--- title: "Meaning & Key Takeaway of: I was very bad at mathematics in school…" description: "\"I was very bad at mathematics in school, and I always had the feeling as a kid that when I worked on problems, that I would be wrong.\" — Simon McBurney" image: "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/83b/simon-mcburney-7667_always_i-was-very-bad-at-mathematics-in-school_2020690.png" --- # I was very bad at mathematics in school, and I always had… ![“I was very bad at mathematics in school, and I always had the feeling as a kid that when I worked on problems, that I would be wrong.” quote by Simon McBurney](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/83b/simon-mcburney-7667_always_i-was-very-bad-at-mathematics-in-school_2020690.png) [Download](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/83b/simon-mcburney-7667_always_i-was-very-bad-at-mathematics-in-school_2020690.png) [Open image](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/83b/simon-mcburney-7667_always_i-was-very-bad-at-mathematics-in-school_2020690.png) > “I was very bad at mathematics in school, and I always had the feeling as a kid that when I worked on problems, that I would be wrong.” [Simon McBurney](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/simon-mcburney/) ## About This Quote This interpretation was drafted with AI assistance. It is one reading of the quote, not the author's own explanation. Early struggles with math can create lasting self‑doubt, affecting confidence in problem‑solving. **In simple terms:** Math anxiety can persist into adulthood. Key Takeaway Challenge negative beliefs with practice. Themes confidence learning mindset Mood reflective encouraging Type inspirational self‑help When to use this quote - classroom - tutoring - self learning - career development Key Concepts growth mindset self‑efficacy education psychology Questions to Reflect On - What experiences have shaped your confidence? - How can you reframe mistakes as learning? A Different Perspective Self‑doubt may be reinforced by external feedback. ★ ★ ★ ★ ★ No ratings yet [Always](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/always/) [Bad](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/bad/) [Bad Mathematics](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/bad-mathematics-2914707/) [Feeling](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/feeling/) [Feeling Kid](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/feeling-kid-1924815/) [Had](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/had/) [Kid](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/kid/) [Mathematics](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/mathematics/) [Mathematics School](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/mathematics-school-2247911/) [Problems](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/problems/) [Problems Wrong](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/problems-wrong-2207476/) [School](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/school/) [School Feeling](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/school-feeling-1207336/) [Very](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/very/) [Worked](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/worked/) [Would](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/would/) [Wrong](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/wrong/) ## Related quotes > [“Sometimes we create problems due to a wrong perspective”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anonymous/sometimes-we-create-problems-due-to-a-wrong-perspective/) [Anonymous](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anonymous/) > [politics were as bad as mathematics, and that the mission of politicians seemed to be calling each other names](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/louisa-may-alcott/politics-were-as-bad-as-mathematics-and-that-the-mission-of/) [Louisa May Alcott](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/louisa-may-alcott/) > [Every human activity, good or bad, except mathematics, must come to an end.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/paul-erdos/every-human-activity-good-or-bad-except-mathematics-must-come-to-an/) [Paul Erdos](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/paul-erdos/) > [“In her secret soul, however, she decided that politics were as bad as mathematics, and that the mission of politicians seemed to be calling…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/louisa-may-alcott/in-her-secret-soul-however-she-decided-that-politics-were-as-bad-as/) [Louisa May Alcott](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/louisa-may-alcott/) > [I didn't work especially hard at mathematics at school, because I knew that's what I'd be doing later.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/david-hilbert/i-didn-t-work-especially-hard-at-mathematics-at-school-because-i-knew/) [David Hilbert](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/david-hilbert/) > [I think you can get better in mathematics on a school level, but when you're talking about being a mathematician, I think that's definitely…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/john-hurt/i-think-you-can-get-better-in-mathematics-on-a-school-level-but-when-2/) [John Hurt](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/john-hurt/) > [Given the brief - and generally misleading - exposure most people have to mathematics at school, raising the public awareness of mathematics will always…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/keith-devlin/given-the-brief-and-generally-misleading-exposure-most-people-have-to/) [Keith Devlin](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/keith-devlin/) > [I think you can get better in mathematics on a school level, but when you're talking about being a mathematician, I think that's definitely…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/john-hurt/i-think-you-can-get-better-in-mathematics-on-a-school-level-but-when/) [John Hurt](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/john-hurt/) > [A mathematician either has a feeling for equations and an understanding and delight in it, not only in the purity of it, but in…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/john-hurt/a-mathematician-either-has-a-feeling-for-equations-and-an/) [John Hurt](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/john-hurt/) > [If someone is being bullied or feels like an outsider, and they relate to something that I've done, even if it's just igniting a…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/johnny-depp/if-someone-is-being-bullied-or-feels-like-an-outsider-and-they-relate/) [Johnny Depp](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/johnny-depp/) > [The