--- title: "Meaning & Key Takeaway of: I have been here before in my head. To…" description: "\"I have been here before in my head. To everyone else, it is my first Olympics. To me, it's my thousandth.\" — Mikaela Shiffrin" image: "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/b74/mikaela-shiffrin-10011_firsts_i-have-been-here-before-in-my-head-to-ev_823316.png" --- # I have been here before in my head. To everyone else, it… ![“I have been here before in my head. To everyone else, it is my first Olympics. To me, it's my thousandth.” quote by Mikaela Shiffrin](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/b74/mikaela-shiffrin-10011_firsts_i-have-been-here-before-in-my-head-to-ev_823316.png) [Download](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/b74/mikaela-shiffrin-10011_firsts_i-have-been-here-before-in-my-head-to-ev_823316.png) [Open image](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/b74/mikaela-shiffrin-10011_firsts_i-have-been-here-before-in-my-head-to-ev_823316.png) > “I have been here before in my head. To everyone else, it is my first Olympics. To me, it's my thousandth.” [Mikaela Shiffrin](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/mikaela-shiffrin/) ## About This Quote This interpretation was drafted with AI assistance. It is one reading of the quote, not the author's own explanation. Experience feels familiar internally despite being a first public event, highlighting mental preparation. **In simple terms:** Athletes feel seasoned before debut. Key Takeaway Trust your preparation. Themes sports experience mental focus Mood focused determined Type motivational reflective When to use this quote - Olympic debut - new competition - high‑stakes events Key Concepts performance anxiety first‑time pressure growth mindset Questions to Reflect On - How do you differentiate preparation from complacency? - What rituals ground you before performance? A Different Perspective Risk of over‑confidence. ★ ★ ★ ★ ★ No ratings yet [Firsts](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/firsts/) [Has beens](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/has-beens/) [Head](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/head/) [Head Olympics](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/head-olympics-493366/) [Inspirational](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/inspirational/) [Love](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/love/) [Olympics](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/olympics/) [Olympics Thousandth](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/olympics-thousandth-493365/) [Thousandth](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/thousandth-493367/) ## Related quotes > [Most people just see ski racing during the Olympics.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/mikaela-shiffrin/most-people-just-see-ski-racing-during-the-olympics/) [Mikaela Shiffrin](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/mikaela-shiffrin/) > [I don't know what the point of life is, but I'm certain that five gold medals is not it.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/mikaela-shiffrin/i-don-t-know-what-the-point-of-life-is-but-i-m-certain-that-five-gold/) [Mikaela Shiffrin](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/mikaela-shiffrin/) > [1988 Olympic Champion Brian Boitano was famous for doing a Lutz with one arm over his head. And I wanted to build on that.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/adam-rippon/1988-olympic-champion-brian-boitano-was-famous-for-doing-a-lutz-with/) [Adam Rippon](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/adam-rippon/) > [Skating is in my heart, not my head](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/michelle-kwan/skating-is-in-my-heart-not-my-head/) [Michelle Kwan](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/michelle-kwan/) > [The Games have been decimated. If you take away the Eastern Bloc, you take away 50% of the medals](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ron-pickering/the-games-have-been-decimated-if-you-take-away-the-eastern-bloc-you/) [Ron Pickering](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ron-pickering/) > [Growing up in Dallas, my first influences on the guitar were T-Bone Walker and Les Paul. T-Bone taught me how to play lead guitar…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/steve-miller/growing-up-in-dallas-my-first-influences-on-the-guitar-were-t-bone/) [Steve Miller](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/steve-miller/) > [I was painfully shy, so my aunt suggested to my mum that me and my brother go to Stage 84, a performing arts school…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/christian-cooke/i-was-painfully-shy-so-my-aunt-suggested-to-my-mum-that-me-and-my/) [Christian Cooke](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/christian-cooke/) > [Oh, I'm a great believer in the power of the pause. Radio is a bit brasher now. My style was slower. I just used…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/terry-wogan/oh-i-m-a-great-believer-in-the-power-of-the-pause-radio-is-a-bit/) [Terry Wogan](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/terry-wogan/) > [Love is in the heart not the head](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/shadow/love-is-in-the-heart-not-the-head/) [Shadow](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/shadow/) > [We all have time away from football to get our head down. At the same time it is a very busy schedule.