---
title: "Meaning & Key Takeaway of: It was like making a blunder at a party…"
description: "\"It was like making a blunder at a party; there was nothing to do about it, it was dreadfully mortifying, but it showed a lack of sense to ascribe too m..."
image: "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/2f0/w-somerset-maugham-237_blunders_it-was-like-making-a-blunder-at-a-party_976443.jpg"
---

#  It was like making a blunder at a party; there was nothing…

![“It was like making a blunder at a party; there was nothing to do about it, it was dreadfully mortifying, but it showed a lack of sense to ascribe too much importance to it.” quote by W. Somerset Maugham](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/2f0/w-somerset-maugham-237_blunders_it-was-like-making-a-blunder-at-a-party_976443.jpg)   [Download](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/2f0/w-somerset-maugham-237_blunders_it-was-like-making-a-blunder-at-a-party_976443.jpg) [Open image](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/2f0/w-somerset-maugham-237_blunders_it-was-like-making-a-blunder-at-a-party_976443.jpg)

> “It was like making a blunder at a party; there was nothing to do about it, it was dreadfully mortifying, but it showed a lack of sense to ascribe too much importance to it.”

[W. Somerset Maugham](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/w-somerset-maugham/)

## About This Quote

This interpretation was drafted with AI assistance. It is one reading of the quote, not the author's own explanation.

An embarrassing mistake at a social event feels mortifying, yet over‑emphasizing it is unwise.

**In simple terms:** Mistakes happen, but don’t magnify them.

Key Takeaway

Don’t let a minor slip dominate your thoughts.

Themes

embarrassment social anxiety humility self‑awareness

Mood

anxious reflective

Type

advice psychological

When to use this quote

- social gatherings
- public speaking
- first impressions
- conflict resolution

Key Concepts

cognitive distortion social pressure self‑compassion

Questions to Reflect On

- What can you learn from the incident?
- How might you reframe similar moments?

A Different Perspective

Over‑focus on embarrassment can impair confidence.

★ ★ ★ ★ ★   No ratings yet

[Blunder](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/blunder/) [Blunders](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/blunders/) [Party](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/party/)

## Related quotes

> [We must not judge God from this world. It's just a study that didn't come off. It's only a master who could make such…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/vincent-van-gogh/we-must-not-judge-god-from-this-world-it-s-just-a-study-that-didn-t/)

[Vincent Van Gogh](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/vincent-van-gogh/)

> [What a mistake those who do not hope make! Judas made a huge blunder the day in which he sold Christ for 30 denarii,…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/pope-john-paul-i/what-a-mistake-those-who-do-not-hope-make-judas-made-a-huge-blunder/)

[Pope John Paul I](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/pope-john-paul-i/)

> [It is a capital blunder; as you discover, when another man recites his charities.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ralph-waldo-emerson/it-is-a-capital-blunder-as-you-discover-when-another-man-recites-his/)

[Ralph Waldo Emerson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ralph-waldo-emerson/)

> [In placing civil disobedience before constructive work I was wrong and I did not profit by the Himalayan blunder that I had committed.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/mahatma-gandhi/in-placing-civil-disobedience-before-constructive-work-i-was-wrong/)

[Mahatma Gandhi](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/mahatma-gandhi/)

> [I wonder why it is that when I plan a route too carefully, it goes to pieces, whereas if I blunder along in blissful…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/john-steinbeck/i-wonder-why-it-is-that-when-i-plan-a-route-too-carefully-it-goes-to/)

[John Steinbeck](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/john-steinbeck/)

> [One man may hit the mark, another blunder; but heed not these distinctions. Only from the alliance of the one, working with and through…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/antoine-de-saint-exup-ry/one-man-may-hit-the-mark-another-blunder-but-heed-not-these/)

[Antoine de Saint-Exupery](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/antoine-de-saint-exup-ry/)

> [The capacity to blunder slightly is the real marvel of DNA. Without this special attribute, we would still be anaerobic bacteria and there would…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/lewis-thomas/the-capacity-to-blunder-slightly-is-the-real-marvel-of-dna-without/)

[Lewis Thomas](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/lewis-thomas/)

