--- title: "Meaning & Key Takeaway of: That's all a man can hope for during his…" description: "\"That's all a man can hope for during his lifetime - to set an example - and when he is dead, to be an inspiration for history.\" — William McKinley" image: "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/a9e/william-mckinley-15533_example_that-s-all-a-man-can-hope-for-during-his_3098642.jpg" --- # That's all a man can hope for during his lifetime - to set… ![“That's all a man can hope for during his lifetime - to set an example - and when he is dead, to be an inspiration for history.” quote by William McKinley](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/a9e/william-mckinley-15533_example_that-s-all-a-man-can-hope-for-during-his_3098642.jpg) [Download](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/a9e/william-mckinley-15533_example_that-s-all-a-man-can-hope-for-during-his_3098642.jpg) [Open image](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/a9e/william-mckinley-15533_example_that-s-all-a-man-can-hope-for-during-his_3098642.jpg) > “That's all a man can hope for during his lifetime - to set an example - and when he is dead, to be an inspiration for history.” [William McKinley](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/william-mckinley/) ## About This Quote This interpretation was drafted with AI assistance. It is one reading of the quote, not the author's own explanation. A man's legacy is measured by the example he sets and the inspiration he leaves after death. **In simple terms:** Live to inspire others. Key Takeaway Focus on actions that outlive you. Themes legacy inspiration responsibility Mood hopeful determined Type motivational historical When to use this quote - career - public service - family life - community leadership Key Concepts role model historical impact Questions to Reflect On - What example do you want to set? - How will you inspire future generations? A Different Perspective Not everyone seeks lasting fame; some value quiet impact. ★ ★ ★ ★ ★ No ratings yet [History](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/history/) [Inspiration](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/inspiration/) [Lifetime](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/lifetime/) ## Related quotes > [“You gave me strengh gave me hope for a lifetime.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/nicki-minaj/you-gave-me-strengh-gave-me-hope-for-a-lifetime/) [Nicki Minaj](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/nicki-minaj/) > [Reincarnation is the journey of hope because in each lifetime we move forward to place a better than our last lifetime, a place within…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/frederick-lenz/reincarnation-is-the-journey-of-hope-because-in-each-lifetime-we-move/) [Frederick Lenz](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/frederick-lenz/) > [I hope in my lifetime we will get to see an Indian superhero for sure.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/karan-soni/i-hope-in-my-lifetime-we-will-get-to-see-an-indian-superhero-for-sure/) [Karan Soni](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/karan-soni/) > [I hope in my lifetime we can all continue to laugh at ourselves and not put down anyone for what they weigh.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/richard-simmons/i-hope-in-my-lifetime-we-can-all-continue-to-laugh-at-ourselves-and/) [Richard Simmons](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/richard-simmons/) > [The things a man has to have are hope and confidence in himself against odds... And he must be ready to choose death before…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/clark-gable/the-things-a-man-has-to-have-are-hope-and-confidence-in-himself-2/) [Clark Gable](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/clark-gable/) > [Ah! If man would but see that hope is from within and not from without - that he himself must work out his own…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/h-rider-haggard/ah-if-man-would-but-see-that-hope-is-from-within-and-not-from-without/) [H. Rider Haggard](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/h-rider-haggard/) > [“Whether you believe or disbelieve, it is a wicked thing to take away Man's hope.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/winston-churchill/whether-you-believe-or-disbelieve-it-is-a-wicked-thing-to-take-away/) [Winston Churchill](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/winston-churchill/) > [“Focus on miracles or breakthrough makes a man to hope that he could reap where he has not sown.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/sunday-adelaja/focus-on-miracles-or-breakthrough-makes-a-man-to-hope-that-he-could/) [Sunday Adelaja](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/sunday-adelaja/) > [“You're my hope for the future and my call to be a better man and I do hope one day you'll be my wife.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/noelle-adams/you-re-my-hope-for-the-future-and-my-call-to-be-a-better-man-and-i-do/) [Noelle Adams](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/noelle-adams/) > [A man without hope is a man without fear.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/frank-miller/a-man-without-hope-is-a-man-without-fear/) [Frank Miller](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/frank-miller/) > [“That's how life is; we grow, we learn, and sometimes we change. And in every man, there is hope.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/kathryn-le-veque/that-s-how-life-is-we-grow-we-learn-and-sometimes-we-change-and-in/) [Kathryn Le Veque](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/kathryn-le-veque/) > [Man's hope can paint a purple picture, can transform a soaring vulture into a noble eagle or moaning dove.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ralph-ellison/man-s-hope-can-paint-a-purple-picture-can-transform-a-soaring-vulture/) [Ralph Ellison](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ralph-ellison/) > [If man has been kicked up out of that which is only impersonal by chance , then those things that make him man-hope of…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/francis-schaeffer/if-man-has-been-kicked-up-out-of-that-which-is-only-impersonal-by/) [Francis Schaeffer](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/francis-schaeffer/) > [A man can never hope to be more than he is if he is not first honest about what he isnt.