An athlete may run ten thousand miles in order to prepare for one hundred yards. Quantity gives experience.
Interpretation
Preparation and hard work are essential for success, even in small endeavors.
This quote by Ray Bradbury highlights the importance of extensive preparation and practice in achieving success in any pursuit. An athlete's rigorous training and experience, likened to running thousands of miles, are imperative to excel in a seemingly short and straightforward task, such as sprinting a hundred yards. It serves as a reminder that success often requires significant effort behind the scenes, emphasizing the idea that diligent preparation can lead to great achievements.
In practice
In a motivational speech at a sports event.
I've written about 2,000 short stories; I've only published 300 and I feel I'm still learning. Any man who keeps working is not a failure. He may not be a great writer, but if he applies the old fashioned virtues of hard, constant labor, he'll eventually make some kind of career for himself as a writer. Ray Bradbury, 1967 interview (Doing the Math - that means for every story he sold, he wrote six "un-publishable" ones. Keep typing!)
I never went to college, so I went to the library.
There must be something in books, something we canβt imagine, to make a woman stay in a burning house; there must be something there. You donβt stay for nothing.
I think the sun is a flower, That blooms for just one hour.
The first thing a writer should be is - excited. He should be a thing of fevers and enthusiasms. Without such vigor, he might as well be out picking peaches or digging ditches; God knows it'd be better for his health.
You can't try to do things; you simply must do them.
A world of abundance surrounds you, if only you will step up and claim it. Make life happen through you rather than letting it happen to you. It will make all the difference in the world.
I'm firmly of the belief that your youth should be spent pursuing your passion - not just slightly, tremulously, haltingly, but unrelentingly, with a vengeance, to the max and then beyond. So dream laughably big - and then take an absurdly huge risk or two.
Mental strength is really important because you either win or lose in your mind. And I'm not solely talking about sporting matches, boxing events - anything you do, you do it first with your mental strength. And you can actually train and develop it, and I am responsible for what I'm saying because I have experience with that.
Do not overestimate the competition and underestimate yourself. You are better than you think.
Either you set your goals and, in doing so, have your life governed by choice or you do nothing and have your life governed by chance.
If your work isn't exciting, doesn't stir the emotions, where's the challenge? Where's the progress if you always play it safe?
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