--- title: "Meaning & Key Takeaway of: Perhaps the biggest obstacle is an…" description: "\"“Perhaps the biggest obstacle is an internal resistance or no to life as it is: we regret the past, worry about the future, and reject our present circ..." image: "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/fed/william-ury-16849_adversity_perhaps-the-biggest-obstacle-is-an-inter_2356697.jpg" --- # Perhaps the biggest obstacle is an internal resistance or… ![“Perhaps the biggest obstacle is an internal resistance or no to life as it is: we regret the past, worry about the future, and reject our present circumstances. The key to staying in the zone is to let go of this internal resistance and accept the past, trust the future, and embrace the present…” quote by William Ury](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/fed/william-ury-16849_adversity_perhaps-the-biggest-obstacle-is-an-inter_2356697.jpg) [Download](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/fed/william-ury-16849_adversity_perhaps-the-biggest-obstacle-is-an-inter_2356697.jpg) [Open image](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/fed/william-ury-16849_adversity_perhaps-the-biggest-obstacle-is-an-inter_2356697.jpg) > ““Perhaps the biggest obstacle is an internal resistance or no to life as it is: we regret the past, worry about the future, and reject our present circumstances. The key to staying in the zone is to let go of this internal resistance and accept the past, trust the future, and embrace the present, just as they are. The key, in other words, is to say yes to life.”” [William Ury](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/william-ury/) ## About This Quote This interpretation was drafted with AI assistance. It is one reading of the quote, not the author's own explanation. Internal resistance blocks presence; letting go of past and future allows full engagement with life. **In simple terms:** Stop resisting, accept now. Key Takeaway Practice mindfulness and say yes to life. Themes mindfulness acceptance presence growth Mood reflective motivational Type self‑help inspirational When to use this quote - stress management - decision making - personal development Key Concepts psychology self‑help resilience Questions to Reflect On - How can you notice internal resistance? - What small step helps you accept the present? A Different Perspective Resistance can be hard to overcome without support. ★ ★ ★ ★ ★ No ratings yet [Adversity](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/adversity/) [Biggest Obstacle](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/biggest-obstacle-566636/) [Embrace Present](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/embrace-present-1014461/) [Life](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/life/) [Resistance Accept](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/resistance-accept-5757050/) [Resistance Life](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/resistance-life-725202/) [Staying Zone](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/staying-zone-920356/) [Time](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/time/) [Worry About The Future](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/worry-about-the-future/) ## Related quotes > [I guess I'm probably a Method actor; I don't know... I just think of it as staying in the zone.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/michael-keaton/i-guess-i-m-probably-a-method-actor-i-don-t-know-i-just-think-of-it/) [Michael Keaton](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/michael-keaton/) > [Trust is the key that opens all the locks of human resistance to accept, respect and follow.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/tasneem-hameed/trust-is-the-key-that-opens-all-the-locks-of-human-resistance-to/) [Tasneem Hameed](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/tasneem-hameed/) > [“have come to the conclusion that the greatest obstacle to getting what we really want in life is not the other party, as difficult…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/william-ury/have-come-to-the-conclusion-that-the-greatest-obstacle-to-getting/) [William Ury](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/william-ury/) > [“To offer no resistance to life is to be in a state of grace, ease, and lightness. This state is then no longer dependent…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/eckhart-tolle/to-offer-no-resistance-to-life-is-to-be-in-a-state-of-grace-ease-and/) [Eckhart Tolle](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/eckhart-tolle/) > [The path of least resistance and a life of convenience is 'safe' and comfortable, but won't grow or develop you.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/yasmin-mogahed/the-path-of-least-resistance-and-a-life-of-convenience-is-safe-and/) [Yasmin Mogahed](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/yasmin-mogahed/) > [Resistance to your life is lack of trust in the Universe.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anonymous/resistance-to-your-life-is-lack-of-trust-in-the-universe/) [Anonymous](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anonymous/) > [“The way to dissolve our resistance to life is to meet it face-to-face.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/pema-ch-dr-n/the-way-to-dissolve-our-resistance-to-life-is-to-meet-it-face-to-face/) [Pema Chödrön](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/pema-ch-dr-n/) > [To offer no resistance to life is to be in a state of grace, ease, and lightness. This state is then no longer dependent…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/eckhart-tolle/to-offer-no-resistance-to-life-is-to-be-in-a-state-of-grace-ease-and-2/) [Eckhart Tolle](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/eckhart-tolle/) > [My father was up against so many different types of resistance. His whole life was an interplay of East and West. He was born…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/shannon-lee/my-father-was-up-against-so-many-different-types-of-resistance-his/) [Shannon Lee](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/shannon-lee/) > [“The only people who experience no resistance are the unambitious and the dead. If you feel no resistance in your life, you need greater…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/steve-maraboli/the-only-people-who-experience-no-resistance-are-the-unambitious-and/) [Steve Maraboli](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/steve-maraboli/) > [“when you do have enough capital to successfully make a shift toward more control. It’s at this point that you’re most likely to encounter…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/cal-newport/when-you-do-have-enough-capital-to-successfully-make-a-shift-toward/) [Cal Newport](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/cal-newport/) > [“Hell is just resistance to life.