> [ It is worse that a crime, it is a blunder. \[Fr., C'est plus qu'un crime, c'est une faute.\] ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/joseph-fouche/it-is-worse-that-a-crime-it-is-a-blunder-fr-c-est-plus-qu-un-crime-c/)

Joseph Fouche

> [Christ, how did you ever get this screwed up! his mind demanded of him. He knew the answer, but even that was not a…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/tom-clancy/christ-how-did-you-ever-get-this-screwed-up-his-mind-demanded-of-him/)

[Tom Clancy](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/tom-clancy/)

> [It is worse than a crime, it is a blunder.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/comte-boulay-de-la-meurthe-antoine-jacques-claude-joseph/it-is-worse-than-a-crime-it-is-a-blunder/)

comte Boulay de la Meurthe Antoine Jacques Claude Joseph

> [Brooding over blunders is the biggest blunder](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/muhammad-ali/brooding-over-blunders-is-the-biggest-blunder/)

[Muhammad Ali](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/muhammad-ali/)

> [George theThird Ought never to have occurred. One can only wonder At so grotesque a blunder.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/e-c-bentley/george-thethird-ought-never-to-have-occurred-one-can-only-wonder-at/)

[E. C. Bentley](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/e-c-bentley/)

> [Nature proceeds by blunders; that is its way. It is also ours. So if we have blundered by regarding consciousness as a blunder, why…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/thomas-ligotti/nature-proceeds-by-blunders-that-is-its-way-it-is-also-ours-so-if-we/)

[Thomas Ligotti](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/thomas-ligotti/)

> [ Your printers have made but one blunder,Correct it instanter, and then for the thunder!We'll see in a jiffy if this Mr S\[pencer\]Has the ghost… ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anonymous/your-printers-have-made-but-one-blunder-correct-it-instanter-and-then/)

[Anonymous](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anonymous/)

> [No destiny attacks us from outside. But, within him, man bears his fate and there comes a moment when he knows himself vulnerable; and…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/antoine-de-saint-exup-ry/no-destiny-attacks-us-from-outside-but-within-him-man-bears-his-fate/)

[Antoine de Saint-Exupery](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/antoine-de-saint-exup-ry/)

## More by W. Somerset Maugham

> [“A man thinks it quite natural that he should fall out of love with a woman, but it never strikes him for a moment…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/w-somerset-maugham/a-man-thinks-it-quite-natural-that-he-should-fall-out-of-love-with-a/)

[W. Somerset Maugham](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/w-somerset-maugham/)

> [“A man's work reveals him. In social intercourse he gives you the surface that he wishes the world to accept, but in his book…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/w-somerset-maugham/a-man-s-work-reveals-him-in-social-intercourse-he-gives-you-the/)

[W. Somerset Maugham](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/w-somerset-maugham/)

> [Love is only a dirty trick played on us to achieve continuation of the species.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/w-somerset-maugham/love-is-only-a-dirty-trick-played-on-us-to-achieve-continuation-of/)

[W. Somerset Maugham](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/w-somerset-maugham/)

> [The world is hard and cruel. We are here none knows why, and we go none knows whither. We must be very humble. We…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/w-somerset-maugham/the-world-is-hard-and-cruel-we-are-here-none-knows-why-and-we-go-none/)

[W. Somerset Maugham](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/w-somerset-maugham/)

> [“There is no more merit in having read a thousand books than in having ploughed a thousand fields.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/w-somerset-maugham/there-is-no-more-merit-in-having-read-a-thousand-books-than-in-having/)

[W. Somerset Maugham](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/w-somerset-maugham/)

> [“I wanted to live again and again. I was willing to accept every sort of life, no matter what its pain and sorrow; I…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/w-somerset-maugham/i-wanted-to-live-again-and-again-i-was-willing-to-accept-every-sort/)

[W. Somerset Maugham](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/w-somerset-maugham/)

> [In Hollywood, the women are all peaches. It makes one long for an apple occasionally.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/w-somerset-maugham/in-hollywood-the-women-are-all-peaches-it-makes-one-long-for-an-apple/)

