--- title: "Meaning & Key Takeaway of: Even at a young age, when you start to do…" description: "\"Even at a young age, when you start to do well, it's tough because it's lonely on top, and I wasn't the most popular.\" — Michelle Kwan" image: "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/94a/michelle-kwan-11081_age_even-at-a-young-age-when-you-start-to-do_2914861.png" --- # Even at a young age, when you start to do well, it's tough… ![“Even at a young age, when you start to do well, it's tough because it's lonely on top, and I wasn't the most popular.” quote by Michelle Kwan](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/94a/michelle-kwan-11081_age_even-at-a-young-age-when-you-start-to-do_2914861.png) [Download](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/94a/michelle-kwan-11081_age_even-at-a-young-age-when-you-start-to-do_2914861.png) [Open image](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/94a/michelle-kwan-11081_age_even-at-a-young-age-when-you-start-to-do_2914861.png) > “Even at a young age, when you start to do well, it's tough because it's lonely on top, and I wasn't the most popular.” [Michelle Kwan](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/michelle-kwan/) ## About This Quote This interpretation was drafted with AI assistance. It is one reading of the quote, not the author's own explanation. Early success can lead to isolation and social challenges despite achievement. **In simple terms:** Success may feel lonely. Key Takeaway Seek supportive community. Themes loneliness success social dynamics Mood empathetic thoughtful Type personal reflective When to use this quote - youth sports - career milestones - peer relationships - mental health Key Concepts Psychological impact of achievement Questions to Reflect On - How do you stay connected when succeeding? - What support systems help you? A Different Perspective Pressure to maintain performance can increase isolation. ★ ★ ★ ★ ★ No ratings yet [Age](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/age/) [Lonely](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/lonely/) [Young age](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/young-age/) [Youth](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/youth/) ## Related quotes > [“I had no idea how lonely I was until I wasn't lonely anymore.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/fyn-alexander/i-had-no-idea-how-lonely-i-was-until-i-wasn-t-lonely-anymore/) Fyn Alexander > [New York is tough on lonely people.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/michael-bergin/new-york-is-tough-on-lonely-people/) [Michael Bergin](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/michael-bergin/) > [It can be tough and lonely on the road, but at the end of the day we get to play professional tennis for a…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/madison-keys/it-can-be-tough-and-lonely-on-the-road-but-at-the-end-of-the-day-we/) [Madison Keys](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/madison-keys/) > [“I never knew how lonely I was, until I wasn’t any more. “Oh,”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/rory-ni-coileain/i-never-knew-how-lonely-i-was-until-i-wasn-t-any-more-oh/) [Rory Ni Coileain](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/rory-ni-coileain/) > [People have disliked me. You know, in high school, I wasn't the most popular kid. I wasn't the nerdiest kid. I was kind of…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jimmy-fallon/people-have-disliked-me-you-know-in-high-school-i-wasn-t-the-most/) [Jimmy Fallon](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jimmy-fallon/) > [It wasn't a popular thing to be a professional poker player in the '80s.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/phil-hellmuth/it-wasn-t-a-popular-thing-to-be-a-professional-poker-player-in-the-80s/) [Phil Hellmuth](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/phil-hellmuth/) > [When I was in school, I was very involved with a lot of things. I was very very active. I couldn't say that I…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/faith-ford/when-i-was-in-school-i-was-very-involved-with-a-lot-of-things-i-was/) [Faith Ford](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/faith-ford/) > [ \[Tim\] Kaine, in Virginia, you know he wasn't popular?His first move as governor of Virginia was to raise taxes by 4 billion dollars. He… ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/donald-trump/tim-kaine-in-virginia-you-know-he-wasn-t-popular-his-first-move-as/) [Donald Trump](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/donald-trump/) > [Most of the music I'm into wasn't popular when it was being made.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/mark-lanegan/most-of-the-music-i-m-into-wasn-t-popular-when-it-was-being-made/) [Mark Lanegan](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/mark-lanegan/) > [Certainly, because the computer and computer language was still not as common as it is today. That's one of the reasons I believe Tron…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/bruce-boxleitner/certainly-because-the-computer-and-computer-language-was-still-not-as/) [Bruce Boxleitner](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/bruce-boxleitner/) > [To be honest with you, girls didn't really start paying attention to me until after 'Clueless' came out. Then, all of a sudden, it…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/donald-faison/to-be-honest-with-you-girls-didn-t-really-start-paying-attention-to/) [Donald Faison](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/donald-faison/) > [It's funny how all of this has worked out - I wasn't popular in high school, but now every drunken guy in the United…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jimmy-kimmel/it-s-funny-how-all-of-this-has-worked-out-i-wasn-t-popular-in-high/) [Jimmy Kimmel](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jimmy-kimmel/) > [I wasn't even popular at school.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/alessia-cara/i-wasn-t-even-popular-at-school/) [Alessia Cara](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/alessia-cara/) > [I wasn't the most popular kid in school.