I was the first man to climb the world's 14 tallest peaks without supplementary oxygen, but I never asked how high I would go, just how I would do it.
Interpretation
This quote emphasizes the importance of the journey and method over the end goal.
Reinhold Messner reflects on his pioneering achievement of climbing the highest peaks in the world without supplementary oxygen, underscoring that his focus was not solely on reaching the summit, but rather on the approach and methods he employed to accomplish such a daunting task. This perspective reveals a deeper understanding of perseverance and the value of the process in overcoming challenges, highlighting that the way we tackle our goals can be as significant as the goals themselves.
In practice
This quote is perfect for an inspirational speech about pursuing dreams.
I became famous for the fact that I would break many, many limits. People said, 'He does all these crazy things.' But oddly it was a crazy thing only because scientists and climbers said, 'Everest and the 8,000-meter peaks without oxygen - impossible. Messner is becoming sick in his head.'
A 30-year-old rock climber is an old man. At 40, one is in the middle of his high-altitude power. At 50, a crosser of deserts is at his best age. But at 60, each of us is out of the game.
I think my cultural work is more important than the adventures I did. The adventures are not important for human beings. It's the conquering of the useless.
In mountaineering, there is not only the activity, but the philosophy behind it. Some say a moral, but I am against that because all morality is dangerous.
In my state of spiritual abstraction, I no longer belong to myself and to my eyesight. I am nothing more than a single narrow gasping lung, floating over the mists and summits.
I go to the mountains for an adventure and each time I pray I will get up and down again.
Every Fourth of July, our Declaration of Independence is produced, with a sublime indignation, to set forth the tyranny of the mother country and to challenge the admiration of the world. But what a pitiful detail of grievances does this document present in comparison with the wrongs which our slaves endure!
Courage is never to let your actions be influenced by your fears.
If he have faith, the believer cannot be restrained. He betrays himself. He breaks out. He confesses and teaches this gospel to the people at the risk of life itself.
Whether trauma will be a cruel and punishing Gorgon or a vehicle for soaring to the heights of transformation and mastery depends upon how we approach it.
I've had two cancer bouts in my years on the Court, and the first one, Justice O'Connor told me, 'Now, you do the chemotherapy on Friday because you'll get over it during the weekend and you can be back in court on Monday.'
Bathrooms have always been a big issue in my life. My parents fought for me to be able to enroll in elementary school as a girl, which I did. But I still would not be allowed to use the girls' room under any condition.
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