---
title: "Meaning & Key Takeaway of: We had been told many times that…"
description: "\"We had been told many times that astronauts would not make any mistakes. They were trained to be perfect.\" — Margaret H. Hamilton"
image: "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/687/margaret-h-hamilton-53150_been_we-had-been-told-many-times-that-astrona_1402022.jpg"
---

#  We had been told many times that astronauts would not make…

![“We had been told many times that astronauts would not make any mistakes. They were trained to be perfect.” quote by Margaret H. Hamilton](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/687/margaret-h-hamilton-53150_been_we-had-been-told-many-times-that-astrona_1402022.jpg)   [Download](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/687/margaret-h-hamilton-53150_been_we-had-been-told-many-times-that-astrona_1402022.jpg) [Open image](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/687/margaret-h-hamilton-53150_been_we-had-been-told-many-times-that-astrona_1402022.jpg)

> “We had been told many times that astronauts would not make any mistakes. They were trained to be perfect.”

[Margaret H. Hamilton](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/margaret-h-hamilton/)

## About This Quote

This interpretation was drafted with AI assistance. It is one reading of the quote, not the author's own explanation.

Human error is inevitable despite rigorous training; perfection is unrealistic in complex systems.

**In simple terms:** Mistakes happen even with perfect training.

Key Takeaway

Accept and plan for errors.

Themes

risk management human factors systems engineering

Mood

cautious realistic

Type

pragmatic reflective

When to use this quote

- space missions
- software development
- high‑stakes projects

Key Concepts

error tolerance resilience learning from failure

Questions to Reflect On

- How can teams design for inevitable mistakes?
- What safeguards reduce error impact?

A Different Perspective

Human error can be mitigated but not eliminated.

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## More by Margaret H. Hamilton

> [Looking back, we were the luckiest people in the world. There was no choice but to be pioneers; no time to be beginners.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/margaret-h-hamilton/looking-back-we-were-the-luckiest-people-in-the-world-there-was-no/)

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