[W. Somerset Maugham](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/w-somerset-maugham/)

> [Follow your inclinations with due regard to the policeman round the corner.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/w-somerset-maugham/follow-your-inclinations-with-due-regard-to-the-policeman-round-the/)

[W. Somerset Maugham](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/w-somerset-maugham/)

> [“His love became a prison from which he longed to escape, but he had not the strength merely to open the door-that was all…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/w-somerset-maugham/his-love-became-a-prison-from-which-he-longed-to-escape-but-he-had/)

[W. Somerset Maugham](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/w-somerset-maugham/)

> [I did not believe him capable of love. That is an emotion in which tenderness is an essential part, but Strickland had no tenderness…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/w-somerset-maugham/i-did-not-believe-him-capable-of-love-that-is-an-emotion-in-which/)

[W. Somerset Maugham](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/w-somerset-maugham/)

> [If only the good were a little less heavy-footed](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/w-somerset-maugham/if-only-the-good-were-a-little-less-heavy-footed/)

[W. Somerset Maugham](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/w-somerset-maugham/)

> [Perfection has one grave defect: it is apt to be dull.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/w-somerset-maugham/perfection-has-one-grave-defect-it-is-apt-to-be-dull/)

[W. Somerset Maugham](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/w-somerset-maugham/)

> [“A God that can be understood is no God. Who can explain the Infinite in words?”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/w-somerset-maugham/a-god-that-can-be-understood-is-no-god-who-can-explain-the-infinite/)

[W. Somerset Maugham](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/w-somerset-maugham/)

> [“My dear, you used to be quite a dish; now you're quite a tureen.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/w-somerset-maugham/my-dear-you-used-to-be-quite-a-dish-now-you-re-quite-a-tureen/)

[W. Somerset Maugham](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/w-somerset-maugham/)

> [“When people say they do not care what others thing of them, for the most part they deceive themselves”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/w-somerset-maugham/when-people-say-they-do-not-care-what-others-thing-of-them-for-the/)

[W. Somerset Maugham](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/w-somerset-maugham/)

[Explore all 840 W. Somerset Maugham quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/w-somerset-maugham/)

## More Blunder quotes

> [Operation Bluestar was a mischievous blunder, and it should not have been done.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/subramanian-swamy/operation-bluestar-was-a-mischievous-blunder-and-it-should-not-have/)

[Subramanian Swamy](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/subramanian-swamy/)

> [We must not judge God from this world. It's just a study that didn't come off. It's only a master who could make such…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/vincent-van-gogh/we-must-not-judge-god-from-this-world-it-s-just-a-study-that-didn-t/)

[Vincent Van Gogh](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/vincent-van-gogh/)

> [ Your printers have made but one blunder,Correct it instanter, and then for the thunder!We'll see in a jiffy if this Mr S\[pencer\]Has the ghost… ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anonymous/your-printers-have-made-but-one-blunder-correct-it-instanter-and-then/)

[Anonymous](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anonymous/)

> [Nature proceeds by blunders; that is its way. It is also ours. So if we have blundered by regarding consciousness as a blunder, why…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/thomas-ligotti/nature-proceeds-by-blunders-that-is-its-way-it-is-also-ours-so-if-we/)

[Thomas Ligotti](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/thomas-ligotti/)

> [George theThird Ought never to have occurred. One can only wonder At so grotesque a blunder.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/e-c-bentley/george-thethird-ought-never-to-have-occurred-one-can-only-wonder-at/)

[E. C. Bentley](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/e-c-bentley/)

> [“I became so besotted by sapiosexual people that I forgot to focus on their character, which indeed was the biggest blunder of my life.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/shivam-chaudhary/i-became-so-besotted-by-sapiosexual-people-that-i-forgot-to-focus-on/)

[Shivam Chaudhary](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/shivam-chaudhary/)

> [It seems obvious that if a species has the brainpower for speech, along with the sort of appendages that can manipulate a pair of…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/seth-shostak/it-seems-obvious-that-if-a-species-has-the-brainpower-for-speech/)

[Seth Shostak](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/seth-shostak/)

