When it's been a long day of climbing, and I feel like I can't go any farther, I concentrate on the next three feet. And then the next three feet; and then the next three feet. Pretty soon, I'm at the top.
Royal RobbinsRead
My ambition was to become the best climber and I never did. I think that goal was a wrong goal. A better one is to put more emphasis on enjoyment and on getting a rounded experience and on things like friendship, rather than on sheer achievement.
Interpretation
What this quote means
Focusing solely on achieving goals may lead to unfulfilled ambitions. It's more important to prioritize enjoyment and connections with others.
In this quote, Royal Robbins reflects on his climbing career, recognizing that the singular pursuit of being the best climber was misguided. Instead, he emphasizes the value of enjoyment, well-rounded experiences, and building friendships over purely striving for achievement, suggesting that personal fulfillment comes from broader life experiences rather than just success.
Themes
AmbitionEnjoymentFriendshipAchievementExperience
In practice
Example use cases
During a motivational speech about pursuing passions beyond success.
More from Royal Robbins
All quotes →The terrible thing about free soloing difficult routes that are within one's capacity, is the chance that faced with ultimate danger and need for ultimate self-control, one's nerve might fail and cause an error. That's irony of it - that fear could short-circiut skill, that one would die as a direcy result of being afraid to die.
Royal RobbinsRead
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