--- title: "Meaning & Key Takeaway of: We've kind of always felt a certain…" description: "\"We've kind of always felt a certain illegitimacy about what we've done.\" — Ron Mael" image: "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/b39/ron-mael-5107_about_we-ve-kind-of-always-felt-a-certain-ille_2320757.png" --- # We've kind of always felt a certain illegitimacy about… ![“We've kind of always felt a certain illegitimacy about what we've done.” quote by Ron Mael](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/b39/ron-mael-5107_about_we-ve-kind-of-always-felt-a-certain-ille_2320757.png) [Download](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/b39/ron-mael-5107_about_we-ve-kind-of-always-felt-a-certain-ille_2320757.png) [Open image](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/b39/ron-mael-5107_about_we-ve-kind-of-always-felt-a-certain-ille_2320757.png) > “We've kind of always felt a certain illegitimacy about what we've done.” [Ron Mael](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ron-mael/) ## About This Quote This interpretation was drafted with AI assistance. It is one reading of the quote, not the author's own explanation. The creators feel their work lacks legitimacy, reflecting self‑doubt despite public success. **In simple terms:** Creators feel their work is illegitimate. Key Takeaway Address self‑doubt in creative pursuits. Themes self‑doubt creativity legitimacy Mood introspective encouraging Type psychological motivational When to use this quote - artist workshops - mental health counseling - creative teams Key Concepts psychology artistic identity culture Questions to Reflect On - Why do creators question their legitimacy? - How can one cultivate confidence in artistic work? A Different Perspective Self‑doubt can undermine confidence even with external validation. ★ ★ ★ ★ ★ No ratings yet ## Related quotes > [I kind of felt like I was never good enough. I always wanted more.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/christen-press/i-kind-of-felt-like-i-was-never-good-enough-i-always-wanted-more/) [Christen Press](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/christen-press/) > [When I was leaving I kind of felt a little bit sad, because I made some friends down in skid row.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/pras-michel/when-i-was-leaving-i-kind-of-felt-a-little-bit-sad-because-i-made/) [Pras Michel](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/pras-michel/) > [The Court is most vulnerable and comes nearest to illegitimacy when it deals with judge-made constitutional law having little or no cognizable roots in…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/byron-white/the-court-is-most-vulnerable-and-comes-nearest-to-illegitimacy-when/) [Byron White](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/byron-white/) > [Throughout his eight years in office, Barack Obama endured a campaign of illegitimacy waged either by pluralities or majorities of the Republican party. Donald…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ta-nehisi-coates/throughout-his-eight-years-in-office-barack-obama-endured-a-campaign/) [Ta-Nehisi Coates](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ta-nehisi-coates/) > [“When the mother was delivered into the trader's hands, she said, "You promised to treat me well." To which he replied, "You have let…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/harriet-a-jacobs/when-the-mother-was-delivered-into-the-trader-s-hands-she-said-you/) Harriet A. Jacobs > [“Oh, my dear, love isn't always the coup de foudre --the lightning strike. Sometimes it happens quietly, so quitely you may not even notice.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/julia-justiss/oh-my-dear-love-isn-t-always-the-coup-de-foudre-the-lightning-strike/) Julia Justiss > [Illegitimacy is important for the socialisation of little girls and especially little boys. If you have large numbers of young men growing up who…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/charles-murray/illegitimacy-is-important-for-the-socialisation-of-little-girls-and/) [Charles Murray](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/charles-murray/) > [Illegitimacy is something we should talk about in terms of not having it.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/dan-quayle/illegitimacy-is-something-we-should-talk-about-in-terms-of-not-having/) [Dan Quayle](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/dan-quayle/) > [Illegitimacy is the single most important social problem of our time - more important than crime, drugs, poverty, illiteracy, welfare or homelessness because it…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/charles-a-murray/illegitimacy-is-the-single-most-important-social-problem-of-our-time/) [Charles A. Murray](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/charles-a-murray/) > [My hopes were high, and I looked every day for some change to take place. What it was to be I knew not, but…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/andrew-carnegie/my-hopes-were-high-and-i-looked-every-day-for-some-change-to-take/) [Andrew Carnegie](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/andrew-carnegie/) > [“It was the first time Junko felt a certain "something" as she watched the flames of a bonfire: "something" deep down, a "wad" of…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/haruki-murakami/it-was-the-first-time-junko-felt-a-certain-something-as-she-watched/) [Haruki Murakami](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/haruki-murakami/) > [Not the shadow of a doubt crossed my mind of the purpose for which the Count had left the theatre. His escape from us,…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/wilkie-collins/not-the-shadow-of-a-doubt-crossed-my-mind-of-the-purpose-for-which/) [Wilkie Collins](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/wilkie-collins/) > [I feel very similarly. I didn't have necessarily the same exact kind of dynamic, but that means a lot when people are like that…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jon-gordon/i-feel-very-similarly-i-didn-t-have-necessarily-the-same-exact-kind/) [Jon Gordon](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jon-gordon/) > [If I had not felt certain that every additional trial was ordered by infinite love and mercy, I could not have survived my accumulated…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/adoniram-judson/if-i-had-not-felt-certain-that-every-additional-trial-was-ordered-by/) [Adoniram Judson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/adoniram-judson/) > [I just felt all along that if I could get a certain amount of years in the league, have great years and still have…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/kevin-johnson/i-just-felt-all-along-that-if-i-could-get-a-certain-amount-of-years/) [Kevin Johnson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/kevin-johnson/) ## More by Ron Mael > [Even before we had a band, the merging of music and movies just seemed so perfect.