--- title: "Meaning & Key Takeaway of: Obstacles are what we see when we take…" description: "\"Obstacles are what we see when we take our eyes off the goal.\" — Rita Davenport" image: "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/1b7/rita-davenport-87346_adversity_obstacles-are-what-we-see-when-we-take-o_3100601.jpg" --- # Obstacles are what we see when we take our eyes off the… ![“Obstacles are what we see when we take our eyes off the goal.” quote by Rita Davenport](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/1b7/rita-davenport-87346_adversity_obstacles-are-what-we-see-when-we-take-o_3100601.jpg) [Download](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/1b7/rita-davenport-87346_adversity_obstacles-are-what-we-see-when-we-take-o_3100601.jpg) [Open image](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/1b7/rita-davenport-87346_adversity_obstacles-are-what-we-see-when-we-take-o_3100601.jpg) > “Obstacles are what we see when we take our eyes off the goal.” Rita Davenport ## About This Quote This interpretation was drafted with AI assistance. It is one reading of the quote, not the author's own explanation. When we lose focus on our objective, obstacles appear larger than they truly are. **In simple terms:** Losing focus makes problems seem bigger. Key Takeaway Keep your eyes on the goal. Themes focus perseverance mindset Mood determined reflective Type motivational advice When to use this quote - project management - personal goals - sports competition - academic study Key Concepts cognitive bias goal orientation Questions to Reflect On - What goal are you letting slip? - How can you maintain focus under pressure? A Different Perspective Distractions can still hinder progress even with focus. ★ ★ ★ ★ ★ No ratings yet [Adversity](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/adversity/) [Eyes](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/eyes/) [Goal](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/goal/) [Goals](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/goals/) [Losing weight](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/losing-weight/) [Obstacles](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/obstacles/) ## Related quotes > [Obstacles are what you see when you take your eyes off your goals.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/brian-tracy/obstacles-are-what-you-see-when-you-take-your-eyes-off-your-goals/) [Brian Tracy](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/brian-tracy/) > [An obstacle is something you see when you take your eyes off the goal Few great men could pass personnel](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/paul-goodman/an-obstacle-is-something-you-see-when-you-take-your-eyes-off-the-goal/) [Paul Goodman](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/paul-goodman/) > [“Obstacles is what a person sees when he takes his eyes off his goal.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/e-joseph-cossman/obstacles-is-what-a-person-sees-when-he-takes-his-eyes-off-his-goal/) [E. Joseph Cossman](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/e-joseph-cossman/) > [Obstacles are those frightful things you see when you take your eyes off the goal.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anonymous/obstacles-are-those-frightful-things-you-see-when-you-take-your-eyes-3/) [Anonymous](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anonymous/) > [“Obstacles are those frightening things you see when you take you eyes off your goal.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/henry-james/obstacles-are-those-frightening-things-you-see-when-you-take-you-eyes/) [Henry James](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/henry-james/) > [Keep your eyes on the goal but mind at peace, you surely will achieve any desired goal in life. Have a lovely and sound…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anonymous/keep-your-eyes-on-the-goal-but-mind-at-peace-you-surely-will-achieve/) [Anonymous](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anonymous/) > [Destiny driven people never quit. Put your eyes on the goal. Press on!!](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/zizo-boco/destiny-driven-people-never-quit-put-your-eyes-on-the-goal-press-on/) Zizo Boco > [Obstacles are those frightful things you when you take your eyes off your goal](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/henry-ford/obstacles-are-those-frightful-things-you-when-you-take-your-eyes-off/) [Henry Ford](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/henry-ford/) > [Obstacles are those frightful things you see when you take your eyes off your goal. --Henry Ford](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/henry-ford/obstacles-are-those-frightful-things-you-see-when-you-take-your-eyes-2/) [Henry Ford](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/henry-ford/) > [The biggest thing I take away from the Army is that work ethic and being able to focus and put your eyes on a…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/shaggy/the-biggest-thing-i-take-away-from-the-army-is-that-work-ethic-and/) [Shaggy](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/shaggy/) > [Obstacles are things a person sees when he takes his eyes off his goal.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/e-joseph-cossman/obstacles-are-things-a-person-sees-when-he-takes-his-eyes-off-his-goal/) [E. Joseph Cossman](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/e-joseph-cossman/) > [An obstacle is often a stepping stone... Things that appear to be obstacles are often helpful in the long run.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/melchor-lim/an-obstacle-is-often-a-stepping-stone-things-that-appear-to-be/) [Melchor Lim](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/melchor-lim/) > [Whatever the problem, be part of the solution. Don’t just sit around raising questions and pointing out obstacles.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/tina-fey/whatever-the-problem-be-part-of-the-solution-don-t-just-sit-around/) [Tina Fey](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/tina-fey/) > [Obstacles can't stop you. Problems can't stop you. Most of all, other people can't stop you. Only you can stop you.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anonymous/obstacles-can-t-stop-you-problems-can-t-stop-you-most-of-all-other/) [Anonymous](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anonymous/) > [He who is content with what has been done is an obstacle in the path of progress.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/helen-keller/he-who-is-content-with-what-has-been-done-is-an-obstacle-in-the-path/) [Helen Keller](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/helen-keller/) ## More by Rita Davenport > [“Money isn't everything, but it's right up there with oxygen.