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/reece-james/we-all-have-time-away-from-football-to-get-our-head-down-at-the-same/) [Reece James](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/reece-james/) > [I try to listen to all music with an open head, a clear head, try not to say just because I don't know it,…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ghostface-killah/i-try-to-listen-to-all-music-with-an-open-head-a-clear-head-try-not/) [Ghostface Killah](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ghostface-killah/) > [The show was number one in the ratings, Gordon Russell was our head writer, the story lines were magnificent and the acting most exciting.…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/michael-storm/the-show-was-number-one-in-the-ratings-gordon-russell-was-our-head/) [Michael Storm](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/michael-storm/) > [This is how McGregor is, waging mental warfare before the fights. There's no way that guy is going to get in my head.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/chad-mendes/this-is-how-mcgregor-is-waging-mental-warfare-before-the-fights-there/) [Chad Mendes](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/chad-mendes/) > [I used a psychologist when I was playing, It's one of the most powerful things: how you can have a concrete head and not…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/scott-parker/i-used-a-psychologist-when-i-was-playing-it-s-one-of-the-most/) [Scott Parker](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/scott-parker/) > [If my child had prejudice in his head, I'd be ashamed. I would see it as my failure as a parent.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/salman-rushdie/if-my-child-had-prejudice-in-his-head-i-d-be-ashamed-i-would-see-it/) [Salman Rushdie](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/salman-rushdie/) ## More by Mikaela Shiffrin > [My whole thing is simple, well-balanced meals. I have to say, though, that I really like dessert. I try not to eat dessert every…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/mikaela-shiffrin/my-whole-thing-is-simple-well-balanced-meals-i-have-to-say-though/) [Mikaela Shiffrin](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/mikaela-shiffrin/) > [I don't know what the point of life is, but I'm certain that five gold medals is not it.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/mikaela-shiffrin/i-don-t-know-what-the-point-of-life-is-but-i-m-certain-that-five-gold/) [Mikaela Shiffrin](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/mikaela-shiffrin/) > [I remember skiing being a family recreational thing.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/mikaela-shiffrin/i-remember-skiing-being-a-family-recreational-thing/) [Mikaela Shiffrin](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/mikaela-shiffrin/) > [Out on the hill under the helmet, nobody sees your face or hair, but then you take it off, and they do - that's…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/mikaela-shiffrin/out-on-the-hill-under-the-helmet-nobody-sees-your-face-or-hair-but/) [Mikaela Shiffrin](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/mikaela-shiffrin/) > [I'm not really seeing pressure as a negative.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/mikaela-shiffrin/i-m-not-really-seeing-pressure-as-a-negative/) [Mikaela Shiffrin](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/mikaela-shiffrin/) > [I can't really picture a time when she won't be on tour with me. Mom has always been my best friend. But, yes, eventually…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/mikaela-shiffrin/i-can-t-really-picture-a-time-when-she-won-t-be-on-tour-with-me-mom/) [Mikaela Shiffrin](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/mikaela-shiffrin/) > [Most people just see ski racing during the Olympics.