--- title: "Meaning & Key Takeaway of: Only he who gives up is defeated…" description: "\"Only he who gives up is defeated. Everyone else is victorious.\" — Paulo Coelho" image: "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/97e/paulo-coelho-10_defeated_only-he-who-gives-up-is-defeated-everyon_2812791.jpg" --- # Only he who gives up is defeated. Everyone else is… ![“Only he who gives up is defeated. Everyone else is victorious.” quote by Paulo Coelho](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/97e/paulo-coelho-10_defeated_only-he-who-gives-up-is-defeated-everyon_2812791.jpg) [Download](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/97e/paulo-coelho-10_defeated_only-he-who-gives-up-is-defeated-everyon_2812791.jpg) [Open image](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/97e/paulo-coelho-10_defeated_only-he-who-gives-up-is-defeated-everyon_2812791.jpg) > “Only he who gives up is defeated. Everyone else is victorious.” [Paulo Coelho](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/paulo-coelho/) ## About This Quote This interpretation was drafted with AI assistance. It is one reading of the quote, not the author's own explanation. Defeat comes only when you quit; perseverance ensures success for everyone who keeps trying. **In simple terms:** Giving up is defeat; trying leads to victory. Key Takeaway Keep persisting, even when faced with setbacks. Themes perseverance victory mindset resilience effort Mood hopeful inspired cautious Type motivational philosophical When to use this quote - personal goals - career challenges - sports competition - creative projects - relationship issues Key Concepts psychology motivation philosophy Questions to Reflect On - What does perseverance look like in your life? - When might quitting be a smarter choice? A Different Perspective Sometimes persistence without adaptation can lead to burnout or missed opportunities. ★ ★ ★ ★ ★ No ratings yet [Defeated](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/defeated/) [Defeated Victorious](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/defeated-victorious-2350684/) [Failure](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/failure/) [Gives](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/gives/) [Gives Defeated](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/gives-defeated-3531228/) [Giving](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/giving/) [Giving up](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/giving-up/) [Inspirational](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/inspirational/) [Victorious](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/victorious/) ## Related quotes > [“After all, it isn't the facts of one's environment, but one's attitude toward them, that determines whether one will be defeated or victorious.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/david-hawkins-m-d-ph-d/after-all-it-isn-t-the-facts-of-one-s-environment-but-one-s-attitude/) [David Hawkins, M.D., Ph.D](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/david-hawkins-m-d-ph-d/) > [“But don't they say that all is fair in love and war? I heard that somewhere." "'They?' Who are 'they?'" "I don't know. Just…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/john-connolly/but-don-t-they-say-that-all-is-fair-in-love-and-war-i-heard-that/) [John Connolly](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/john-connolly/) > [You were never created to live depressed, defeated, guilty, condemned, ashamed or unworthy. You were created to be victorious.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/joel-osteen/you-were-never-created-to-live-depressed-defeated-guilty-condemned/) [Joel Osteen](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/joel-osteen/) > [If you spend too much time trying to find out what is good or bad about someone else, you'll forget your own soul and…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/paulo-coelho/if-you-spend-too-much-time-trying-to-find-out-what-is-good-or-bad/) [Paulo Coelho](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/paulo-coelho/) > [We always have the necessary resources to face the storms that life throws at us, but most of the time,those resources are locked up…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/paulo-coelho/we-always-have-the-necessary-resources-to-face-the-storms-that-life/) [Paulo Coelho](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/paulo-coelho/) > [All battles have some use, including those in which we were defeated.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/paulo-coelho/all-battles-have-some-use-including-those-in-which-we-were-defeated/) [Paulo Coelho](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/paulo-coelho/) > [To the warriors of light, there is no such thing as impossible love. They don’t allow themselves to be intimidated by silence, or by…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/paulo-coelho/to-the-warriors-of-light-there-is-no-such-thing-as-impossible-love/) [Paulo Coelho](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/paulo-coelho/) > [If his decision is correct, he will win the battle, even if it lasts longer than expected. If his decision is wrong, he will…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/paulo-coelho/if-his-decision-is-correct-he-will-win-the-battle-even-if-it-lasts/) [Paulo Coelho](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/paulo-coelho/) > [only the defeated know LOVE. because it is in the realm of love that we fight our first battles - and generally lose …](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/paulo-coelho/only-the-defeated-know-love-because-it-is-in-the-realm-of-love-that/) [Paulo Coelho](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/paulo-coelho/) > [Does a leaf, when it falls from the tree in winter, feel defeated by the cold? The tree says to the leaf: "That’s the…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/paulo-coelho/does-a-leaf-when-it-falls-from-the-tree-in-winter-feel-defeated-by/) [Paulo Coelho](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/paulo-coelho/) > [But he was wrong. Because I had fought with my heart and defeated it long ago. I was certainly not going to become passionate…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/paulo-coelho/but-he-was-wrong-because-i-had-fought-with-my-heart-and-defeated-it/) [Paulo Coelho](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/paulo-coelho/) > [A man is not a failure when he is defeated. He fails when he give up and quit trying.