---
title: "Meaning & Key Takeaway of: Above all, recognize that if you have had…"
description: "\"Above all, recognize that if you have had success, you have also had luck — and with luck comes obligation. You owe a debt, and not just to your Gods. ..."
image: "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/02a/michael-lewis-705_debt_above-all-recognize-that-if-you-have-had_1768987.png"
---

#  Above all, recognize that if you have had success, you…

![“Above all, recognize that if you have had success, you have also had luck — and with luck comes obligation. You owe a debt, and not just to your Gods. You owe a debt to the unlucky.” quote by Michael Lewis](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/02a/michael-lewis-705_debt_above-all-recognize-that-if-you-have-had_1768987.png)   [Download](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/02a/michael-lewis-705_debt_above-all-recognize-that-if-you-have-had_1768987.png) [Open image](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/02a/michael-lewis-705_debt_above-all-recognize-that-if-you-have-had_1768987.png)

> “Above all, recognize that if you have had success, you have also had luck — and with luck comes obligation. You owe a debt, and not just to your Gods. You owe a debt to the unlucky.”

[Michael Lewis](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/michael-lewis/)

## About This Quote

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

Success often involves luck, creating a moral duty to help those less fortunate, not just divine beings.

**In simple terms:** Success brings luck and responsibility.

Key Takeaway

Use luck to aid the unlucky.

Themes

luck responsibility ethics

Mood

reflective ethical

Type

philosophical inspirational

When to use this quote

- philanthropy
- mentorship
- policy advocacy
- business ethics

Key Concepts

philosophy social justice

Questions to Reflect On

- How do you define “unlucky”?
- What practical steps can you take to help?

A Different Perspective

Luck is unpredictable; responsibility may be unclear.

★ ★ ★ ★ ★   No ratings yet

[Debt](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/debt/) [Debt Unlucky](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/debt-unlucky-1759709/) [Gods Owe](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/gods-owe-1759710/) [Luck](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/luck/) [Luck Luck](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/luck-luck/) [Obligation](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/obligation/) [Owe Debt](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/owe-debt-1356307/) [Success](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/success/) [Success Luck](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/success-luck-419360/) [Unlucky](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/unlucky/)

## Related quotes

> [Backboneless employees are too ready to attribute the success of others to luck. Luck is usually the fruit of intelligent application. The man who…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/b-c-forbes/backboneless-employees-are-too-ready-to-attribute-the-success-of/)

[B. C. Forbes](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/b-c-forbes/)

> [People really don't like to hear success explained away as luck, especially successful people. As they age and succeed, people feel their success was…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/michael-lewis/people-really-don-t-like-to-hear-success-explained-away-as-luck/)

[Michael Lewis](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/michael-lewis/)

> [People really don't like to hear success explained away as luck — especially successful people. As they age, and succeed, people feel their success…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/michael-lewis/people-really-don-t-like-to-hear-success-explained-away-as-luck-2/)

[Michael Lewis](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/michael-lewis/)

> [I owe a debt to America that I will never be able to repay.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/marco-rubio/i-owe-a-debt-to-america-that-i-will-never-be-able-to-repay/)

[Marco Rubio](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/marco-rubio/)

> [I personally do not owe the debt that was owed by the campaign.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/alan-keyes/i-personally-do-not-owe-the-debt-that-was-owed-by-the-campaign/)

[Alan Keyes](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/alan-keyes/)

> [My husband has quite simply been my strength and stay all these years, and I owe him a debt greater than he would ever…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/queen-elizabeth-ii/my-husband-has-quite-simply-been-my-strength-and-stay-all-these-years/)

[Queen Elizabeth II](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/queen-elizabeth-ii/)

> [“You still owe a debt. Pay it.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/stephen-king/you-still-owe-a-debt-pay-it/)

[Stephen King](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/stephen-king/)

> [“I stand here knowing that my story is part of the larger American story, that I owe a debt to all of those who…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/barack-obama/i-stand-here-knowing-that-my-story-is-part-of-the-larger-american/)

[Barack Obama](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/barack-obama/)

> [“Guilt is a feeling that you owe a debt that you're not paying.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/stefan-molyneux/guilt-is-a-feeling-that-you-owe-a-debt-that-you-re-not-paying/)

[Stefan Molyneux](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/stefan-molyneux/)

> [Love is for children. I owe him a debt.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/joss-whedon/love-is-for-children-i-owe-him-a-debt/)

[Joss Whedon](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/joss-whedon/)

> [My success has been as full of luck as a crapshooter's dream.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/adolphe-menjou/my-success-has-been-as-full-of-luck-as-a-crapshooter-s-dream/)

[Adolphe Menjou](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/adolphe-menjou/)

> [Success is more than luck, it's about planning towards achieving it.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anonymous/success-is-more-than-luck-it-s-about-planning-towards-achieving-it/)

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

> [“I always thought that the shortest distance between failure and success is luck. It so appears now that if you account for the wait…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/majid-kazmi/i-always-thought-that-the-shortest-distance-between-failure-and/)

[Majid Kazmi](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/majid-kazmi/)

