--- title: "Meaning & Key Takeaway of: I would change very little because I have…" description: "\"I would change very little because I have been very, very fortunate. A lot of things fell into place for me simply by happenstance. When that happens y..." image: "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/de8/michael-connelly-1004_book_i-would-change-very-little-because-i-hav_1769898.jpg" --- # I would change very little because I have been very, very… ![“I would change very little because I have been very, very fortunate. A lot of things fell into place for me simply by happenstance. When that happens you don't really want to change anything, even if you could. Editorially my regrets are few and for the most part minor. I look back on my first…” quote by Michael Connelly](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/de8/michael-connelly-1004_book_i-would-change-very-little-because-i-hav_1769898.jpg) [Download](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/de8/michael-connelly-1004_book_i-would-change-very-little-because-i-hav_1769898.jpg) [Open image](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/de8/michael-connelly-1004_book_i-would-change-very-little-because-i-hav_1769898.jpg) > “I would change very little because I have been very, very fortunate. A lot of things fell into place for me simply by happenstance. When that happens you don't really want to change anything, even if you could. Editorially my regrets are few and for the most part minor. I look back on my first published book and think I held on to it too long, babied it too long.” [Michael Connelly](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/michael-connelly/) ## About This Quote This interpretation was drafted with AI assistance. It is one reading of the quote, not the author's own explanation. The speaker feels content with their past, attributing success to luck and prefers not to alter what has worked, though minor regrets exist. **In simple terms:** Content with luck, reluctant to change. Key Takeaway Accept what works, but stay open to improvement. Themes contentment luck regret reflection Mood reflective thoughtful nostalgic Type personal career philosophical When to use this quote - publishing decisions - career retrospection - personal growth - evaluating past choices Key Concepts determinism self‑acceptance career nostalgia Questions to Reflect On - What minor change could have enhanced your work? - How do you balance gratitude with growth? A Different Perspective May overlook opportunities for better outcomes by resisting change. ★ ★ ★ ★ ★ No ratings yet [Book](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/book/) [Change](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/change/) [Happenstance](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/happenstance/) [Regret](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/regret/) [Regrets](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/regrets/) [Thinking](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/thinking/) ## Related quotes > [The regrets I have are so minor. You know, would I leave my Keith Richards hat, with the silver skull on it, on the…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/hunter-s-thompson/the-regrets-i-have-are-so-minor-you-know-would-i-leave-my-keith/) [Hunter S. Thompson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/hunter-s-thompson/) > [The real sadness of fifty is not that you change so much but that you change so little.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/max-lerner/the-real-sadness-of-fifty-is-not-that-you-change-so-much-but-that-you/) [Max Lerner](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/max-lerner/) > [I have tweaked little things in my game, nothing major. When you change little things, the impact is big.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/shikhar-dhawan/i-have-tweaked-little-things-in-my-game-nothing-major-when-you-change/) [Shikhar Dhawan](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/shikhar-dhawan/) > [Couple of people change on you a little bit when you're down.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/kevin-holland/couple-of-people-change-on-you-a-little-bit-when-you-re-down/) [Kevin Holland](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/kevin-holland/) > [You can't help but change a little bit, but on the inside I'm still completely the same person.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/britney-spears/you-can-t-help-but-change-a-little-bit-but-on-the-inside-i-m-still/) [Britney Spears](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/britney-spears/) > [We can't change every little thing that happens to us in life, but we can change the way that we experience it.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/andy-puddicombe/we-can-t-change-every-little-thing-that-happens-to-us-in-life-but-we/) [Andy Puddicombe](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/andy-puddicombe/) > [How old a man can become and yet change so little.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/kilgharrah/how-old-a-man-can-become-and-yet-change-so-little/) [Kilgharrah](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/kilgharrah/) > [I love nature, but I try to change it a little bit, not copy it,](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/elsa-peretti/i-love-nature-but-i-try-to-change-it-a-little-bit-not-copy-it/) [Elsa Peretti](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/elsa-peretti/) > [Dr. Seuss said, 'No one can be you-er than you,' and Oscar Wilde said, 'Be yourself because everyone else is taken.' So I just…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/martellus-bennett/dr-seuss-said-no-one-can-be-you-er-than-you-and-oscar-wilde-said-be/) [Martellus Bennett](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/martellus-bennett/) > [I learn a little more and I change a little bit](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/lauren-conrad/i-learn-a-little-more-and-i-change-a-little-bit/) [Lauren Conrad](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/lauren-conrad/) > [Change is always a little bit strange.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/brendon-urie/change-is-always-a-little-bit-strange/) [Brendon Urie](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/brendon-urie/) > [The barrier to change is not too little caring; it is too much complexity.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/bill-gates/the-barrier-to-change-is-not-too-little-caring-it-is-too-much/) [Bill Gates](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/bill-gates/) > [“Nothing lasts forever. Things change little by little. Before you know it, they’ve become something entirely different.