--- title: "Meaning & Key Takeaway of: Through my illness I learned rejection. I…" description: "\"Through my illness I learned rejection. I was written off. That was the moment I thought, Okay, game on. No prisoners. Everybody's going down.\" — Lance..." image: "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/f21/lance-armstrong-1639_heartbreak_through-my-illness-i-learned-rejection-i_916451.jpg" --- # Through my illness I learned rejection. I was written off… ![“Through my illness I learned rejection. I was written off. That was the moment I thought, Okay, game on. No prisoners. Everybody's going down.” quote by Lance Armstrong](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/f21/lance-armstrong-1639_heartbreak_through-my-illness-i-learned-rejection-i_916451.jpg) [Download](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/f21/lance-armstrong-1639_heartbreak_through-my-illness-i-learned-rejection-i_916451.jpg) [Open image](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/f21/lance-armstrong-1639_heartbreak_through-my-illness-i-learned-rejection-i_916451.jpg) > “Through my illness I learned rejection. I was written off. That was the moment I thought, Okay, game on. No prisoners. Everybody's going down.” [Lance Armstrong](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/lance-armstrong/) ## About This Quote This interpretation was drafted with AI assistance. It is one reading of the quote, not the author's own explanation. Facing rejection can ignite a fierce determination to prove oneself and overcome obstacles. **In simple terms:** Rejection fuels determination. Key Takeaway Channel setbacks into motivation. Themes resilience determination overcoming adversity Mood defiant focused Type motivational inspirational When to use this quote - sports competition - personal recovery - career setbacks - public scrutiny Key Concepts psychology of motivation self‑efficacy Questions to Reflect On - How do you sustain drive after being dismissed? - What inner resources replace external approval? A Different Perspective Success may depend on external validation, which can be unstable. ★ ★ ★ ★ ★ No ratings yet [Game Prisoners](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/game-prisoners-1383579/) [Heartbreak](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/heartbreak/) [Illness](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/illness/) [Illness Learned](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/illness-learned-1383578/) [Learned Rejection](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/learned-rejection-1383577/) [Okay](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/okay/) [Rejection](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/rejection/) [Rejection Written](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/rejection-written-1383576/) [Time](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/time/) [Written](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/written/) ## Related quotes > [Growing up as a chubby kid with a ton of imaginary friends and a Cyndi Lauper obsession, I learned about rejection early on and…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/beth-ditto/growing-up-as-a-chubby-kid-with-a-ton-of-imaginary-friends-and-a/) [Beth Ditto](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/beth-ditto/) > [If we ask God for a calm, thankful heart that sees all the blessings His grace imparts, He can teach us many lessons in…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/david-jeremiah/if-we-ask-god-for-a-calm-thankful-heart-that-sees-all-the-blessings/) [David Jeremiah](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/david-jeremiah/) > [“I learned that, while rejection is the name of the game, I’m always going to be exactly what someone is looking for, eventually. Whether…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/abby-rosmarin/i-learned-that-while-rejection-is-the-name-of-the-game-i-m-always/) [Abby Rosmarin](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/abby-rosmarin/) > [We all learn lessons in life. Some stick, some don't. I have always learned more from rejection and failure than from acceptance and success.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/henry-rollins/we-all-learn-lessons-in-life-some-stick-some-don-t-i-have-always/) [Henry Rollins](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/henry-rollins/) > [A boo is a lot louder than a cheer.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/lance-armstrong/a-boo-is-a-lot-louder-than-a-cheer/) [Lance Armstrong](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/lance-armstrong/) > [Live strong is exactly I guess what it says. It's one thing to live, but it's another thing to live strong, to attack the…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/lance-armstrong/live-strong-is-exactly-i-guess-what-it-says-it-s-one-thing-to-live/) [Lance Armstrong](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/lance-armstrong/) > [When disappointments knock you down, get back up and go again because out of our greatest rejection comes our greatest direction.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anonymous/when-disappointments-knock-you-down-get-back-up-and-go-again-because/) [Anonymous](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anonymous/) > [“I think we keep these moments of rejection and acceptance very close. I think we carry them always, like cracked shells from which a…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/simon-van-booy/i-think-we-keep-these-moments-of-rejection-and-acceptance-very-close/) [Simon Van Booy](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/simon-van-booy/) > [Cynicism masquerades as wisdom, but it is the farthest thing from it. Because cynics don’t learn anything. Because cynicism is a self-imposed blindness, a…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/stephen-colbert/cynicism-masquerades-as-wisdom-but-it-is-the-farthest-thing-from-it/) [Stephen Colbert](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/stephen-colbert/) > [I'm talking to anyone who has been dumped - have not gotten the job you really wanted or have received those horrible rejection letters…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jill-abramson/i-m-talking-to-anyone-who-has-been-dumped-have-not-gotten-the-job-you/) [Jill Abramson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jill-abramson/) > [Rejection is a cancer, Edie. It eats away at a person.