> [ A lot of it \[success\] is luck. That's a huge part of it that no one wants to talk about. You just got to… ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/john-carpenter/a-lot-of-it-success-is-luck-that-s-a-huge-part-of-it-that-no-one/)

[John Carpenter](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/john-carpenter/)

> [As the festival of lights end, I am wishing you continuous success and luck through the next year of your life.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anonymous/as-the-festival-of-lights-end-i-am-wishing-you-continuous-success-and/)

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

## More by Michael Lewis

> [“Crucial decisions are made, today as thousands of years ago, in terms of the intuitive guesses and preferences of a few men in positions…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/michael-lewis/crucial-decisions-are-made-today-as-thousands-of-years-ago-in-terms/)

[Michael Lewis](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/michael-lewis/)

> [“You saw someone who reminded you of you, and then you looked for the reasons why you liked him. The”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/michael-lewis/you-saw-someone-who-reminded-you-of-you-and-then-you-looked-for-the/)

[Michael Lewis](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/michael-lewis/)

> [“At other places management says, ‘Well, gee, fellas, do we really want to bet the ranch on this deal?’ Lewie was not only willing…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/michael-lewis/at-other-places-management-says-well-gee-fellas-do-we-really-want-to/)

[Michael Lewis](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/michael-lewis/)

> [“BILLY WOULD SAY later that his wife left him because she was unnerved by his intensity—that she could even see it in his hands…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/michael-lewis/billy-would-say-later-that-his-wife-left-him-because-she-was-unnerved/)

[Michael Lewis](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/michael-lewis/)

> [“The great thing about baseball players, from the point of view of personal hygiene, is how seldom they break a sweat.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/michael-lewis/the-great-thing-about-baseball-players-from-the-point-of-view-of/)

[Michael Lewis](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/michael-lewis/)

> [There was but one question he left unasked, and it vibrated between his lines: if gross miscalculations of a person's value could occur on…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/michael-lewis/there-was-but-one-question-he-left-unasked-and-it-vibrated-between/)

[Michael Lewis](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/michael-lewis/)

> [“The author refers to a player's affected nonchalance and comments he is, "too young to realize you are what you pretend to be.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/michael-lewis/the-author-refers-to-a-player-s-affected-nonchalance-and-comments-he/)

[Michael Lewis](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/michael-lewis/)

> [A banking system is an act of faith: it survives only for as long as people believe it will.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/michael-lewis/a-banking-system-is-an-act-of-faith-it-survives-only-for-as-long-as/)

[Michael Lewis](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/michael-lewis/)

> [Some coaches believed they could judge a player's performance simply by watching it. In this they were deeply mistaken. The naked eye was an…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/michael-lewis/some-coaches-believed-they-could-judge-a-player-s-performance-simply/)

[Michael Lewis](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/michael-lewis/)

> [“No longer were the prices of ordinary mortgage bonds allowed to roam inefficiently, for they were now linked to the CMO market, in much…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/michael-lewis/no-longer-were-the-prices-of-ordinary-mortgage-bonds-allowed-to-roam/)

[Michael Lewis](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/michael-lewis/)

> [“The difference between Strauss and Ranieri?” says one trader still at Salomon. “That’s easy. Strauss wouldn’t stoop to use the men’s room on the…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/michael-lewis/the-difference-between-strauss-and-ranieri-says-one-trader-still-at/)

[Michael Lewis](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/michael-lewis/)

> [“The only inexplicable aspect of the process was that economic theory (which is, after all, what economics students were supposed to know) served almost…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/michael-lewis/the-only-inexplicable-aspect-of-the-process-was-that-economic-theory/)

[Michael Lewis](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/michael-lewis/)

> [“It's not easy to stand apart from mass hysteria - to believe that most of what's in the financial news is wrong, to believe…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/michael-lewis/it-s-not-easy-to-stand-apart-from-mass-hysteria-to-believe-that-most/)

[Michael Lewis](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/michael-lewis/)

> [“Dont worry about where i am , i'll let you know when i get there .”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/michael-lewis/dont-worry-about-where-i-am-i-ll-let-you-know-when-i-get-there/)

[Michael Lewis](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/michael-lewis/)

> [“Someone out there was using the fact that stock market orders arrived at different times at different exchanges to front-run orders from one market…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/michael-lewis/someone-out-there-was-using-the-fact-that-stock-market-orders-arrived/)

[Michael Lewis](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/michael-lewis/)

[Explore all 398 Michael Lewis quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/michael-lewis/)

## More Debt quotes

> [I'm a strange mixture of my mother's curiosity; my father, who grew up the son of the manse in a Presbyterian family, who had…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/rupert-murdoch/i-m-a-strange-mixture-of-my-mother-s-curiosity-my-father-who-grew-up/)

[Rupert Murdoch](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/rupert-murdoch/)

> [There is nothing that we can properly call our own but our time, and yet everybody fools us out of it who has a…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/seneca-the-younger/there-is-nothing-that-we-can-properly-call-our-own-but-our-time-and/)

[Seneca the Younger](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/seneca-the-younger/)

