If you want to be the best you have to do things that other people aren't willing to do.
Interpretation
To achieve greatness, one must be willing to make sacrifices and take actions that others shy away from.
This quote by Michael Phelps emphasizes the importance of dedication and hard work in the pursuit of excellence. It suggests that to stand out and achieve the highest levels of success, an individual must go beyond what is commonly expected or accepted, embracing challenges and making sacrifices that others may avoid. This mindset fosters resilience and determination, key attributes for anyone striving to excel in their field.
In practice
This quote can be used as motivation for athletes training for competition.
I want to be able to look back and say, 'I've done everything I can, and I was successful.' I don't want to look back and say I should have done this or that. I'd like to change things for the younger generation of swimmers coming along.
For so long, I looked at myself as literally a kid who was talented who would go up and down the pool. That's it. Nothing else. Very few people knew who I really was.
I don't want to be the next Mark Spitz; I want to be the first Michael Phelps
There are too many kids who are drowning for lack of water safety. That's something I'd like to do. Teaching kids to live an active lifestyle.
My goal is one Olympic gold medal. Not many people in this world can say, 'I'm an Olympic gold medalist.'
I know it won't be eight medals again. If you want to compare me to that, that's your decision, not mine. I'm going out there to try to accomplish the things that I have in my mind and in my heart.
Don't ever give up on ability. Don't give up on a player who has it.
Most people, who have quit smoking, have had at least one unsuccessful try in the past. It is not important how many times you try to quit. The only important thing is, that eventually you stay quit
If you stay up late and you have another hour of work to do, you can just stay up another hour later without running into a wall and having to stop. Whereas it might take three or four hours if you start over, you might finish if you just work that extra hour. If you're a morning person, the day always intrudes a fixed amount of time in the future. So it's much less efficient. Which is why I think computer people tend to be night people - because a machine doesn't get sleepy.
I'm going to be dead for a long time, so I have a lot to do now.
The people who get on in this world are the people who get up and look for the circumstances they want and if they can't find them, make them.
For we cannot tarry here, We must march my darlings, we must bear the brunt of danger, We, the youthful sinewy races, all the rest on us depend, Pioneers! O pioneers!
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