joy I get from winning a major championship doesn't even compare to the feeling I get when a kid writes a letter saying:…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/tiger-woods/the-joy-i-get-from-winning-a-major-championship-doesn-t-even-compare/) [Tiger Woods](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/tiger-woods/) > [I've felt some great feelings on the baseball field... in front of 50,000 people and millions on TV... but the feeling you get when…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/cal-ripken-jr/i-ve-felt-some-great-feelings-on-the-baseball-field-in-front-of-50/) [Cal Ripken, Jr](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/cal-ripken-jr/) > [There are things in your life which you are in control of, and those you're not. You need to not care about those things…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/derren-brown/there-are-things-in-your-life-which-you-are-in-control-of-and-those/) [Derren Brown](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/derren-brown/) > [It's just this feeling of when you're a kid, you have these ideas about the world and about people in your life that don't…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jon-watts/it-s-just-this-feeling-of-when-you-re-a-kid-you-have-these-ideas/) [Jon Watts](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jon-watts/) > [Drinking and drugging make it so your reality flies away from you. Your body and your mind are not present. I loved that feeling…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/claire-dederer/drinking-and-drugging-make-it-so-your-reality-flies-away-from-you/) [Claire Dederer](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/claire-dederer/) ## More by Simon McBurney > [The brain constantly assures us, reassures us, that we are in control. But the closer you look, the more questions you have about it.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/simon-mcburney/the-brain-constantly-assures-us-reassures-us-that-we-are-in-control/) [Simon McBurney](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/simon-mcburney/) > [Theatre artists are essentially sort of charlatans and thieves, I mean that's the tradition that we come from, so I have absolutely no, I…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/simon-mcburney/theatre-artists-are-essentially-sort-of-charlatans-and-thieves-i-mean/) [Simon McBurney](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/simon-mcburney/) > [My work is not generally in the commercial sector. However, I'm not worried by the commercial sector. I refuse to work in any other…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/simon-mcburney/my-work-is-not-generally-in-the-commercial-sector-however-i-m-not/) [Simon McBurney](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/simon-mcburney/) > [In my opinion, there's nothing new in the theatre, ever. 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So the idea of…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/simon-mcburney/our-lives-are-a-sequence-of-things-when-we-re-alive-they-re/) [Simon McBurney](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/simon-mcburney/) > [We try to place the human body in relation to the image all the time, so it's never a kind of a backdrop, but…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/simon-mcburney/we-try-to-place-the-human-body-in-relation-to-the-image-all-the-time/) [Simon McBurney](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/simon-mcburney/) > [I constantly want to know - what is a table, or what is a cat?](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/simon-mcburney/i-constantly-want-to-know-what-is-a-table-or-what-is-a-cat/) [Simon McBurney](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/simon-mcburney/) > [The only reality of the theater exists in the mind of the audience. That audience looks collectively at what is going on on the…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/simon-mcburney/the-only-reality-of-the-theater-exists-in-the-mind-of-the-audience/) [Simon McBurney](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/simon-mcburney/) > [I suppose as an actor you become very sensitive to rhythm, not just rhythm as you look at it sort of from the, from…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/simon-mcburney/i-suppose-as-an-actor-you-become-very-sensitive-to-rhythm-not-just/) [Simon McBurney](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/simon-mcburney/) > [I remember the fact that milk was delivered every day by a milkman. In summer, my mother would make what now seem in my…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/simon-mcburney/i-remember-the-fact-that-milk-was-delivered-every-day-by-a-milkman-in/) [Simon McBurney](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/simon-mcburney/) > ['Mnemonic' is a play about memory.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/simon-mcburney/mnemonic-is-a-play-about-memory/) [Simon McBurney](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/simon-mcburney/) > [I have always felt more at home in a culture that has nothing to do with the one I was born and brought up…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/simon-mcburney/i-have-always-felt-more-at-home-in-a-culture-that-has-nothing-to-do/) [Simon McBurney](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/simon-mcburney/) > [Yes it was chaos, working through chaos, you never quite knew what you were going to do each day, but you knew that you…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/simon-mcburney/yes-it-was-chaos-working-through-chaos-you-never-quite-knew-what-you/) [Simon McBurney](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/simon-mcburney/) > [One of the things he liked about playwriting as to any other kind of writing is that a playwright is a w-r-i-g-h-t, not a…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/simon-mcburney/one-of-the-things-he-liked-about-playwriting-as-to-any-other-kind-of/) [Simon McBurney](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/simon-mcburney/) > [With the theatre, for God's sake, everything makes sense. You create a clear sequential reality for a specific audience at one particular time.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/simon-mcburney/with-the-theatre-for-god-s-sake-everything-makes-sense-you-create-a/) [Simon McBurney](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/simon-mcburney/) [Explore all 89 Simon McBurney quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/simon-mcburney/) ## More Always quotes > [I think performing has pretty much always been a part of me.