> [Praise will come to those whose kindness leaves you without debt.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/neil-finn/praise-will-come-to-those-whose-kindness-leaves-you-without-debt/)

[Neil Finn](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/neil-finn/)

> [“Most people, given more money, only get into more debt.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/robert-t-kiyosaki/most-people-given-more-money-only-get-into-more-debt/)

[Robert T. Kiyosaki](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/robert-t-kiyosaki/)

> [“An honest man is a debtless man, he doesn't owe anyone anything.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/amit-kalantri/an-honest-man-is-a-debtless-man-he-doesn-t-owe-anyone-anything/)

[Amit Kalantri](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/amit-kalantri/)

> [It is perhaps my greatest hope, Mr. President, that some day we'll consider tax and spending measures with no one else in mind but…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/john-mccain/it-is-perhaps-my-greatest-hope-mr-president-that-some-day-we-ll/)

[John McCain](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/john-mccain/)

> [The American people reject the idea of giving Washington a blank check to increase the debt limit.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/martha-roby/the-american-people-reject-the-idea-of-giving-washington-a-blank/)

[Martha Roby](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/martha-roby/)

> [Without a trace of irony I can say I have been blessed with brilliant enemies. I owe them a great debt, because they redoubled…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/e-o-wilson/without-a-trace-of-irony-i-can-say-i-have-been-blessed-with-brilliant/)

[E. O. Wilson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/e-o-wilson/)

> [I love Black Sabbath. They made an amazing contribution to music today. Almost every band that made it big in the Nineties owed a…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/dave-grohl/i-love-black-sabbath-they-made-an-amazing-contribution-to-music-today/)

[Dave Grohl](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/dave-grohl/)

> [“The human eye is restricted to see the useen, because there’s a price to be paid to the rulers of this image and if…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/michael-bassey-johnson/the-human-eye-is-restricted-to-see-the-useen-because-there-s-a-price/)

[Michael Bassey Johnson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/michael-bassey-johnson/)

> [It is a well-settled principle of the international code that where one nation owes another a liquidated debt which it refuses or neglects to…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/andrew-jackson/it-is-a-well-settled-principle-of-the-international-code-that-where/)

[Andrew Jackson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/andrew-jackson/)

> [Student loans have been helpful to many. But they offer neither incentive nor assistance to those students who, by reason of family or other…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/john-f-kennedy/student-loans-have-been-helpful-to-many-but-they-offer-neither/)

[John F. Kennedy](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/john-f-kennedy/)

> [Our sins are debts that none can pay but Christ. It is not our tears, but His blood; it is not our sighs, but…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/thomas-brooks/our-sins-are-debts-that-none-can-pay-but-christ-it-is-not-our-tears/)

[Thomas Brooks](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/thomas-brooks/)

> [Instead of explaining the sober facts of mechanics and electricity, I want to say a few words about the debt which we owe to…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/felix-bloch/instead-of-explaining-the-sober-facts-of-mechanics-and-electricity-i/)

[Felix Bloch](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/felix-bloch/)

> [“Suckers think that you cure greed with money, addiction with substances, expert problems with experts, banking with bankers, economics with economists, and debt crises…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/nassim-nicholas-taleb/suckers-think-that-you-cure-greed-with-money-addiction-with/)

[Nassim Nicholas Taleb](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/nassim-nicholas-taleb/)

[Browse all 2,345 Debt quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/debt/)

```json
{
    "@context": "https://schema.org",
    "@graph": [
        {
            "@type": "Quotation",
            "text": "Above all, recognize that if you have had success, you have also had luck — and with luck comes obligation. You owe a debt, and not just to your Gods. You owe a debt to the unlucky.",
            "creator": {
                "@type": "Person",
                "name": "Michael Lewis"
            },
            "isPartOf": {
                "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/#website"
            },
            "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/michael-lewis/above-all-recognize-that-if-you-have-had-success-you-have-also-had/",
            "about": {
                "@type": "Thing",
                "name": "Debt"
            },
            "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/michael-lewis/above-all-recognize-that-if-you-have-had-success-you-have-also-had/#quotation",
            "image": {
                "@type": "ImageObject",
                "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/02a/michael-lewis-705_debt_above-all-recognize-that-if-you-have-had_1768987.png",
                "contentUrl": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/02a/michael-lewis-705_debt_above-all-recognize-that-if-you-have-had_1768987.png",
                "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/02a/michael-lewis-705_debt_above-all-recognize-that-if-you-have-had_1768987.png",
                "width": 1080,
                "height": 1080,
                "caption": "“Above all, recognize that if you have had success, you have also had luck — and with luck comes obligation…” — Michael Lewis",
                "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 Lewis",
                    "item": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/michael-lewis/"
                },
                {
                    "@type": "ListItem",
                    "position": 4,
                    "name": "Above all, recognize that if you...",
                    "item": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/michael-lewis/above-all-recognize-that-if-you-have-had-success-you-have-also-had/"
                }
            ],
            "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/michael-lewis/above-all-recognize-that-if-you-have-had-success-you-have-also-had/#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
            }
        }
    ]
}
```
