--- title: "Meaning & Key Takeaway of: What I know for sure is this: The big…" description: "\"What I know for sure is this: The big secret in life is that there is no big secret. Whatever your goal for this year is, you can get there - as long a..." image: "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/38b/oprah-winfrey-186_back-doors_what-i-know-for-sure-is-this-the-big-sec_2009092.jpg" --- # What I know for sure is this: The big secret in life is… ![“What I know for sure is this: The big secret in life is that there is no big secret. Whatever your goal for this year is, you can get there - as long as you're willing to be honest with yourself about the preparation and work involved. There are no back doors, no free rides. There's just you, this…” quote by Oprah Winfrey](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/38b/oprah-winfrey-186_back-doors_what-i-know-for-sure-is-this-the-big-sec_2009092.jpg) [Download](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/38b/oprah-winfrey-186_back-doors_what-i-know-for-sure-is-this-the-big-sec_2009092.jpg) [Open image](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/38b/oprah-winfrey-186_back-doors_what-i-know-for-sure-is-this-the-big-sec_2009092.jpg) > “What I know for sure is this: The big secret in life is that there is no big secret. Whatever your goal for this year is, you can get there - as long as you're willing to be honest with yourself about the preparation and work involved. There are no back doors, no free rides. There's just you, this moment, and a choice.” [Oprah Winfrey](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/oprah-winfrey/) ## About This Quote This interpretation was drafted with AI assistance. It is one reading of the quote, not the author's own explanation. Success requires honest self‑assessment and hard work; there are no shortcuts, only choices made in the present moment **In simple terms:** Hard work and honesty are the only ways to achieve goals Key Takeaway Commit to honest effort now Themes hard work honesty choice self‑assessment Mood determined realistic Type motivational inspirational When to use this quote - career planning - fitness goals - academic pursuits - entrepreneurship Key Concepts self‑efficacy growth mindset personal responsibility Questions to Reflect On - What honest truth are you avoiding? - How can you create opportunities when none seem present? A Different Perspective Hard work alone may not guarantee success without external opportunities ★ ★ ★ ★ ★ No ratings yet [Back doors](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/back-doors/) [Being honest](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/being-honest/) [Choices](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/choices/) [Goal](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/goal/) [Goals](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/goals/) [Honest](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/honest/) [Honest with yourself](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/honest-with-yourself/) [Life](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/life/) [Moments](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/moments/) [Preparation](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/preparation/) [Secret](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/secret/) ## Related quotes > [The big secret in life is that there is no big secret. … There are no back doors, no free rides. There's just you,…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/oprah-winfrey/the-big-secret-in-life-is-that-there-is-no-big-secret-there-are-no/) [Oprah Winfrey](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/oprah-winfrey/) > [The big secret in life is there is no secret. Whatever your goal. You can get there if you're willing to work.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/oprah-winfrey/the-big-secret-in-life-is-there-is-no-secret-whatever-your-goal-you/) [Oprah Winfrey](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/oprah-winfrey/) > [The big secret in life is that there is no big secret. Whatever your goal, you can get there if you're willing to work.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anurag-prakash-ray/the-big-secret-in-life-is-that-there-is-no-big-secret-whatever-your/) [Anurag Prakash Ray](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anurag-prakash-ray/) > [“Perhaps I was mad, as I thought at moments; perhaps I was not like other men? But I was able to do the same…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/hermann-hesse/perhaps-i-was-mad-as-i-thought-at-moments-perhaps-i-was-not-like/) [Hermann Hesse](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/hermann-hesse/) > [My goal every year is to be bigger and better than I was the year before. The competition just keeps getting better, and the…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/phil-heath/my-goal-every-year-is-to-be-bigger-and-better-than-i-was-the-year/) [Phil Heath](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/phil-heath/) > [I think it would be good to get somebody a job. Right now we're in a bubble of green rhetoric and a bowl of…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/van-jones/i-think-it-would-be-good-to-get-somebody-a-job-right-now-we-re-in-a/) [Van Jones](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/van-jones/) > [Obviously, my goal No. 1 every year is to play in every game.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/julian-edelman/obviously-my-goal-no-1-every-year-is-to-play-in-every-game/) [Julian Edelman](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/julian-edelman/) > [So my goal from a year ago was to be in tip top speedo shape by this summer and that totally didn't happen but…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/oscar-romero/so-my-goal-from-a-year-ago-was-to-be-in-tip-top-speedo-shape-by-this/) [Oscar Romero](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/oscar-romero/) > [That's our goal every year, to win the World Series, like it is at most places. In L.A., it really is.