Quote of the Day by Oliver Goldsmith: 'Success consists of getting up just one more time than you fall'

Oliver Goldsmith's quote is a powerful reminder that success is not about never failing. It is about refusing to stay down after failure.

Livemint
Published7 Jun 2026, 10:51 PM IST
Oliver Goldsmith after Sir Joshua Reynolds © National Portrait Gallery, London
Oliver Goldsmith after Sir Joshua Reynolds © National Portrait Gallery, London(Poetry Foundation)

Today, the Quote of the Day is by Irish poet and novelist Oliver Goldsmith: "Success consists of getting up just one more time than you fall". His quote is a powerful reminder that success is not about never failing. It is about refusing to stay down after failure.

Meaning of the Quote

Success consists of getting up just one more time than you fall - Oliver Goldsmith

Oliver Goldsmith's quote suggests that every person experiences setbacks, mistakes, disappointments, and failures. What separates successful people from others is not superior talent, luck, or intelligence alone — it's their ability to keep trying after being knocked down.

It highlights the importance of resilience — the ability to recover from difficulties and persist toward a goal. Psychologically, it reflects a growth mindset, where failures are seen as opportunities to learn rather than reasons to quit. Each setback provides valuable lessons that can improve future efforts.

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In today's fast-paced world, where social media often glorifies only achievements and success stories, it is easy to feel discouraged by failure. But remember, behind every successful individual are countless struggles, rejections, and moments of doubt. Their success comes not from never falling, but from refusing to stay down.

We can apply this lesson in our careers, studies, relationships, and personal goals. A failed interview, a business setback, or a missed target does not define us. What matters is our decision to try again with greater knowledge and determination.

Ultimately, the quote reminds us that success is often the result of persistence. The person who rises one more time than they fall is the one who eventually reaches their destination.

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Who was Oliver Goldsmith?

Oliver Goldsmith was an essayist, novelist, poet, and playwright. Born in 1730, in Kilkenny West, County Westmeath, Ireland, Oliver Goldsmith graduated from Trinity College, Dublin, and studied medicine in Edinburgh but never received a medical degree.

According to Poetry Foundation, he traveled to Europe in 1756 and eventually settled in London. He worked as a writer and was friends with the artistic and literary luminaries of the time, including Samuel Johnson, James Boswell, Sir Joshua Reynolds, and Edmund Burke.

Also Read | Walter Wriston quote highlights value of learning from mistakes

Goldsmith is author of the essay collection The Citizen of the World (1762), the novel The Vicar of Wakefield (1766), the plays The Good Natur’d Man (1768) and She Stoops to Conquer (1773), and the poetry collections Traveller, or, a Prospect of Society (1764), An Elegy on the Death of a Mad Dog (1766), and The Deserted Village: A Poem (1770).

About the Author

For about a decade, Livemint—News Desk has been a credible source for authentic and timely news, and well-researched analysis on national news, business, personal finance, corporates, politics and geopolitics. We bring the latest updates on all the listed companies on BSE and NSE, startups, mutual funds, Union ministries, geopolitics, and untapped human interest stories from around the world, helping our readers to stay informed on the latest developments around the globe. Our Coverage Areas 1. Companies: Comprehensive news and analysis on listed and unlisted companies, corporate announcements, corporate chatter, C-suite, business trends, hiring alerts, layoffs, work-life balance, world's top billionaires and richest and more. 2. Personal finance: Insights into mutual funds, small savings schemes like - PPF, SSY, post office savings scheme, stock to watch, personal loans, credit cards, top bank FDs, real estate, income tax and more. 3. Politics: Comprehensive coverage of general elections, state elections and bypolls, Lok Sabha, Vidhan Sabha, Parliament, PMO, PIB, finance ministry, home ministry, among other union ministries and government departments. 4. National News: From metro cities like Delhi, Mumbai, and e to untapped stories from rural India, we cover human interest, health, education, crime and courts, and law and order, among other areas of public interest. 5. Economy: In-depth analysis of India's macro and micro-economic indicators like- GDP, inflation, forex, fiscal deficit, current account deficit, interest rate cycle, economic recovery, RBI circulars, indirect taxes, GST, Insolvency and Bankruptcy imports, exports and everything that impacts Indian economy. 6. Geopolitics: Well-rounded and deeply researched coverage on US News, Oval Office European Union, Ukraine Russia War, middle-east crisis, royal families and global leaders like - Donald Trump, Vladimir Putin, Kim Jong Un, Xi Jinping and premiers of other leading economies in the world. Meet the Team 1. Gulam Jeelani, Political Affairs Editor 2. Sugam Singhal, Senior Assistant Editor 3. Chanchal, Assistant Editor 4. Sanchari Ghosh, Chief Content Producer 5. Pratik Prashant Mukane, Chief Content Producer 6. Sayantani Biswas, Chief Content Producer 7. Ravi Hari, Deputy Chief Content Producer 8. Garvit Bhirani, Deputy Chief Content Producer 9. Akriti Anand, Senior Content Producer 10. Jocelyn Felix Fernandes, Senior Content Producer 11. Swastika Das Sharma, Content Producer 12. Mausam Jha, Content Producer 13. Riya R Alex, Trainee Content Producer

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