--- title: "Meaning & Key Takeaway of: It took a few years before I realized…" description: "\"It took a few years before I realized there was life after football.\" — Ed Schultz" image: "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/a51/ed-schultz-8984_before_it-took-a-few-years-before-i-realized-th_2842982.png" --- # It took a few years before I realized there was life after… ![“It took a few years before I realized there was life after football.” quote by Ed Schultz](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/a51/ed-schultz-8984_before_it-took-a-few-years-before-i-realized-th_2842982.png) [Download](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/a51/ed-schultz-8984_before_it-took-a-few-years-before-i-realized-th_2842982.png) [Open image](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/a51/ed-schultz-8984_before_it-took-a-few-years-before-i-realized-th_2842982.png) > “It took a few years before I realized there was life after football.” [Ed Schultz](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ed-schultz/) ## About This Quote This interpretation was drafted with AI assistance. It is one reading of the quote, not the author's own explanation. He discovered a new purpose after his football career ended, realizing life continues beyond sport. **In simple terms:** Life continues after football. Key Takeaway Seek new purpose beyond past roles. Themes identity purpose transition Mood reflective hopeful Type motivational inspirational When to use this quote - retirement planning - coaching - community work - mental health - education Key Concepts career change self‑discovery post‑athletic life Questions to Reflect On - What new passions can you explore? - How can you support others in transition? A Different Perspective May overlook challenges of adjusting to non‑sport identity. ★ ★ ★ ★ ★ No ratings yet [Before](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/before/) [Few](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/few/) [Football](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/football/) [Life](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/life/) [Life Football](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/life-football/) [Realized Life](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/realized-life-641074/) [Took Years](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/took-years/) [Years](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/years/) [Years Realized](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/years-realized-625828/) ## Related quotes > [I made it look so easy on court all those years. No one realized how hard I had to work. 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But over…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jp-saxe/i-thought-for-a-long-time-i-needed-to-look-at-other-people-who-were/) [JP Saxe](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jp-saxe/) > [Over the years, I have realized that you have to feel good about your flaws or else the world will make you feel worse.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jasmin-bhasin/over-the-years-i-have-realized-that-you-have-to-feel-good-about-your/) [Jasmin Bhasin](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jasmin-bhasin/) > [For the first 25 years of my life, I wanted freedom. For the next 25 years, I wanted order. For the next 25 years,…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/winston-churchill/for-the-first-25-years-of-my-life-i-wanted-freedom-for-the-next-25/) [Winston Churchill](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/winston-churchill/) > [After a few years, we realized that you did have to put some work into it. 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Whatever they say,…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/frederick-lenz/it-wasn-t-until-after-living-in-california-for-many-years-that-i/) [Frederick Lenz](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/frederick-lenz/) > [It was only through the years that I realized what an absolutely extraordinarily thoughtful person Dr. King was.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/pete-seeger/it-was-only-through-the-years-that-i-realized-what-an-absolutely/) [Pete Seeger](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/pete-seeger/) > [To be totally candid, it was really born out of a panic attack the summer between my sophomore and junior years, when I realized…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ed-helms/to-be-totally-candid-it-was-really-born-out-of-a-panic-attack-the/) [Ed Helms](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ed-helms/) > [FNM didn't really become one of my favorite all-time bands until after I'd had all their records for a couple of years. And realized…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/greg-gutfeld/fnm-didn-t-really-become-one-of-my-favorite-all-time-bands-until/) [Greg Gutfeld](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/greg-gutfeld/) > [As I got older, I realized that my life experience, what I really had, was always going to be more valuable than what I…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/eric-mccormack/as-i-got-older-i-realized-that-my-life-experience-what-i-really-had/) [Eric McCormack](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/eric-mccormack/) ## More by Ed Schultz > [This is what the Republican party stands for, though: racism.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ed-schultz/this-is-what-the-republican-party-stands-for-though-racism/) [Ed Schultz](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ed-schultz/) > [Nothing replaces hard work. The harder you work, the luckier you get.