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/zack-greinke/that-s-our-goal-every-year-to-win-the-world-series-like-it-is-at-most/) [Zack Greinke](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/zack-greinke/) > [Also, for a team as strong as like ours, the Tour will always remain the biggest goal of the whole year, and personally I…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/laurent-jalabert/also-for-a-team-as-strong-as-like-ours-the-tour-will-always-remain/) [Laurent Jalabert](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/laurent-jalabert/) > [My goal every year is to come in and be consistent. It doesn't matter if it's the first game of the year or it's…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/aaron-judge/my-goal-every-year-is-to-come-in-and-be-consistent-it-doesn-t-matter/) [Aaron Judge](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/aaron-judge/) > [My goal every year is I always want to be better than the year before.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/derrick-henry/my-goal-every-year-is-i-always-want-to-be-better-than-the-year-before/) [Derrick Henry](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/derrick-henry/) > [I always have a lot of personal goals, but primarily my main goal each year is to obviously win a Super Bowl.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/michael-strahan/i-always-have-a-lot-of-personal-goals-but-primarily-my-main-goal-each/) [Michael Strahan](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/michael-strahan/) > [“Based on my someday goal, what’s the ONE Thing I can do in the next five years to be on track to achieve it?…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/gary-keller/based-on-my-someday-goal-what-s-the-one-thing-i-can-do-in-the-next/) [Gary Keller](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/gary-keller/) > [Not being to a Super Bowl is something we'd like to change this year. Our goal every year is to get a championship for…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/peyton-manning/not-being-to-a-super-bowl-is-something-we-d-like-to-change-this-year/) [Peyton Manning](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/peyton-manning/) ## More by Oprah Winfrey > [I've seen that many times in rural African villages where people have nothing but a hut and a bowl. The joy in the children's…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/oprah-winfrey/i-ve-seen-that-many-times-in-rural-african-villages-where-people-have/) [Oprah Winfrey](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/oprah-winfrey/) > [These French-style caramels are handmade in California. It's always hard to give them away!](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/oprah-winfrey/these-french-style-caramels-are-handmade-in-california-it-s-always/) [Oprah Winfrey](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/oprah-winfrey/) > [I was in a conversation and someone said: "You know, we were talking about the whole issue of transgender and how it has become…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/oprah-winfrey/i-was-in-a-conversation-and-someone-said-you-know-we-were-talking/) [Oprah Winfrey](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/oprah-winfrey/) > [“Forgiveness is about letting go of the past and not holding on to it”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/oprah-winfrey/forgiveness-is-about-letting-go-of-the-past-and-not-holding-on-to-it/) [Oprah Winfrey](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/oprah-winfrey/) > [The deepest courage we can exercise is continuing to believe in our dreams until we make them come true.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/oprah-winfrey/the-deepest-courage-we-can-exercise-is-continuing-to-believe-in-our/) [Oprah Winfrey](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/oprah-winfrey/) > [If you can see it, and believe it, it is a LOT easier to achieve it](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/oprah-winfrey/if-you-can-see-it-and-believe-it-it-is-a-lot-easier-to-achieve-it/) [Oprah Winfrey](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/oprah-winfrey/) > [There is no greater gift you can give or receive than to honor your calling. It's why you were born. And how you become…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/oprah-winfrey/there-is-no-greater-gift-you-can-give-or-receive-than-to-honor-your/) [Oprah Winfrey](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/oprah-winfrey/) > [Gratitude is the single greatest treasure I will take with me from this experience.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/oprah-winfrey/gratitude-is-the-single-greatest-treasure-i-will-take-with-me-from/) [Oprah Winfrey](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/oprah-winfrey/) > [I am disappointed by this controversy surrounding A Million Little Pieces because I rely on the publishers to define the category that a book…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/oprah-winfrey/i-am-disappointed-by-this-controversy-surrounding-a-million-little/) [Oprah Winfrey](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/oprah-winfrey/) > [Keep a grateful journal. Every night, list five things that you are grateful for. What it will begin to do is change our perspective…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/oprah-winfrey/keep-a-grateful-journal-every-night-list-five-things-that-you-are/) [Oprah Winfrey](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/oprah-winfrey/) > [I want every day to be a fresh start on expanding what is possible.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/oprah-winfrey/i-want-every-day-to-be-a-fresh-start-on-expanding-what-is-possible/) [Oprah Winfrey](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/oprah-winfrey/) > [We often block our own blessings because we don't feel inherently good enough or smart enough or pretty enough or worthy enough... You're worthy…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/oprah-winfrey/we-often-block-our-own-blessings-because-we-don-t-feel-inherently/) [Oprah Winfrey](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/oprah-winfrey/) > [One if the hardest things in life to learn are which bridges to cross and which bridges to burn.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/oprah-winfrey/one-if-the-hardest-things-in-life-to-learn-are-which-bridges-to-cross/) [Oprah Winfrey](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/oprah-winfrey/) > [You must feed your mind with reading material, thoughts, and ideas that open you to new possibilities.