I do have high standards. I look at everything I have done and think, 'Why wasn't that better?' Part of my motivation is from crippling self-doubt - I have got to prove myself wrong.
Interpretation
High standards drive self-improvement, despite self-doubt.
Michael Palin expresses how his high standards and critical self-reflection push him to strive for better results. He acknowledges that his motivation often stems from a deep-seated self-doubt, which compels him to prove to himself that he is capable of more than what he has achieved.
In practice
In a motivational speech addressing young professionals: 'I do have high standards...'
I've never had a particular skill. I can't cook, dance, play an instrument, speak a foreign language. This used to worry me. I'd think, when I'm grown up, at 18, then I made it 21, it will be clear what role I should have in life. It never happened. I never signed on the dotted line as the sort of adult my father wanted.
Once the travel bug bites there is no known antidote, and I know that I shall be happily infected until the end of my life
John Hall, my geography teacher at school inspired me to a lifelong interest in geography and a curiosity about our world which has stayed with me through my life. Geography is a living, breathing subject, constantly adapting itself to change. It is dynamic and relevant. For me geography is a great adventure with a purpose.
Despite having seen a fair amount of the world, I still love travelling - I just have an insatiable curiosity and like looking out of a window.
When I read profiles of myself, I sometimes think: 'I have spent my whole life struggling to understand my motivations and impulses, and I've never quite sorted them out.'
Armageddon is not around the corner. This is only what the people of violence want us to believe. The complexity and diversity of the world is the hope for the future.
Every calling is great when greatly pursued.
I will become the greatest, because all travellers have to be able to adapt. That quality, adaptability, is essential to that way of life. Not many boxers have it but I can adapt before a fight to the opponent, during the fight if necessary.
Be a yardstick of quality. Some people aren't used to an environment where excellence is expected.
Goals are dreams we convert to plans and take action to fulfill.
No matter how many mistakes you make or how slow you progress, you are still way ahead of everyone who isn't trying.
One thing hurts me. I keep hearing 'Terry Fox.' I'm not doing the run to become rich or famous... To me, being famous is not the idea of the run. The only important part is that cancer can be beaten.
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