Ambition and achievement
We are born / Not with purpose, / But with potential.
— Octavia Butler (1947–2006), Parable of the Talents (1998), Chapter 1 (p. 1)

Ambition and achievement

What it means

We are not born with a fixed purpose but with potential that we shape. Purpose is made through what we choose to do.

About the author

Octavia Butler — American science fiction writer (1947–2006).

Source and verification

Source
Parable of the Talents (1998), Chapter 1 (p. 1)
Reference
Octavia Butler on Wikiquote
Checked
Wording and source taken from the sourced section of the author’s Wikiquote page, which cites the work given here (accessed 2026-10-11).
Copyright
Short quotation from a work that is still in copyright, reproduced briefly for commentary with full attribution. Rights remain with the author or their estate.

The explanation above is ToDoMatriX’s own reading of the quote, not the author’s words.

More on ambition and achievement

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