Before success comes in any man’s life, he’s sure to meet with much temporary defeat and, perhaps some failures. When defeat overtakes a man, the easiest and the most logical thing to do is to quit. That’s exactly what the majority of men do.

Hill frames “defeat” as a normal, even necessary, prelude to achievement rather than a final verdict. The quote contrasts the short-term logic of quitting—stopping pain, conserving effort—with the longer-term logic of persistence, implying that most people mistake temporary setbacks for permanent failure. It also reflects Hill’s broader success philosophy: that resilience and sustained effort are differentiators, and that the decisive moment often arrives after discouragement has already made quitting feel rational. The passage functions as both warning and motivation, redefining endurance as a strategic choice rather than mere stubbornness.