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/der-erste-stern/nothing-lasts-forever-things-change-little-by-little-before-you-know/) Der Erste Stern > [I think of how life takes unexpected twists and turns, sometimes through sheer happenstance, sometimes through calculated decisions. In the end, it can all…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/emily-giffin/i-think-of-how-life-takes-unexpected-twists-and-turns-sometimes/) [Emily Giffin](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/emily-giffin/) > [Hey, this is weird. I ordered one frozen yogurt and they gave me two. You don’t happen to like frozen yogurt do you? I…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/joss-whedon/hey-this-is-weird-i-ordered-one-frozen-yogurt-and-they-gave-me-two/) [Joss Whedon](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/joss-whedon/) ## More by Michael Connelly > [It's about being fair. It's about Black Lives Matter. Yes, they matter. Everybody counts or nobody counts, and I think if more cops had…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/michael-connelly/it-s-about-being-fair-it-s-about-black-lives-matter-yes-they-matter/) [Michael Connelly](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/michael-connelly/) > [“Someone’s coming.” Terry McCaleb looked at his wife and then followed her eyes down to the winding road below. He could see the golf…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/michael-connelly/someone-s-coming-terry-mccaleb-looked-at-his-wife-and-then-followed/) [Michael Connelly](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/michael-connelly/) > [I love movies. Movies have influenced me as a writer.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/michael-connelly/i-love-movies-movies-have-influenced-me-as-a-writer/) [Michael Connelly](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/michael-connelly/) > [“There is no end of things in the heart. Somebody once told me that. She said it came from a poem she believed in.…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/michael-connelly/there-is-no-end-of-things-in-the-heart-somebody-once-told-me-that-she/) [Michael Connelly](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/michael-connelly/) > [I chose deliberately for Harry Bosch to age chronologically with the books.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/michael-connelly/i-chose-deliberately-for-harry-bosch-to-age-chronologically-with-the/) [Michael Connelly](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/michael-connelly/) > [“Are you okay?” he asked. “I’m fine, yeah,” she said. She wiped tears off her cheeks. “Somebody who totally fucked me over died today,”…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/michael-connelly/are-you-okay-he-asked-i-m-fine-yeah-she-said-she-wiped-tears-off-her/) [Michael Connelly](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/michael-connelly/) > [“At the bottom of the hill, after Boston College, the route passes St. Ignatius Church on the right. It was here that textile worker…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/michael-connelly/at-the-bottom-of-the-hill-after-boston-college-the-route-passes-st/) [Michael Connelly](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/michael-connelly/) > [“He said no. He said, in very fine English, ‘I buy, I don’t sell.’ Then he escorted me out. But I think that was…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/michael-connelly/he-said-no-he-said-in-very-fine-english-i-buy-i-don-t-sell-then-he/) [Michael Connelly](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/michael-connelly/) > [“Living in L.A. sometimes felt like you were riding shotgun with the devil to the apocalypse.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/michael-connelly/living-in-l-a-sometimes-felt-like-you-were-riding-shotgun-with-the/) [Michael Connelly](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/michael-connelly/) > [“The paying jobs were few and she was often taken advantage of by the leeches who were part of the entertainment industry. But she…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/michael-connelly/the-paying-jobs-were-few-and-she-was-often-taken-advantage-of-by-the/) [Michael Connelly](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/michael-connelly/) > [“Lean in, invade that foot and a half that is all theirs, their own space. Lean back when you get what you want. It’s…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/michael-connelly/lean-in-invade-that-foot-and-a-half-that-is-all-theirs-their-own/) [Michael Connelly](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/michael-connelly/) > [I have a large collection of biographies about jazz musicians.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/michael-connelly/i-have-a-large-collection-of-biographies-about-jazz-musicians/) [Michael Connelly](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/michael-connelly/) > [I was fired as an actor on 'Bosch.'](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/michael-connelly/i-was-fired-as-an-actor-on-bosch/) [Michael Connelly](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/michael-connelly/) > [Maybe it has something to do with being a reporter for a long time that I don't look to newspapers and television and so…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/michael-connelly/maybe-it-has-something-to-do-with-being-a-reporter-for-a-long-time/) [Michael Connelly](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/michael-connelly/) > [I was enamored of detectives as a teenager. I liked what they did - piecing things together, thinking about situations. But to get there?…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/michael-connelly/i-was-enamored-of-detectives-as-a-teenager-i-liked-what-they-did/) [Michael Connelly](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/michael-connelly/) [Explore all 306 Michael Connelly quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/michael-connelly/) ## More Book quotes > [I think a new world will arise out of the religious mists when we approach our Bible with the idea that it is not…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/aiden-wilson-tozer/i-think-a-new-world-will-arise-out-of-the-religious-mists-when-we/) [Aiden Wilson Tozer](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/aiden-wilson-tozer/) > [If I had a dollar for every time I couldn’t sleep, I could buy a billion locks and finally read a book in peace.