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ron-mael/even-before-we-had-a-band-the-merging-of-music-and-movies-just-seemed/) [Ron Mael](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ron-mael/) > [I can't say it wasn't fun in the 70s having screaming people in the audience.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ron-mael/i-can-t-say-it-wasn-t-fun-in-the-70s-having-screaming-people-in-the/) [Ron Mael](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ron-mael/) > [Having more people accepting what you're doing - that's the kind of limelight we really cherish.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ron-mael/having-more-people-accepting-what-you-re-doing-that-s-the-kind-of/) [Ron Mael](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ron-mael/) > [We just thought that bands from the U.S. in general were just really boring, and they didn't represent what we felt pop music should…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ron-mael/we-just-thought-that-bands-from-the-u-s-in-general-were-just-really/) [Ron Mael](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ron-mael/) > [When things are sequenced really hard, it has an effect similar to the one power chords had in the '70s.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ron-mael/when-things-are-sequenced-really-hard-it-has-an-effect-similar-to-the/) [Ron Mael](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ron-mael/) > [I'm so happy that the first time Russell and I saw 'Annette' with an audience was at the Cannes Film Festival, and even more…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ron-mael/i-m-so-happy-that-the-first-time-russell-and-i-saw-annette-with-an/) [Ron Mael](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ron-mael/) > [We detested folk music because it was cerebral and sedate and we had no time for that. But the Byrds were OK because they…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ron-mael/we-detested-folk-music-because-it-was-cerebral-and-sedate-and-we-had/) [Ron Mael](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ron-mael/) > [Of course everybody wants to be filthy stinking rich. But we've seen the effect that having that kind of massive success has had on…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ron-mael/of-course-everybody-wants-to-be-filthy-stinking-rich-but-we-ve-seen/) [Ron Mael](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ron-mael/) > [People have told me repeatedly of how scared they were of seeing me on television.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ron-mael/people-have-told-me-repeatedly-of-how-scared-they-were-of-seeing-me/) [Ron Mael](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ron-mael/) > [We kind of have a cranky side of ourselves, so when people get upset about what we're doing, we kind of feel that we're…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ron-mael/we-kind-of-have-a-cranky-side-of-ourselves-so-when-people-get-upset/) [Ron Mael](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ron-mael/) > [There aren't enough people fighting for being conservative with your sexual tastes. There's a little too much adventuresome stuff going on, so it's good…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ron-mael/there-aren-t-enough-people-fighting-for-being-conservative-with-your/) [Ron Mael](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ron-mael/) > [There is something encouraging about the rebellious spirit of the Internet. It's like the modern equivalent of punk - anyone can make a record.…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ron-mael/there-is-something-encouraging-about-the-rebellious-spirit-of-the/) [Ron Mael](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ron-mael/) > [It's almost as if the most successful people don't put too much effort into being so brilliant at what they do, that they're just…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ron-mael/it-s-almost-as-if-the-most-successful-people-don-t-put-too-much/) [Ron Mael](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ron-mael/) > [We're not trying to be esoteric. There is that about what we do, but we like to be there at the table with everybody…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ron-mael/we-re-not-trying-to-be-esoteric-there-is-that-about-what-we-do-but-we/) [Ron Mael](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ron-mael/) > [In a personal way, we like to irritate by just staying around.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ron-mael/in-a-personal-way-we-like-to-irritate-by-just-staying-around/) [Ron Mael](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ron-mael/) [Explore all 103 Ron Mael quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ron-mael/) ## More About quotes > [If you ask an introvert a question, wait until she thinks about it. Introverts think before speaking, not through speaking. If you want to…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/laurie-helgoe/if-you-ask-an-introvert-a-question-wait-until-she-thinks-about-it/) [Laurie Helgoe](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/laurie-helgoe/) > [Joking about violence is not funny.