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/mikaela-shiffrin/most-people-just-see-ski-racing-during-the-olympics/) [Mikaela Shiffrin](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/mikaela-shiffrin/) > [During the season, one of the most important things to eat is the carbs. Protein's really important, too, but it's the carbs that are…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/mikaela-shiffrin/during-the-season-one-of-the-most-important-things-to-eat-is-the/) [Mikaela Shiffrin](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/mikaela-shiffrin/) > [If I hadn't come East as a kid, I might still be a World Cup racer today, but I wouldn't be the same World…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/mikaela-shiffrin/if-i-hadn-t-come-east-as-a-kid-i-might-still-be-a-world-cup-racer/) [Mikaela Shiffrin](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/mikaela-shiffrin/) > [I get this adrenaline rush from just going down the course and feeling like I made a really great turn and I'm going to…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/mikaela-shiffrin/i-get-this-adrenaline-rush-from-just-going-down-the-course-and/) [Mikaela Shiffrin](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/mikaela-shiffrin/) > [I have all these things I want to do, but I don't have to do them right away. Because it's not just about winning,…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/mikaela-shiffrin/i-have-all-these-things-i-want-to-do-but-i-don-t-have-to-do-them/) [Mikaela Shiffrin](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/mikaela-shiffrin/) > [If I leave any legacy behind, it's just the idea, just the theory that you admit to your ambitions, and you don't let people…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/mikaela-shiffrin/if-i-leave-any-legacy-behind-it-s-just-the-idea-just-the-theory-that/) [Mikaela Shiffrin](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/mikaela-shiffrin/) > [If you don't think it's possible to win five golds, go talk to Michael Phelps.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/mikaela-shiffrin/if-you-don-t-think-it-s-possible-to-win-five-golds-go-talk-to-michael/) [Mikaela Shiffrin](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/mikaela-shiffrin/) > [Here's the thing. You can't get ten thousand hours of skiing. You spend so much time on the chairlift. My coach did a calculation…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/mikaela-shiffrin/here-s-the-thing-you-can-t-get-ten-thousand-hours-of-skiing-you-spend/) [Mikaela Shiffrin](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/mikaela-shiffrin/) > [I have some really lofty goals that don't even scratch upon the Olympics.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/mikaela-shiffrin/i-have-some-really-lofty-goals-that-don-t-even-scratch-upon-the/) [Mikaela Shiffrin](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/mikaela-shiffrin/) [Explore all 68 Mikaela Shiffrin quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/mikaela-shiffrin/) ## More Firsts quotes > [I always say there are two things to be successful. The first is decide exactly what you want - set your goals - and…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/brian-tracy/i-always-say-there-are-two-things-to-be-successful-the-first-is/) [Brian Tracy](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/brian-tracy/) > [My first ever job after college was as a flight attendant. I wanted to travel and could not afford it, so I decided to…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jacqueline-winspear/my-first-ever-job-after-college-was-as-a-flight-attendant-i-wanted-to/) [Jacqueline Winspear](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jacqueline-winspear/) > [Since I worked with Danny Boyle before on Slumdog Millionaire, we have great success and everything. So, when I first got the script and…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/a-r-rahman/since-i-worked-with-danny-boyle-before-on-slumdog-millionaire-we-have/) [A. R. Rahman](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/a-r-rahman/) > [You sort of can't talk about the post production unless you talk about what comes first.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/paul-greengrass/you-sort-of-can-t-talk-about-the-post-production-unless-you-talk/) [Paul Greengrass](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/paul-greengrass/) > [I'm a business first and foremost so whatever my business is, it's separate from my personal. It's like whatever I do business wise, it's…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/snoop-dogg/i-m-a-business-first-and-foremost-so-whatever-my-business-is-it-s/) [Snoop Dogg](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/snoop-dogg/) > [A man walks down the street. It's a street in a strange world. Maybe it's the third world. Maybe it's his first time around.…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/paul-simon/a-man-walks-down-the-street-it-s-a-street-in-a-strange-world-maybe-it/) [Paul Simon](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/paul-simon/) > [I did not know that the planning for biological and chemical warfare was so widespread in England, and even in France before France fell.