“It's a very funny thing about life; if you refuse to accept anything but the best, you very often get it.”
What this quote means
This reflection by W. Somerset Maugham (often misattributed) captures life's irony: by demanding the best, we often get it. This doesn't mean everything is owed to us, but that our inner standard pushes us to create favorable conditions. By refusing mediocre compromises, we attract or build quality opportunities. This attitude drives growth, but it also requires discernment to avoid rigidity. It applies to professional, relational, and personal choices where we tend to settle for less.
How to apply it daily
In a key area of your life, set a high standard and act accordingly. Refuse easy solutions and aim for excellence.
Continue
Related quotes
Same author or same theme — keep reading.
“The heart will break, but broken live on”Create visual
“Life is what happens when you're busy making other plans.”Create visual
“The lyf so short, the craft so long to lerne.”Create visual
“The most important thing is to live a fabulous life. As long as it's fabulous, I don't care how long it is.”Create visual
“All of us every single year, we're a different person. I don't think we're the same person all our lives.”Create visual
“May you live all the days of your life.”Create visual
More quotes by William
“What excites and interests the looker-on at life, what the romances and the statues celebrate, and the grim civic monuments remind us of, is the everlasting battle of the powers of light with those of darkness; with heroism reduced to its bare chance, yet ever and anon snatching victory from the jaws of death.”Create visual
“So I have loitered my life away, reading books, looking at pictures, going to plays, hearing, thinking, writing on what pleased me best. I have wanted only one thing to make me happy, but wanting that have wanted everything.”Create visual
“Friends, books, cheerful heart, and conscience clear are the most choice companions we have here.”Create visual
“But I, being poor, have only my dreams; I have spread my dreams under your feet, Tread softly because you tread on n dreams.”Create visual