--- title: "Meaning & Key Takeaway of: Yet it is the one essential, vital…" description: "\"Yet it is the one essential, vital quality for those who seek to change a world which yields most painfully to change.\" — Robert Kennedy" image: "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/b83/robert-kennedy-2083_courage_yet-it-is-the-one-essential-vital-qualit_2225216.jpg" --- # Yet it is the one essential, vital quality for those who… ![“Yet it is the one essential, vital quality for those who seek to change a world which yields most painfully to change.” quote by Robert Kennedy](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/b83/robert-kennedy-2083_courage_yet-it-is-the-one-essential-vital-qualit_2225216.jpg) [Download](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/b83/robert-kennedy-2083_courage_yet-it-is-the-one-essential-vital-qualit_2225216.jpg) [Open image](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/b83/robert-kennedy-2083_courage_yet-it-is-the-one-essential-vital-qualit_2225216.jpg) > “Yet it is the one essential, vital quality for those who seek to change a world which yields most painfully to change.” [Robert Kennedy](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/robert-kennedy/) ## About This Quote This interpretation was drafted with AI assistance. It is one reading of the quote, not the author's own explanation. The essential quality for change agents is resilience despite painful resistance. **In simple terms:** Resilience is vital for change. Key Takeaway Cultivate resilience to drive change. Themes change resilience leadership Mood determined inspired Type motivational philosophical When to use this quote - activism - policy reform - community organizing Key Concepts social dynamics psychological stamina Questions to Reflect On - What fuels your resilience? - How do you balance persistence with self‑care? A Different Perspective Resilience alone may not overcome structural barriers. ★ ★ ★ ★ ★ No ratings yet [Change World](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/change-world/) [Courage](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/courage/) [Courage to change](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/courage-to-change/) [Disapproval](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/disapproval/) [Essential Vital](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/essential-vital-4982985/) [Essentials](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/essentials/) [Eulogy](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/eulogy/) [Moral courage](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/moral-courage/) [Painfully Change](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/painfully-change-4982984/) [Quality](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/quality/) [Seek Change](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/seek-change-342669/) [Vital Quality](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/vital-quality-771853/) [World](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/world/) [Yield](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/yield/) ## Related quotes > [Few men are willing to brave the disapproval of their fellows, the censure of their colleagues, the wrath of their society. Moral courage is…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/robert-kennedy/few-men-are-willing-to-brave-the-disapproval-of-their-fellows-the/) [Robert Kennedy](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/robert-kennedy/) > [Flexibility in a time of great change is a vital quality of leadership.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/brian-tracy/flexibility-in-a-time-of-great-change-is-a-vital-quality-of-leadership/) [Brian Tracy](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/brian-tracy/) > [Vital to quality of life is the ability to work together, learn from each other, and help each other grow.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/stephen-covey/vital-to-quality-of-life-is-the-ability-to-work-together-learn-from/) [Stephen Covey](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/stephen-covey/) > [The most vital quality a soldier can possess is self-confidence.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/george-s-patton/the-most-vital-quality-a-soldier-can-possess-is-self-confidence/) [George S. Patton](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/george-s-patton/) > [“The world is inviolable: it has no beginning and no end. Those who seek to change it will be changed.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/malinda-lo/the-world-is-inviolable-it-has-no-beginning-and-no-end-those-who-seek/) [Malinda Lo](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/malinda-lo/) > [Change is painful. Few people have the courage to seek out change. 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If there is no truth in this, then…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/frederick-lenz/if-you-seek-to-change-your-life-and-attain-enlightenment-you-must/) [Frederick Lenz](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/frederick-lenz/) > [The word seek is a verb. Are you treating it as such in your life? If you seek change, success, or love, DO it…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anonymous/the-word-seek-is-a-verb-are-you-treating-it-as-such-in-your-life-if/) [Anonymous](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anonymous/) > [When dealing with problems, seek not to "change" some aspect of your life but instead, choose who you want to become as a path…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/bill-crawford/when-dealing-with-problems-seek-not-to-change-some-aspect-of-your/) [Bill