--- title: "Meaning & Key Takeaway of: I've learned over the years that you're…" description: "\"I've learned over the years that you're going to be most successful at the things you're most excited to do. Every artist has a special set of tools. W..." image: "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/850/steve-vai-7290_art_i-ve-learned-over-the-years-that-you-re_1038089.jpg" --- # I've learned over the years that you're going to be most… ![“I've learned over the years that you're going to be most successful at the things you're most excited to do. Every artist has a special set of tools. When you really use those tools, and you make yourself feel really good about the product you create, I think you'll find an audience for it. I've…” quote by Steve Vai](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/850/steve-vai-7290_art_i-ve-learned-over-the-years-that-you-re_1038089.jpg) [Download](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/850/steve-vai-7290_art_i-ve-learned-over-the-years-that-you-re_1038089.jpg) [Open image](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/850/steve-vai-7290_art_i-ve-learned-over-the-years-that-you-re_1038089.jpg) > “I've learned over the years that you're going to be most successful at the things you're most excited to do. Every artist has a special set of tools. When you really use those tools, and you make yourself feel really good about the product you create, I think you'll find an audience for it. I've been very fortunate in that respect.” [Steve Vai](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/steve-vai/) ## About This Quote This interpretation was drafted with AI assistance. It is one reading of the quote, not the author's own explanation. Success comes from aligning work with genuine excitement and using your unique tools to create something you enjoy, which naturally attracts an audience. **In simple terms:** Do what you love with your own tools and audience follows. Key Takeaway Focus on passion and personal skill. Themes passion creativity skill audience self‑confidence Mood enthusiastic confident inspired Type motivational inspirational When to use this quote - musicianship - entrepreneurship - artistic projects - product development - personal fulfillment Key Concepts Flow authentic expression personal branding Questions to Reflect On - What activities make you lose track of time? - How can you develop tools that reflect your strengths? A Different Perspective If you lack excitement, success may be elusive. ★ ★ ★ ★ ★ No ratings yet [Art](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/art/) [Artist](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/artist/) [Audience](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/audience/) [Successful](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/successful/) [Thinking](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/thinking/) [Tools](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/tools/) ## Related quotes > [“First make your business itself a brand and then every product you create will be accepted as a brand.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/amit-kalantri/first-make-your-business-itself-a-brand-and-then-every-product-you/) [Amit Kalantri](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/amit-kalantri/) > [I like coming up with new characters. Whether it's revamping an old character no one likes or just coming up with brand-new stuff, that's…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/joe-madureira/i-like-coming-up-with-new-characters-whether-it-s-revamping-an-old/) [Joe Madureira](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/joe-madureira/) > [I've realized that I love all forms of music and get excited when any artist goes crazy and creates something that is an experience.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/tom-delonge/i-ve-realized-that-i-love-all-forms-of-music-and-get-excited-when-any/) [Tom DeLonge](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/tom-delonge/) > [I want to create. I think thats the one word I can grow on.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/israel-broussard/i-want-to-create-i-think-thats-the-one-word-i-can-grow-on/) [Israel Broussard](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/israel-broussard/) > [“Fear isn't real. It's something we create when we think about what could happen.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/robin-bielman/fear-isn-t-real-it-s-something-we-create-when-we-think-about-what/) [Robin Bielman](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/robin-bielman/) > [I want to create. I think that's the one word I can grow on.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/israel-broussard/i-want-to-create-i-think-that-s-the-one-word-i-can-grow-on/) [Israel Broussard](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/israel-broussard/) > [I think that so much of the creative process is a fragmentary one, and then it's about just allowing your intuition to put it…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jeff-mangum/i-think-that-so-much-of-the-creative-process-is-a-fragmentary-one-and/) [Jeff Mangum](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jeff-mangum/) > [Believe passionately in something that still does not exist; You create it. Think nonexisting, 'what's not sufficiently been desired.'](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/franz-kafka/believe-passionately-in-something-that-still-does-not-exist-you/) [Franz Kafka](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/franz-kafka/) > [By believing your work is a 'gift,' it radically changes what you create. I think this is a revolutionary idea. It's no longer about…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/james-victore/by-believing-your-work-is-a-gift-it-radically-changes-what-you-create/) [James Victore](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/james-victore/) > [I don't think of my characters as people I create, I think of them more as people I have met and whom I'm exploring…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/lisa-unger/i-don-t-think-of-my-characters-as-people-i-create-i-think-of-them/) [Lisa Unger](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/lisa-unger/) > [“Imagine, create, think beyond the limits. Then write.