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anonymous/a-man-can-never-hope-to-be-more-than-he-is-if-he-is-not-first-honest/) [Anonymous](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anonymous/) > [There lurks, perhaps, in every human heart a desire of distinction, which inclines every man first to hope, and then to believe, that Nature…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/samuel-johnson/there-lurks-perhaps-in-every-human-heart-a-desire-of-distinction/) [Samuel Johnson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/samuel-johnson/) ## More by William McKinley > [Without competition we would be clinging to the clumsy antiquated processes of farming and manufacture and the methods of business of long ago, and…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/william-mckinley/without-competition-we-would-be-clinging-to-the-clumsy-antiquated/) [William McKinley](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/william-mckinley/) > [Finally it should be the earnest wish and paramount aim of the military administration to win the confidence, respect, and affection of the inhabitants…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/william-mckinley/finally-it-should-be-the-earnest-wish-and-paramount-aim-of-the/) [William McKinley](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/william-mckinley/) > [“We cannot always do what is best, but we can do what is practical at the time.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/william-mckinley/we-cannot-always-do-what-is-best-but-we-can-do-what-is-practical-at/) [William McKinley](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/william-mckinley/) > [I do not prize the word cheap. It is not a word of inspiration. It is the badge of poverty, the signal of distress.…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/william-mckinley/i-do-not-prize-the-word-cheap-it-is-not-a-word-of-inspiration-it-is/) [William McKinley](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/william-mckinley/) > [I have never been in doubt since I was old enough to think intelligently that I would someday be made President.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/william-mckinley/i-have-never-been-in-doubt-since-i-was-old-enough-to-think/) [William McKinley](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/william-mckinley/) > [The people of this country want an industrial policy that is for America and Americans.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/william-mckinley/the-people-of-this-country-want-an-industrial-policy-that-is-for/) [William McKinley](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/william-mckinley/) > [I went down on my knees and prayed to Almighty God for light and guidance and one night late it came to me this…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/william-mckinley/i-went-down-on-my-knees-and-prayed-to-almighty-god-for-light-and/) [William McKinley](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/william-mckinley/) > [Half-heartedness never won a battle.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/william-mckinley/half-heartedness-never-won-a-battle/) [William McKinley](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/william-mckinley/) > [Illiteracy must be banished from the land if we shall attain that high destiny as the foremost of the enlightened nations of the world…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/william-mckinley/illiteracy-must-be-banished-from-the-land-if-we-shall-attain-that/) [William McKinley](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/william-mckinley/) > [Our past has gone into history.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/william-mckinley/our-past-has-gone-into-history/) [William McKinley](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/william-mckinley/) > [The free man cannot be long an ignorant man.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/william-mckinley/the-free-man-cannot-be-long-an-ignorant-man/) [William McKinley](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/william-mckinley/) > [We cannot gamble with anything so sacred as money.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/william-mckinley/we-cannot-gamble-with-anything-so-sacred-as-money/) [William McKinley](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/william-mckinley/) > [Expositions are the timekeepers of progress.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/william-mckinley/expositions-are-the-timekeepers-of-progress/) [William McKinley](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/william-mckinley/) > [In the time of darkest defeat, victory may be nearest.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/william-mckinley/in-the-time-of-darkest-defeat-victory-may-be-nearest/) [William McKinley](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/william-mckinley/) > [The more profoundly we study this wonderful Book, and the more closely we observe its divine precepts, the better citizens we will become and…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/william-mckinley/the-more-profoundly-we-study-this-wonderful-book-and-the-more-closely/) [William McKinley](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/william-mckinley/) [Explore all 43 William McKinley quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/william-mckinley/) ## More Example quotes > [I love playing for my country, getting the support. Especially for the kids and everybody, showing my example of what I can achieve so…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/maria-sharapova/i-love-playing-for-my-country-getting-the-support-especially-for-the/) [Maria Sharapova](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/maria-sharapova/) > [It's like the query letter problem that I just mentioned, magnified a hundredfold. You might be good at telling a story, but that doesn't…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/patrick-rothfuss/it-s-like-the-query-letter-problem-that-i-just-mentioned-magnified-a/) [Patrick Rothfuss](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/patrick-rothfuss/) > [I think leading by example is important, as I know the next generation is watching us.