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/kate-morton/rejection-is-a-cancer-edie-it-eats-away-at-a-person/) [Kate Morton](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/kate-morton/) > [How one hates to think of oneself as alone. How one avoids it. It seems to imply rejection or unpopularity.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anne-morrow-lindbergh/how-one-hates-to-think-of-oneself-as-alone-how-one-avoids-it-it-seems/) [Anne Morrow Lindbergh](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anne-morrow-lindbergh/) > [After so many years of rejection, I felt acting would have to become a hobby rather than a full-time profession.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/fatima-sana-shaikh/after-so-many-years-of-rejection-i-felt-acting-would-have-to-become-a/) [Fatima Sana Shaikh](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/fatima-sana-shaikh/) > [Dont judge me by my hair, my skin colour, my body size, or my outer beauty. Because if you do, you might miss who…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anonymous/dont-judge-me-by-my-hair-my-skin-colour-my-body-size-or-my-outer/) [Anonymous](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anonymous/) > [Dialogue and education for peace can help free our hearts from the impulse toward intolerance and the rejection of others.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/daisaku-ikeda/dialogue-and-education-for-peace-can-help-free-our-hearts-from-the/) [Daisaku Ikeda](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/daisaku-ikeda/) ## More by Lance Armstrong > [I raced because I was paid to do a job and I felt like I had to do the job. Number two: I raced…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/lance-armstrong/i-raced-because-i-was-paid-to-do-a-job-and-i-felt-like-i-had-to-do/) [Lance Armstrong](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/lance-armstrong/) > [Regardless of one victory, two victories, four victories, there's never been a victory by a cancer survivor. That's a fact that hopefully I'll be…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/lance-armstrong/regardless-of-one-victory-two-victories-four-victories-there-s-never/) [Lance Armstrong](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/lance-armstrong/) > [Average is Your Enemy.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/lance-armstrong/average-is-your-enemy/) [Lance Armstrong](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/lance-armstrong/) > [Hard work, sacrifice and focus will never show up in tests.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/lance-armstrong/hard-work-sacrifice-and-focus-will-never-show-up-in-tests/) [Lance Armstrong](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/lance-armstrong/) > [Hope that is the only antidote to fear.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/lance-armstrong/hope-that-is-the-only-antidote-to-fear/) [Lance Armstrong](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/lance-armstrong/) > [Evan Handler is a man who’s looked into the abyss and laughed. His book, It’s Only Temporary, made me laugh along with him. He…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/lance-armstrong/evan-handler-is-a-man-who-s-looked-into-the-abyss-and-laughed-his/) [Lance Armstrong](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/lance-armstrong/) > [My cocktail, so to speak, was only EPO, but not a lot, transfusions and testosterone.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/lance-armstrong/my-cocktail-so-to-speak-was-only-epo-but-not-a-lot-transfusions-and/) [Lance Armstrong](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/lance-armstrong/) > [I love this race from the very depths of my heart. 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She buried her head…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/natalie-standiford/if-you-d-only-let-me-come-by-myself-none-of-this-would-have-happened/) [Natalie Standiford](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/natalie-standiford/) > [If you leave someone for another person, don't be surprised if that person leaves you for someone else.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anonymous/if-you-leave-someone-for-another-person-don-t-be-surprised-if-that/) [Anonymous](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anonymous/) > [“...what happens when you return and find nothing but a hollowed shell, shingles and floor, walls and echoes and the light that lead you…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/kellie-elmore/what-happens-when-you-return-and-find-nothing-but-a-hollowed-shell/) [Kellie Elmore](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/kellie-elmore/) > [“Sometimes family breakups are catastrophic, they can lead to decades of ill-feeling within the family unit.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/joy-ellis/sometimes-family-breakups-are-catastrophic-they-can-lead-to-decades/) [Joy Ellis](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/joy-ellis/) > [It's fucking terrifying that no matter how many promises they made, no matter how long you've been together, someone can get up & walk…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/larissa-derrah/it-s-fucking-terrifying-that-no-matter-how-many-promises-they-made-no/) [Larissa Derrah](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/larissa-derrah/) > [“3:29:50 pm what is it that you love about him is it the way he lets you down incapable of lifting you up is…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/r-h-sin/3-29-50-pm-what-is-it-that-you-love-about-him-is-it-the-way-he-lets/) [R.H. 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