--- title: "Meaning & Key Takeaway of: You've got to say, \"I think that if I…" description: "\"You've got to say, \"I think that if I keep working at this and want it badly enough I can have it.\" It's called perseverance.\" — Lee Iacocca" image: "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/4d2/lee-iacocca-3170_enough_you-ve-got-to-say-i-think-that-if-i-keep_2944353.png" --- # You've got to say, "I think that if I keep working at this… ![“You've got to say, "I think that if I keep working at this and want it badly enough I can have it." It's called perseverance.” quote by Lee Iacocca](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/4d2/lee-iacocca-3170_enough_you-ve-got-to-say-i-think-that-if-i-keep_2944353.png) [Download](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/4d2/lee-iacocca-3170_enough_you-ve-got-to-say-i-think-that-if-i-keep_2944353.png) [Open image](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/4d2/lee-iacocca-3170_enough_you-ve-got-to-say-i-think-that-if-i-keep_2944353.png) > “You've got to say, "I think that if I keep working at this and want it badly enough I can have it." It's called perseverance.” [Lee Iacocca](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/lee-iacocca/) ## About This Quote This interpretation was drafted with AI assistance. It is one reading of the quote, not the author's own explanation. Perseverance is believing that hard work and strong desire can achieve goals. **In simple terms:** Hard work and desire lead to success. Key Takeaway Believe and keep working. Themes determination goal setting self belief Mood motivational hopeful Type inspirational practical When to use this quote - career advancement - personal projects - skill development Key Concepts perseverance motivation Questions to Reflect On - What goal are you willing to pursue relentlessly? - How does desire fuel persistence? A Different Perspective Perseverance alone may not overcome systemic barriers. ★ ★ ★ ★ ★ No ratings yet [Patience](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/patience/) [Perseverance](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/perseverance/) [Positive](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/positive/) [Thinking](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/thinking/) [Weight loss](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/weight-loss/) ## Related quotes > [The road to success is not straight. 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I don't want to talk…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/carlos-vela/when-i-m-working-i-want-to-be-the-best-but-when-i-m-out-i-don-t-want/) [Carlos Vela](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/carlos-vela/) > [I was very inspired by working women, and also women who aren't working yet! I want them to have shoes that feel luxurious and…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/zendaya/i-was-very-inspired-by-working-women-and-also-women-who-aren-t/) [Zendaya](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/zendaya/) > [I was 21 and thinking, 'When this 'Head Of The Class' boat ride ends, I don't want to fade off into the sunset. I…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/dan-schneider/i-was-21-and-thinking-when-this-head-of-the-class-boat-ride-ends-i/) [Dan Schneider](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/dan-schneider/) > [I want to pay my mortgage and go on vacation, so I love working. I want to be able to do independent projects as…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/spencer-grammer/i-want-to-pay-my-mortgage-and-go-on-vacation-so-i-love-working-i-want/) [Spencer Grammer](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/spencer-grammer/) > [I set the bar high because I don't want to do just any other show just to keep working. I want to do something…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/idina-menzel/i-set-the-bar-high-because-i-don-t-want-to-do-just-any-other-show/) [Idina Menzel](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/idina-menzel/) > [If you go around the kitchen and ask my employees what they want to be doing in three to five years, most of them,…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/charlie-trotter/if-you-go-around-the-kitchen-and-ask-my-employees-what-they-want-to/) [Charlie Trotter](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/charlie-trotter/) > [But the working I would always want to do.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jackie-cooper/but-the-working-i-would-always-want-to-do/) [Jackie Cooper](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jackie-cooper/) > [Be happy with what you have while working for what you want.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/h-jackson-brown-jr/be-happy-with-what-you-have-while-working-for-what-you-want/) [H. Jackson Brown, Jr](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/h-jackson-brown-jr/) > [Be happy with what you have while working for what you want. Remember, a happy and successful life begins with God & ends for God.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/azgraybebly-josland/be-happy-with-what-you-have-while-working-for-what-you-want-remember/) Azgraybebly Josland > [Working because you want to, not because you have to is financial freedom.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/tony-robbins/working-because-you-want-to-not-because-you-have-to-is-financial/) [Tony Robbins](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/tony-robbins/) > [I would love for Radiohead to give me a call and say, 'Hey, kid, we wanna see what it's like working with you. We…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/linda-perry/i-would-love-for-radiohead-to-give-me-a-call-and-say-hey-kid-we-wanna/) [Linda Perry](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/linda-perry/) > [I don't like just traveling in for a short time. I've done that before, because sometimes you work for magazines and they have a…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/joe-sacco/i-don-t-like-just-traveling-in-for-a-short-time-i-ve-done-that-before/) [Joe Sacco](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/joe-sacco/) ## More by Lee Iacocca > [The right decision is the wrong decision if it's made too late.