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/kimberly-loskov/imagine-create-think-beyond-the-limits-then-write/) [Kimberly Loskov](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/kimberly-loskov/) > [I think one of the reasons I've been successful is that I can see things before other people do. I've always been able to…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/diplo/i-think-one-of-the-reasons-i-ve-been-successful-is-that-i-can-see/) [Diplo](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/diplo/) > [“You want to be able to say, for example, “I will know I am successful if these three things happen.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/amber-hurdle/you-want-to-be-able-to-say-for-example-i-will-know-i-am-successful-if/) [Amber Hurdle](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/amber-hurdle/) > [The things that I have done that haven't been as successful have been things that have been largely out of the public view, which…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/robert-lopez/the-things-that-i-have-done-that-haven-t-been-as-successful-have-been/) [Robert Lopez](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/robert-lopez/) > [I don't think anybody should do what they do in hopes of being successful. But I always expect myself to be successful at things.…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/michael-feldman/i-don-t-think-anybody-should-do-what-they-do-in-hopes-of-being/) [Michael Feldman](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/michael-feldman/) ## More by Steve Vai > [I designed a guitar for Ibanez and then they started manufacturing it - it's called the Jem - it's 26 years old and I…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/steve-vai/i-designed-a-guitar-for-ibanez-and-then-they-started-manufacturing-it/) [Steve Vai](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/steve-vai/) > [You can never deny the immense talent, rock credibility and iconic historical contribution that Van Halen made.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/steve-vai/you-can-never-deny-the-immense-talent-rock-credibility-and-iconic/) [Steve Vai](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/steve-vai/) > [I can tell you this: I'm an extremely passionate individual. I try to be careful how I display it because you never know how…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/steve-vai/i-can-tell-you-this-i-m-an-extremely-passionate-individual-i-try-to/) [Steve Vai](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/steve-vai/) > [I don't believe in 'greatest'. I believe in favorites.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/steve-vai/i-don-t-believe-in-greatest-i-believe-in-favorites/) [Steve Vai](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/steve-vai/) > [Along with its enchanting and exquisite melodies, West Side Story has attitude and a tremendous amount of frenetic energy. It's emotional, theatrical and technical.…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/steve-vai/along-with-its-enchanting-and-exquisite-melodies-west-side-story-has/) [Steve Vai](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/steve-vai/) > [I have a deep love for life and my fellow human beings. I try to understand everything that everybody does, even if it seems…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/steve-vai/i-have-a-deep-love-for-life-and-my-fellow-human-beings-i-try-to/) [Steve Vai](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/steve-vai/) > [I've never really heard anybody imitating anything of mine the way they do with Edward Van Halen's stuff.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/steve-vai/i-ve-never-really-heard-anybody-imitating-anything-of-mine-the-way/) [Steve Vai](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/steve-vai/) > [The only thing that's holding you back, is the way you're thinking.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/steve-vai/the-only-thing-that-s-holding-you-back-is-the-way-you-re-thinking/) [Steve Vai](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/steve-vai/) > [My main calling in life is to seek and achieve spiritual balance, and to express that through my instrument. Everything else is here today,…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/steve-vai/my-main-calling-in-life-is-to-seek-and-achieve-spiritual-balance-and/) [Steve Vai](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/steve-vai/) > [There's very notable dynamics in all of the collaborations I've done. It's hard to say if one is more important than the other, but…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/steve-vai/there-s-very-notable-dynamics-in-all-of-the-collaborations-i-ve-done/) [Steve Vai](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/steve-vai/) > [I awake, I meditate, get the kids off to school, go to the gym, go to the Favored Nations office, and usually at around…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/steve-vai/i-awake-i-meditate-get-the-kids-off-to-school-go-to-the-gym-go-to-the/) [Steve Vai](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/steve-vai/) > [I think every artist subconsciously wants to evolve themselves. Sometimes they get stuck in ruts because of pop culture, peer pressure, stuff like that.