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/pema-ch-dr-n/hell-is-just-resistance-to-life/) [Pema Chodron](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/pema-ch-dr-n/) > [“I don't ever want to lose sight of how short my time is here. And I don't ever want to forget that resistance must…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ta-nehisi-coates/i-don-t-ever-want-to-lose-sight-of-how-short-my-time-is-here-and-i/) [Ta-Nehisi Coates](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ta-nehisi-coates/) > [There are moments we will never experience again, people who are no longer in our lives that we will never see again, things we…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/rashida-rowe/there-are-moments-we-will-never-experience-again-people-who-are-no/) [Rashida Rowe](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/rashida-rowe/) > [You can clutch the past so tightly to your chest that it leaves your arms too full to embrace the present.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jan-glidewell/you-can-clutch-the-past-so-tightly-to-your-chest-that-it-leaves-your/) [Jan Glidewell](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jan-glidewell/) ## More by William Ury > [“How can we get what we really want and at the same time deal with the needs of others in our lives? Perhaps no…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/william-ury/how-can-we-get-what-we-really-want-and-at-the-same-time-deal-with-the/) [William Ury](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/william-ury/) > [“Yet, as beneficial as it can be, giving respect is often a difficult concession for people to make. In a problematic situation or relationship,…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/william-ury/yet-as-beneficial-as-it-can-be-giving-respect-is-often-a-difficult/) [William Ury](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/william-ury/) > [“My friend Donna even likes to give humorous names to her reactive emotions such as “Freddy Fear,” “Judge Judy,” and “Anger Annie.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/william-ury/my-friend-donna-even-likes-to-give-humorous-names-to-her-reactive/) [William Ury](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/william-ury/) > [“We can make a strong unconditional commitment to ourselves to take care of our deepest needs, no matter what other people do or don’t…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/william-ury/we-can-make-a-strong-unconditional-commitment-to-ourselves-to-take/) [William Ury](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/william-ury/) > [“have found that this journey from no to yes with myself is not a single trip, but ultimately a lifelong journey. I have been…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/william-ury/have-found-that-this-journey-from-no-to-yes-with-myself-is-not-a/) [William Ury](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/william-ury/) > [“She began the conversation with Tom by acknowledging his work and then focused on the problem at hand, sticking strictly to the facts:”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/william-ury/she-began-the-conversation-with-tom-by-acknowledging-his-work-and/) [William Ury](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/william-ury/) > [“Michel de Montaigne noted four centuries ago: “My life has been full of terrible misfortunes most of which never happened.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/william-ury/michel-de-montaigne-noted-four-centuries-ago-my-life-has-been-full-of/) [William Ury](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/william-ury/) > [“The lesson . . . ,” Gilbert says, “is that our longings and our worries are both to some degree overblown because we have within us the…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/william-ury/the-lesson-gilbert-says-is-that-our-longings-and-our-worries-are-both/) [William Ury](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/william-ury/) > [“The balcony is a metaphor for a mental and emotional place of perspective, calm, and self-control. If life is a stage and we are…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/william-ury/the-balcony-is-a-metaphor-for-a-mental-and-emotional-place-of/) [William Ury](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/william-ury/) > [“George Bernard Shaw once observed: “People become attached to their burdens sometimes more than the burdens are attached to them.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/william-ury/george-bernard-shaw-once-observed-people-become-attached-to-their/) [William Ury](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/william-ury/) > [“He who lives not in time, but in the present, is happy. —LUDWIG VON WITTGENSTEIN”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/william-ury/he-who-lives-not-in-time-but-in-the-present-is-happy-ludwig-von/) [William Ury](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/william-ury/) > [“INTRODUCTION THE FIRST NEGOTIATION Let him who would move the world first move himself. —SOCRATES”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/william-ury/introduction-the-first-negotiation-let-him-who-would-move-the-world/) [William Ury](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/william-ury/) > [“3A trap”: we attack, we accommodate (in other words, give in), or we avoid altogether,”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/william-ury/3a-trap-we-attack-we-accommodate-in-other-words-give-in-or-we-avoid/) [William Ury](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/william-ury/) > [“The bedrock desire then, is a universal one: to be loved and happy. This may seem utterly obvious, but uncovering this universal desire can…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/william-ury/the-bedrock-desire-then-is-a-universal-one-to-be-loved-and-happy-this/) [William Ury](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/william-ury/) > [“How can we get what we truly want while satisfying the needs and concerns of others in our lives—family members, work colleagues, clients, and…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/william-ury/how-can-we-get-what-we-truly-want-while-satisfying-the-needs-and/) [William Ury](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/william-ury/) [Explore all 38 William Ury quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/william-ury/) ## More Adversity quotes > [We love playing together and we love adversity. You know, back-to-back, the two best teams in the East.