How does a kid from Coos Bay, with one leg longer than the other win races? All my life people have been telling me, 'You're too small Pre', 'You're not fast enough Pre.' 'Give up your foolish dream Steve.' But they forgot something. I have to win.
About this quote
- What does it mean?
- Despite doubts about his size and speed, the runner insists on winning because it is a personal necessity.
- In plain terms
- People doubted me, but I have to win regardless of what they say.
- What can you take from it?
- Ignore external doubts and pursue your goals with necessity.
Where it applies
Putting it to work
Questions to consider
- What doubts have you overcome?
- Why do you feel you must succeed?
Another view
Sometimes external assessments are accurate.
More from Steve Prefontaine
A race is a work of art that people can look at and be affected in as many ways they're capable of understanding.
Permalink to quote #2 I don't just go out there and run. I like to give people watching something exciting.
Permalink to quote #4 A lot of people run a race to see who is fastest. I run to see who has the most guts, who can punish himself into exhausting pace, and then at the end, punish …
Permalink to quote #1
Related quotes
I'm not getting out until they cut my head off and hand it to me.
Dick GephardtDick Gephardt quote #3 'Tis known by the name of perseverance in a good cause - and of obstinacy in a bad one.
Laurence SterneLaurence Sterne quote #8 You can ask the people around me. I don't give up. I don't give up... and it's not out of frustration and desperation that I say I don't give up. I don't give …
Johnny CashJohnny Cash quote #10