You never make any of the shots you never take. 87% of the ones you do take, you'll miss too. I make 110% of my shots.
Larry BirdRead
I don't think that once you get to one level, you can relax. You've got to keep pushing.
Interpretation
Continual effort is necessary to achieve and maintain success.
Larry Bird emphasizes the importance of sustained effort and dedication in achieving success. Reaching one level of success should not lead to complacency; instead, it requires ongoing determination and hard work to continue progressing.
In practice
In a motivational speech to athletes about the importance of consistent training.
You never make any of the shots you never take. 87% of the ones you do take, you'll miss too. I make 110% of my shots.
When I was young, I never wanted to leave the court until I got things exactly correct. My dream was to become a pro.
You can make all the excuses you want, but if you're not mentally tough and you're not prepared to play every night, you're not going to win.
Practice habits were crucial to my development in basketball. I didn't play against the toughest competition in high school, but one reason I was able to do well in college was that I mastered the fundamentals. You've got to have them down before you can even think about playing.
It's been a journey, the NBA. It's taken me a lot farther than I ever expected.
Leadership is diving for a loose ball, getting the crowd involved, getting other players involved. It's being able to take it as well as dish it out. That's the only way you're going to get respect from the players.
In football, the worst things are excuses. Excuses mean you cannot grow or move forward.
Every person who has ever achieved anything has been knocked down many times. But all of them picked themselves up and kept going, and that is what I have always tried to do.
But you can't muscle through a five-hour run that way; you have to relax into it like easing your body into a hot bath, until it no longer resists the shock and begins to enjoy it.
The only way to escape the personal corruption of praise is to go on working. One is tempted to stop and listen to it. The only thing is to turn away and go on working. Work. There is nothing else.
Know that nothing can hinder you but yourself. If you believe you can, you can.
Everyone's dream can come true if you just stick to it and work hard.
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