Sometimes a few words of wisdom are all it takes to move a man into action. During the toughest of times, we all access our internal, inspirational arsenal for reassurance and motivation. And as all Mudders know, inspiration, like plunging off Walk the Plank, is something you can never get too much of.
So to help get you out of bed, out of a rut, or out of your comfort zone during quarantine, here are TM’s top five quotes for Mudder motivation.
“Courage is being scared to death and saddling up anyway.” -John Wayne
Everyone gets scared. The Beatles got scared every time they took the stage. Peyton Manning has butterflies every time he takes a game’s first snap. Mike Tyson (yes that Mike Tyson) admitted being “scared to death” walking the ramp to each of his fights. See the pattern?
“You miss 100% of the shots you don’t take” -Wayne Gretzky
The Great One delivers a great one for remembering that you never know until you try. In his NHL career, Gretzky took 5,089 shots of which “only” 17 percent reached the back of the net. The lesson? While seemingly close in numbers, a low-conversion rate is of no comparison to a no-conversion rate.
“Don’t say you don’t have enough time. You have exactly the same number of hours per day that were given to Helen Keller, Pasteur, Michelangelo, Mother Teresa, Leonardo da Vinci, Thomas Jefferson, and Albert Einstein.” -H. Jackson Brown Jr.
No one’s forcing you to sleep until noon or buy that 17,000-calorie “fourth meal.” Next time you’re coming home at 4am, think of the insanely tired, yet invigorated souls who are hearing the sound of their alarm as you hear the noise of fumbling door keys.
“If you do what you always did, you will get what you always got.” -Anonymous
Albert Einstein described insanity as doing the same thing over and over again and expecting different results. If you want positive change in your life, it doesn’t take an Einstein to figure out who’s gonna have to take charge.
“The only place where success comes before work is in the dictionary.” -V. Sassoon
Bust your ass and good things will come—it’s the natural law of Mudder Nature. Have the discipline to stick to a routine. And as a result, you’ll find out that the harder you work, the luckier you get.
Whether we’ve dished out your new favorite quote or reinforced your attachment to an old favorite, remember that motivation is as internal as it is external. You can have your favorite quote tattooed on your face but if you’re not living it, it doesn’t mean anything.