Crawford](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/bill-crawford/) > [If it is peace you want, seek to change yourself, not other people. It is easier to protect your feet with slippers than to…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anonymous/if-it-is-peace-you-want-seek-to-change-yourself-not-other-people-it/) [Anonymous](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anonymous/) > [And if that child should ever get the chance to travel the world and someone should ask her where is she from, we believe…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/barack-obama/and-if-that-child-should-ever-get-the-chance-to-travel-the-world-and/) [Barack Obama](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/barack-obama/) ## More by Robert Kennedy > [Wars of any magnitude release powerful social and economic forces which can change the whole face of the world.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/robert-kennedy/wars-of-any-magnitude-release-powerful-social-and-economic-forces/) [Robert Kennedy](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/robert-kennedy/) > [If freedom makes social progress possible, so social progress strengthens and enlarges freedom. The two are inseparable partners in the great adventure of humanity.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/robert-kennedy/if-freedom-makes-social-progress-possible-so-social-progress/) [Robert Kennedy](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/robert-kennedy/) > [Goethe tells us in his greatest poem that Faust lost the liberty of his soul when he said to the passing moment, 'Stay, thou…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/robert-kennedy/goethe-tells-us-in-his-greatest-poem-that-faust-lost-the-liberty-of/) [Robert Kennedy](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/robert-kennedy/) > [The intolerant man will not rely on persuasion, or on the worth of the idea. He would deny to others the very freedom of…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/robert-kennedy/the-intolerant-man-will-not-rely-on-persuasion-or-on-the-worth-of-the/) [Robert Kennedy](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/robert-kennedy/) > [Let us dedicate ourselves to what the Greeks wrote so many years ago: to tame the savageness of man and make gentle the life…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/robert-kennedy/let-us-dedicate-ourselves-to-what-the-greeks-wrote-so-many-years-ago/) [Robert Kennedy](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/robert-kennedy/) > [President Kennedy's election was such an enlargement. It expanded religious freedom to include the highest office in the land. President Kennedy's administration was such…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/robert-kennedy/president-kennedy-s-election-was-such-an-enlargement-it-expanded/) [Robert Kennedy](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/robert-kennedy/) > [Men and women with freed minds may often be mistaken, but they are seldom fooled. They may be influenced, but they cannot be intimidated.…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/robert-kennedy/men-and-women-with-freed-minds-may-often-be-mistaken-but-they-are/) [Robert Kennedy](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/robert-kennedy/) > [Prejudice exists and probably will continue to 'but we have tried to make progress and we are making progress. We are not going to…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/robert-kennedy/prejudice-exists-and-probably-will-continue-to-but-we-have-tried-to/) [Robert Kennedy](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/robert-kennedy/) > [Too much and too long, we seem to have surrendered community excellence and community values in the mere accumulation of material things.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/robert-kennedy/too-much-and-too-long-we-seem-to-have-surrendered-community/) [Robert Kennedy](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/robert-kennedy/) > [In the final analysis, poverty is a condition of helplessness - of inability to cope with the conditions of existence in our complex society.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/robert-kennedy/in-the-final-analysis-poverty-is-a-condition-of-helplessness-of/) [Robert Kennedy](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/robert-kennedy/) > [We know that we cannot live together without rules which tell us what is right and what is wrong, what is permitted and what…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/robert-kennedy/we-know-that-we-cannot-live-together-without-rules-which-tell-us-what/) [Robert Kennedy](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/robert-kennedy/) > [Punishment is not prevention. History offers cold comfort to those who think grievance and despair can be subdued by force.