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ed-schultz/nothing-replaces-hard-work-the-harder-you-work-the-luckier-you-get/) [Ed Schultz](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ed-schultz/) > [Nobody is going to tell Ed Schultz what to say.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ed-schultz/nobody-is-going-to-tell-ed-schultz-what-to-say/) [Ed Schultz](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ed-schultz/) > [I've always viewed the 'Ed Show' as being a voice for the voiceless.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ed-schultz/i-ve-always-viewed-the-ed-show-as-being-a-voice-for-the-voiceless/) [Ed Schultz](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ed-schultz/) > [The Left has been frustrated because President Obama has allowed the Republicans to run all over him.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ed-schultz/the-left-has-been-frustrated-because-president-obama-has-allowed-the/) [Ed Schultz](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ed-schultz/) > [I think you can be in disagreement with a president you support without being disrespectful or nasty or snide.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ed-schultz/i-think-you-can-be-in-disagreement-with-a-president-you-support/) [Ed Schultz](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ed-schultz/) > [I'm not prepared to be governor of New York. 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I'm progressive on most.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ed-schultz/i-m-conservative-on-some-issues-i-m-progressive-on-most/) [Ed Schultz](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ed-schultz/) > [Sometimes, when I open my mouth, all hell breaks loose. Other times, I feel like a voice in the wilderness and I wonder, 'Does…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ed-schultz/sometimes-when-i-open-my-mouth-all-hell-breaks-loose-other-times-i/) [Ed Schultz](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ed-schultz/) > [If I lived in Massachusetts, I'd try to vote ten times ... Yeah that's right, I'd cheat to keep these bastards out. I would.…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ed-schultz/if-i-lived-in-massachusetts-i-d-try-to-vote-ten-times-yeah-that-s/) [Ed Schultz](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ed-schultz/) > [I'm prairie-dwelling, pro-union, pro-health care, and pro-education.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ed-schultz/i-m-prairie-dwelling-pro-union-pro-health-care-and-pro-education/) [Ed Schultz](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ed-schultz/) > [Not to get too grandiose about it, but I really believe I'm saying things a lot of Americans want someone to say.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ed-schultz/not-to-get-too-grandiose-about-it-but-i-really-believe-i-m-saying/) [Ed Schultz](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ed-schultz/) > [When union membership goes down, so do wages.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ed-schultz/when-union-membership-goes-down-so-do-wages/) [Ed Schultz](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ed-schultz/) [Explore all 76 Ed Schultz quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ed-schultz/) ## More Before quotes > [If you ask an introvert a question, wait until she thinks about it. Introverts think before speaking, not through speaking. If you want to…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/laurie-helgoe/if-you-ask-an-introvert-a-question-wait-until-she-thinks-about-it/) [Laurie Helgoe](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/laurie-helgoe/) > [I want to make myself and the crowd happy by way of something different, and that makes things difficult. I'm never playing something that…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/tiesto/i-want-to-make-myself-and-the-crowd-happy-by-way-of-something/) [Tiesto](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/tiesto/) > [My writing routine is: get son off to school and sit down at 8 A.M. I read what I wrote the day before, and…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/tracy-chevalier/my-writing-routine-is-get-son-off-to-school-and-sit-down-at-8-a-m-i/) [Tracy Chevalier](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/tracy-chevalier/) > [There aren't traditions of freedom in a place like Iraq. They're going to have to come to grips with a concept that they hadn't…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/malcolm-wallop/there-aren-t-traditions-of-freedom-in-a-place-like-iraq-they-re-going/) [Malcolm Wallop](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/malcolm-wallop/) > [I don't like just traveling in for a short time. I've done that before, because sometimes you work for magazines and they have a…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/joe-sacco/i-don-t-like-just-traveling-in-for-a-short-time-i-ve-done-that-before/) [Joe Sacco](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/joe-sacco/) > [Music is almost like a therapy for me. It helps keep me centered and think straight. Before I discovered it, I was walking around,…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/banks/music-is-almost-like-a-therapy-for-me-it-helps-keep-me-centered-and/) [Banks](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/banks/) > [My first company, Pure Software, was exciting and innovative in the first few