…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/steve-vai/i-think-every-artist-subconsciously-wants-to-evolve-themselves/) [Steve Vai](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/steve-vai/) > [Baby don't wake me, let me take you on an endless journey. We touch and the softest kiss explodes with lust. It's real and…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/steve-vai/baby-don-t-wake-me-let-me-take-you-on-an-endless-journey-we-touch-and/) [Steve Vai](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/steve-vai/) > [We have the insight and the tools to identify and bring to fruition the dormant talent that our artists possess. Favored Nations will be…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/steve-vai/we-have-the-insight-and-the-tools-to-identify-and-bring-to-fruition/) [Steve Vai](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/steve-vai/) > [That's the thing about great artists: They find the thing that's most obvious to themselves, what's most conscious and natural, and they put it…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/steve-vai/that-s-the-thing-about-great-artists-they-find-the-thing-that-s-most/) [Steve Vai](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/steve-vai/) [Explore all 92 Steve Vai quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/steve-vai/) ## More Art quotes > [True works of art contain their own theory and give us the measurement according to which we should judge them.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/johann-wolfgang-von-goethe/true-works-of-art-contain-their-own-theory-and-give-us-the/) [Johann Wolfgang von Goethe](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/johann-wolfgang-von-goethe/) > [Before Noah, men having only water to drink, could not find the truth. Accordingly...they became abominably wicked, and they were justly exterminated by the…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/benjamin-franklin/before-noah-men-having-only-water-to-drink-could-not-find-the-truth/) [Benjamin Franklin](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/benjamin-franklin/) > [“Hear the sum of the whole matter in the compass of one brief word — every art possessed by man comes from Prometheus.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/aeschylus/hear-the-sum-of-the-whole-matter-in-the-compass-of-one-brief-word/) [Aeschylus](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/aeschylus/) > [I think most artists feel like they're outside society - no matter how many accolades they receive, or how much money is in your…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/aaron-rose/i-think-most-artists-feel-like-they-re-outside-society-no-matter-how/) [Aaron Rose](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/aaron-rose/) > [The capacity to be puzzled is the premise of all creation, be it in art or in science.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/erich-fromm/the-capacity-to-be-puzzled-is-the-premise-of-all-creation-be-it-in/) [Erich Fromm](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/erich-fromm/) > [That's the great secret of creativity. You treat ideas like cats: you make them follow you.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ray-bradbury/that-s-the-great-secret-of-creativity-you-treat-ideas-like-cats-you/) [Ray Bradbury](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ray-bradbury/) > [“So, really," continued Jacob as if this were perfectly normal to expound on art in these circumstances, "when you think about it, the artists…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/justina-chen-headley/so-really-continued-jacob-as-if-this-were-perfectly-normal-to-expound/) [Justina Chen Headley](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/justina-chen-headley/) > [“There are two options in art; either to adopt philosophical life by dissecting art, or to write your own philosophical life and claim it…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/taf-teh/there-are-two-options-in-art-either-to-adopt-philosophical-life-by/) Taf Teh > [The house has to serve comfort. The work of art is revolutionary; the house is conservative.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/adolf-loos/the-house-has-to-serve-comfort-the-work-of-art-is-revolutionary-the/) [Adolf Loos](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/adolf-loos/) > [During human progress, every science is evolved out of its corresponding art.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/herbert-spencer/during-human-progress-every-science-is-evolved-out-of-its/) [Herbert Spencer](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/herbert-spencer/) > [In literature and art memory is a synonym for invention. It is the life-blood of imagination, which faints and dies when the veins are…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/robert-aris-willmott/in-literature-and-art-memory-is-a-synonym-for-invention-it-is-the/) [Robert Aris Willmott](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/robert-aris-willmott/) > [I think a business guy is different from an artist. They walk different paths. Artists create the best outputs when they're having fun. And…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/g-dragon/i-think-a-business-guy-is-different-from-an-artist-they-walk/) [G-Dragon](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/g-dragon/) > [“The only thing--I tell you this straight from the heart--that disgusts me in Salzburg is that one can't have any proper social intercourse with…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/wolfgang-amadeus-mozart/the-only-thing-i-tell-you-this-straight-from-the-heart-that-disgusts/) [Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/wolfgang-amadeus-mozart/) > [The sublime in art is the attempt to express the infinite without finding in the realm of phenomena any object which proves itself fitting…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/georg-wilhelm-friedrich-hegel/the-sublime-in-art-is-the-attempt-to-express-the-infinite-without/) [Georg Wilhelm Friedrich Hegel](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/georg-wilhelm-friedrich-hegel/) > [Art isn't done to decorate apartments, but to wage war against the enemy.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/pablo-picasso/art-isn-t-done-to-decorate-apartments-but-to-wage-war-against-the/) [Pablo Picasso](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/pablo-picasso/) [Browse all 48,643 Art quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/art/) ```json { "@context": "https://schema.org", "@graph": [ { "@type": "Quotation", "text": "I've learned over the years that you're going to be most successful at the things you're most excited to do. 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