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/lee-iacocca/the-right-decision-is-the-wrong-decision-if-it-s-made-too-late/) [Lee Iacocca](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/lee-iacocca/) > [“Apply yourself. Get all the education you can, but then...do something. Don't just stand there, make it happen.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/lee-iacocca/apply-yourself-get-all-the-education-you-can-but-then-do-something/) [Lee Iacocca](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/lee-iacocca/) > [The ability to concentrate and to use time well is everything.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/lee-iacocca/the-ability-to-concentrate-and-to-use-time-well-is-everything/) [Lee Iacocca](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/lee-iacocca/) > [There are times in everyone's life when something constructive is born out of adversity... when things seem so bad that you've got to grab…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/lee-iacocca/there-are-times-in-everyone-s-life-when-something-constructive-is/) [Lee Iacocca](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/lee-iacocca/) > [In a completely rational society, the best of us would be teachers and the rest of us would have to settle for something else.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/lee-iacocca/in-a-completely-rational-society-the-best-of-us-would-be-teachers-and/) [Lee Iacocca](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/lee-iacocca/) > [It was emotional when Chrysler sold out to the Germans.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/lee-iacocca/it-was-emotional-when-chrysler-sold-out-to-the-germans/) [Lee Iacocca](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/lee-iacocca/) > [We are continually faced by great opportunities brilliantly disguised as insoluble problems.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/lee-iacocca/we-are-continually-faced-by-great-opportunities-brilliantly-disguised/) [Lee Iacocca](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/lee-iacocca/) > [The greatest discovery of my generation is that human beings can alter their lives by altering their attitudes of mind.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/lee-iacocca/the-greatest-discovery-of-my-generation-is-that-human-beings-can/) [Lee Iacocca](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/lee-iacocca/) > [No matter what you've done for yourself or for humanity, if you can't look back on having given love and attention to your own…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/lee-iacocca/no-matter-what-you-ve-done-for-yourself-or-for-humanity-if-you-can-t/) [Lee Iacocca](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/lee-iacocca/) > [Be creative. Use unconventional thinking. And have the guts to carry it out.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/lee-iacocca/be-creative-use-unconventional-thinking-and-have-the-guts-to-carry-it/) [Lee Iacocca](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/lee-iacocca/) > [ They're on you day and night. Their oversight is just too extreme \[. . .\] That's why our 10-year loan, we paid it back… ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/lee-iacocca/they-re-on-you-day-and-night-their-oversight-is-just-too-extreme-that/) [Lee Iacocca](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/lee-iacocca/) > [I hire people brighter than me and then I get out of their way.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/lee-iacocca/i-hire-people-brighter-than-me-and-then-i-get-out-of-their-way/) [Lee Iacocca](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/lee-iacocca/) > [I have found that being honest is the best technique I can use. Right up front, tell people what you're trying to accomplish and…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/lee-iacocca/i-have-found-that-being-honest-is-the-best-technique-i-can-use-right/) [Lee Iacocca](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/lee-iacocca/) > [Your legacy should be that you made it better than it was when you got it.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/lee-iacocca/your-legacy-should-be-that-you-made-it-better-than-it-was-when-you/) [Lee Iacocca](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/lee-iacocca/) > [Never rest on your oars as a boss. If you do, the whole company starts sinking.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/lee-iacocca/never-rest-on-your-oars-as-a-boss-if-you-do-the-whole-company-starts/) [Lee Iacocca](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/lee-iacocca/) [Explore all 138 Lee Iacocca quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/lee-iacocca/) ## More Enough quotes > [I guess at it's very core love is connection that just makes so much sense you wonder how you used to live before you…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/benjamin-stone/i-guess-at-it-s-very-core-love-is-connection-that-just-makes-so-much/) [Benjamin Stone](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/benjamin-stone/) > [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/) > [I feel very grateful to be alive and well enough to make music.