--- title: "Meaning & Key Takeaway of: He records that he was almost loathe to…" description: "\"“He records that he was almost loathe to leave his prison cell because it was there that he realized that real success is success with self. It’s not i..." image: "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/30b/stephen-r-covey-1501_real-success_he-records-that-he-was-almost-loathe-to_1095118.jpg" --- # He records that he was almost loathe to leave his prison… ![“He records that he was almost loathe to leave his prison cell because it was there that he realized that real success is success with self. It’s not in having things, but in having mastery, having victory over self.” quote by Stephen R. Covey](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/30b/stephen-r-covey-1501_real-success_he-records-that-he-was-almost-loathe-to_1095118.jpg) [Download](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/30b/stephen-r-covey-1501_real-success_he-records-that-he-was-almost-loathe-to_1095118.jpg) [Open image](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/30b/stephen-r-covey-1501_real-success_he-records-that-he-was-almost-loathe-to_1095118.jpg) > ““He records that he was almost loathe to leave his prison cell because it was there that he realized that real success is success with self. It’s not in having things, but in having mastery, having victory over self.”” [Stephen R. Covey](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/stephen-r-covey/) ## About This Quote This interpretation was drafted with AI assistance. It is one reading of the quote, not the author's own explanation. True success is self‑mastery, not material accumulation; it comes from inner victory. **In simple terms:** Success is mastering yourself, not possessions. Key Takeaway Focus on personal growth. Themes self mastery success philosophy Mood inspirational reflective Type philosophical motivational When to use this quote - career development - education - spiritual practice - leadership Key Concepts self‑actualization inner peace Questions to Reflect On - What steps can you take to master yourself? - How does self‑mastery affect your goals? A Different Perspective External achievements can distract from inner work. ★ ★ ★ ★ ★ No ratings yet [Leave Prison](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/leave-prison-1589321/) [Prison](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/prison/) [Prison Cell](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/prison-cell-916245/) [Real success](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/real-success/) [Success](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/success/) [Success Self](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/success-self-478658/) [Victory Self](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/victory-self-1922979/) ## Related quotes > [“He (Anwar Sadat) records that he was almost loathe to leave his prison cell because it was there that he realized that real success…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/stephen-r-covey/he-anwar-sadat-records-that-he-was-almost-loathe-to-leave-his-prison/) [Stephen R. Covey](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/stephen-r-covey/) > [Real success is success with self. It's not in having things, but in having mastery, having victory over self.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anwar-sadat/real-success-is-success-with-self-it-s-not-in-having-things-but-in/) [Anwar Sadat](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anwar-sadat/) > [“Learn to be content with yourself, if you do not do that, you will live as if you are in a prison cell.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/gift-gugu-mona/learn-to-be-content-with-yourself-if-you-do-not-do-that-you-will-live/) [Gift Gugu Mona](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/gift-gugu-mona/) > [Each night within his prison cell, he looks out through the bars. He reads the letters that she wrote. One day he'll know the…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/nightwish/each-night-within-his-prison-cell-he-looks-out-through-the-bars-he/) [Nightwish](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/nightwish/) > [I would make the case that the vast majority of prisoners leave prison and go back into society. 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You were…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/craig-groeschel/it-s-time-to-get-healed-it-s-time-to-confess-falling-for-the-bait/) [Craig Groeschel](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/craig-groeschel/) > [“We improve ourselves by victory over our self. There must be contests, and you must win.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/edward-gibbon/we-improve-ourselves-by-victory-over-our-self-there-must-be-contests/) [Edward Gibbon](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/edward-gibbon/) > [True victory is self-victory; let that day arrive quickly!](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/morihei-ueshiba/true-victory-is-self-victory-let-that-day-arrive-quickly/) [Morihei Ueshiba](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/morihei-ueshiba/) ## More by Stephen R. 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I got…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/wentworth-miller/i-hadn-t-worked-for-a-year-when-i-had-my-prison-break-audition-and-it/) [Wentworth Miller](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/wentworth-miller/) > [Prison experience puts distance between me and any person who hasn't been there, done that.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/patricia-mcconnell/prison-experience-puts-distance-between-me-and-any-person-who-hasn-t/) [Patricia McConnell](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/patricia-mcconnell/) > [This mind is a prison. It cannot find any freedom anywhere. It must die before freedom comes to you. But we have taken the…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/rajneesh/this-mind-is-a-prison-it-cannot-find-any-freedom-anywhere-it-must-die/) [Rajneesh](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/rajneesh/) > [“The sole reason I stand to open it up now is that lots of people who are in pain just like I was, and…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/patricia-dsouza/the-sole-reason-i-stand-to-open-it-up-now-is-that-lots-of-people-who/) [Patricia Dsouza](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/patricia-dsouza/) > [The federal prison population increased by almost 800 percent between 1980 and 2013, often at a far faster rate than the Bureau of Prisons…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/sally-yates/the-federal-prison-population-increased-by-almost-800-percent-between/) [Sally Yates](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/sally-yates/) > [The dark ages still reign over all humanity, and the depth and persistence of this domination are only now becoming clear. This Dark Ages…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/r-buckminster-fuller/the-dark-ages-still-reign-over-all-humanity-and-the-depth-and/) [R. Buckminster Fuller](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/r-buckminster-fuller/) > [“...you are strong only as long as you don't deprive people of everything . For a person you've taken everything from is no longer…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/aleksandr-solzhenitsyn/you-are-strong-only-as-long-as-you-don-t-deprive-people-of-everything/) [Aleksandr Solzhenitsyn](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/aleksandr-solzhenitsyn/) > [We are all potentially such sick men. The sanest and best of us are of one clay with lunatics and prison-inmates. And whenever we…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/william-james/we-are-all-potentially-such-sick-men-the-sanest-and-best-of-us-are-of/) [William James](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/william-james/) > [Identity is not negotiable. 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