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/steve-nash/we-love-playing-together-and-we-love-adversity-you-know-back-to-back/) [Steve Nash](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/steve-nash/) > [When we have public success we also have private struggles.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/deion-sanders/when-we-have-public-success-we-also-have-private-struggles/) [Deion Sanders](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/deion-sanders/) > [“The threats that resurfaced in the past 10 years were not an aberration. Al Qaeda and terrorism or one such threat, but it was…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/george-friedman/the-threats-that-resurfaced-in-the-past-10-years-were-not-an/) [George Friedman](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/george-friedman/) > [He who is content with what has been done is an obstacle in the path of progress.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/helen-keller/he-who-is-content-with-what-has-been-done-is-an-obstacle-in-the-path/) [Helen Keller](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/helen-keller/) > [“Friction is necessary. Ease of life leads to complacency and the atrophy of the human will and spirit. Within our struggles lives our strength,…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jason-versey/friction-is-necessary-ease-of-life-leads-to-complacency-and-the/) [Jason Versey](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jason-versey/) > [“Every adversity is just another opportunity to excel a little more.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/michel-templet/every-adversity-is-just-another-opportunity-to-excel-a-little-more/) [Michel Templet](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/michel-templet/) > [“Just because she doesn't talk about it, doesn't mean she isn't feeling it. She hurts, but she won't wear it on her sleeve. She…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/alfa-h/just-because-she-doesn-t-talk-about-it-doesn-t-mean-she-isn-t-feeling/) [Alfa H](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/alfa-h/) > [Every trial endured and weathered in the right spirit makes a soul nobler and stronger than it was before.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/james-buckham-kennedy/every-trial-endured-and-weathered-in-the-right-spirit-makes-a-soul/) [James Buckham Kennedy](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/james-buckham-kennedy/) > [Honesty, by evil fortune tried, Finds in adversity the seed of praise.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ovid/honesty-by-evil-fortune-tried-finds-in-adversity-the-seed-of-praise/) [Ovid](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ovid/) > [“Struggles are not associated to a particular people or creed, everyone struggles, not for the same reasons, but each has a personal struggle at…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/wayne-chirisa/struggles-are-not-associated-to-a-particular-people-or-creed-everyone/) [Wayne Chirisa](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/wayne-chirisa/) > [“Watch a man in times of adversity to discover what kind of man he is; for then at last words of truth are drawn…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/lucretius/watch-a-man-in-times-of-adversity-to-discover-what-kind-of-man-he-is/) [Lucretius](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/lucretius/) > [God often hides His blessing in trouble or trial, which makes it all the sweeter when it comes our way.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/aiden-wilson-tozer/god-often-hides-his-blessing-in-trouble-or-trial-which-makes-it-all/) [Aiden Wilson Tozer](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/aiden-wilson-tozer/) > [“Life is not about less mistakes but about more trials”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/s-e-sever/life-is-not-about-less-mistakes-but-about-more-trials/) [S.E. SEVER](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/s-e-sever/) > [Show your contempt for the problem and your concern for the person.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jim-rohn/show-your-contempt-for-the-problem-and-your-concern-for-the-person/) [Jim Rohn](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jim-rohn/) > [When everything feels like an uphill struggle, just think of the view from the top.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anonymous/when-everything-feels-like-an-uphill-struggle-just-think-of-the-view/) [Anonymous](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anonymous/) [Browse all 5,001 Adversity quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/adversity/) ```json { "@context": "https://schema.org", "@graph": [ { "@type": "Quotation", "text": "“Perhaps the biggest obstacle is an internal resistance or no to life as it is: we regret the past, worry about the future, and reject our present circumstances. The key to staying in the zone is to let go of this internal resistance and accept the past, trust the future, and embrace the present, just as they are. The key, in other words, is to say yes to life.”", "creator": { "@type": "Person", "name": "William Ury" }, "isPartOf": { "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/#website" }, "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/william-ury/perhaps-the-biggest-obstacle-is-an-internal-resistance-or-no-to-life/", "about": { "@type": "Thing", "name": "Adversity" }, "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/william-ury/perhaps-the-biggest-obstacle-is-an-internal-resistance-or-no-to-life/#quotation", "image": { "@type": "ImageObject", "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/fed/william-ury-16849_adversity_perhaps-the-biggest-obstacle-is-an-inter_2356697.jpg", "contentUrl": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/fed/william-ury-16849_adversity_perhaps-the-biggest-obstacle-is-an-inter_2356697.jpg", "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/fed/william-ury-16849_adversity_perhaps-the-biggest-obstacle-is-an-inter_2356697.jpg", "width": 1080, "height": 1080, "caption": "“Perhaps the biggest obstacle is an internal resistance or no to life as it is: we regret the past, worry…” — William Ury", "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 Ury", "item": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/william-ury/" }, { "@type": "ListItem", "position": 4, "name": "“Perhaps the biggest obstacle is an...", "item": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/william-ury/perhaps-the-biggest-obstacle-is-an-internal-resistance-or-no-to-life/" } ], "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/william-ury/perhaps-the-biggest-obstacle-is-an-internal-resistance-or-no-to-life/#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 } } ] } ```