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/isa-briones/i-think-performing-has-pretty-much-always-been-a-part-of-me/) [Isa Briones](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/isa-briones/) > [I always thought if I was born 2000 years earlier, I would be a monk, probably carving a monastery or some giant pantheon buildings.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jenova-chen/i-always-thought-if-i-was-born-2000-years-earlier-i-would-be-a-monk/) [Jenova Chen](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jenova-chen/) > [I always like a character who makes me laugh.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/rachael-stirling/i-always-like-a-character-who-makes-me-laugh/) [Rachael Stirling](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/rachael-stirling/) > [It's always great to see old friends, especially those I have not been able to see in 15 months.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/william-regal/it-s-always-great-to-see-old-friends-especially-those-i-have-not-been/) [William Regal](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/william-regal/) > [When you step out and do a song in a musical, the easier thing to do is make it funny. But when those transitions…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/kelli-o-hara/when-you-step-out-and-do-a-song-in-a-musical-the-easier-thing-to-do/) [Kelli O'Hara](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/kelli-o-hara/) > [I have really good lateral movement. I've always had quick lateral movement.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/austin-rivers/i-have-really-good-lateral-movement-i-ve-always-had-quick-lateral/) [Austin Rivers](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/austin-rivers/) > [There is something magical about being able to feel somebody. And that is something that has always moved me with music.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/maria-brink/there-is-something-magical-about-being-able-to-feel-somebody-and-that/) [Maria Brink](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/maria-brink/) > [Mythology is something that always has opportunities to explore. 'It' has been on Earth for millions of years. He's been in contact with humans…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/andy-muschietti/mythology-is-something-that-always-has-opportunities-to-explore-it/) [Andy Muschietti](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/andy-muschietti/) > [It's not writing in the traditional sense, but I've always said that the writing process continues on the set and even into the editing…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/robert-b-weide/it-s-not-writing-in-the-traditional-sense-but-i-ve-always-said-that/) [Robert B. Weide](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/robert-b-weide/) > [I always watch my matches back 100 times afterwards because that's how I improve. This is something I've always done, even in NXT.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/mandy-rose/i-always-watch-my-matches-back-100-times-afterwards-because-that-s/) [Mandy Rose](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/mandy-rose/) > [I've always been of the idea that is doesn't really matter where you are geographically - with 'Lonerism,' we made half the album in…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/kevin-parker/i-ve-always-been-of-the-idea-that-is-doesn-t-really-matter-where-you/) [Kevin Parker](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/kevin-parker/) > [It's very easy to fool yourself that you're working, you know, when you're really not working very hard. I mean, I'm very lazy. So…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/robert-caro/it-s-very-easy-to-fool-yourself-that-you-re-working-you-know-when-you/) [Robert Caro](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/robert-caro/) > [Whether it was Little League or playing with your brothers or sisters, that was always a problem. If I would lose - because I…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/cal-ripken-jr/whether-it-was-little-league-or-playing-with-your-brothers-or-sisters/) [Cal Ripken, Jr](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/cal-ripken-jr/) > [I always say if you put someone from a small town into a big city for ten years, then when they go back, they'll…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/mike-colter/i-always-say-if-you-put-someone-from-a-small-town-into-a-big-city-for/) [Mike Colter](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/mike-colter/) > [Bayern is always a team that can win the Champions League title in Europe.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/lothar-matthaus/bayern-is-always-a-team-that-can-win-the-champions-league-title-in/) [Lothar Matthaus](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/lothar-matthaus/) [Browse all 36,048 Always quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/always/) ```json { "@context": "https://schema.org", "@graph": [ { "@type": "Quotation", "text": "I was very bad at mathematics in school, and I always had the feeling as a kid that when I worked on problems, that I would be wrong.", "creator": { "@type": "Person", "name": "Simon McBurney" }, "isPartOf": { "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/#website" }, "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/simon-mcburney/i-was-very-bad-at-mathematics-in-school-and-i-always-had-the-feeling/", "about": { "@type": "Thing", "name": "Always" }, "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/simon-mcburney/i-was-very-bad-at-mathematics-in-school-and-i-always-had-the-feeling/#quotation", "image": { "@type": "ImageObject", "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/83b/simon-mcburney-7667_always_i-was-very-bad-at-mathematics-in-school_2020690.png", "contentUrl": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/83b/simon-mcburney-7667_always_i-was-very-bad-at-mathematics-in-school_2020690.png", "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/83b/simon-mcburney-7667_always_i-was-very-bad-at-mathematics-in-school_2020690.png", "width": 1080, "height": 1080, "caption": "“I was very bad at mathematics in school, and I always had the feeling as a kid that when I worked on…” — Simon McBurney", "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": "Simon McBurney", "item": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/simon-mcburney/" }, { "@type": "ListItem", "position": 4, "name": "I was very bad at mathematics...", "item": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/simon-mcburney/i-was-very-bad-at-mathematics-in-school-and-i-always-had-the-feeling/" } ], "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/simon-mcburney/i-was-very-bad-at-mathematics-in-school-and-i-always-had-the-feeling/#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 } } ] } ```