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/robert-kennedy/punishment-is-not-prevention-history-offers-cold-comfort-to-those-who/) [Robert Kennedy](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/robert-kennedy/) > [The travail of freedom and justice is not easy, but nothing serious and important in life is easy. The history of humanity has been…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/robert-kennedy/the-travail-of-freedom-and-justice-is-not-easy-but-nothing-serious/) [Robert Kennedy](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/robert-kennedy/) > [The Gross National Product measures neither our wit nor our courage, neither our wisdom nor our learning, neither our compassion nor our devotion to…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/robert-kennedy/the-gross-national-product-measures-neither-our-wit-nor-our-courage/) [Robert Kennedy](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/robert-kennedy/) > [Our future may lie beyond our vision, but it is not completely beyond our control. It is the shaping impulse of America that neither…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/robert-kennedy/our-future-may-lie-beyond-our-vision-but-it-is-not-completely-beyond/) [Robert Kennedy](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/robert-kennedy/) [Explore all 186 Robert Kennedy quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/robert-kennedy/) ## More Courage quotes > [The greatest act of courage is to be and to ownall of who you are—without apology, without excuses, without masks to cover the truth…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/debbie-ford/the-greatest-act-of-courage-is-to-be-and-to-ownall-of-who-you-are/) [Debbie Ford](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/debbie-ford/) > [“It takes tremendous courage, persistence, and perseverance to pursue your ultimate purpose.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/debasish-mridha/it-takes-tremendous-courage-persistence-and-perseverance-to-pursue/) [Debasish Mridha](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/debasish-mridha/) > [“Yes, the issue was courage. 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It is a statical manifestation of valor, as daring deeds are a dynamical. A truly brave man is ever…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/inazo-nitobe/tranquillity-is-courage-in-repose-it-is-a-statical-manifestation-of/) [Inazo Nitobe](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/inazo-nitobe/) > [When you heed the calling of your heart, you are following your purpose. 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Years from now, we will look back at this…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/laura-ingraham/certainly-these-are-not-easy-times-but-history-does-not-contain-very/) [Laura Ingraham](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/laura-ingraham/) > [Have the courage to go against the tide of current values that do not conform to the path of Jesus.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/pope-francis/have-the-courage-to-go-against-the-tide-of-current-values-that-do-not/) [Pope Francis](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/pope-francis/) > [“There is nothing purer, braver, or more beautiful than the try.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/kristen-armstrong/there-is-nothing-purer-braver-or-more-beautiful-than-the-try/) [Kristen Armstrong](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/kristen-armstrong/) > [“One theory on cannibals, of course, is that they eat parts of their slain enemies to benefit from that person's greatest assets - their…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/julie-powell/one-theory-on-cannibals-of-course-is-that-they-eat-parts-of-their/) [Julie Powell](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/julie-powell/) > [It is a tragedy that we live in a world where physical courage is so common, and moral courage is so rare.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/claude-monet/it-is-a-tragedy-that-we-live-in-a-world-where-physical-courage-is-so/) [Claude Monet](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/claude-monet/) > [I have pictures with Morimoto where I'm all embarrassed and he's so serious, it took me 30 minutes to get up the courage to…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/marcela-valladolid/i-have-pictures-with-morimoto-where-i-m-all-embarrassed-and-he-s-so/) [Marcela Valladolid](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/marcela-valladolid/) [Browse all 14,559 Courage quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/courage/) ```json { "@context": "https://schema.org", "@graph": [ { "@type": "Quotation", "text": "Yet it is the one essential, vital quality for those who seek to change a world which yields most painfully to change.", "creator": { "@type": "Person", "name": "Robert Kennedy" }, "isPartOf": { "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/#website" }, "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/robert-kennedy/yet-it-is-the-one-essential-vital-quality-for-those-who-seek-to/", "about": { "@type": "Thing", "name": "Courage" }, "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/robert-kennedy/yet-it-is-the-one-essential-vital-quality-for-those-who-seek-to/#quotation", "image": { "@type": "ImageObject", "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/b83/robert-kennedy-2083_courage_yet-it-is-the-one-essential-vital-qualit_2225216.jpg", "contentUrl": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/b83/robert-kennedy-2083_courage_yet-it-is-the-one-essential-vital-qualit_2225216.jpg", "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/b83/robert-kennedy-2083_courage_yet-it-is-the-one-essential-vital-qualit_2225216.jpg", "width": 1080, "height": 1080, "caption": "“Yet it is the one essential, vital quality for those who seek to change a world which yields most painfully…” — Robert Kennedy", "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": "Robert Kennedy", "item": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/robert-kennedy/" }, { "@type": "ListItem", "position": 4, "name": "Yet it is the one essential,...", "item": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/robert-kennedy/yet-it-is-the-one-essential-vital-quality-for-those-who-seek-to/" } ], "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/robert-kennedy/yet-it-is-the-one-essential-vital-quality-for-those-who-seek-to/#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 } } ] } ```