Most of us have run across Teddy Roosevelt’s “Arena” speech. Here’s part of it:
“It is not the critic who counts, not the one who points out how the strong man stumbled or how the doer of deeds might have done them better. The credit belongs to the man who is actually in the arena, whose face is marred with sweat and dust and blood; who strives valiantly; who errs and comes short again and again; who knows the great enthusiasms, the great devotions, and spends himself in a worthy cause; who, if he wins, knows the triumph of high achievement; and who, if he fails, at least fails while daring greatly, so that his place shall never be with those cold and timid souls who know neither victory nor defeat.”
Teddy Roosevelt
As a motivational speech, it’s one of the best. I think most creative people resonate with it, and it certainly resonates with me.
But as I get older, I wonder, is its message too externally focused?
Certainly the external arena is important to a life well lived—in fact, the external arena is where life is lived.
But I have found the crucial battles to achieve a life well lived aren’t external; they aren’t against people, corporations, or governments in the external arena. Instead, they fought within the internal arena—against one’s own doubt, ego, and fear.
Excel in the internal arena, and the external arena is much more fun.