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/daniel-radcliffe/i-wasn-t-the-most-popular-kid-in-school/) [Daniel Radcliffe](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/daniel-radcliffe/) > [I wasn't popular in high school; I had no friends.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/sza/i-wasn-t-popular-in-high-school-i-had-no-friends/) [SZA](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/sza/) ## More by Michelle Kwan > [If you ask another competitor, they may tell you they felt very competitive towards me. But I can tell you that my biggest competition…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/michelle-kwan/if-you-ask-another-competitor-they-may-tell-you-they-felt-very/) [Michelle Kwan](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/michelle-kwan/) > [Skating is in my heart, not my head](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/michelle-kwan/skating-is-in-my-heart-not-my-head/) [Michelle Kwan](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/michelle-kwan/) > [When I feel like I'm in a rut, I remember it's the little things in life that are important, like riding a bike with…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/michelle-kwan/when-i-feel-like-i-m-in-a-rut-i-remember-it-s-the-little-things-in/) [Michelle Kwan](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/michelle-kwan/) > [At 13, I was fearless. I looked at everything so positive. When you're older and been through it all, you know how bad it…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/michelle-kwan/at-13-i-was-fearless-i-looked-at-everything-so-positive-when-you-re/) [Michelle Kwan](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/michelle-kwan/) > [When I look at the kids training today... I can tell which ones are going to do well. It's not necessarily the ones who…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/michelle-kwan/when-i-look-at-the-kids-training-today-i-can-tell-which-ones-are/) [Michelle Kwan](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/michelle-kwan/) > [Work hard, be yourself, and have fun!](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/michelle-kwan/work-hard-be-yourself-and-have-fun/) [Michelle Kwan](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/michelle-kwan/) > [The Women's Sports Foundation has empowered so many young girls and women across the U.S. I benefitted from WSF with a travel and training…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/michelle-kwan/the-women-s-sports-foundation-has-empowered-so-many-young-girls-and/) [Michelle Kwan](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/michelle-kwan/) > [Sports provides that tool kit to be successful in life. Because it's not always going to be smooth sailing.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/michelle-kwan/sports-provides-that-tool-kit-to-be-successful-in-life-because-it-s/) [Michelle Kwan](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/michelle-kwan/) > [In figure skating, you have four minutes to do your best. It's your time; you do your best.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/michelle-kwan/in-figure-skating-you-have-four-minutes-to-do-your-best-it-s-your/) [Michelle Kwan](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/michelle-kwan/) > [When I look back at the world championships, I know there's a lot of room for improvement, I'm always up for a challenge. The…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/michelle-kwan/when-i-look-back-at-the-world-championships-i-know-there-s-a-lot-of/) [Michelle Kwan](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/michelle-kwan/) > [If you represent your country and millions of people are watching, it comes through a lot of grit and hard work.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/michelle-kwan/if-you-represent-your-country-and-millions-of-people-are-watching-it/) [Michelle Kwan](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/michelle-kwan/) > [When I look at my own career, growing up, I was doing really well at age 11, but it was kind of isolating because…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/michelle-kwan/when-i-look-at-my-own-career-growing-up-i-was-doing-really-well-at/) [Michelle Kwan](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/michelle-kwan/) > [Because I'm pushing my body so hard already, the last thing I want to do is have music that's really too strong, in my…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/michelle-kwan/because-i-m-pushing-my-body-so-hard-already-the-last-thing-i-want-to/) [Michelle Kwan](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/michelle-kwan/) > [I don't really remember a time younger than 5 years old that I didn't have skates on because all I can remember is every…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/michelle-kwan/i-don-t-really-remember-a-time-younger-than-5-years-old-that-i-didn-t/) [Michelle Kwan](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/michelle-kwan/) > [If you have nothing in life but a good friend, you're rich.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/michelle-kwan/if-you-have-nothing-in-life-but-a-good-friend-you-re-rich/) [Michelle Kwan](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/michelle-kwan/) [Explore all 62 Michelle Kwan quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/michelle-kwan/) ## More Age quotes > [I need a bath." He chuckled. "You smell of smoke, as do I." The duke turned, leaning heavily on his cane. "Jameson, open the…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/karen-hawkins/i-need-a-bath-he-chuckled-you-smell-of-smoke-as-do-i-the-duke-turned/) [Karen Hawkins](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/karen-hawkins/) > [While we've youth in our hearts, we can never grow old.