pull oneself up by one's bootstraps
Definition from Wiktionary, a free dictionary
[edit] English
[edit] Verb
to pull oneself up by one's bootstraps
- (idiomatic) To begin an enterprise or recover from a setback without any outside help; to succeed only on one's own effort or abilities.
- We can't get a loan, so we'll just have to pull ourselves up by our bootstraps.
[edit] See also
- bootstrap (in the computing senses)
- self-starter
