---
title: "Meaning & Key Takeaway of: I always wanted an extraordinary life…"
description: "\"I always wanted an extraordinary life. When it's over, I want to be able to say that I did it.\" — Mark Kurlansky"
image: "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/979/mark-kurlansky-1988_always_i-always-wanted-an-extraordinary-life-wh_3105989.png"
---

#  I always wanted an extraordinary life. When it's over, I…

![“I always wanted an extraordinary life. When it's over, I want to be able to say that I did it.” quote by Mark Kurlansky](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/979/mark-kurlansky-1988_always_i-always-wanted-an-extraordinary-life-wh_3105989.png)   [Download](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/979/mark-kurlansky-1988_always_i-always-wanted-an-extraordinary-life-wh_3105989.png) [Open image](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/979/mark-kurlansky-1988_always_i-always-wanted-an-extraordinary-life-wh_3105989.png)

> “I always wanted an extraordinary life. When it's over, I want to be able to say that I did it.”

[Mark Kurlansky](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/mark-kurlansky/)

## About This Quote

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

Desires an extraordinary life defined by achievement and personal fulfillment.

**In simple terms:** Aim for a remarkable, accomplished life.

Key Takeaway

Pursue bold goals.

Themes

ambition legacy self‑actualization

Mood

determined reflective

Type

inspirational philosophical

When to use this quote

- career planning
- personal milestones
- adventure travel
- creative endeavors

Key Concepts

purpose achievement

Questions to Reflect On

- What does “extraordinary” mean to you?
- How will you measure success?

A Different Perspective

Risk of burnout if success is the sole focus.

★ ★ ★ ★ ★   No ratings yet

[Extraordinary life](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/extraordinary-life/) [Life](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/life/)

## Related quotes

> [“I had predicated my life on the idea that I wanted to see everywhere extraordinary, but I'd come to realize the extraordinary is everywhere.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/taylor-jenkins-reid/i-had-predicated-my-life-on-the-idea-that-i-wanted-to-see-everywhere/)

[Taylor Jenkins Reid](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/taylor-jenkins-reid/)

> [One skill you want to master in this day and age we live in, if you want to have an extraordinary life, is the…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/tony-robbins/one-skill-you-want-to-master-in-this-day-and-age-we-live-in-if-you/)

[Tony Robbins](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/tony-robbins/)

> [Everyone wants to lead an extraordinary life.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/augustus/everyone-wants-to-lead-an-extraordinary-life/)

[Augustus](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/augustus/)

> [The more I trust my intuition and act on its wisdom, the more extraordinary my life becomes.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/cheryl-richardson/the-more-i-trust-my-intuition-and-act-on-its-wisdom-the-more/)

[Cheryl Richardson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/cheryl-richardson/)

> [To live an extraordinary life, you must resist an ordinary approach.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/frank-mckinney/to-live-an-extraordinary-life-you-must-resist-an-ordinary-approach/)

[Frank McKinney](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/frank-mckinney/)

> [“An extraordinary life is simply the accumulation of thousands of efforts, often unseen by others, that lead to the accomplishment of worthwhile goals. You…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/newberry-tommy/an-extraordinary-life-is-simply-the-accumulation-of-thousands-of/)

[Newberry, Tommy](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/newberry-tommy/)

> [If you are actually ordinary, the only way to give royal status meaning is to live an extraordinary life. It can't be jeans and…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/victoria-coren-mitchell/if-you-are-actually-ordinary-the-only-way-to-give-royal-status/)

[Victoria Coren Mitchell](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/victoria-coren-mitchell/)

> [Let This Voice Be Heard fulfills the mandate of biography at its best because Maurice Jackson has captured the history of a great moral…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/david-levering-lewis/let-this-voice-be-heard-fulfills-the-mandate-of-biography-at-its-best/)

[David Levering Lewis](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/david-levering-lewis/)

> [The one thing we can count on is that time will pass; day will become night, and the sunrise will bring with it a…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/hal-elrod/the-one-thing-we-can-count-on-is-that-time-will-pass-day-will-become/)

[Hal Elrod](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/hal-elrod/)

> [Divorce becomes a holy moment when you choose to use it as a catalyst for having an extraordinary life.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/debbie-ford/divorce-becomes-a-holy-moment-when-you-choose-to-use-it-as-a-catalyst/)

[Debbie Ford](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/debbie-ford/)

> [“1. I never give up on anything that’s important to me. 2. I don’t care what anyone thinks about me. The only approval I…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/martin-meadows/1-i-never-give-up-on-anything-that-s-important-to-me-2-i-don-t-care/)

[Martin Meadows](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/martin-meadows/)

> [“I want to talk about creating your life. There’s a quote I love, from the poet Mary Oliver, that goes: Tell me, what is…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/laini-taylor/i-want-to-talk-about-creating-your-life-there-s-a-quote-i-love-from/)

[Laini Taylor](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/laini-taylor/)

> [An extraordinary life is a very different kind of life than the one the American Dream sells; it's the one men scorn and Calvary…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anonymous/an-extraordinary-life-is-a-very-different-kind-of-life-than-the-one/)