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/oprah-winfrey/you-must-feed-your-mind-with-reading-material-thoughts-and-ideas-that/) [Oprah Winfrey](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/oprah-winfrey/) > [Your soul tells you when it's time to move on.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/oprah-winfrey/your-soul-tells-you-when-it-s-time-to-move-on/) [Oprah Winfrey](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/oprah-winfrey/) [Explore all 971 Oprah Winfrey quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/oprah-winfrey/) ## More Back doors quotes > [Being a Catholic, I was drawn to the mystery of the Latin and the smoke and the mirrors and all of that. That part…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/susan-sarandon/being-a-catholic-i-was-drawn-to-the-mystery-of-the-latin-and-the/) [Susan Sarandon](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/susan-sarandon/) > [I don't think it's a very Christian thing to come in by the back door rather than the front door,](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/tony-abbott/i-don-t-think-it-s-a-very-christian-thing-to-come-in-by-the-back-door/) [Tony Abbott](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/tony-abbott/) > [Last night we had three small zucchini for dinner that were grown within fifty feet of our back door. I estimate they cost somewhere…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/andy-rooney/last-night-we-had-three-small-zucchini-for-dinner-that-were-grown/) [Andy Rooney](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/andy-rooney/) > ["Compromise" means giving up more than the other side is big enough to take; if and when they have the muscle, they'll be back…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/neal-knox/compromise-means-giving-up-more-than-the-other-side-is-big-enough-to/) Neal Knox > [If the wolf had ever come to our back door, he'd have had to bring a picnic lunch.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/bill-anderson/if-the-wolf-had-ever-come-to-our-back-door-he-d-have-had-to-bring-a/) [Bill Anderson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/bill-anderson/) > [The Government have consistently made it clear that the mechanism in the United Kingdom whereby the European draft constitutional treaty could be implemented is…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/douglas-alexander/the-government-have-consistently-made-it-clear-that-the-mechanism-in/) [Douglas Alexander](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/douglas-alexander/) > [To fight oppression, and to work as best we can for a sane organization of society, we do not have to abandon the state…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/john-dos-passos/to-fight-oppression-and-to-work-as-best-we-can-for-a-sane/) [John Dos Passos](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/john-dos-passos/) > [I don't know if I call myself a poet or not. I would like to, but I'm not really qualified to make that decision,…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/bob-dylan/i-don-t-know-if-i-call-myself-a-poet-or-not-i-would-like-to-but-i-m/) [Bob Dylan](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/bob-dylan/) > [Fiction allows for moral questioning, but through the back door. Personally, I like books that make you think - books you're still wondering about…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jodi-picoult/fiction-allows-for-moral-questioning-but-through-the-back-door/) [Jodi Picoult](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jodi-picoult/) > [Comedy's been really liberating for me because I've been able to sneak the singing part in through the back door.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ana-gasteyer/comedy-s-been-really-liberating-for-me-because-i-ve-been-able-to/) [Ana Gasteyer](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ana-gasteyer/) > [Sneaking out the back door to hand out with those hoodlum friends of mine.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/stevie-wonder/sneaking-out-the-back-door-to-hand-out-with-those-hoodlum-friends-of/) [Stevie Wonder](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/stevie-wonder/) > [marrows - alas! - are arriving in a steady stream at the back door. ... Oddly enough, the majority of people who grow them…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/miss-read/marrows-alas-are-arriving-in-a-steady-stream-at-the-back-door-oddly/) [Miss Read](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/miss-read/) > [In regard to tenacity of life, no old yellow cat has anything on a prejudice. You may kill it with your own hands, bury…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/nellie-l-mcclung/in-regard-to-tenacity-of-life-no-old-yellow-cat-has-anything-on-a/) [Nellie L. McClung](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/nellie-l-mcclung/) > [I'm also conscious of what this confidence that has been placed in me means. I'm going to the Games through the back door but…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/benjamin-boukpeti/i-m-also-conscious-of-what-this-confidence-that-has-been-placed-in-me/) [Benjamin Boukpeti](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/benjamin-boukpeti/) > [ We both \[with Alixandra Kolesky MacKenzie\] got into ceramics, you might say, by the back door. Looking back on it, I think this was… ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/warren-mackenzie/we-both-with-alixandra-kolesky-mackenzie-got-into-ceramics-you-might/) [Warren MacKenzie](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/warren-mackenzie/) [Browse all 58 Back doors quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/back-doors/) ```json { "@context": "https://schema.org", "@graph": [ { "@type": "Quotation", "text": "What I know for sure is this: The big secret in life is that there is no big secret. Whatever your goal for this year is, you can get there - as long as you're willing to be honest with yourself about the preparation and work involved. There are no back doors, no free rides. 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