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/aesop-rock/if-i-had-a-dollar-for-every-time-i-couldn-t-sleep-i-could-buy-a/) [Aesop Rock](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/aesop-rock/) > [Young men, especially in America, write to me and ask me to recommend “a course of reading.” Distrust a course of reading! People who…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/andrew-lang/young-men-especially-in-america-write-to-me-and-ask-me-to-recommend-a/) [Andrew Lang](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/andrew-lang/) > [The Rosary is the book of the blind.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/fulton-j-sheen/the-rosary-is-the-book-of-the-blind/) [Fulton J. Sheen](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/fulton-j-sheen/) > [I have many who keep me going, I am very fortunate in this sense. There is nothing like a child who knows more about…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/floyd-cooper/i-have-many-who-keep-me-going-i-am-very-fortunate-in-this-sense-there/) [Floyd Cooper](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/floyd-cooper/) > [I think books in which people are really happy and things are going well are probably the most challenging novels there are to write,…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anna-quindlen/i-think-books-in-which-people-are-really-happy-and-things-are-going/) [Anna Quindlen](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anna-quindlen/) > [It's like the query letter problem that I just mentioned, magnified a hundredfold. You might be good at telling a story, but that doesn't…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/patrick-rothfuss/it-s-like-the-query-letter-problem-that-i-just-mentioned-magnified-a/) [Patrick Rothfuss](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/patrick-rothfuss/) > [I don't think I have made as much of my life as I should have. I should have written more books.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/arthur-m-schlesinger-jr/i-don-t-think-i-have-made-as-much-of-my-life-as-i-should-have-i/) [Arthur M. Schlesinger, Jr](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/arthur-m-schlesinger-jr/) > [Some books are not read in the right way because they have skipped a stage of opinion, assume a crystallization of information in society…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/doris-lessing/some-books-are-not-read-in-the-right-way-because-they-have-skipped-a/) [Doris Lessing](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/doris-lessing/) > [“People talk about books that write themselves, and it's a lie. Books don't write themselves. It takes thought and research and a backache and…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/neil-gaiman/people-talk-about-books-that-write-themselves-and-it-s-a-lie-books/) [Neil Gaiman](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/neil-gaiman/) > [There are great books in this world and great worlds in books.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anne-bronte/there-are-great-books-in-this-world-and-great-worlds-in-books/) [Anne Bronte](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anne-bronte/) > [The purpose of this book is to supply, in the form suitable for laymen, guidance in the adoption and execution of an investment policy.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/benjamin-graham/the-purpose-of-this-book-is-to-supply-in-the-form-suitable-for-laymen/) [Benjamin Graham](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/benjamin-graham/) > [But I think that of all the literature that I studied, the book that did more than any other to fire my enthusiasm was…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/kwame-nkrumah/but-i-think-that-of-all-the-literature-that-i-studied-the-book-that/) [Kwame Nkrumah](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/kwame-nkrumah/) > [It's amazing to see things that are suggested in the book fully developed and so brilliantly realized through the artistry of the designers.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/suzanne-collins/it-s-amazing-to-see-things-that-are-suggested-in-the-book-fully/) [Suzanne Collins](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/suzanne-collins/) > [“But I’ve developed a great reputation for wisdom by ordering more books than I ever had time to read, and reading more books, by…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/marilynne-robinson/but-i-ve-developed-a-great-reputation-for-wisdom-by-ordering-more/) [Marilynne Robinson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/marilynne-robinson/) [Browse all 29,378 Book quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/book/) ```json { "@context": "https://schema.org", "@graph": [ { "@type": "Quotation", "text": "I would change very little because I have been very, very fortunate. A lot of things fell into place for me simply by happenstance. When that happens you don't really want to change anything, even if you could. Editorially my regrets are few and for the most part minor. I look back on my first published book and think I held on to it too long, babied it too long.", "creator": { "@type": "Person", "name": "Michael Connelly" }, "isPartOf": { "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/#website" }, "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/michael-connelly/i-would-change-very-little-because-i-have-been-very-very-fortunate-a/", "about": { "@type": "Thing", "name": "Book" }, "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/michael-connelly/i-would-change-very-little-because-i-have-been-very-very-fortunate-a/#quotation", "image": { "@type": "ImageObject", "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/de8/michael-connelly-1004_book_i-would-change-very-little-because-i-hav_1769898.jpg", "contentUrl": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/de8/michael-connelly-1004_book_i-would-change-very-little-because-i-hav_1769898.jpg", "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/de8/michael-connelly-1004_book_i-would-change-very-little-because-i-hav_1769898.jpg", "width": 1080, "height": 1080, "caption": "“I would change very little because I have been very, very fortunate. A lot of things fell into place for me…” — Michael Connelly", "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": "Michael Connelly", "item": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/michael-connelly/" }, { "@type": "ListItem", "position": 4, "name": "I would change very little because...", "item": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/michael-connelly/i-would-change-very-little-because-i-have-been-very-very-fortunate-a/" } ], "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/michael-connelly/i-would-change-very-little-because-i-have-been-very-very-fortunate-a/#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 } } ] } ```