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/perez-hilton/joking-about-violence-is-not-funny/) [Perez Hilton](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/perez-hilton/) > [I talk to my mates about our kids, being too tired and being worn out.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/holly-willoughby/i-talk-to-my-mates-about-our-kids-being-too-tired-and-being-worn-out/) [Holly Willoughby](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/holly-willoughby/) > [With 'Pretty Girls,' I saw the opportunity to talk not just about crime but what crime leaves behind.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/karin-slaughter/with-pretty-girls-i-saw-the-opportunity-to-talk-not-just-about-crime/) [Karin Slaughter](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/karin-slaughter/) > [I write about presidents. That means I write about guys - so far. I'm interested in the people closest to them, the people they…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/doris-kearns-goodwin/i-write-about-presidents-that-means-i-write-about-guys-so-far-i-m/) [Doris Kearns Goodwin](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/doris-kearns-goodwin/) > [That's something a lot of folks don't know about me - I'm pretty darn funny.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/michael-jai-white/that-s-something-a-lot-of-folks-don-t-know-about-me-i-m-pretty-darn/) [Michael Jai White](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/michael-jai-white/) > [I learned a lot about myself at Oakmont.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/shane-lowry/i-learned-a-lot-about-myself-at-oakmont/) [Shane Lowry](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/shane-lowry/) > [I don't think about the press or the crowds or the other leaders of the race. The focus is only on myself. As soon…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/magdalena-neuner/i-don-t-think-about-the-press-or-the-crowds-or-the-other-leaders-of/) [Magdalena Neuner](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/magdalena-neuner/) > [Sport is not just about entertainment. It is equally about winning and losing, pooling and galvanising the energy of the youth, upgrading people's physical…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/nita-ambani/sport-is-not-just-about-entertainment-it-is-equally-about-winning-and/) [Nita Ambani](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/nita-ambani/) > [One of the ways that I discovered my confidence and my ability to overpower is becoming a mother. Suddenly, my world wasn't about myself…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/lights/one-of-the-ways-that-i-discovered-my-confidence-and-my-ability-to/) [Lights](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/lights/) > [I didn't want to do 'Fashion Police' because I thought, 'This is stupid, this is beneath me, who wants to talk about fashion?' It…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/joan-rivers/i-didn-t-want-to-do-fashion-police-because-i-thought-this-is-stupid/) [Joan Rivers](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/joan-rivers/) > [I just worried about my weight. Worried about my appearance and thought I wan't pretty enough to be a pop star. It was very…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/judith-durham/i-just-worried-about-my-weight-worried-about-my-appearance-and/) [Judith Durham](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/judith-durham/) > [I read a couple of books about neuroscience and the relationship between the mind and the body.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/joel-kinnaman/i-read-a-couple-of-books-about-neuroscience-and-the-relationship/) [Joel Kinnaman](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/joel-kinnaman/) > [There are a lot of kids out there copying and distributing movies - not because they care about seeing the movies or sharing them…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/john-perry-barlow/there-are-a-lot-of-kids-out-there-copying-and-distributing-movies-not/) [John Perry Barlow](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/john-perry-barlow/) > [I have no physical genius about me. I can't dribble a ball and run at the same time, I can't do lay-ups - I'm…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/rich-mullins/i-have-no-physical-genius-about-me-i-can-t-dribble-a-ball-and-run-at/) [Rich Mullins](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/rich-mullins/) Browse all 26,122 About quotes ```json { "@context": "https://schema.org", "@graph": [ { "@type": "Quotation", "text": "We've kind of always felt a certain illegitimacy about what we've done.", "creator": { "@type": "Person", "name": "Ron Mael" }, "isPartOf": { "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/#website" }, "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ron-mael/we-ve-kind-of-always-felt-a-certain-illegitimacy-about-what-we-ve-done/", "about": { "@type": "Thing", "name": "About" }, "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ron-mael/we-ve-kind-of-always-felt-a-certain-illegitimacy-about-what-we-ve-done/#quotation", "image": { "@type": "ImageObject", "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/b39/ron-mael-5107_about_we-ve-kind-of-always-felt-a-certain-ille_2320757.png", "contentUrl": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/b39/ron-mael-5107_about_we-ve-kind-of-always-felt-a-certain-ille_2320757.png", "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/b39/ron-mael-5107_about_we-ve-kind-of-always-felt-a-certain-ille_2320757.png", "width": 1080, "height": 1080, "caption": "“We've kind of always felt a certain illegitimacy about what we've done.” — Ron Mael", "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": "Ron Mael", "item": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ron-mael/" }, { "@type": "ListItem", "position": 4, "name": "We've kind of always felt a...", "item": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ron-mael/we-ve-kind-of-always-felt-a-certain-illegitimacy-about-what-we-ve-done/" } ], "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ron-mael/we-ve-kind-of-always-felt-a-certain-illegitimacy-about-what-we-ve-done/#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 } } ] } ```