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/oliver-wendell-holmes-jr/while-we-ve-youth-in-our-hearts-we-can-never-grow-old/) [Oliver Wendell Holmes, Jr](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/oliver-wendell-holmes-jr/) > [It's easier to change a law than an age-old mentality. Deep down, many prejudices, many hostilities, many fears persist. But if we take a…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/dacia-maraini/it-s-easier-to-change-a-law-than-an-age-old-mentality-deep-down-many/) [Dacia Maraini](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/dacia-maraini/) > [When I first started writing, when I was 15, I would go to work with people and they would tell me my lyrics were…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/sabrina-claudio/when-i-first-started-writing-when-i-was-15-i-would-go-to-work-with/) [Sabrina Claudio](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/sabrina-claudio/) > [Real people speak in my books about the main events of the age, such as the war, the Chernobyl disaster, and the downfall of…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/svetlana-alexievich/real-people-speak-in-my-books-about-the-main-events-of-the-age-such/) [Svetlana Alexievich](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/svetlana-alexievich/) > [As a child I was very involved with sports and I knew at age 9 that I wanted to be an Olympic champion.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/marion-jones/as-a-child-i-was-very-involved-with-sports-and-i-knew-at-age-9-that-i/) [Marion Jones](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/marion-jones/) > [If there is any period one would desire to be born in, is it not the age of Revolution; when the old and the…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ralph-waldo-emerson/if-there-is-any-period-one-would-desire-to-be-born-in-is-it-not-the/) [Ralph Waldo Emerson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ralph-waldo-emerson/) > [By making conscious choices in our behavior and where we focus our attention, we can transform our experience of our body, decrease our biological…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/deepak-chopra/by-making-conscious-choices-in-our-behavior-and-where-we-focus-our/) [Deepak Chopra](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/deepak-chopra/) > [I am just enjoying the dream of being Milan coach at the age of 40.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/gennaro-gattuso/i-am-just-enjoying-the-dream-of-being-milan-coach-at-the-age-of-40/) [Gennaro Gattuso](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/gennaro-gattuso/) > [Age is an accumulation of life and loss. Adulthood is a series of lines crossed.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ellen-goodman/age-is-an-accumulation-of-life-and-loss-adulthood-is-a-series-of/) [Ellen Goodman](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ellen-goodman/) > [I calculated that if I live up to the age of 80, then I end up using 450 toothbrushes in my life. All that…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/dia-mirza/i-calculated-that-if-i-live-up-to-the-age-of-80-then-i-end-up-using/) [Dia Mirza](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/dia-mirza/) > [Why is wisdom so fair? Why is beauty so wise? Because all else is temporary, while beauty and wisdom are the only real and…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/vera-nazarian/why-is-wisdom-so-fair-why-is-beauty-so-wise-because-all-else-is/) [Vera Nazarian](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/vera-nazarian/) > [It was only when I went to acting school that I was like, "You are absolutely such a pigheaded freak show that you thought…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/giles-matthey/it-was-only-when-i-went-to-acting-school-that-i-was-like-you-are/) [Giles Matthey](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/giles-matthey/) > [That old man dies prematurely whose memory records no benefits conferred. They only have lived long who have lived virtuously.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/richard-brinsley-sheridan/that-old-man-dies-prematurely-whose-memory-records-no-benefits/) [Richard Brinsley Sheridan](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/richard-brinsley-sheridan/) > [We have started to make music at age seven. That was a hard work.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/bill-kaulitz/we-have-started-to-make-music-at-age-seven-that-was-a-hard-work/) [Bill Kaulitz](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/bill-kaulitz/) [Browse all 18,948 Age quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/age/) ```json { "@context": "https://schema.org", "@graph": [ { "@type": "Quotation", "text": "Even at a young age, when you start to do well, it's tough because it's lonely on top, and I wasn't the most popular.", "creator": { "@type": "Person", "name": "Michelle Kwan" }, "isPartOf": { "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/#website" }, "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/michelle-kwan/even-at-a-young-age-when-you-start-to-do-well-it-s-tough-because-it-s/", "about": { "@type": "Thing", "name": "Age" }, "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/michelle-kwan/even-at-a-young-age-when-you-start-to-do-well-it-s-tough-because-it-s/#quotation", "image": { "@type": "ImageObject", "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/94a/michelle-kwan-11081_age_even-at-a-young-age-when-you-start-to-do_2914861.png", "contentUrl": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/94a/michelle-kwan-11081_age_even-at-a-young-age-when-you-start-to-do_2914861.png", "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/94a/michelle-kwan-11081_age_even-at-a-young-age-when-you-start-to-do_2914861.png", "width": 1080, "height": 1080, "caption": "“Even at a young age, when you start to do well, it's tough because it's lonely on top, and I wasn't the most…” — Michelle Kwan", "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": "Michelle Kwan", "item": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/michelle-kwan/" }, { "@type": "ListItem", "position": 4, "name": "Even at a young age, when...", "item": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/michelle-kwan/even-at-a-young-age-when-you-start-to-do-well-it-s-tough-because-it-s/" } ], "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/michelle-kwan/even-at-a-young-age-when-you-start-to-do-well-it-s-tough-because-it-s/#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 } } ] } ```