years and bureaucratic and painful in the last few before it…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/reed-hastings/my-first-company-pure-software-was-exciting-and-innovative-in-the/) [Reed Hastings](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/reed-hastings/) > [For the Russian masses, the proletarians, knew for certain, and already saw during the war, and in part before their very eyes, that the…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/herman-gorter/for-the-russian-masses-the-proletarians-knew-for-certain-and-already/) [Herman Gorter](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/herman-gorter/) > [The Constitution is very clear on the - on the declaration of war or reacting to international crimes - crimes against nations. It is…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/joe-pitts/the-constitution-is-very-clear-on-the-on-the-declaration-of-war-or/) [Joe Pitts](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/joe-pitts/) > [I've been told before, and I tend to believe it, I'm not like most actresses out there.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/moira-kelly/i-ve-been-told-before-and-i-tend-to-believe-it-i-m-not-like-most/) [Moira Kelly](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/moira-kelly/) > [Before I got addicted to comedy, I was seriously thinking about playing tennis full time. I joined the tennis team and played with a…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/carrot-top/before-i-got-addicted-to-comedy-i-was-seriously-thinking-about/) [Carrot Top](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/carrot-top/) > [But even before I was in the military, I was extremely jumpy when asleep.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/chris-kyle/but-even-before-i-was-in-the-military-i-was-extremely-jumpy-when/) [Chris Kyle](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/chris-kyle/) > [When I'm making stuff, the thing that excites me most is not the result, but the process and trying to do something I've never…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/spike-jonze/when-i-m-making-stuff-the-thing-that-excites-me-most-is-not-the/) [Spike Jonze](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/spike-jonze/) > [I've pulled ticks off of me before.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jim-miller/i-ve-pulled-ticks-off-of-me-before/) [Jim Miller](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jim-miller/) > [You know, before I would think, my cab driver hates me. Now I think my limo driver hates me.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ray-romano/you-know-before-i-would-think-my-cab-driver-hates-me-now-i-think-my/) [Ray Romano](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ray-romano/) [Browse all 4,123 Before quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/before/) ```json { "@context": "https://schema.org", "@graph": [ { "@type": "Quotation", "text": "It took a few years before I realized there was life after football.", "creator": { "@type": "Person", "name": "Ed Schultz" }, "isPartOf": { "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/#website" }, "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ed-schultz/it-took-a-few-years-before-i-realized-there-was-life-after-football/", "about": { "@type": "Thing", "name": "Before" }, "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ed-schultz/it-took-a-few-years-before-i-realized-there-was-life-after-football/#quotation", "image": { "@type": "ImageObject", "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/a51/ed-schultz-8984_before_it-took-a-few-years-before-i-realized-th_2842982.png", "contentUrl": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/a51/ed-schultz-8984_before_it-took-a-few-years-before-i-realized-th_2842982.png", "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/a51/ed-schultz-8984_before_it-took-a-few-years-before-i-realized-th_2842982.png", "width": 1080, "height": 1080, "caption": "“It took a few years before I realized there was life after football.” — Ed Schultz", "creditText": "SMS4Smile Quotes", "creator": { "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/#organization" } } }, { "@type": "BreadcrumbList", "itemListElement": [ { "@type": "ListItem", "position": 1, "name": "Home", "item": "https://sms4smile.com/" }, { "@type": "ListItem", "position": 2, "name": "Quotes", "item": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/" }, { "@type": "ListItem", "position": 3, "name": "Ed Schultz", "item": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ed-schultz/" }, { "@type": "ListItem", "position": 4, "name": "It took a few years before...", "item": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ed-schultz/it-took-a-few-years-before-i-realized-there-was-life-after-football/" } ], "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ed-schultz/it-took-a-few-years-before-i-realized-there-was-life-after-football/#breadcrumb" }, { "@type": "WebSite", "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/#website", "name": "SMS4Smile Quotes", "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/", "publisher": { "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/#organization" } }, { "@type": "Organization", "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/#organization", "name": "SMS4Smile Quotes", "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/", "logo": { "@type": "ImageObject", "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/wp-content/themes/sq/assets/icons/icon-512.png", "width": 512, "height": 512 } } ] } ```