--- title: "Meaning & Key Takeaway of: My first instinct is to push you until…" description: "\"My first instinct is to push you until you break just to see how hard I have to press.\" — Veronica Roth" image: "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/00c/veronica-roth-66_break_my-first-instinct-is-to-push-you-until-y_2967136.png" --- # My first instinct is to push you until you break just to… ![“My first instinct is to push you until you break just to see how hard I have to press.” quote by Veronica Roth](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/00c/veronica-roth-66_break_my-first-instinct-is-to-push-you-until-y_2967136.png) [Download](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/00c/veronica-roth-66_break_my-first-instinct-is-to-push-you-until-y_2967136.png) [Open image](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/00c/veronica-roth-66_break_my-first-instinct-is-to-push-you-until-y_2967136.png) > “My first instinct is to push you until you break just to see how hard I have to press.” [Veronica Roth](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/veronica-roth/) ## About This Quote This interpretation was drafted with AI assistance. It is one reading of the quote, not the author's own explanation. She describes a tendency to push others to their limits to test their resilience. **In simple terms:** She pushes people until they break to see their strength. Key Takeaway Challenge others responsibly to reveal potential. Themes challenge resilience testing limits Mood provocative thoughtful Type literary psychological When to use this quote - team building - education - coaching Key Concepts personal growth leadership psychology Questions to Reflect On - When is it appropriate to push someone? - How do you recognize healthy limits? A Different Perspective Excessive pressure can cause harm. ★ ★ ★ ★ ★ No ratings yet [Break](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/break/) [Break Just](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/break-just-947239/) [Firsts](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/firsts/) [Instinct](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/instinct/) [Instinct Push](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/instinct-push-1446947/) [Just Hard](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/just-hard/) [Push](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/push/) [Push Break](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/push-break-4548727/) ## Related quotes > [“You think my first instinct is to protect you because you are small or a girl or a stiff, but you are wrong. My…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/veronica-roth/you-think-my-first-instinct-is-to-protect-you-because-you-are-small/) [Veronica Roth](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/veronica-roth/) > [“You think my first instinct is to protect you. Because you're small, or a girl, or a stiff. But you're wrong. 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At least, I don’t.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/barry-lyga/you-don-t-break-up-with-someone-just-because-of-an-argument-josh-at/) [Barry Lyga](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/barry-lyga/) > [“Heart break is just a part of life”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/interesting-you-want-to-know-me-name/heart-break-is-just-a-part-of-life/) [Interesting....you Want to Know me Name](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/interesting-you-want-to-know-me-name/) > [Money can make or break you. It just depends on what you make it to be.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jay-rock/money-can-make-or-break-you-it-just-depends-on-what-you-make-it-to-be/) [Jay Rock](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jay-rock/) > [“People break up. It's just the way things are. And you can't dwell on what might have been. 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Overcompensating.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/veronica-roth/he-acts-so-tough-that-he-s-probably-afraid-of-marshmallows-and-really/) [Veronica Roth](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/veronica-roth/) > [And is it selfish of me to crave victory, or is it brave?](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/veronica-roth/and-is-it-selfish-of-me-to-crave-victory-or-is-it-brave/) [Veronica Roth](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/veronica-roth/) > [You always look like someone's sucked the life right out of you when something fascinates you. -Tris](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/veronica-roth/you-always-look-like-someone-s-sucked-the-life-right-out-of-you-when/) [Veronica Roth](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/veronica-roth/) > [“We can be mended. We mend each other.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/veronica-roth/we-can-be-mended-we-mend-each-other/) [Veronica Roth](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/veronica-roth/) > [Don’t worry about me handling the pain," I say. 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I feel like it should…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/veronica-roth/am-aware-of-how-little-space-there-is-between-us-six-inches-at-most/) [Veronica Roth](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/veronica-roth/) > [“Oh, good,” I say, a sour taste in my mouth. “Heroism is what I was focused on. Not, you know, trying not to die.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/veronica-roth/oh-good-i-say-a-sour-taste-in-my-mouth-heroism-is-what-i-was-focused/) [Veronica Roth](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/veronica-roth/) > [“Caleb frowns at him. "How old are you, anyway?" "Eighteen." "And you don't think you're too old to be with my little sister?" Tobias…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/veronica-roth/caleb-frowns-at-him-how-old-are-you-anyway-eighteen-and-you-don-t/) [Veronica Roth](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/veronica-roth/) > [What do you think they're going to do to us when they find us guilty?" she says after a few minutes of silence have…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/veronica-roth/what-do-you-think-they-re-going-to-do-to-us-when-they-find-us-guilty/) [Veronica Roth](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/veronica-roth/) > [“La paz está restringida, eso es libertad”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/veronica-roth/la-paz-est-restringida-eso-es-libertad/) [Veronica Roth](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/veronica-roth/) > [In some parts of the ancient world, the hawk symbolized the sun. Back when I got this, I figured if I always had the…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/veronica-roth/in-some-parts-of-the-ancient-world-the-hawk-symbolized-the-sun-back/) [Veronica Roth](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/veronica-roth/) [Explore all 1,589 Veronica Roth quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/veronica-roth/) ## More Break quotes > [I made, like, five movies while I was in college. I think they just weren't memorable movies. 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Even as the stone of the fruit must break, that its heart…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/khalil-gibran/your-pain-is-the-breaking-of-the-shell-that-encloses-your/) [Khalil Gibran](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/khalil-gibran/) > [Must I go bound while you go free Must I love a manwho doesn't love me Must I be born with so little art…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/cassandra-clare/must-i-go-bound-while-you-go-free-must-i-love-a-manwho-doesn-t-love/) [Cassandra Clare](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/cassandra-clare/) > [I hadn't worked for a year when I had my Prison Break audition and it was the easiest audition I've ever had. 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/) > [If you strike upon a thought that baffles you, break off from that entanglement and try another, so shall your wits be fresh to…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/aristophanes/if-you-strike-upon-a-thought-that-baffles-you-break-off-from-that/) [Aristophanes](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/aristophanes/) > [“A hole ain’t nothing either, but you can still break your neck in it.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/sara-donati/a-hole-ain-t-nothing-either-but-you-can-still-break-your-neck-in-it/) [Sara Donati](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/sara-donati/) > [“I break things, a lot of things, but I don’t want one of them to be you.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/patricia-briggs/i-break-things-a-lot-of-things-but-i-don-t-want-one-of-them-to-be-you/) [Patricia Briggs](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/patricia-briggs/) > [Motor racing's less of a sport these days than a commercial break doing 150 mph.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/peter-dunne/motor-racing-s-less-of-a-sport-these-days-than-a-commercial-break/) [Peter Dunne](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/peter-dunne/) > [Much like teaching art to young art students age 10 to 15 or so on, you have to break it down into bite-sized pieces,…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/kehinde-wiley/much-like-teaching-art-to-young-art-students-age-10-to-15-or-so-on/) [Kehinde Wiley](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/kehinde-wiley/) > [The purpose is to be in gratitude forever. 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