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/adam-ant/i-feel-very-grateful-to-be-alive-and-well-enough-to-make-music/) Adam Ant > [I've been lucky enough to, for the most part, surround myself with a lot of people who are more talented than me and who…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/dave-franco/i-ve-been-lucky-enough-to-for-the-most-part-surround-myself-with-a/) [Dave Franco](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/dave-franco/) > [I love because there is not enough room in my heart to hate.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/rena-kornreich-gelissen/i-love-because-there-is-not-enough-room-in-my-heart-to-hate/) Rena Kornreich Gelissen > [We find few historians who have been diligent enough in their search for truth; it is their common method to take on trust what…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/john-dryden/we-find-few-historians-who-have-been-diligent-enough-in-their-search/) [John Dryden](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/john-dryden/) > [Sometimes it's just enough for me to have the idea. I don't need to see it through to the end. When it actually happens,…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/amy-sedaris/sometimes-it-s-just-enough-for-me-to-have-the-idea-i-don-t-need-to/) [Amy Sedaris](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/amy-sedaris/) > [The vast majority of organizations today have more than enough intelligence, experience and knowledge to be successful. What they lack is organizational health.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/patrick-lencioni/the-vast-majority-of-organizations-today-have-more-than-enough/) [Patrick Lencioni](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/patrick-lencioni/) > [I'm an actor, so I'm never going to feel like I've done enough.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/italia-ricci/i-m-an-actor-so-i-m-never-going-to-feel-like-i-ve-done-enough/) [Italia Ricci](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/italia-ricci/) > [I've been to Manchester enough to know it's a real place. It's not Factory Records and the Smiths bicycling around. I get it. It's…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/james-murphy/i-ve-been-to-manchester-enough-to-know-it-s-a-real-place-it-s-not/) [James Murphy](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/james-murphy/) > [Lutherans, whose arguments and mistakes will not be difficult to contest or discover, do not want to attribute any value to works, and they…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/michael-servetus/lutherans-whose-arguments-and-mistakes-will-not-be-difficult-to/) [Michael Servetus](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/michael-servetus/) > [Sam dropped me off. When she was too far away to see me, I started to cry again. Because she was my friend again.…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/stephen-chbosky/sam-dropped-me-off-when-she-was-too-far-away-to-see-me-i-started-to/) [Stephen Chbosky](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/stephen-chbosky/) > [I just worried about my weight. Worried about my appearance and thought I wan't pretty enough to be a pop star. It was very…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/judith-durham/i-just-worried-about-my-weight-worried-about-my-appearance-and/) [Judith Durham](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/judith-durham/) > [I don't want this to be a distraction. This has been distracting enough. I'm not going to rehash this going forward. I'm sure other…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jayson-werth/i-don-t-want-this-to-be-a-distraction-this-has-been-distracting/) [Jayson Werth](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jayson-werth/) > [New York is large, glamorous, easy-going, kindly and incurious, but above all it is a crucible - because it is large enough to be…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ford-madox-ford/new-york-is-large-glamorous-easy-going-kindly-and-incurious-but-above/) [Ford Madox Ford](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ford-madox-ford/) Browse all 23,898 Enough quotes ```json { "@context": "https://schema.org", "@graph": [ { "@type": "Quotation", "text": "You've got to say, \"I think that if I keep working at this and want it badly enough I can have it.\" It's called perseverance.", "creator": { "@type": "Person", "name": "Lee Iacocca" }, "isPartOf": { "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/#website" }, "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/lee-iacocca/you-ve-got-to-say-i-think-that-if-i-keep-working-at-this-and-want-it/", "about": { "@type": "Thing", "name": "Enough" }, "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/lee-iacocca/you-ve-got-to-say-i-think-that-if-i-keep-working-at-this-and-want-it/#quotation", "image": { "@type": "ImageObject", "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/4d2/lee-iacocca-3170_enough_you-ve-got-to-say-i-think-that-if-i-keep_2944353.png", "contentUrl": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/4d2/lee-iacocca-3170_enough_you-ve-got-to-say-i-think-that-if-i-keep_2944353.png", "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/4d2/lee-iacocca-3170_enough_you-ve-got-to-say-i-think-that-if-i-keep_2944353.png", "width": 1080, "height": 1080, "caption": "“You've got to say, \"I think that if I keep working at this and want it badly enough I can have it.\" It's…” — Lee Iacocca", "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": "Lee Iacocca", "item": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/lee-iacocca/" }, { "@type": "ListItem", "position": 4, "name": "You've got to say, \"I think...", "item": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/lee-iacocca/you-ve-got-to-say-i-think-that-if-i-keep-working-at-this-and-want-it/" } ], "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/lee-iacocca/you-ve-got-to-say-i-think-that-if-i-keep-working-at-this-and-want-it/#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 } } ] } ```