Like most instrumental methods of analysis, X-Ray Fluoresence (XRF) has progressed through the various stages of Innovation, Frustration, Application and Consolidation. My own association with the method dates back to the late 1950's which would correspond to the transition period between the innovation and frustration stages alluded to above. At that time, there were probably less than 500 XRF spectrometers in the whole world and to myself, as a young analyst with a limited background in x-ray diffraction methods, the potential power which the XRF method seemed to offer far outweighed any problems from the ‘matrix effects' that people were starting to talk about. This talk covers my own impressions of the highlights of the 20 year period of frustration and application which were to culminate with the general acceptance of the XRF method, in the mid-1970's, as a versatile and reliable analytical tool.