at the vice president's Christmas party. I thought that his speech was spectacular, and I knew that it was a very emotional…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/bradley-whitford/i-was-at-the-vice-president-s-christmas-party-i-thought-that-his/) [Bradley Whitford](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/bradley-whitford/) > [Coral reefs represent some of the worlds most spectacular beauty spots, but they are also the foundation of marine life: without them many of…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/sheherazade-goldsmith/coral-reefs-represent-some-of-the-worlds-most-spectacular-beauty/) [Sheherazade Goldsmith](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/sheherazade-goldsmith/) > [I guess the idea of not wanting to choose to direct a film, for which I've not read a script. It's a tough decision…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/j-j-abrams/i-guess-the-idea-of-not-wanting-to-choose-to-direct-a-film-for-which/) [J. J. Abrams](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/j-j-abrams/) > [What a wonderfully exciting cough,' said the little man, quite startled by it, 'do you mind if I join you?' And with that he…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/douglas-adams/what-a-wonderfully-exciting-cough-said-the-little-man-quite-startled/) [Douglas Adams](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/douglas-adams/) > [We are a spectacular, splendid manifestation of life. We have language. . . . We have affection. We have genes for usefulness, and usefulness…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/lewis-thomas/we-are-a-spectacular-splendid-manifestation-of-life-we-have-language/) [Lewis Thomas](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/lewis-thomas/) > [Bruce Katz is a spectacular talent! He's a brilliant composer and arranger who uses uncommon and unique musical intelligence to redefine jazz and blues…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/larry-coryell/bruce-katz-is-a-spectacular-talent-he-s-a-brilliant-composer-and/) [Larry Coryell](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/larry-coryell/) > [My specialties are corpses, unconscious people and people snoring in spectacular epics.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/gig-young/my-specialties-are-corpses-unconscious-people-and-people-snoring-in/) [Gig Young](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/gig-young/) ## More by Kuo Pao Kun > [“A worthy failure is more valuable than a mediocre success.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/kuo-pao-kun/a-worthy-failure-is-more-valuable-than-a-mediocre-success/) [Kuo Pao Kun](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/kuo-pao-kun/) > [“The advantage of having an artistic tradition is that the younger artist could see an organic link between the real life of one's country…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/kuo-pao-kun/the-advantage-of-having-an-artistic-tradition-is-that-the-younger/) [Kuo Pao Kun](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/kuo-pao-kun/) [Explore all 3 Kuo Pao Kun quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/kuo-pao-kun/) ## More Failure quotes > [When you do things they're absolutely right at that time for you and it can always teach you something about yourself. You can take…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/kym-marsh/when-you-do-things-they-re-absolutely-right-at-that-time-for-you-and/) [Kym Marsh](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/kym-marsh/) > [Failures happen. You can't cry over them. You just take it in your stride because you know that you have done your best... Sometimes,…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/divya-dutta/failures-happen-you-can-t-cry-over-them-you-just-take-it-in-your/) [Divya Dutta](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/divya-dutta/) > [No one is completely unhappy at the failure of his best friend.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/groucho-marx/no-one-is-completely-unhappy-at-the-failure-of-his-best-friend/) [Groucho Marx](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/groucho-marx/) > [“Rhiannon's Law #28: If you're going to fuck up, be sure to fuck up good and proper. Nothing makes failure acceptable, so you might…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anonymous/rhiannon-s-law-28-if-you-re-going-to-fuck-up-be-sure-to-fuck-up-good/) [Anonymous](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anonymous/) > [Failure is a part of life and you have to learn to deal with it. Failure is something that is part of life's cycle…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/colin-powell/failure-is-a-part-of-life-and-you-have-to-learn-to-deal-with-it/) [Colin Powell](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/colin-powell/) > [If my child had prejudice in his head, I'd be ashamed. I would see it as my failure as a parent.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/salman-rushdie/if-my-child-had-prejudice-in-his-head-i-d-be-ashamed-i-would-see-it/) [Salman Rushdie](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/salman-rushdie/) > [First action was a mistake. What about the second? third? fourth and fifth?...Mehn you are bad...](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anonymous/first-action-was-a-mistake-what-about-the-second-third-fourth-and/) [Anonymous](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anonymous/) > [God's love never fail :)](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anonymous/god-s-love-never-fail/) [Anonymous](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anonymous/) > [Don’t you just hate nights like that, when you think over every mistake you’ve made, every hurt you’ve received, every bit of meanness you’ve…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/charlaine-harris/don-t-you-just-hate-nights-like-that-when-you-think-over-every/) [Charlaine Harris](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/charlaine-harris/) > [“Our failure to understand another being's inner reality doesn't make that reality any less real, or any less valuable to that being. (p.255)”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/kathryn-schulz/our-failure-to-understand-another-being-s-inner-reality-doesn-t-make/) [Kathryn Schulz](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/kathryn-schulz/) > [I hope that the Palestinians don't make the mistake of unleashing a new intifada. They've tried it twice before, and the consequences were bad…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/tom-segev/i-hope-that-the-palestinians-don-t-make-the-mistake-of-unleashing-a/) [Tom Segev](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/tom-segev/) > [Don't take too much comfort in the fact that you're successful today because tomorrow could bring failure. There's no surety in life.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/michael-savage/don-t-take-too-much-comfort-in-the-fact-that-you-re-successful-today/) [Michael Savage](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/michael-savage/) > [“It took me years to learn to sit at my desk for more than two minutes at a time, to put up with the…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/erica-jong/it-took-me-years-to-learn-to-sit-at-my-desk-for-more-than-two-minutes/) [Erica Jong](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/erica-jong/) > [failure in the theater is more public, more brilliant, more unreal than in any other field.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/lillian-hellman/failure-in-the-theater-is-more-public-more-brilliant-more-unreal-than/) [Lillian Hellman](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/lillian-hellman/) > [As we are coming to the end of the year, I want you to forget about the past, the failure, the negative thoughts or…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anonymous/as-we-are-coming-to-the-end-of-the-year-i-want-you-to-forget-about/) [Anonymous](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anonymous/) [Browse all 27,498 Failure quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/failure/) ```json { "@context": "https://schema.org", "@graph": [ { "@type": "Quotation", "text": "“I would rather be a spectacular failure than a mediocre success.”", "creator": { "@type": "Person", "name": "Kuo Pao Kun" }, "isPartOf": { "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/#website" }, "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/kuo-pao-kun/i-would-rather-be-a-spectacular-failure-than-a-mediocre-success/", "about": { "@type": "Thing", "name": "Failure" }, "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/kuo-pao-kun/i-would-rather-be-a-spectacular-failure-than-a-mediocre-success/#quotation", "image": { "@type": "ImageObject", "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/0a0/kuo-pao-kun-75856_failure_i-would-rather-be-a-spectacular-failure_3215531.jpg", "contentUrl": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/0a0/kuo-pao-kun-75856_failure_i-would-rather-be-a-spectacular-failure_3215531.jpg", "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/0a0/kuo-pao-kun-75856_failure_i-would-rather-be-a-spectacular-failure_3215531.jpg", "width": 1080, "height": 1080, "caption": "“I would rather be a spectacular failure than a mediocre success.” — Kuo Pao Kun", "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": "Kuo Pao Kun", "item": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/kuo-pao-kun/" }, { "@type": "ListItem", "position": 4, "name": "“I would rather be a spectacular...", "item": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/kuo-pao-kun/i-would-rather-be-a-spectacular-failure-than-a-mediocre-success/" } ], "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/kuo-pao-kun/i-would-rather-be-a-spectacular-failure-than-a-mediocre-success/#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 } } ] } ```