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/michael-skolnik/i-think-leading-by-example-is-important-as-i-know-the-next-generation/) [Michael Skolnik](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/michael-skolnik/) > [Can you imagine any better example of divine creative accomplishment that the consummate flying machine that is a bird? The skeleton, very flexible and…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/guy-murchie/can-you-imagine-any-better-example-of-divine-creative-accomplishment/) [Guy Murchie](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/guy-murchie/) > [Men trust rather to their eyes than to their ears; the effect of precepts is therefore slow and tedious, whilst that of examples is…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/seneca-the-younger/men-trust-rather-to-their-eyes-than-to-their-ears-the-effect-of/) [Seneca the Younger](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/seneca-the-younger/) > [Popular culture as a whole is popular, but in today's fragmented market it's a jostle of competing unpopular popular cultures. As the critic Stanley…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/mark-steyn/popular-culture-as-a-whole-is-popular-but-in-today-s-fragmented/) [Mark Steyn](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/mark-steyn/) > [You can have examples of reasons to hate people, but if you analyze those reasons it's like, Oh, I'm hating that person based on…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/charlyne-yi/you-can-have-examples-of-reasons-to-hate-people-but-if-you-analyze/) [Charlyne Yi](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/charlyne-yi/) > [The protestant world is in great need of examples (like these) that will beckon us to the fullness of God.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/mike-bickle/the-protestant-world-is-in-great-need-of-examples-like-these-that/) [Mike Bickle](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/mike-bickle/) > [If it comes to a question of law, the charges they brought against me - the Espionage Act - is called the quintessential political…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/edward-snowden/if-it-comes-to-a-question-of-law-the-charges-they-brought-against-me/) [Edward Snowden](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/edward-snowden/) > [I'm not the most vocal guy, but I try to lead by example every single day with how I work.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/brandon-ingram/i-m-not-the-most-vocal-guy-but-i-try-to-lead-by-example-every-single/) [Brandon Ingram](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/brandon-ingram/) > [But actually theory is very practical. Gravity is a theory, for example. It allows you to predict that if you step off a cliff…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/clayton-christensen/but-actually-theory-is-very-practical-gravity-is-a-theory-for-example/) [Clayton Christensen](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/clayton-christensen/) > [I had the best example set by my parents for what a couple can - and, in my opinion, should - be.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/brett-young/i-had-the-best-example-set-by-my-parents-for-what-a-couple-can-and-in/) [Brett Young](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/brett-young/) > [Once an activity has been socialized, it is impossible to point out, by concrete example, how men in a free market could better conduct…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/leonard-read/once-an-activity-has-been-socialized-it-is-impossible-to-point-out-by/) [Leonard Read](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/leonard-read/) > [I don't join the New Atheists. So, for example, I wouldn't have the arrogance to lecture some mother who hopes to see her dying…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/noam-chomsky/i-don-t-join-the-new-atheists-so-for-example-i-wouldn-t-have-the/) [Noam Chomsky](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/noam-chomsky/) > [America's freedom is the example to which the world expires.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/george-h-w-bush/america-s-freedom-is-the-example-to-which-the-world-expires/) [George H. W. Bush](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/george-h-w-bush/) Browse all 5,618 Example quotes ```json { "@context": "https://schema.org", "@graph": [ { "@type": "Quotation", "text": "That's all a man can hope for during his lifetime - to set an example - and when he is dead, to be an inspiration for history.", "creator": { "@type": "Person", "name": "William McKinley" }, "isPartOf": { "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/#website" }, "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/william-mckinley/that-s-all-a-man-can-hope-for-during-his-lifetime-to-set-an-example/", "about": { "@type": "Thing", "name": "Example" }, "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/william-mckinley/that-s-all-a-man-can-hope-for-during-his-lifetime-to-set-an-example/#quotation", "image": { "@type": "ImageObject", "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/a9e/william-mckinley-15533_example_that-s-all-a-man-can-hope-for-during-his_3098642.jpg", "contentUrl": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/a9e/william-mckinley-15533_example_that-s-all-a-man-can-hope-for-during-his_3098642.jpg", "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/a9e/william-mckinley-15533_example_that-s-all-a-man-can-hope-for-during-his_3098642.jpg", "width": 1080, "height": 1080, "caption": "“That's all a man can hope for during his lifetime - to set an example - and when he is dead, to be an…” — William McKinley", "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 McKinley", "item": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/william-mckinley/" }, { "@type": "ListItem", "position": 4, "name": "That's all a man can hope...", "item": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/william-mckinley/that-s-all-a-man-can-hope-for-during-his-lifetime-to-set-an-example/" } ], "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/william-mckinley/that-s-all-a-man-can-hope-for-during-his-lifetime-to-set-an-example/#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 } } ] } ```