I thought it'd be cool to start my own university, in a way.

I won't back down. I get a satisfaction from being tested and defeating the test.

If you have done something once, you can do it again or you can do it better. The beauty is the pursuit of the limit, not the limit itself. At least that's what I hope people realize.

The desire definitely comes from within. There are only a few people who make it to this level and those are the ones who have that innate desire.

To do the best that I possibly could in my world makes me pretty happy.

Competition is pretty much the essence of everything, it gives humans drive.

It's important not to make the gold medal bigger than it is.

The thing I like about decathlon is also the thing I dislike: It's the maximum challenge, but also the maximum frustration.

I'm not maximized yet.

I think a challenge for myself is to see how many times I can get above 9,000. That would be a good challenge.

I wouldn't say there was a moment of realization when I wanted to be a runner; it was always just something I was.

Let go of something old that no longer serves you in order to make room for something new.

Get comfortable with being uncomfortable!

Our identity as Christians is a purpose-driven life

One of the signs of passing youth is the birth of a sense of fellowhip with other human beings as we take our place among them.

Life is not a malfunction. It's beautiful. But if you do not see it that way, it's simply because your room needs cleaning.

Individual style is the correct balance of knowing who you are, what works fro you, and how to develop your own personality

Our family was too strange and weird for even Santa Claus to come visit ... Santa, who was jolly - but, let's face it, he was also very judgmental.

I always wanted to direct movies. That's what I set out to do. When I was a little kid I just dreamed of making movies, and I went to film school [at Northwestern University].