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anurag-prakash-ray/a-man-is-not-a-failure-when-he-is-defeated-he-fails-when-he-give-up/) [Anurag Prakash Ray](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anurag-prakash-ray/) > [“Or is what remains in me like a defeated army, Fleeing in disarray from victory already won?”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/bonhoeffer-dietrich/or-is-what-remains-in-me-like-a-defeated-army-fleeing-in-disarray/) [Bonhoeffer Dietrich](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/bonhoeffer-dietrich/) > [Don't allow your mind to tell your heart what to do. The mind gives up easily](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/paulo-coelho/don-t-allow-your-mind-to-tell-your-heart-what-to-do-the-mind-gives-up/) [Paulo Coelho](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/paulo-coelho/) > [Only children believe they're capable of everything. They're trusting and fearless; they believe in their own power and get exactly what they want. When…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/paulo-coelho/only-children-believe-they-re-capable-of-everything-they-re-trusting/) [Paulo Coelho](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/paulo-coelho/) ## More by Paulo Coelho > [I have inside me the winds, the deserts, the oceans, the stars, and everything created in the universe. We were all made by the…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/paulo-coelho/i-have-inside-me-the-winds-the-deserts-the-oceans-the-stars-and/) [Paulo Coelho](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/paulo-coelho/) > [Love will never separate a man from his personal legend.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/paulo-coelho/love-will-never-separate-a-man-from-his-personal-legend/) [Paulo Coelho](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/paulo-coelho/) > [The world has a soul and whoever understands that soul can also understand the language of many things.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/paulo-coelho/the-world-has-a-soul-and-whoever-understands-that-soul-can-also/) [Paulo Coelho](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/paulo-coelho/) > [You dont choose your life; it chooses you. Theres no point asking why life has reserved certain joys or griefs, you just accept them…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/paulo-coelho/you-dont-choose-your-life-it-chooses-you-theres-no-point-asking-why/) [Paulo Coelho](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/paulo-coelho/) > [To love is to be in communion with the other and to discover in that other the spark of God.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/paulo-coelho/to-love-is-to-be-in-communion-with-the-other-and-to-discover-in-that/) [Paulo Coelho](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/paulo-coelho/) > [It is not enough to dream of the Impossible Love - it is necessary to conquer it too.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/paulo-coelho/it-is-not-enough-to-dream-of-the-impossible-love-it-is-necessary-to/) [Paulo Coelho](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/paulo-coelho/) > [Eat when it is time to eat. And walk when it is time to walk.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/paulo-coelho/eat-when-it-is-time-to-eat-and-walk-when-it-is-time-to-walk/) [Paulo Coelho](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/paulo-coelho/) > [People are reading more and writing more because of the internet. So the virtual world is a way for me to listen to my…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/paulo-coelho/people-are-reading-more-and-writing-more-because-of-the-internet-so/) [Paulo Coelho](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/paulo-coelho/) > [“Joy is like sex – it begins and ends. I want pleasure. I want to be contended, but happiness? I no longer fall into…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/paulo-coelho/joy-is-like-sex-it-begins-and-ends-i-want-pleasure-i-want-to-be/) [Paulo Coelho](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/paulo-coelho/) > [“Trudi se da zivis, sjecanja su za starije ljude.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/paulo-coelho/trudi-se-da-zivis-sjecanja-su-za-starije-ljude/) [Paulo Coelho](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/paulo-coelho/) > [I've always been a very restless person. I work hard, spend too much time looking after my son, I dance like a mad thing,…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/paulo-coelho/i-ve-always-been-a-very-restless-person-i-work-hard-spend-too-much/) [Paulo Coelho](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/paulo-coelho/) > [When someone leaves, it's because someone else is about to arrive.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/paulo-coelho/when-someone-leaves-it-s-because-someone-else-is-about-to-arrive/) [Paulo Coelho](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/paulo-coelho/) > [The past and the future become unimportant. There is only that moment, and the incredible certainty that everything under the sun has been written…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/paulo-coelho/the-past-and-the-future-become-unimportant-there-is-only-that-moment/) [Paulo Coelho](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/paulo-coelho/) > [She didn't need to understand the meaning of life; it was enough to find someone who did, and then fall asleep in his arms…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/paulo-coelho/she-didn-t-need-to-understand-the-meaning-of-life-it-was-enough-to/) [Paulo Coelho](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/paulo-coelho/) > [“The simpler the pose, the better; the more sober, the more beautiful.