[Anonymous](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anonymous/)

> [I've been living this extraordinary life with a new enlightened perspective, to see things from a higher perspective. I feel like I'm able to…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/matt-sydal/i-ve-been-living-this-extraordinary-life-with-a-new-enlightened/)

[Matt Sydal](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/matt-sydal/)

> [“In order to accomplish extraordinary achievements, a person must live an extraordinary life.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/sean-terrence-best/in-order-to-accomplish-extraordinary-achievements-a-person-must-live/)

Sean Terrence Best

## More by Mark Kurlansky

> [“A 1670 revision of the criminal code found yet another use for salt in France. To enforce the law against suicide, it was ordered…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/mark-kurlansky/a-1670-revision-of-the-criminal-code-found-yet-another-use-for-salt/)

[Mark Kurlansky](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/mark-kurlansky/)

> [“The Romans, Jones pointed out, called a man in love salax, in a salted state, which is the origin of the word salacious.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/mark-kurlansky/the-romans-jones-pointed-out-called-a-man-in-love-salax-in-a-salted/)

[Mark Kurlansky](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/mark-kurlansky/)

> [When you're in theater, you inevitably wind up working in restaurants. I made pastry.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/mark-kurlansky/when-you-re-in-theater-you-inevitably-wind-up-working-in-restaurants/)

[Mark Kurlansky](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/mark-kurlansky/)

> [“For a time, the Hanseatics were well appreciated as honorable merchants who ensured quality and fought against unscrupulous practices. They were known as Easterlings…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/mark-kurlansky/for-a-time-the-hanseatics-were-well-appreciated-as-honorable/)

[Mark Kurlansky](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/mark-kurlansky/)

> [I blurbed a nice book, not at all like my book 'The Big Oyster,' called 'The Essential Oyster.' I blurbed a pretty good book…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/mark-kurlansky/i-blurbed-a-nice-book-not-at-all-like-my-book-the-big-oyster-called/)

[Mark Kurlansky](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/mark-kurlansky/)

> [The entire trendy foodie world - food writing, food television, celebrated restaurants - is all about food for the rich. But the most important…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/mark-kurlansky/the-entire-trendy-foodie-world-food-writing-food-television/)

[Mark Kurlansky](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/mark-kurlansky/)

> [One of the truly horrible things about the Holocaust is that it doesn't end in 1945. It keeps affecting our lives in the way…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/mark-kurlansky/one-of-the-truly-horrible-things-about-the-holocaust-is-that-it-doesn/)

[Mark Kurlansky](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/mark-kurlansky/)

> [It's true that writing and pastry-making are similar, but when you work as a pastry chef, you can get a kind of mania that…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/mark-kurlansky/it-s-true-that-writing-and-pastry-making-are-similar-but-when-you/)

[Mark Kurlansky](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/mark-kurlansky/)

> [Food is interesting to me because it's a way of understanding culture and societies and history. I would never write about food just as…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/mark-kurlansky/food-is-interesting-to-me-because-it-s-a-way-of-understanding-culture/)

[Mark Kurlansky](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/mark-kurlansky/)

> [THE ROMANS SALTED their greens, believing this to counteract the natural bitterness, which is the origin of the word salad, salted.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/mark-kurlansky/the-romans-salted-their-greens-believing-this-to-counteract-the/)

[Mark Kurlansky](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/mark-kurlansky/)

> [Religion is a big problem in Israel and the Arab world, but again, the problem isn't religion but political leaders who want to use…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/mark-kurlansky/religion-is-a-big-problem-in-israel-and-the-arab-world-but-again-the/)

[Mark Kurlansky](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/mark-kurlansky/)

> [“It is a peculiarity of the English language that while most fish swim in schools, herring swim in shoals, a word of the same…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/mark-kurlansky/it-is-a-peculiarity-of-the-english-language-that-while-most-fish-swim/)

[Mark Kurlansky](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/mark-kurlansky/)

> [“The painstakingly extracted purple dye was a luxury item of such prestige that the color purple became a way of showing wealth and power.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/mark-kurlansky/the-painstakingly-extracted-purple-dye-was-a-luxury-item-of-such/)

[Mark Kurlansky](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/mark-kurlansky/)

> [Don't forget the Vietnam War was brought to us by Democrats.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/mark-kurlansky/don-t-forget-the-vietnam-war-was-brought-to-us-by-democrats/)

[Mark Kurlansky](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/mark-kurlansky/)

> [So much of what I write in fiction is based on true stories.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/mark-kurlansky/so-much-of-what-i-write-in-fiction-is-based-on-true-stories/)

[Mark Kurlansky](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/mark-kurlansky/)

[Explore all 193 Mark Kurlansky quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/mark-kurlansky/)

## More Always quotes

> [I think performing has pretty much always been a part of me.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/isa-briones/i-think-performing-has-pretty-much-always-been-a-part-of-me/)

[Isa Briones](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/isa-briones/)

> [I always thought if I was born 2000 years earlier, I would be a monk, probably carving a monastery or some giant pantheon buildings.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jenova-chen/i-always-thought-if-i-was-born-2000-years-earlier-i-would-be-a-monk/)