…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/nicholson-baker/i-did-not-know-that-the-planning-for-biological-and-chemical-warfare/) [Nicholson Baker](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/nicholson-baker/) > [The biggest change for me as a mom was realizing I needed to put someone else before me. Now the hardest part about the…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/kim-alexis/the-biggest-change-for-me-as-a-mom-was-realizing-i-needed-to-put/) [Kim Alexis](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/kim-alexis/) > [When I first started, my message was about joy, but I didn't really have the vocabulary and life experience to fully deliver it.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jason-mraz/when-i-first-started-my-message-was-about-joy-but-i-didn-t-really/) [Jason Mraz](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jason-mraz/) > [I'm very used to working with first time actors - you can just look back at 'E.T.' with Drew Barrymore, and Christian Bale from…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/steven-spielberg/i-m-very-used-to-working-with-first-time-actors-you-can-just-look/) [Steven Spielberg](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/steven-spielberg/) > [I have lifted my plane . . . for perhaps a thousand flights and I have never felt her wheels glide from the Earth…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/beryl-markham/i-have-lifted-my-plane-for-perhaps-a-thousand-flights-and-i-have/) [Beryl Markham](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/beryl-markham/) > [We need a system that serves our needs, not the needs of others. Remember, under a Trump administration it's called America first. Remember that.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/donald-trump/we-need-a-system-that-serves-our-needs-not-the-needs-of-others/) [Donald Trump](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/donald-trump/) > [The U.S.-Mexican border es un herida abierta where the Third World grates against the first and bleeds. And before a scab forms it hemorrhages…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/gloria-e-anzald-a/the-u-s-mexican-border-es-un-herida-abierta-where-the-third-world/) [Gloria E. Anzaldúa](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/gloria-e-anzald-a/) > [Meanwhile someone is shining my head to get it dry to attach my top-hat to my head with toupee tape. I get into microphone…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/tituss-burgess/meanwhile-someone-is-shining-my-head-to-get-it-dry-to-attach-my-top/) [Tituss Burgess](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/tituss-burgess/) > [Peace is the first thing the angels sang. Peace is the mark of the children of God. Peace is the nurse of love. Peace…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/pope-leo-i/peace-is-the-first-thing-the-angels-sang-peace-is-the-mark-of-the/) [Pope Leo I](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/pope-leo-i/) [Browse all 32,432 Firsts quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/firsts/) ```json { "@context": "https://schema.org", "@graph": [ { "@type": "Quotation", "text": "I have been here before in my head. To everyone else, it is my first Olympics. To me, it's my thousandth.", "creator": { "@type": "Person", "name": "Mikaela Shiffrin" }, "isPartOf": { "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/#website" }, "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/mikaela-shiffrin/i-have-been-here-before-in-my-head-to-everyone-else-it-is-my-first/", "about": { "@type": "Thing", "name": "Firsts" }, "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/mikaela-shiffrin/i-have-been-here-before-in-my-head-to-everyone-else-it-is-my-first/#quotation", "image": { "@type": "ImageObject", "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/b74/mikaela-shiffrin-10011_firsts_i-have-been-here-before-in-my-head-to-ev_823316.png", "contentUrl": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/b74/mikaela-shiffrin-10011_firsts_i-have-been-here-before-in-my-head-to-ev_823316.png", "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/b74/mikaela-shiffrin-10011_firsts_i-have-been-here-before-in-my-head-to-ev_823316.png", "width": 1080, "height": 1080, "caption": "“I have been here before in my head. To everyone else, it is my first Olympics. To me, it's my thousandth.” — Mikaela Shiffrin", "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": "Mikaela Shiffrin", "item": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/mikaela-shiffrin/" }, { "@type": "ListItem", "position": 4, "name": "I have been here before in...", "item": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/mikaela-shiffrin/i-have-been-here-before-in-my-head-to-everyone-else-it-is-my-first/" } ], "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/mikaela-shiffrin/i-have-been-here-before-in-my-head-to-everyone-else-it-is-my-first/#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 } } ] } ```