--- title: "Meaning & Key Takeaway of: If success is rare and slow, everybody…" description: "\"If success is rare and slow, everybody knows how quick and easy ruin is.\" — William Makepeace Thackeray" image: "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/04a/william-makepeace-thackeray-74_easy_if-success-is-rare-and-slow-everybody-kn_385709.jpg" --- # If success is rare and slow, everybody knows how quick and… ![“If success is rare and slow, everybody knows how quick and easy ruin is.” quote by William Makepeace Thackeray](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/04a/william-makepeace-thackeray-74_easy_if-success-is-rare-and-slow-everybody-kn_385709.jpg) [Download](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/04a/william-makepeace-thackeray-74_easy_if-success-is-rare-and-slow-everybody-kn_385709.jpg) [Open image](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/04a/william-makepeace-thackeray-74_easy_if-success-is-rare-and-slow-everybody-kn_385709.jpg) > “If success is rare and slow, everybody knows how quick and easy ruin is.” [William Makepeace Thackeray](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/william-makepeace-thackeray/) ## About This Quote This interpretation was drafted with AI assistance. It is one reading of the quote, not the author's own explanation. Success is scarce and gradual, while failure spreads quickly and easily, highlighting human tendency to notice downfall more than achievement. **In simple terms:** Success is slow; ruin is fast. Key Takeaway Guard against complacency in success. Themes success failure human nature Mood reflective cautionary Type literary philosophical When to use this quote - finance - career - personal growth Key Concepts cognitive bias risk perception Questions to Reflect On - Why do we focus on failures? - How can we celebrate slow progress? A Different Perspective May neglect resilience factors. ★ ★ ★ ★ ★ No ratings yet [Easy](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/easy/) [Easy Ruin](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/easy-ruin-2703504/) [Everybody Knows](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/everybody-knows/) [Ifs](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/ifs/) [Know how](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/know-how/) [Knows](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/knows/) [Knows Quick](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/knows-quick-3489246/) [Ruins](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/ruins/) [Slow Everybody](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/slow-everybody-3489247/) [Success](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/success/) [Success Rare](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/success-rare-572554/) ## Related quotes > [It is difficult to make our material condition better by the best law, but it is easy enough to ruin it by bad laws.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/theodore-roosevelt/it-is-difficult-to-make-our-material-condition-better-by-the-best-law/) [Theodore Roosevelt](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/theodore-roosevelt/) > [I'm slow by everybody's standards. 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Paul Getty](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/j-paul-getty/) [Browse all 14,306 Easy quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/easy/) ```json { "@context": "https://schema.org", "@graph": [ { "@type": "Quotation", "text": "If success is rare and slow, everybody knows how quick and easy ruin is.", "creator": { "@type": "Person", "name": "William Makepeace Thackeray" }, "isPartOf": { "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/#website" }, "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/william-makepeace-thackeray/if-success-is-rare-and-slow-everybody-knows-how-quick-and-easy-ruin-is/", "about": { "@type": "Thing", "name": "Easy" }, "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/william-makepeace-thackeray/if-success-is-rare-and-slow-everybody-knows-how-quick-and-easy-ruin-is/#quotation", "image": { "@type": "ImageObject", "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/04a/william-makepeace-thackeray-74_easy_if-success-is-rare-and-slow-everybody-kn_385709.jpg", "contentUrl": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/04a/william-makepeace-thackeray-74_easy_if-success-is-rare-and-slow-everybody-kn_385709.jpg", "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/04a/william-makepeace-thackeray-74_easy_if-success-is-rare-and-slow-everybody-kn_385709.jpg", "width": 1080, "height": 1080, "caption": "“If success is rare and slow, everybody knows how quick and easy ruin is.” — William Makepeace Thackeray", "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": "William Makepeace Thackeray", "item": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/william-makepeace-thackeray/" }, { "@type": "ListItem", "position": 4, "name": "If success is rare and slow,...", "item": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/william-makepeace-thackeray/if-success-is-rare-and-slow-everybody-knows-how-quick-and-easy-ruin-is/" } ], "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/william-makepeace-thackeray/if-success-is-rare-and-slow-everybody-knows-how-quick-and-easy-ruin-is/#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 } } ] } ```