> [Brooding over blunders is the biggest blunder](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/muhammad-ali/brooding-over-blunders-is-the-biggest-blunder/)

[Muhammad Ali](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/muhammad-ali/)

> [“His greatest weakness was a tendency to lose confidence when he made a blunder; if he let in one goal he became flustered and…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/j-k-rowling/his-greatest-weakness-was-a-tendency-to-lose-confidence-when-he-made/)

[J.K. Rowling](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/j-k-rowling/)

> [It is worse than a crime, it is a blunder.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/comte-boulay-de-la-meurthe-antoine-jacques-claude-joseph/it-is-worse-than-a-crime-it-is-a-blunder/)

comte Boulay de la Meurthe Antoine Jacques Claude Joseph

> [Every blunder behind us is giving a cheer for us, and only for those who were willing to fail are the dangers and splendors…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/carl-sandburg/every-blunder-behind-us-is-giving-a-cheer-for-us-and-only-for-those/)

[Carl Sandburg](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/carl-sandburg/)

> [Christ, how did you ever get this screwed up! his mind demanded of him. He knew the answer, but even that was not a…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/tom-clancy/christ-how-did-you-ever-get-this-screwed-up-his-mind-demanded-of-him/)

[Tom Clancy](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/tom-clancy/)

> [“I did not know what to say to him. I felt awkward and blundering. I did not know how I could reach him, where…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/antoine-de-saint-exup-ry/i-did-not-know-what-to-say-to-him-i-felt-awkward-and-blundering-i-did/)

[Antoine de Saint-Exupéry](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/antoine-de-saint-exup-ry/)

> [ It is worse that a crime, it is a blunder. \[Fr., C'est plus qu'un crime, c'est une faute.\] ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/joseph-fouche/it-is-worse-that-a-crime-it-is-a-blunder-fr-c-est-plus-qu-un-crime-c/)

Joseph Fouche

> [The capacity to blunder slightly is the real marvel of DNA. Without this special attribute, we would still be anaerobic bacteria and there would…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/lewis-thomas/the-capacity-to-blunder-slightly-is-the-real-marvel-of-dna-without/)

[Lewis Thomas](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/lewis-thomas/)

[Browse all 72 Blunder quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/blunder/)

```json
{
    "@context": "https://schema.org",
    "@graph": [
        {
            "@type": "Quotation",
            "text": "It was like making a blunder at a party; there was nothing to do about it, it was dreadfully mortifying, but it showed a lack of sense to ascribe too much importance to it.",
            "creator": {
                "@type": "Person",
                "name": "W. Somerset Maugham"
            },
            "isPartOf": {
                "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/#website"
            },
            "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/w-somerset-maugham/it-was-like-making-a-blunder-at-a-party-there-was-nothing-to-do-about/",
            "about": {
                "@type": "Thing",
                "name": "Blunder"
            },
            "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/w-somerset-maugham/it-was-like-making-a-blunder-at-a-party-there-was-nothing-to-do-about/#quotation",
            "image": {
                "@type": "ImageObject",
                "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/2f0/w-somerset-maugham-237_blunders_it-was-like-making-a-blunder-at-a-party_976443.jpg",
                "contentUrl": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/2f0/w-somerset-maugham-237_blunders_it-was-like-making-a-blunder-at-a-party_976443.jpg",
                "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/2f0/w-somerset-maugham-237_blunders_it-was-like-making-a-blunder-at-a-party_976443.jpg",
                "width": 1080,
                "height": 1080,
                "caption": "“It was like making a blunder at a party; there was nothing to do about it, it was dreadfully mortifying, but…” — W. Somerset Maugham",
                "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": "W. Somerset Maugham",
                    "item": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/w-somerset-maugham/"
                },
                {
                    "@type": "ListItem",
                    "position": 4,
                    "name": "It was like making a blunder...",
                    "item": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/w-somerset-maugham/it-was-like-making-a-blunder-at-a-party-there-was-nothing-to-do-about/"
                }
            ],
            "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/w-somerset-maugham/it-was-like-making-a-blunder-at-a-party-there-was-nothing-to-do-about/#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
            }
        }
    ]
}
```