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/paulo-coelho/the-simpler-the-pose-the-better-the-more-sober-the-more-beautiful/) [Paulo Coelho](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/paulo-coelho/) [Explore all 3,665 Paulo Coelho quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/paulo-coelho/) ## More Defeated quotes > [Prefer to be defeated in the presence of the wise than to excel among fools.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anonymous/prefer-to-be-defeated-in-the-presence-of-the-wise-than-to-excel-among/) [Anonymous](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anonymous/) > [The devil has been defeated, stop trying to defeat him. What we have left is the fight of faith, and it's a good fight!](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/chris-oyakhilome/the-devil-has-been-defeated-stop-trying-to-defeat-him-what-we-have/) [Chris Oyakhilome](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/chris-oyakhilome/) > [I am sorry to upset my colleagues by saying we wasted four years in opposition, but if you do get so badly defeated as…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/kenneth-clarke/i-am-sorry-to-upset-my-colleagues-by-saying-we-wasted-four-years-in/) [Kenneth Clarke](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/kenneth-clarke/) > [You should never feel lonely, neglected, fearful, or defeated when you remember that there are the shining ones. They are watching with keen interest…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/flower-a-newhouse/you-should-never-feel-lonely-neglected-fearful-or-defeated-when-you/) [Flower A. Newhouse](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/flower-a-newhouse/) > [Azerbaijan unleashed the war, and was defeated in that war; Azerbaijan asked for truce (including from the Commander of Karabakh's forces) and later started…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/serzh-sargsyan/azerbaijan-unleashed-the-war-and-was-defeated-in-that-war-azerbaijan/) [Serzh Sargsyan](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/serzh-sargsyan/) > [You were never created to live depressed, defeated, guilty, condemned, ashamed or unworthy. You were created to be victorious.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/joel-osteen/you-were-never-created-to-live-depressed-defeated-guilty-condemned/) [Joel Osteen](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/joel-osteen/) > [One's dream is defeated not by unsolvable problems, but by all the more-or-less satisfactory solutions that kill it forever.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/robert-breault/one-s-dream-is-defeated-not-by-unsolvable-problems-but-by-all-the/) [Robert Breault](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/robert-breault/) > [For there is hardly a state or nation in existence which has not once had the misfortune, even if it was in the right…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/adolf-hitler/for-there-is-hardly-a-state-or-nation-in-existence-which-has-not-once/) [Adolf Hitler](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/adolf-hitler/) > [Faith is always at a disadvantage; it is a perpetually defeated thing which survives all conquerors.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/gilbert-k-chesterton/faith-is-always-at-a-disadvantage-it-is-a-perpetually-defeated-thing/) [Gilbert K. Chesterton](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/gilbert-k-chesterton/) > [Historically, art has always had a market. When one medieval fiefdom defeated another they would drag back its jewels, gold, tapestries and art objects…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/arne-glimcher/historically-art-has-always-had-a-market-when-one-medieval-fiefdom/) [Arne Glimcher](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/arne-glimcher/) > [Scotland's political identity was destroyed, and a huge Scottish emigration to North America followed the brutal Highland clearances. These included every layer of Scottish…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/tariq-ali/scotland-s-political-identity-was-destroyed-and-a-huge-scottish/) [Tariq Ali](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/tariq-ali/) > [Intent is what can make a man succeed when his thoughts tell him that he is defeated.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/carlos-castaneda/intent-is-what-can-make-a-man-succeed-when-his-thoughts-tell-him-that/) [Carlos Castaneda](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/carlos-castaneda/) > [“He is not a challenge, he is not a conquest. You were once that for him, back when he used to call you a…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/vee-hoffman/he-is-not-a-challenge-he-is-not-a-conquest-you-were-once-that-for-him/) [Vee Hoffman](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/vee-hoffman/) > [My love for you is strong enough to be defeated over by my selfish desires..](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/mysticalistic/my-love-for-you-is-strong-enough-to-be-defeated-over-by-my-selfish/) [MYSTICALISTIC](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/mysticalistic/) > [All battles have some use, including those in which we were defeated.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/paulo-coelho/all-battles-have-some-use-including-those-in-which-we-were-defeated/) [Paulo Coelho](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/paulo-coelho/) [Browse all 866 Defeated quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/defeated/) ```json { "@context": "https://schema.org", "@graph": [ { "@type": "Quotation", "text": "Only he who gives up is defeated. 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