It’s better to be in the arena, getting stomped by the bull, than to be up in the stands or out in the parking lot.
Interpretation
Engaging in life's challenges is more valuable than being a passive observer.
This quote emphasizes the importance of taking risks and actively participating in life's endeavors, regardless of the potential for failure or difficulty. It suggests that facing challenges head-on is a more honorable and enriching experience than remaining a safe distance away, where one misses the opportunity to grow and learn from real-life experiences.
In practice
This quote can inspire individuals during a motivational speech about embracing challenges.
Late at night have you experienced a vision of the person you might become, the work you could accomplish, the realized being you were meant to be? Are you a writer who doesn't write, a painter who doesn't paint, an entrepreneur who never starts a venture? Then you know what Resistance is.
It is one thing to study war and another to live the warrior's life.
The amateur believes he must first overcome his fear; then he can do his work. The professional knows that fear can never be overcome. He knows there is no such thing as a fearless warrior or a dread-free artist.
When we sit down day after day and keep grinding, something mysterious starts to happen... Unseen forces enlist in our cause; serendipity reinforces our purpose.
You know, Hitler wanted to be an artist. At eighteen he took his inheritance, seven hundred kronen, and moved to Vienna to live and study... Ever see one of his paintings? Neither have I. Resistance beat him. Call it overstatement but I'll say it anyway: it was easier for Hitler to start World War II than it was for him to face a blank square of canvas.
Rule of thumb: The more important a call or action is to our soul's evolution, the Resistance we will feel toward pursuing it.
Being in service and being involved in something that is greater than you is what makes a person complete and whole. The very first thing I ever did in terms of activism was for an anti-atom bomb rally.
Fear is never a reason for quitting; it is only an excuse.
Sjogren's is something you live with your whole life. The good news for me is now I know what's happening after spending years not knowing... I feel like I can get better and move on.
I had no money, no training facilities, no snow, no ski jumps, no trainer, but I still managed to ski jump for my country - and getting there was my gold medal.
You've got to stick up for what you believe in. If you don't do that, you're doing a disservice to the audience, because you're making something really diluted. And if you do that when you're a guy, you're seen as artistic - 'difficulty' is seen as a sign of genius. But it's not the same for women.
I have had so much at heart. Defeated, not conquered; disappointed, not discouraged. I have but to be more energetic and more faithful in the difficult and painful vocation to which my life is devoted.
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