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/rita-davenport/money-isn-t-everything-but-it-s-right-up-there-with-oxygen/) Rita Davenport > [“Do you consider yourself athletic? How would you rate yourself, say, as a swimmer? Average, below average, maybe a little above average? So-so? Terrible?…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/rita-davenport/do-you-consider-yourself-athletic-how-would-you-rate-yourself-say-as/) Rita Davenport Explore all 3 Rita Davenport quotes ## More Adversity quotes > [We love playing together and we love adversity. You know, back-to-back, the two best teams in the East.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/steve-nash/we-love-playing-together-and-we-love-adversity-you-know-back-to-back/) [Steve Nash](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/steve-nash/) > [When we have public success we also have private struggles.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/deion-sanders/when-we-have-public-success-we-also-have-private-struggles/) [Deion Sanders](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/deion-sanders/) > [“The threats that resurfaced in the past 10 years were not an aberration. Al Qaeda and terrorism or one such threat, but it was…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/george-friedman/the-threats-that-resurfaced-in-the-past-10-years-were-not-an/) [George Friedman](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/george-friedman/) > [He who is content with what has been done is an obstacle in the path of progress.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/helen-keller/he-who-is-content-with-what-has-been-done-is-an-obstacle-in-the-path/) [Helen Keller](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/helen-keller/) > [“Friction is necessary. Ease of life leads to complacency and the atrophy of the human will and spirit. Within our struggles lives our strength,…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jason-versey/friction-is-necessary-ease-of-life-leads-to-complacency-and-the/) [Jason Versey](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jason-versey/) > [“Every adversity is just another opportunity to excel a little more.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/michel-templet/every-adversity-is-just-another-opportunity-to-excel-a-little-more/) [Michel Templet](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/michel-templet/) > [“Just because she doesn't talk about it, doesn't mean she isn't feeling it. She hurts, but she won't wear it on her sleeve. She…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/alfa-h/just-because-she-doesn-t-talk-about-it-doesn-t-mean-she-isn-t-feeling/) [Alfa H](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/alfa-h/) > [Every trial endured and weathered in the right spirit makes a soul nobler and stronger than it was before.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/james-buckham-kennedy/every-trial-endured-and-weathered-in-the-right-spirit-makes-a-soul/) James Buckham Kennedy > [Honesty, by evil fortune tried, Finds in adversity the seed of praise.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ovid/honesty-by-evil-fortune-tried-finds-in-adversity-the-seed-of-praise/) [Ovid](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ovid/) > [“Struggles are not associated to a particular people or creed, everyone struggles, not for the same reasons, but each has a personal struggle at…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/wayne-chirisa/struggles-are-not-associated-to-a-particular-people-or-creed-everyone/) [Wayne Chirisa](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/wayne-chirisa/) > [“Watch a man in times of adversity to discover what kind of man he is; for then at last words of truth are drawn…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/lucretius/watch-a-man-in-times-of-adversity-to-discover-what-kind-of-man-he-is/) [Lucretius](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/lucretius/) > [God often hides His blessing in trouble or trial, which makes it all the sweeter when it comes our way.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/aiden-wilson-tozer/god-often-hides-his-blessing-in-trouble-or-trial-which-makes-it-all/) [Aiden Wilson Tozer](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/aiden-wilson-tozer/) > [“Life is not about less mistakes but about more trials”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/s-e-sever/life-is-not-about-less-mistakes-but-about-more-trials/) S.E. SEVER > [Show your contempt for the problem and your concern for the person.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jim-rohn/show-your-contempt-for-the-problem-and-your-concern-for-the-person/) [Jim Rohn](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jim-rohn/) > [When everything feels like an uphill struggle, just think of the view from the top.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anonymous/when-everything-feels-like-an-uphill-struggle-just-think-of-the-view/) [Anonymous](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anonymous/) [Browse all 5,001 Adversity quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/adversity/) ```json { "@context": "https://schema.org", "@graph": [ { "@type": "Quotation", "text": "Obstacles are what we see when we take our eyes off the goal.", "creator": { "@type": "Person", "name": "Rita Davenport" }, "isPartOf": { "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/#website" }, "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/rita-davenport/obstacles-are-what-we-see-when-we-take-our-eyes-off-the-goal/", "about": { "@type": "Thing", "name": "Adversity" }, "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/rita-davenport/obstacles-are-what-we-see-when-we-take-our-eyes-off-the-goal/#quotation", "image": { "@type": "ImageObject", "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/1b7/rita-davenport-87346_adversity_obstacles-are-what-we-see-when-we-take-o_3100601.jpg", "contentUrl": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/1b7/rita-davenport-87346_adversity_obstacles-are-what-we-see-when-we-take-o_3100601.jpg", "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/1b7/rita-davenport-87346_adversity_obstacles-are-what-we-see-when-we-take-o_3100601.jpg", "width": 1080, "height": 1080, "caption": "“Obstacles are what we see when we take our eyes off the goal.” — Rita Davenport", "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": "Rita Davenport", "item": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/rita-davenport/" }, { "@type": "ListItem", "position": 4, "name": "Obstacles are what we see when...", "item": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/rita-davenport/obstacles-are-what-we-see-when-we-take-our-eyes-off-the-goal/" } ], "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/rita-davenport/obstacles-are-what-we-see-when-we-take-our-eyes-off-the-goal/#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 } } ] } ```