[Jenova Chen](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jenova-chen/)

> [I always like a character who makes me laugh.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/rachael-stirling/i-always-like-a-character-who-makes-me-laugh/)

[Rachael Stirling](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/rachael-stirling/)

> [It's always great to see old friends, especially those I have not been able to see in 15 months.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/william-regal/it-s-always-great-to-see-old-friends-especially-those-i-have-not-been/)

[William Regal](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/william-regal/)

> [When you step out and do a song in a musical, the easier thing to do is make it funny. But when those transitions…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/kelli-o-hara/when-you-step-out-and-do-a-song-in-a-musical-the-easier-thing-to-do/)

[Kelli O'Hara](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/kelli-o-hara/)

> [I have really good lateral movement. I've always had quick lateral movement.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/austin-rivers/i-have-really-good-lateral-movement-i-ve-always-had-quick-lateral/)

[Austin Rivers](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/austin-rivers/)

> [There is something magical about being able to feel somebody. And that is something that has always moved me with music.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/maria-brink/there-is-something-magical-about-being-able-to-feel-somebody-and-that/)

[Maria Brink](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/maria-brink/)

> [Mythology is something that always has opportunities to explore. 'It' has been on Earth for millions of years. He's been in contact with humans…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/andy-muschietti/mythology-is-something-that-always-has-opportunities-to-explore-it/)

[Andy Muschietti](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/andy-muschietti/)

> [It's not writing in the traditional sense, but I've always said that the writing process continues on the set and even into the editing…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/robert-b-weide/it-s-not-writing-in-the-traditional-sense-but-i-ve-always-said-that/)

[Robert B. Weide](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/robert-b-weide/)

> [I always watch my matches back 100 times afterwards because that's how I improve. This is something I've always done, even in NXT.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/mandy-rose/i-always-watch-my-matches-back-100-times-afterwards-because-that-s/)

[Mandy Rose](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/mandy-rose/)

> [I've always been of the idea that is doesn't really matter where you are geographically - with 'Lonerism,' we made half the album in…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/kevin-parker/i-ve-always-been-of-the-idea-that-is-doesn-t-really-matter-where-you/)

[Kevin Parker](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/kevin-parker/)

> [It's very easy to fool yourself that you're working, you know, when you're really not working very hard. I mean, I'm very lazy. So…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/robert-caro/it-s-very-easy-to-fool-yourself-that-you-re-working-you-know-when-you/)

[Robert Caro](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/robert-caro/)

> [Whether it was Little League or playing with your brothers or sisters, that was always a problem. If I would lose - because I…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/cal-ripken-jr/whether-it-was-little-league-or-playing-with-your-brothers-or-sisters/)

[Cal Ripken, Jr](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/cal-ripken-jr/)

> [I always say if you put someone from a small town into a big city for ten years, then when they go back, they'll…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/mike-colter/i-always-say-if-you-put-someone-from-a-small-town-into-a-big-city-for/)

[Mike Colter](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/mike-colter/)

> [Bayern is always a team that can win the Champions League title in Europe.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/lothar-matthaus/bayern-is-always-a-team-that-can-win-the-champions-league-title-in/)

[Lothar Matthaus](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/lothar-matthaus/)

Browse all 36,048 Always quotes

```json
{
    "@context": "https://schema.org",
    "@graph": [
        {
            "@type": "Quotation",
            "text": "I always wanted an extraordinary life. When it's over, I want to be able to say that I did it.",
            "creator": {
                "@type": "Person",
                "name": "Mark Kurlansky"
            },
            "isPartOf": {
                "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/#website"
            },
            "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/mark-kurlansky/i-always-wanted-an-extraordinary-life-when-it-s-over-i-want-to-be/",
            "about": {
                "@type": "Thing",
                "name": "Always"
            },
            "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/mark-kurlansky/i-always-wanted-an-extraordinary-life-when-it-s-over-i-want-to-be/#quotation",
            "image": {
                "@type": "ImageObject",
                "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/979/mark-kurlansky-1988_always_i-always-wanted-an-extraordinary-life-wh_3105989.png",
                "contentUrl": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/979/mark-kurlansky-1988_always_i-always-wanted-an-extraordinary-life-wh_3105989.png",
                "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/979/mark-kurlansky-1988_always_i-always-wanted-an-extraordinary-life-wh_3105989.png",
                "width": 1080,
                "height": 1080,
                "caption": "“I always wanted an extraordinary life. When it's over, I want to be able to say that I did it.” — Mark Kurlansky",
                "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": "Mark Kurlansky",
                    "item": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/mark-kurlansky/"
                },
                {
                    "@type": "ListItem",
                    "position": 4,
                    "name": "I always wanted an extraordinary life....",
                    "item": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/mark-kurlansky/i-always-wanted-an-extraordinary-life-when-it-s-over-i-want-to-be/"
                }
            ],
            "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/mark-kurlansky/i-always-wanted-an-extraordinary-life-when-it-s-over-i-want-to-be/#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
            }
        }
    ]
}
```
